Trump Continues Attack on Immigrant Communities and the Census
07.11.2019
WASHINGTON -- Today, the Trump administration announced that it...
07.11.2019
WASHINGTON -- Today, the Trump administration announced that it will issue an executive order requiring government agencies to compile and send records on citizens and noncitizens to the Department of Commerce, as the administration dropped its effort to add a citizenship question directly to the 2020 census questionnaire. Concurrently, homeland security officials confirmed that beginning Sunday, it would hold raids nationwide to arrest thousands of members of undocumented families. In response to this series of attacks on the livelihoods and political power of immigrant communities, the Center for Popular Democracy released the following statement from Ana Maria Archila, co-executive director.
“The Trump Administration continues to escalate its attacks on immigrant communities on all fronts. Today, Trump announced that even without a citizenship question on the census, his administration is charging forward with an executive order to track noncitizen data and manipulate the census.
“This is another attempt by this Administration to erase the voices of immigrants in our democracy and instill fear in our communities. Trump’s immigration policies continue to advance a radical white nationalist vision for the country that uses the tactic of constantly scapegoating immigrants in order to exclude us from our society, our democracy and our economy.
“The President is attempting to scare our communities out of participating in the census. The president believes that he can bully us into the shadows. We will not be afraid. We will work to make sure immigrant communities are protected, represented and treated with dignity.”
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Media Contact: Lia Weintraub, lweintraub@populardemocracy.org, 202.618.2482
"It's Time to Fight Back": Hundreds of #CloseTheCamps Rallies Planned Across the Country Amid Reports of Abuse in Detention Centers
"It's Time to Fight Back": Hundreds of #CloseTheCamps Rallies Planned Across the Country Amid Reports of Abuse in Detention Centers
MoveOn was joined by the ACLU, the Center for Popular Democracy, and other organizations in planning at least 184 events in cities and towns across the country.
...
MoveOn was joined by the ACLU, the Center for Popular Democracy, and other organizations in planning at least 184 events in cities and towns across the country.
Read the full article here.
Dear Maybe Trump voter: Immigration bluster is a head fake designed to con you into voting for him
Dear Maybe Trump voter: Immigration bluster is a head fake designed to con you into voting for him
Natalia Salgado, a senior political strategist with the Center for Popular Democracy, a progressive organization, warned that Trump is misjudging the political effect his policies will have: “What...
Natalia Salgado, a senior political strategist with the Center for Popular Democracy, a progressive organization, warned that Trump is misjudging the political effect his policies will have: “What he doesn’t understand is that in communities of color, that sort of raising of the temperature and fear-mongering is also going to bring us out.”
Read the full article here.
Trump’s threat to deport millions of immigrants risks backlash in 2020
Trump’s threat to deport millions of immigrants risks backlash in 2020
“What he doesn’t understand is that in communities of color, that sort of raising of the temperature and fear mongering is also going to bring us out,” said Natalia Salgado, senior political...
“What he doesn’t understand is that in communities of color, that sort of raising of the temperature and fear mongering is also going to bring us out,” said Natalia Salgado, senior political strategist at the Center for Popular Democracy, a group that opposes Trump’s immigration policies.”
Read the full article here.
New York Grants Driver’s Licenses to Undocumented Residents
New York Grants Driver’s Licenses to Undocumented Residents
As a new report by the Center for Popular Democracy and EPI highlights, the number of workers that each Wage and Hour Division investigator at DOL was responsible for in 1978 was just over 69,000...
As a new report by the Center for Popular Democracy and EPI highlights, the number of workers that each Wage and Hour Division investigator at DOL was responsible for in 1978 was just over 69,000.
Read about it here.
New York Grants Driver’s Licenses to Undocumented Residents
New York Grants Driver’s Licenses to Undocumented Residents
Today in New York, immigrant rights activists are celebrating after Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill allowing undocumented residents to obtain driver's licenses. The bill overturns a...
Today in New York, immigrant rights activists are celebrating after Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill allowing undocumented residents to obtain driver's licenses. The bill overturns a nearly 20 year ban and came after years of grassroots and political organizing. Proponents of the bill say it not only helps to protect immigrant communities but also makes roads safer. Ana Maria Archila of the Center for Popular Democracy tweeted about historic passing of the legislation, commonly referred to as the green light bill, saying, “for as long as I've been an activist we've been trying to win driver's licenses for all New York state residents. This fight is about the freedom to move without fear and the right to return to our families at the end of the day. Today democracy came alive and delivered justice.
Read about it here.
