Skip to content
LPBN-Icon-v1
ImmigrationProf Blog
A Member of the Law Professor Blogs Network

Immigrant Rights Groups Available to Discuss the Taco Mayor

By immigrationprof

From Cener for Community Change:

RESPONSE TO MAYOR MATURO’S NEWS CONFERENCE
 
Immigration Rights Group That Called on East Haven Police Chief to Step Down and That Sent Tacos to Mayor Maturo to Hold Media Availability
 
Representatives and members of Reform Immigration FOR America (RI4A) will be available today to talk to the media following Mayor Joseph Maturo’s news conference. Last Wednesday, RI4A sent out an online petition calling on Police Chief Leonard Gallo to resign. The petition has garnered more than 15,000 signatures.
The petition followed RI4A’s ‘text a taco’ social media campaign initiated to blast Maturo for his quip that he “might have tacos” when asked what he would do to reach out to the Latino community in light of a federal probe into four of East Haven’s police officers charged with terrorizing Latinos. As of today, nearly 8,000 texts have been sent in solidarity for the Latino community.
RI4A, a national campaign of more than 800,000 immigration leaders and grassroots activists committed to achieving humane comprehensive immigration reform, has:
*Posted a petition, http://www.change.org/petitions/tell-mayor-maturo-replace-east-haven-chief-of-police-and-send-a-clear-message-that-racial-profiling-wont-be-tolerated, to send a message to East Haven officials that racial profiling will not be tolerated.
*Sent 500 tacos to Mayor Maturo’s office. One was given to the mayor along with an invitation to attend a community dinner to open up a dialogue with the Latino community to improve relations. The remaining tacos were sent to a local community kitchen.
*Called attention to East Haven’s unfortunate history of poor treatment of the Latino community for years.
*Supported the federal probe of the East Haven police department.
Available to talk to reporters:
 
In Connecticut:
*Latrina Kelly, Junta for Progressive Action (a member of RI4A): (203) 787-0191, ext. 16
*Henry Fernandez, RI4A spokesman: (203) 889-1104
In Washington:
*Donna De La Cruz, press secretary, Center for Community Change (202) 339-9331
 
bh