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Iowa Latino Leaders Address Long-Standing Issues At Capitol Event

Iowa LULAC leaders gathered at the Iowa state Capitol on Wednesday, March 31, 2021 for their 'LULAC Day on the Hill' event. Members from chapters across the state came, including West Liberty, Iowa City, Columbus Junction, Denison and others.
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Iowa LULAC leaders gathered at the Iowa State Capitol on Wednesday for their 'LULAC Day on the Hill' event. Members came from chapters across the state, including West Liberty, Iowa City, Columbus Junction, Denison and others.

Members of Iowa’s largest Latino advocacy organization addressed longstanding issues and problems facing the state’s Latino communities at the state Capitol Wednesday.

English

At their 'Day on the Hill' event, the Iowa League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), discussed eight main legislative priorities its members want state lawmakers to address.

  1. Education
  2. English Plus
  3. Environment and climate change
  4. Health
  5. Immigration
  6. Workers' Rights
  7. Economic Opportunity
  8. Citizenship and voting
Nick Salazar spoke to a couple dozen attendees at LULAC's 'Day on the Hill' event on Wednesday, March 31, 2021. The event was also livestreamed on the organization's Facebook page. "Not only do we want to talk about these issues, we want our LULAC members to commit to action," Salazar said. "We want our state legislators to commit to action and engage with their LULAC members and community members."
Hola Iowa
Nick Salazar spoke to a couple dozen attendees at LULAC's 'Day on the Hill' event on Wednesday. The event was also livestreamed on the organization's Facebook page. "Not only do we want to talk about these issues, we want our LULAC members to commit to action," Salazar said. "We want our state legislators to commit to action and engage with their LULAC members and community members."

LULAC leaders urged state lawmakers to consider each topic and how they pertain to Latinos when forming policy. They recommended granting drivers' licenses for all, regardless of citizenship status, improving language access to resources pertaining to the above topics and valuing the benefits Latinos bring to the state.

"We are also here today to commit to action. We've been talking about some of these issues for a long time," LULAC State Director Nick Salazar said. “And so when we talk about policy change, we don't need half measures, or piecemeal legislation. We need bold legislation to address several of these issues."

He explained many times, issues facing Latino communities face other populations as well, but they may disproportionately affect Latinos. LULAC representatives spoke in detail about how each priority can be improved with the support from state leadership and Latino communities throughout the state.

Mónica Reyes also founded DREAM Iowa, a nonprofit advocacy organization for immigrants. Reyes is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient. "IT is time for us to exercise our right in public policy," Reyes said.
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Mónica Reyes also founded DREAM Iowa, a nonprofit advocacy organization for immigrants. Reyes is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient. "It is time for us to exercise our right in public policy," Reyes said.

Mónica Reyes, LULAC Iowa’s deputy state director for women, pointed to lawmakers on the floor above as she spoke about immigration policies in the state.

"Those people are there and are showing up every day to work and write laws that directly impact Latinos in the state of Iowa. And we need to hold them accountable, be part of that process, share our stories and make sure that we are making we are being a part of those decisions," Reyes said.

Salazar and Reyes were joined by other speakers: Ed Moreno (LULAC West Liberty), Marlén Mendoza (LULAC Iowa City), Joe Henry (LULAC Des Moines), Patricia Ritchie (LULAC Denison), Sergio Pérez (LULAC Diversity Officer), Caleb Knutson (Office of Latino Affairs), Rob Barron (Latino Political Network). Iowa Reps. Ras Smith and Eddie Andrews provided a legislative update.

All speakers talked about the importance of Latinos continuing to participate in government to ensure Black and brown voices are heard.

Some speakers discussed their opposition to a few bills recently passed or currently being debated that limit voting access, complicate immigration procedures and bar some types of diversity training.

"We're also in support of banning racial profiling on a state level in denounce the inaction of the governor and Republican-controlled legislature, which broke its promise to ban racial profiling," Joe Henry, LULAC state political director, added.

Latinos make up one of the largest ethnic groups in Iowa. More than 6 percent of the state's population identifies as Latino.

En Español

La traducción de Hola Iowa.

Los miembros de la mayor organización de defensa de los latinos de Iowa abordaron el miércoles en el Capitolio estatal cuestiones y problemas a los que se enfrentan las comunidades latinas del estado.

En su evento “Día en el Capitolio”, la Liga de Ciudadanos Latinoamericanos Unidos de Iowa (LULAC), discutió ocho prioridades legislativas principales que sus miembros quieren que los legisladores estatales aborden.

  1. La educación
  2. El inglés como plus
  3. Medio ambiente y cambio climático
  4. Salud
  5. Inmigración
  6. Derechos de los trabajadores
  7. Oportunidad económica
  8. Ciudadanía y voto

Los líderes de LULAC instaron a los legisladores del estado a considerar cada uno de los temas y su relación con los latinos a la hora de elaborar políticas. Recomiendan que se conceda el permiso de conducir a todos, independientemente del estatus de ciudadanía, que se mejore el acceso a los recursos lingüísticos relacionados con los temas mencionados y que se valoren los beneficios que los latinos aportan al estado.

“También estamos aquí hoy para comprometernos a actuar. Hemos estado hablando de algunos de estos temas durante mucho tiempo”, dijo el director estatal de LULAC, Nick Salazar. “Y por eso, cuando hablamos de cambio de políticas, no necesitamos medidas a medias, ni legislación superficial. Necesitamos una legislación enérgica para atender varios de estos temas”.

Explicó que muchas veces, los problemas que afrontan las comunidades latinas también afectan a otras poblaciones, pero pueden afectar desproporcionadamente a los latinos. Los representantes de LULAC hablaron en detalle sobre cómo se puede mejorar cada una de las prioridades con el apoyo del liderazgo estatal y de las comunidades latinas en todo el estado.

Mónica Reyes, subdirectora estatal de LULAC Iowa para las mujeres, señaló a los legisladores en el piso de arriba mientras hablaba de las políticas de inmigración en el estado.

“Esas personas están ahí y se presentan cada día para trabajar y escribir leyes que impactan directamente a los latinos en el estado de Iowa. Y necesitamos hacerlos responsables, ser parte de ese proceso, compartir nuestras historias y asegurarnos de que estamos siendo parte de esas decisiones”, dijo Reyes.

Salazar y Reyes se unieron a otros oradores: Ed Moreno (LULAC West Liberty), Marlén Mendoza (LULAC Iowa City), Joe Henry (LULAC Des Moines), Patricia Ritchie (LULAC Denison), Sergio Pérez (LULAC Diversity Officer), Caleb Knutson (Office of Latino Affairs), Rob Barron (Latino Political Network). Los Reps. Ras Smith y Eddie Andrews ofrecieron una actualización legislativa.

Todos los oradores hablaron de la importancia de que los latinos sigan participando en el gobierno para garantizar que se escuchen las voces afroamericanas y latinas.

Algunos oradores hablaron de su oposición a algunos proyectos de ley recientemente aprobados o actualmente en debate que limitan el acceso al voto, complican los procedimientos de inmigración y prohíben algunos tipos de formación sobre la diversidad.

“También apoyamos la prohibición de los perfiles raciales a nivel estatal para denunciar la pasividad de la gobernadora y de la legislatura controlada por los republicanos, que incumplieron su promesa de prohibir los perfiles raciales”, añadió Joe Henry, director político estatal de LULAC.

Los latinos constituyen uno de los mayores grupos étnicos de Iowa. Más del 6 por ciento de la población del estado se identifica como latina.

Kassidy was a reporter based in Des Moines