Thread: Tx-Voting drive will focus on immigrants to Texas

Voting drive will focus on immigrants to Texas
By Brandi Grissom / Austin Bureau
Article Launched: 07/10/2008 05:42:25 PM MDT


AUSTIN - A national alliance of advocacy organizations on Thursday launched a campaign to register about 85,000 new voters in Texas immigrant communities and to ensure that about 150,000 already registered immigrants get to the polls in November.
"One of the major stories after Election Day will be the rise in voters in immigrant communities," said Ben Monterroso, executive director of Mi Familia Vota Education Fund.

This year, We Are America Alliance, made up of more than a dozen immigrant rights, ethnically-based and community leadership organizations, aims to register 500,000 new immigrant voters in 13 states. Texas, which is home to the nation's second-largest Latino population, will be one of the group's priority targets.

The organizations formed the alliance in 2006 to harness the energy from massive immigration rallies.

In addition to continued concerns about immigration reform, Monterroso said, Texas Latinos are worried about the faltering economy, the war in Iraq, health care and education.
"It's not one single issue that is mobilizing us," Monterroso said. "There was one issue that united us."

Daniel Arellano, chairman of the El Paso Eastside chapter of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN, said the association has already registered more than 25,000 new voters statewide, including 4,500 in El Paso.

The group plans to continue its efforts in El Paso, hosting voter registration drives and using local media to encourage

immigrants to obtain citizenship and vote in November, he said.
They will also reach out to those who are registered but are not regular voters.

The prospect of changing the nation's direction with a new president, Arellano said, is inspiring more El Paso Latinos to become civically engaged.

"The cost of living has gone up, gas has gone up, there's been reductions in health care, and in this region a lot of people have said ... there's like a new light of hope in the future," he said.

Ken Ducre, a pastor at All Saints Catholic Church and co-chairman of the El Paso Interreligious Sponsoring Organization, said he has seen more parishioners working toward citizenship, wanting to vote in November.

Immigrants, he said, are often among the poor whose lives are most affected by government decisions.

Some are realizing that their vote can be a powerful force.

"We've seen change," Ducre said. "Our people know it can happen."

Brandi Grissom can be reached at bgrissom@elpasotimes.com; (512) 479-6606.
If i were a latino that came legally i would be pissed .
http://www.elpasotimes.com/newupdated/ci_9843022

"The cost of living has gone up, gas has gone up, there's been reductions in health care, and in this region a lot of people have said ... there's like a new light of hope in the future," he said.

Then excuse me, but WHY would we want millions of illiterate, uneducated illegal aliens begetting MORE illiterate kids?!?!?!

I do NOT want to pay for these people! I do NOT want my money going to these people! I do NOT want these people here! The new light of hope in MY AMERICAN future is the deportation of all illegal aliens!

If these activists think that we latinos/hispanics whatever will vote as a bloc, they had better grow the hell up and smell their own crap, cuz it ain't happening!

Guess what, oh clueless ones? We may tell you want you want to hear, to prevent retaliation & harassment that your beloved illegal aliens mete out, but the voting booth is PRIVATE and I will vote for whoever will DEPORT illegal aliens, entiende?

I AM pissed and I'm NOT gonna take it anymore!