Six key organizations harnessing the power of the Latino Vote in 2020
According to a New York Times article written by Stephanie Valencia, “Latinas and ambivalent Latino voters are key to winning back the White House in 2020.” As the most significant racial minority in the upcoming election, Latinos are vital in throwing out President Trump and inviting Joe Biden, a Latino-community ally, into the White House. For this to happen, waking up the Latino Electorate is crucial for the 2020 Presidential election.
According to Valencia, previously uncertain Latino voters aren’t indifferent to voting, but rather, they feel as if their vote won’t make a difference, and therefore, it’s not worth casting. One participant in Valencia’s study noted that; “it’s really difficult to be excited about something that seems as though it is out of your hands.” For this upcoming elections we need to convince all eligible Latino voters; that their voices matter because there is power in their numbers.
Given our current quarantined circumstances; many families are not getting in-person guidance from election poll staffers who come knocking at their door. However, even though in-person help is not taking place, the following organizations are doing the same type of work virtually.
These Latino-focused organizations are committed to waking up the Latino Electorate by providing voter registration assistance; mobilization, and information to the Latino community.
America’s Voice
“The mission of America’s Voice (AV) and America’s Voice Education Fund (AVEF) is to build the public support and the political will needed to enact policy changes that secure freedom and opportunity for immigrants in America.”
Given the current administration’s fiercely anti-undocumented immigrant narrative. AV’s main priority is to promote comprehensive and inclusive immigration reform that will give citizenship to the US’ 11 million undocumented immigrants. In the last few years, AV has gained momentum through initiatives like their popular Immigration 101 blog; which provides information on what it means to ask for asylum or for DREAMER protections.
In 2018, AV established a new project called “DHS (Department of Homeland Security) Watch,” which reports on the ethics of the Trump Administration’s treatment of immigrants. DHS Watch includes coverage on the death of six immigrant children under DHS’s care; and how Trump’s policies in his first term as the president put thousands of lives at risk. The idea here is that the more that eligible Latino leaders inform themselves about these topics; the more they’ll be prompted to vote in an informative manner, and therefore cast their vote for the right candidate.
Mi Familia Vota
Mi Familia Vota “is a national civic engagement organization that unites Latino. Immigrant, and allied communities to promote social and economic justice through citizenship workshop, voter registration, and voter participation.”
Mainly operating in Arizona, Colorado, California, Texas, Florida, and Nevada, MVL mobilizes, educates, and promotes year-round voter engagement. Through summits, virtual meetings, and town halls; they inform the Latino community about immigration, voting rights, the environment, worker’s rights, education, and health care and maintain an active Facebook page.
MFV recently launched a $10 million campaign to 3.3 million eligible Latino voters in time for November’s election. It is titled “#BastaTrump,” translated to “#StopTrump,” highlighting the organization’s efforts to vote Trump out of office.
Voto Latino
Voto Latino — Founded in 2004, this well-known organization focuses on “uniting and empowering the Latino community.” Voto Latino’s website examines issues impacting the Latino community as well as the community of color overall. For instance, their site includes articles about police brutality, paid sick leave, fair pay, and other issues.
Voto Latino’s president; Maria Teresa Kumar reached out to the Biden campaign team and asked what changes Biden would make if he was elected president. In response, Biden submitted a 22-page report outlining every change he would make; which included raising the national minimum wage to $15 and providing a path to citizenship for DREAMERS. Voto Latino is committed to waking up the Latino electorate for the 2020 election.
We Are All Human: The Hispanic Star
We Are All Human — is “devoted to diversity & inclusion as a way to achieve equity, they convene the network of progressive leaders and inspire and facilitate collective action.”
Staying true to their five pillars of collaboration, fearlessness, inclusivity, innovation; and community, one of The Hispanic Star’s main projects is The Hispanic Promise. Launched in association with the World Economic Forum in 2019, this venture’s goal is hiring, promoting, retaining; and celebrating Hispanics in the workplace. It is a pledge signed by companies who “aim to increase the number of Hispanic employees to better reflect the US population; increase Hispanic representation in all levels and all functions of a company, and assess the sentiment of Hispanics in a company.”
To help achieve this goal, the Hispanic Star holds Hispanic Leadership Summits in Chicago, New York City, Dallas; and San Francisco. These events inform attending Latino community members of their peers’ outstanding achievements across the country. According to their website; these summits aim to “gather leaders in a platform for dialogue and change that addresses the lack of unification among the U.S. Hispanic community,” to empower the community as a whole.
League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
LULAC was founded in 1929, making it the “nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities.
Their mission statement is to “advance the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, housing, health and civil rights of the Hispanic population of the United States.” On their website, LULAC provides information on how to become a citizen or apply for deferred action and includes a Spanish-language self-help page.
Well established within the Latino community, LULAC also operates its own scholarship program, corporate and federal job bank, and a corporate alliance composed of more than 30 leading corporate firms looking into improving their partnership with the Latino community.
These organizations help eligible voters figure out if there’s a local event and how to get involved in; either to volunteer and support their cause or perhaps attend virtual events to maintain themselves informed. Latinos need the opportunity to read more about the main policy issues at hand, register to vote, and hence take the initiative to use their electoral power as a community. These are some of the tactics LULAC is using for waking up the Latino electorate for the 2020 presidential election.
Note: The structure of this piece was inspired by Giovanni Rodriguez’s article, “The Organizations Behind the Great Latino Vote,” published in Forbes.
