Biden Campaign Press Release - ICYMI: Voces de la Frontera Action Endorses Joe Biden and Kamala Harris

Today, Voces de la Frontera Action, the advocacy branch of Voces de la Frontera devoted to fighting for immigration reform and the rights of Latino immigrants and low wage workers in the United States, formally endorsed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for president and vice president of the United States. The announcement came after a closed-door meeting with Kamala Harris in Milwaukee on Monday evening, which followed a statewide member vote supporting the endorsement.

"The Biden immigration platform has clear policies for immigration reform, labor protections, access to testing for all people, and real economic relief for workers and their families struggling during this pandemic," said Christine Neumann-Ortz, Executive Director of VDLFA. "This stands in sharp contrast to Trump, whose policies and platform favor the wealthiest, are undermining our ability to recover from this pandemic and are costing countless lives."

Voces de la Frontera Action issued the following press release:

Voces de la Frontera Action Membership Statement:

Following Monday Meeting in Milwaukee with Senator Kamala Harris, Voces de la Frontera Action officially endorses Biden and Harris

Voces de la Frontera Action

Hola Members and Friends of Voces de la Frontera Action!

Following a closed-door meeting with Senator Kamala Harris in Milwaukee on Monday evening, Voces de la Frontera Action is proud to officially announce our endorsement of Joe Biden for 46th President of the United States and Kamala Harris for 49th Vice President of the United States.

Over the past few weeks, the Voces de la Frontera Action board's recommendation to endorse the Biden-Harris ticket was communicated to our members statewide to conduct a formal vote. The endorsement was supported by our membership.

On Monday evening, and in recognition of Labor Day, Sen. Harris met with a delegation of Voces de la Frontera Action members who are essential workers or family of essential workers to discuss the struggles that Latinx and immigrant workers have faced during the pandemic. The delegation included: Jose Flores, Karina Sánchez, María Ramírez Vázquez, Cassandra Elena Casas, and Christine Neumann-Ortiz, Executive Director of Voces de la Frontera Action.

Ramírez Vázquez, a single mother of 4 children that was recently fired from her job in a meat processing facility in Franklin, Wisconsin because she was organizing for adequate COVID-19 protections, felt heard and supported by Senator Harris.

"I was pleased because she treated us so well. She listened to what we had to say, to everything that has happened to us during this pandemic and understood our needs," she said.

Jose Flores, a taco truck owner, discussed with Senator Harris the need to end 287G, a program that promotes collaboration between local law enforcement and ICE, undermining community safety and separating families. This program is operating in his hometown of Waukesha and programs like it have expanded to five additional counties this summer under the Trump Administration. Flores also discussed the need for government support for small businesses that create more jobs, as well as the need to protect and extend Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) & bring back Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) in the first 100 days of a new Biden-Trump Administration & work with Congress to pass immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship.

"What surprised me is that she really took all of this to heart," said Flores. "Not just any representative takes note of our community, but she clearly does. This was her first visit to Wisconsin, and the first thing she did when she arrived was meet with Voces de la Frontera Action."

Karina Sanchez, whose mom works at a Green Bay meat packing plant where the workers organized successfully to win protections from COVID-19 said, "It made me feel very good, that she came and that we met with her. Things were left very clear: we communicated our needs and it is clear that we are going to have her support and that of Biden."

Cassandra Elena Casas, a member of Voces' youth arm who is attending high school and working at a supermarket shared similar sentiments. "It is good that Senator Harris' campaign made space in their schedule for us to voice our concerns. We were able to voice the specific issues that we battle with daily," she said. "Even though it was short, our message got across that we need support from them and that they need to keep their promises to us, after the elections."

Christine Neumann-Ortz, Executive Director of VDLFA said, "Senator Harris met with our delegation in recognition of Labor Day and it means a lot to us because Latinxs are disproportionately essential workers in Wisconsin, and we have been battered by this pandemic in unique ways. The Biden immigration platform has clear policies for immigration reform, labor protections, access to testing for all people, and real economic relief for workers and their families struggling during this pandemic. This stands in sharp contrast to Trump, whose policies and platform favor the wealthiest, are undermining our ability to recover from this pandemic and are costing countless lives.

Trump is inciting violence and division, and openly appealing to white nationalist vigilantism. He is using authoritarian tactics to attack anti-racist protestors. We have witnessed the tragedy of that rhetoric and incitement to violence here in Kenosha. He is openly trying to steal the November elections by defunding the postal service during this pandemic.

November is not just an election, it is a movement to throw out a growing fascist government at the ballot box 54 days from today. In 2016, Trump did not win Wisconsin because he had popular support. He won because not enough people turned out to vote against him.

If we turn out, we win. Trump won by less than 23,000 votes in Wisconsin in 2016, and Voces de la Frontera Action is organizing to turn out at least 23,000 multiracial youth, Latinx, and pro-immigrant rural voters in 2020.

We know that we will still have to struggle under a Biden-Harris administration, but our chances of making progress are greater under Biden than four more years of escalated harm and repression under a Trump administration. Furthermore, the momentum for progressive change is on our side, as witnessed in the Wisconsin statewide elections of progressive Democrats in 2018 and a democratic majority in the US House of Representatives.

This momentum gives us the opportunity to elect a majority of progressive Democrats in the US Senate who will support the changes we need. Biden has been pushed left by decades of progressive grassroots organizing, and more recently by progressive Democratic elected officials such as Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and our own Congressman Pocan and Congresswoman Moore in Wisconsin, who have been longtime principled progressives. We must elect Biden and Harris because we know that under their administration we are in a stronger position to organize and win major gains. Senator Harris's visit with us on Monday is a very important step in the right direction. This administration is taking the time to listen to our communities and to take our demands seriously.

Now is the time to change history. Si se puede!"

You can read Joe Biden's relevant platforms in full here:

Joe Biden's 4-point plan for our essential workers

Joe's leadership during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Joe Biden's proposals to set up support for deserving small businesses

The Biden plan to ensure the future us "Made in all of America" by all of America's workers

The Biden plan to combat coronavirus (COVID-19) and prepare for future global health threats

The Biden plan for securing our values as a nation of immigrants

The Biden plan for strengthening worker organizing, collective bargaining, and unions

The Biden agenda for the Latino Community