Latino Congress Meets in Los Angeles to Tackle Immigration Reform, Sponsored by Hugo Chavez

September 6, 2006 in Border Security, Hugo Chavez, Illegal Immigration, Venezuela

From ABC News

What is being hailed as the largest gathering of Hispanic leaders in decades began Wednesday with promises to re-energize a campaign to secure citizenship for over 11 million illegal immigrants.

The four-day National Latino Congreso opened as the immigration reform movement is trying to regain momentum following internal divisions and as the U.S. Congress returns for its fall session having all but shelved immigration reform.

“This conference is designed to get us back on the offensive,” said John Trasvina, interim president of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund. “Congress is doing nothing for Latino issues.”

Sessions include speeches and workshops on registering Hispanic voters, running Hispanic political candidates, wage gaps between Hispanics and whites, environmental issues and a lack of access to health care in immigrant communities. The conference culminates Saturday afternoon with a rally.

The Event is being organized by the National Latino Congreso

The event is expected to draw 2,000 delegates representing leaders from community organizations, labor and business community, religious groups, student organizations, environmental, health and community development groups.

The National Latino Congreso is convened by the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) www.lclaa.org, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) www.lulac.org, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) www.maldef.org, the National Alliance of Latin American and Caribbean Communities (NALACC) www.nalacc.org, the National Hispanic Environmental Council (NHEC) www.nheec.org, Southwest Voter Registration Education Project (SVREP) www.svrep.org, the William C. Velasquez Institute (WCVI) www.WCVI.org, and Earth Day Network (EDN) www.earthday.net.

Notice who is at the Top of the Thank you list… None other than Hugo Chavez…. Other notables on the thank you list include CITGO (Chavez wanted to give twice) The Heinz Family Foundation, General Motors, Southwest Airlines, and Starbucks…  

The Conveners of the National Latino Congress would like to thank the following foundations, corporations, organizations and individuals for their support, funding, goods & services:

Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
American Income Life Insurance
Aveda Corporation
Bio-Beetle Eco Rental Cars
Bruce Bastian
CITGO Petroleum Corporation
Clear the Air
Drug Policy Alliance
ECOLIMO
Edison International
General Motors Corporation
The Heinz Family Foundation
William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Hispanic Business Magazine
John Koza
LA Audubon Society
La Opinion
Levi Strauss Foundation
Metropak, Inc
Microlink Technologies
New Century Financial Corporation
Jesse Smith Noyes Foundation
Putumayo World Music
RealTALKLA
Resource Legacy Fund Foundation (Wildlands Protection Program)
Sanofi-Aventis
Seattle Foundation
Sierra Club
Southwest Airlines
Starbucks Coffee Company
The Gas Company, A Sempra Energy Utility
The Turner Foundation
Wells Fargo
Whole Foods Market

**This was a production of The Coalition Against Illegal Immigration (CAII). If you would like to participate, please go to the above link to learn more. Afterwards, email the coalition and let me know at what level you would like to participate.