Obama on Immigration: A Legacy of Failure 1st in a Series based on a Special Report "Detention, Deportation, and Devastation"

The views expressed in this series are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent those of the USHLI Board, staff, or our donors.

When a Latina leader referred to President Barack Obama as the "Deporter in Chief" earlier this year in Washington, DC, I felt a great sense of relief and revival.  At last, one of our leaders finally said what I am sure many of us had been feeling for years.  I for one had had my fill of his reprehensible anti-immigrant policies since the middle of his first term.  Those of us who had high hopes for change following the impactful marches of 2006 and the political sea change that followed can only conclude that Obama was ill-advised by his inner circle and ill-served by his staff from Day One on the issue of Comprehensive Immigration Reform.   

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), and the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) recently released a "must read" report entitled Detention, Deportation, and Devastation: The Disproportionate Effect of Deportations on the Latino Community. 

In my view the well-researched report chronicles the failures of a weak President and inept Congress.  The only thing the two branches agree on is that the system is broken.  Truth be told, they both lack the courage and the inner strength of their convictions to fix the problem. 

Meanwhile Obama is still telling anyone who will listen that he is the immigration champion!  As a candidate he told Latinos everywhere "Si Se Puede!"  Since his election all we've heard from him is "Yo No Puedo" and "No Se Puede".  Obama never will be our immigration champion because real champions don't squander opportunities to win, which he did five years ago.  He's a cheerleader, a Supporter in Chief.  That's all we have in the White House.  This is clearly our fight, which we have to win to save our families from his deportation policies.

In the Introduction the report states ".... the Obama Administration has implemented and pursued immigration enforcement policies and practices that have resulted in historically unprecedented numbers of removals/deportations of immigrants living ....in the United States.  The Administration's immigration enforcement choices carved swaths of devastation across the Latino community, leaving a humanitarian and moral crisis in its wake."  "The Latino community, correctly, assigns culpability to the Obama Administration due to the Executive Branch's plenary role in the execution of immigration enforcement."  (Part 2 next week)     

 

Juan Andrade, Jr.

USHLI President 

Latino Leaders Honors Dr. Juan Andrade

The Latino Leaders "Maestro" Award was presented to Dr. Juan Andrade for Excellence in Leadership during its 10th Annual Gala in Chicago, IL on June 11, 2014.  The award was presented by Jorge Ferraz, publisher of Latino Leaders, in recognition of Dr. Andrade's leadership in promoting education, research, and nonpartisan civic participation. The "Maestro" award is presented annually to Latino leaders who have reached the highest level of excellence in their respective field.  Honored along with Dr. Andrade were Olga Camargo for Community Service, Dr. Juan Alzate for Scientific and Medical, and Juan Gabriel Moreno for Entrepreneurship. In accepting the award Dr. Andrade said "I am honored to receive this prestigious award.  I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to live the dream and to live a life with purpose and meaning.  I have been blessed with great mentors, friends, volunteers and generous donors.  I have been fortunate to have access to the best education possible, memorable experiences in media as a columnist and commentator, and to even skydive with the Black Knights.  It has indeed been a great ride."

The Destruction of Latino Families At the Hands of The Gang of Three Continues

I first wrote about the hundreds of thousands of Latino fathers who couldn't be with their families on Father's Day two years ago, victims of political betrayal and dysfunctional government at the hands of the Gang of Three. The absence of so many fathers on Father's Day last Sunday prompted me to re-visit this sad tragedy - again, not as USHLI president but as a father. MALDEF, NHLA, and NDLON reportedly recently that over 5.5 million children have a parent who is undocumented, and 4.5 million of those children are U.S. citizens.  From 2010-2012 over 200,000 individuals with U.S.-born children were deported. Since 2012 this number has doubled. How many deported fathers missed their children's graduation this spring?  How many weren't present to hear their children's remarks as Valedictorians and Salutatorians?  How many have had to leave their wives behind to be the sole provider and protector? How many are not home to lead their families in prayer before meals or take them to church?  How many have had to leave their families mired in poverty and living in a constant state of uncertainty? So much missing out.  So much hardship, suffering and pain.  Just think about how much we as fathers do for our families every day and that all fathers should be able to do.  These are the things that deported fathers can't do now for their families because of the Gang of Three.  So who is this Gang of Three?  It's a Democratic Senate with cold feet.  It's a Republican House with a cold heart.  It's a President who reneged on his promise to Latino voters to pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform in his first year.  Had the President kept his word when his party controlled both the House and the Senate, all the misery our families have endured over the last five years could have been avoided.          So let's remember our dearly deported fathers that again did not have a "Happy Father's Day" this year.  And those of us who can vote in 2014 need to remember these deported fathers and the millions of other individuals who have been wrongfully deported by this Gang of Three.  We gave these millions of people something to believe in 2008, watched the President betray them in 2009, then watched the House and Senate kick us around like a soccer ball in a game that will end in a scoreless tie.  Now, in 2014, Latino voters have another chance to get it right.  Remember the words of John F. Kennedy, who said, "don't get angry, get even."          Juan Andrade, Jr. USHLI President

