LULAC Members From Across the U.S. and Puerto Rico Visit With Over 80 Offices on Capitol Hill
Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) October 04, 2013 -- This week, LULAC members from across the country took part in LULAC’s ACTober: Fall Advocacy Days. The nation’s oldest and largest Latino organization conducted advocacy visits with Congressional offices and addressed issues such as education, health care, and immigration reform.
LULAC members also attended panel discussions and briefings on health care, education, immigration reform, civil rights, and the status of Puerto Rico. LULAC kicked off its advocacy days by holding a press conference that included the Honorable Raul Grijalva, the Honorable Marc Veasey, and the Honorable Henry Cuellar. At the press conference, key speakers made the following significant observations.
“Immigration needs to be a priority issue for the House of Representative,” said Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona. “LULAC has always been at the forefront of the immigration fight, and now it’s time to let the American people, through its representatives, have its will.”
“The Hispanic-American dream - the hope of a better, more prosperous future - is the American Dream,” said Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas. “As we continue to celebrate the contributions of Latinos during Hispanic Heritage Month, I am honored to stand with LULAC to push key policy issues that impact the U.S. Hispanic community. As a longtime supporter of comprehensive immigration reform, I am proud to be an original cosponsor of HR 15, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act, introduced yesterday by my friend, Rep. Joe Garcia. The time to fix our broken immigration system is long overdue.”
“The biggest enemy we have right now on immigration is time - it's the calendar,” said Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas. “If Congress doesn't act this year, we are not going to talk about immigration reform until 2017.”
“If Congress doesn't act on the community's priorities, the American people will voice their displeasure in the next election and LULAC will make sure they know who was responsible for keeping immigration reform from passing,” said LULAC National President Margaret Moran.
Also participating in the press conference was Darryl Morin, LULAC National Vice-President for the Midwest Region. “We know that immigration reform would stimulate the economy and eliminate approximately $1 trillion from our federal deficit. The lack of support to schedule a House Floor Vote raises a key question, that is, what is the real reason for not supporting comprehensive immigration reform?”
LULAC urged Congress to do what is right for the economy and communities across the U.S. and pass commonsense immigration reform with a path to citizenship.
About LULAC:
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 900 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit http://www.LULAC.org.
Paloma Zuleta, LULAC, http://www.LULAC.org, 202-812-4477, [email protected]
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