Immigration enforcement funded far better than labor law enforcement
Immigration enforcement funded far better than labor law enforcement
“Furthermore, the agents and investigators at labor agencies who actually police the labor market, who are a subset of the total personnel employed, have seen their workloads reach unrealistic...
“Furthermore, the agents and investigators at labor agencies who actually police the labor market, who are a subset of the total personnel employed, have seen their workloads reach unrealistic levels because hiring has failed to keep up. As a new report by the Center for Popular Democracy and EPI highlights, the number of workers that each Wage and Hour Division investigator at DOL was responsible for in 1978 was just over 69,000. By 2018, that had more than doubled, to 175,000 workers per investigator on average. It’s a similar story at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA): there were just over 60,000 workers for every OSHA compliance officer in 1978; the number in 2018 had roughly tripled to nearly 180,000.
Read the full story here.
New Liberate MKE campaign community groups vow to take on Milwaukee's city budget
New Liberate MKE campaign community groups vow to take on Milwaukee's city budget
The Liberate MKE campaign is a collaboration between 25 partners, including the ACLU of Wisconsin, BLOC, Center for Popular Democracy, Citizen Action Wisconsin, Leaders Igniting Transformation,...
The Liberate MKE campaign is a collaboration between 25 partners, including the ACLU of Wisconsin, BLOC, Center for Popular Democracy, Citizen Action Wisconsin, Leaders Igniting Transformation, MICAH, Urban Underground, the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort, Wisconsin Voices and the YWCA of Southeast Wisconsin.
Read the full article here.
New York Expanded Rent Control. Will Other Cities Follow Suit?
New York Expanded Rent Control. Will Other Cities Follow Suit?
“It was the alliance of tenants and homeless New Yorkers in New York City and smaller cities around the state that made the new laws possible, says Sarah Treuhaft, managing director at PolicyLink...
“It was the alliance of tenants and homeless New Yorkers in New York City and smaller cities around the state that made the new laws possible, says Sarah Treuhaft, managing director at PolicyLink. Earlier this year, PolicyLink released a report in conjunction with the Right to the City Alliance and the Center for Popular Democracy advocating for the expansion of rent control nationwide.
Read the full story here.
Puerto Rico, Diaspora Call on Congress to Hold Hearings on FOMB
06.19.2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
...
06.19.2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Media Contact: Lia Weintraub, lweintraub@populardemocracy.org, 202-618-2482
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Over 60 organizations today released a letter to the United States Senate urging oversight of Puerto Rico’s Financial Management and Oversight Board (FOMB) before the Senate votes on the members President Trump has nominated.
The letter, submitted by groups including the Center for Popular Democracy, 32BJ SEIU, LatinoJustice, PRLDEF, Diaspora en Resistencia, and Boricuas Unidos en La Diáspora, among many others who represent the interests of hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans in Puerto Rico and the United States who have been directly affected by Puerto Rico’s economic and humanitarian crises. The letter raises concerns about the role that the FOMB has played on the recovery of the island. The FOMB was created to oversee a process for Puerto Rico to regain access to the capital markets, yet in reality, it has seized control over public finances and exerted its power over local budgetary decision making, hurting hundreds of thousands on the island and throughout the diaspora.
Signers encourage the Senate to hold a hearing in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to properly investigate the conflicts of interest on the body and the level of accountability and transparency achieved by the public agency. They note a series of offenses the FOMB carried out, including: deregulation of labor rights, significant budget cuts in education and pensions, and electric bill hikes.
“The role that the Senate can play in overseeing the confirmation of the members of the FOMB cannot be overstated. Over the last 2 years, the FOMB has taken control of Puerto Rico's finances and pushed measures that will impact the economic development of the island and the ability of Puerto Ricans to stay in their homeland for decades. The conflicts of interest that have plagued the members of this board are well recorded and raise serious questions about their ability to make decisions based on the best interest of Puerto Ricans. We hope that the Senate can understand the importance of this moment and hold hearings that allow the members of the board to be held accountable before any confirmation vote” stated Julio López Varona, co-director of community dignity campaigns at the Center For Popular Democracy.
“From the moment the FOMB members were given their positions, the Puerto Rican community has held a close watch on the decisions that they’ve made. So far, they are setting us up to fail. We have had families in the diaspora and on the island who have felt the burden of restructuring deals that line the pockets of Wall Street investors. As the administration re-nominates the same FOMB members, we are demanding an audit of their work to date. The nominees must not be voted forward in light of the detrimental actions they’ve made on behalf of our community” said Luis Ponce Ruiz, Co-founder, Boricuas Unidos en la Diáspora.
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