HARTFORD, Conn. – At 11 AM on Monday, April 3, leaders of labor and immigrant rights groups will join with elected officials in Room 1B of the Legislative Office Building to announce their plans for participating in the largest mobilization of immigrants and supporters since the Trump election. Channeling momentum from “day without an immigrant” events around the country, hundreds of thousands of diverse supporters are expected to march for immigrant rights nationwide, calling for an end to the Trump administration’s harsh deportation strategy.
Speakers available for interviews will include:
- Representative Juan Candelaria, Deputy Speaker of the House (MC)
- State Senator Gary Winfield, New Haven
- Representative William Tong, Stamford, Darien
- Ciro Gutierrez, 32BJ SEIU member
- Jesus Morales Sanchez: Organizer, Connecticut Immigrant Rights Alliance
- Ingrid Alvarez, CT State Director, Hispanic Federation
- David McGuire, Executive Director American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut
- Melissa-Sue John, Researcher at Worcester Polytechnic Inst., Lecturer at Eastern Connecticut State Univ. & small business owner
- Bishop John Selders, Pastor, Amistad United Church of Christ
32BJ SEIU, community and immigrants’ rights organization will be mobilizing thousands to call for an end to the Trump administration mass deportation strategy. The Trump administration’s systematic attempt to criminalize immigrants is not only an assault on the civil rights of communities of color but a dangerous path that is already having dramatic consequences in communities across the country as hate crimes against immigrants and those perceived to be foreign continue to spread.
“Standing up for the rights of workers, whether they be immigrants, the poor, or the disadvantaged has never been easy. But, especially in these times, when our values are under attack, stepping forward is absolutely necessary,” said Juan Hernandez, District Leader of 32BJ SEIU Connecticut. “Families in our community are being destroyed; American-born children are being separated from their parents. We refuse to stand aside and do nothing.”
The Trump administration’s deportation forces have terrorized immigrant families, hurt the economy for all working people and threatened the safety of all communities. Taxpayers already spend more money on immigration enforcement than on enforcing all other laws combined. Immigrants strengthen our economy by creating millions of jobs every year, running almost a fifth of the small businesses across America. They do the work that our families need and that drives our economy, like caring for our children, the sick and the elderly, and securing and cleaning our offices and airports.
Supporting Organizations of the “Here to Stay” Rally: 32BJ SEIU Connecticut; The 4Cs SEIU 1973; 1199 SEIU New England; Action Together CT; AFL-CIO; American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut; American Federation of Teachers Connecticut; Amistad United Church of Christ; Black and Latino Caucus of the CT State Legislature; Center for Latino Progress; Center for a New Economy; Connecticut Immigrant Rights Alliance (CIRA); Connecticut Students for a Dream; CT NOW; Fight for $15; Hispanic Federation; Make the Road CT; Moral Mondays CT; New Haven’s Peoples Center; Planned Parenthood of Southern New England; SEIU-State Council; Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ); Unidad Latina en Acción (ULA); UAW Region 9A, Working Families Party
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With 163,000 members in 11 states, including 4,500 in Connecticut, 32BJ SEIU is the largest property service workers union in the country. 32BJ members hail from 64 different countries and speak 28 different languages.