Immigrant of the Day: Eddie “Piolín” Sotelo (Mexico)

Eddie “Piolín” (Tweety Bird) Sotelo is a Los Angeles radio personality, born in Ocotlán, Jalisco, Mexico in 1972. His show, “Piolín por la Mañana,” which is in Spanish day, on mornings on KSCA in Southern California. The L.A.Times ranks Sotelo in the 100 most powerful people in Southern California. His show is the most popular show on Los Angeles among non-English speaking listeners.

Sotelo has described own experience of living and working in the United States as an undocumented immigrant. Under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, Sotelo regularized his immigration status and now lives legally in Los Angeles.  “I was working three different jobs every day, and I know the feeling when you got fired just because you don’t have a green card … they (employers) make you feel like you’re not worthy,” he told Reuters.

The Observer reports on Sotelo’s role in the spring 2006 immigration marches in Los Angeles:

“Eddie ‘El Piolin’ Sotelo does not look like a revolutionary threat to America. He is short, stocky, with neat dark hair and a broad smile. His nickname means simply ‘Tweety Bird’ in Spanish. Until 18 months ago, Sotelo was virtually unknown. Though more than a million listeners tuned into his radio show, the majority of America was blissfully unaware of his championing of the rights of illegal immigrants – simply because he did it in Spanish. Then, one day, he publicised protests against a draft law to classify undocumented migrants as felons. Sotelo urged his Hispanic listeners to take to the streets. They answered his call in their millions. In Los Angeles, 400,000 marchers streamed through downtown. A similar number jammed Chicago. In dozens of cities, millions of people were suddenly protesting against a law few other Americans even knew about. And ‘El Piolin’ was at the front of the marchers. ‘More than two million marched. And I am proud that we were peaceful,’ he tells The Observer”

KJ