LOS kicks off campaign

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Rosi Carrasco

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Apr 13, 2009, 1:07:46 PM4/13/09

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information contact:

April 13, 2009 Carlos Heredia: 773/925-0397

Rosi Carrasco: 773/656-0881

Southwest Side Group kicks off campaign calling for renewed

legalization efforts and support for May Day March

Southwest side residents write to President Obama urging immediate action on the immigration front.

Ana Romero, ESL student, asks Obama to “stop the raids and deportations and begin work on immigration reform . . . Legalization is the rallying cry emanating from our immigrant brothers’ hearts who live silently in the shadows and face an uncertain future.”

“All Latinos, whether undocumented, permanent residents or U.S. citizens must stand united and push for federal legislation to do justice to the millions whose daily toil and sacrifice benefit everyone in the country,” stated neighborhood resident Carmen Gallegos.

Letters from the letter-writing campaign will be posted for all to view. Voces, the Latino Organization of the Southwest’s newsletter, will also include Ana Romero’s letter.

Obama is expected to make a statement in May, proposing a path to legalization.

A long and contentious legislative debate is expected to ensue. The Latino community had been expecting a clear signal from the White House since the president’s inauguration. LOS welcomes the news. However, we cannot afford to sit back and be complacent. We do not expect this process to proceed smoothly. Racism, skepticism and concerns with the economic crisis could become major stumbling blocks.

We cannot allow an economic crisis created by corporate greed and government neglect to once again deal a cruel blow to the hopes and dreams of millions of undocumented immigrants. The aftermath of 9/11 is a painful reminder of the nation’s indifference to the immigrant community’s plight. The new suffering of the majority must not supersede the old suffering of our immigrant population. In spite of the current economic difficulties, we can do and must do the right thing, the moral thing: we must alleviate the immigrants’ long-standing pain and suffering and recognize their societal contributions. Justice to immigrants is justice to all.

The Latino Organization of the Southwest, a southwest side community organization founded and led by immigrants combines services, advocacy and organizing in its work with Latino immigrant families. It has launched “Comprehensive Rights for Immigrants, “a renewed campaign to raise to the next level the struggle for immigrant rights. It’s setting up an Immigrant Information and Assistance Center for our families, publishing a newsletter and creating base committees to better respond to today’s challenges facing our community.

Mass mobilizations are also a part of this effort and, as in recent years LOS is involved in the organization of the May Day March and strongly urges residents and groups to do the same.

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