Progressive Groups Hold National Day of
Action
for the Dream Act ... 1 of 4 > |
Feb. 7, 2018 - Preparing
for the rally at Lutheran Church of the Reformation on Capitol
Hill. A press release from CASA stated: "Trump created the crisis we face
when he killed DACA by putting the lives of immigrant youth in
immediate danger and punted the problem to Congress. Now, he and his
anti-immigrant advisors like Stephen Miller, have taken immigrant youth
hostage with their latest white supremacist plan that attacks immigrant
parents and family immigration, Black and brown immigrants, and their
community.
"Now is the time for both Republicans and Democrats to make a moral choice to reject the Trump immigration proposal and pass a simple and narrow legislation that protects immigrant youth without harming others." |
Meanwhile in the basement
leaders were preparing for civil disobedience actions. Jennifer
Flynn-Walker (left), director of mobilization and advocacy at
the Center for Popular Democracy, helped prepare people who might be
arrested (piñas) and
distributed money. According to its website, "CPD builds the
power of communities to ensure the country embodies our vision of an
inclusive, equitable society -- where people of color, immigrants,
working families, women, and LGBTQ communities thrive together,
supported by a resilient economy and political institutions that
reflect our priorities. CPD’s role is especially important at a
time when our communities are being threatened and the institutions
that sustain us are under attack." |
Brunilda Concepcion of
Kissimmee, FL is an activist with Organize Florida. She said
building affordable housing is a top priority in her area.
Families can't qualify to rent apartments (for example they have
recently arrived and cannot satisfy background checks or don't have
insurance) and end up in hotels, which are expensive and where they can
only stay for three months. Some are are in cars. Another
activist, Linette E. Rivera of the Outreach Access Center, reflected on
the many Puerto Ricans who arrived following Hurricane Maria in
September. She said she had helped as many as 60 people a day
right
after the storm, and said that by October school budgets for the year
had already been
spent.
"This is just the beginning," she said. |
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