USHLI President Addresses George Washington High School Graduates In Chicago

Dr. Juan Andrade, USHLI President, delivered the Commencement Address to the graduating Class of 2014 at George Washington High School.  He was introduced by Andres Sosa, President of the Senior Class.  Special remarks were delivered by the Valedictorian, Alvaro Villarreal, and the Salutatorian, Abigail Villegas.  The event was held at the House of Hope. The event was one of congratulations all around.  Over 3,000 parents, guardians, and relatives were congratulated for their unconditional love and support of the graduating seniors.  Over 300 graduating seniors were congratulated for successfully completing their high school education.  The dedicated faculty and staff were congratulated.  And Dr. Kevin Gallick and Mr. Anthony Malcolm, the Principal and Assistant Principal, respectively, and the entire leadership team were especially congratulated.  It is said that the healthiest human emotion is gratitude and gratitude filled the air throughout the auditorium. USHLI has reached over 500,000 middle school and high school students in nearly 30 states through its Student Leadership Series.  Tens of thousands of these students graduated this month and USHLI congratulates all the graduates for successfully completing this first phase of their education and wishes them all the best in their post-secondary pursuits.  Click HERE to view a 90-seconds video featuring the program components of USHLI. For more information visit www.ushli.org.

Over 7,000 Students and Educators Attend Student Leadership Series Events in New Jersey

An estimated 7,835 students and educators attended USHLI Student Leadership Series (SLS) events held in Jersey City and Passaic, New Jersey.  USHLI is very grateful for the leadership and cooperation provided by administrators at each high school and middle school that hosted an event.  The featured speaker was The Cuban Guy, one of the top motivational speakers in the nation and a favorite among students of all ages from middle school to college.    The SLS is USHLI's flagship youth program.  Our goal in 2014 is to serve 200,000 students, parents, and educators in 30 states and help Create a Culture of Education.  The program is designed to motivate students to improve their academic performance, graduate and pursue some level of post-secondary education.  An estimated 43,136 have been served to date this year in 8 states.  The SLS program focuses on Stay-in-School Rallies for middle school students, Career & College Recruitment Fairs for high school students, Regional Leadership Summits for college students, Leadership Training for parents and Professional Development for educators.   Click HERE to see a one-minute video featuring SLS highlights from 2013. To learn more about hosting an SLS event contact Dr. Juan Andrade at docandrade@ushli.org.

SLS Honorary Chair   SLS Honorary Co-Chair Click Here for a Complete List of Sponsors

USHLI Announces Launch of MillerCoors Scholars 21st Century Leaders Summer Internship Program

The 2014 Class of MillerCoors Scholars has been selected and trained and the 10-week internship program is underway.  A solid group of interns attended orientation and training last week hosted by the Chicago Board of Elections Commissioners (CBOEC) and at Millennium Park for voter registration exercises.  Interns will attend a series of public policy discussions with elected and appointed officials, corporate and community leaders, and other opinion-makers, and register newly naturalized citizens to vote.    USHLI is very grateful to MillerCoors for its continued sponsorship of this internship program and to the CBOEC for its continued support.  CBOEC Executive Director Lance Gough is pictured below (far right) with our interns.    The 2014 Class of MillerCoors Scholars 21st Century Leaders include: Monika Stempniewicz: University of Illinois Chicago; English major, Communication & Psychology minor Jesus Tapia: Northeastern University; Social Work major Alexander Criollo: Morton College; Web Site Development major Sergio A Serrano: Moraine Valley College; Criminal Justice major Abraham Trevino: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Communications major Carlos Espinoza: Lewis University; Aviation Administration major Alexis Diaz: Northern Illinois University; Elementary Education major, Spanish & Latin American Studies minors Gabriela Brizuela: University of Illinois Chicago; Gender and Women Studies & Psychology major Melissa Rocha: Indiana State University; Psychology major Yesica Alvarez: Monmouth College; Spanish major Past participants in the MillerCoors Scholars Internship program have registered over 130,000 new voters, mostly newly naturalized citizens.  The 2014 class will be honored at USHLI's Annual Dinner on August 14 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. For more information contact Dulce Diaz at ddiaz@ushli.org or 312.427.8683

Carlos Espinoza, Jr. & Stephanie Arciga Najar Receive $1,000 Scholarships

Carlos Espinoza, Jr. & Stephanie Arciga Najar Receive $1,000 Scholarships

USHLI has awarded over $1.3 million in scholarships and internships to Latino college students. With affordability being one of the main reasons many Latinos are unable to complete their post-secondary education or training, USHLI tries to help students stay in school and graduate by raising money for scholarships. USHLI is proud to partner with the Ford Blue Oval Scholars program. Twenty (20) Latino students attending 17 colleges or universities in 8 states have been selected to receive scholarships in 2014. Students must demonstrate strong leadership potential and the need for financial support must be equally strong.  Also, additional consideration is given to students who are the first in their family to graduate high school or the first to pursue post-secondary education or training.  Two of our scholarship recipients are Carlos Espinoza Jr. and Stephanie Arciga Najar. Carlos is a junior at the Lewis University and majoring in Aviation Administration. Stephanie is a sophomore attending Linfield College and majoring in Nursing.  Click on their picture to see their short video.                       USHLI continues to be the premier national organization empowering Latino youth by engaging students in nonpartisan civic participation and leadership development, and promoting education. Over 490,000 high school and college students have participated in USHLI's education programs including Students for an Educated Democracy, Citizens for an Educated Democracy, Student Leadership Series, Collegiate Leadership Development, Grassroots Leadership Development, and 21st Century Leaders/MillerCoors Scholars. In addition, USHLI has registered over 2.3 million new voters and published over 425 studies and reports on Latino demographics. In 2012 USHLI was recognized as the National Organization of the Year.