GALEO Applauds Governor for another Latino Appointment

Jason Anavitarte, former GALEO Board member, appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Commission on Equal Opportunity

Contact:  Jerry Gonzalez, Executive Director of GALEO, 404.745.2580, jerry@2014old.galeo.org

(Atlanta, GA): April 29, 2015 – Last week, on April 24, 2015, Governor Nathan Deal made his third Latino appointment by naming Jason Anavitarte, a former GALEO board member, to serve as a Commissioner on the Commission on Equal Opportunity.  This appointment follows the Governor’s appointment in December 2014 of Dean Bucci to be a judge in the Superior Court in Paulding County and the appointment of Rocio Woody to the Board of Corrections in September 2013.

GALEO Graduated 25 More Community Leaders

Georgia State University Goizueta Scholars  Join Over 459 alumni of the  GALEO Institute for Leadership

Press Release

Contact:  Jerry Gonzalez, Executive Director of GALEO, 404.745.2580, jerry@2014old.galeo.org

(Atlanta, GA): April 24, 2015 –  GALEO graduated 25 new leaders from the GALEO Institute for Leadership and the partnership with Georgia State University’s Goizueta Scholars program.  This is the second cohort of Goizueta Scholars which have graduated from the GALEO Institute for Leadership, which had 15 young women and 10 young men.  Goizueta scholars are required to participate in leadership development training during their sophomore year at Georgia State University.  The graduation luncheon was held today, April 24, 2015, at Georgia State University.

By: Jessica Kline, Spring 2015 GALEO Intern

While the 2016 presidential election is still over a year and a half away, the country has been buzzing in response to the candidacy announcements from four prominent individuals: Hillary Clinton, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and Marco Rubio.  In addition to releasing their intentions to run, these candidates have also commenced efforts to reach out to the Latino community, a constituency that will be vital throughout this election season. Here’s what caught the attention of the Latino community in each of the four announcements:

Hillary Clinton (Democrat) – The former U.S. Secretary of State and frontrunner for the Democratic Party announced her candidacy on April 12^th on social media. Her announcement was released in English and Spanish and her website also allows the viewer to choose between the two languages.

Ted Cruz (Republican) – On March 23^rd the U.S. Senator of Texas gave his announcement speech at Liberty University. The Cuban-American candidate opened his speech with descriptions of his parents, including his father’s escape from Cuba and what his story has taught him about liberty and the power of Christianity.

Rand Paul (Republican) –The U.S. Senator from Kentucky, who declared his candidacy on April 7^th, brought up many policy issues during his announcement speech, but did not mention immigration. Many people are watching closely to see where he stands on the various issues affecting the Latino community, as his opinions have often been unclear in the past.

Marco Rubio (Republican) – The Florida Senator announced his bid to run on April 13^th at Freedom Tower, a landmark that is known for being, “the first stop for tens of thousands of fleeing Cuban exiles during the 1960s and 1970s” (4). A Cuban-American himself, he emphasized in his speech his ancestry and hope to provide all Americans with the opportunities that were made available to his parents.

While it is very early in the race, initial support from the Latino community is important because many estimate that the GOP will require at least 40 percent of the their vote in order to win the upcoming election. Others are emphasizing the fact that while Latinos have often favored the left in the past, the Democratic Party cannot take their support for granted. All of the candidates are expected to take further steps to reach out for the Latino vote, which presents the opportunity for the community to get informed and involved from the start. With the Latino vote growing stronger every year, now is the time for them to make their voices heard and, more importantly, to see which candidates listen.

References:

1. http://www.latinpost.com/articles/47568/20150414/hillary-clinton-2016-campaign-latino-vote-up-grabs-despite-clintons.htm
2. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/03/23/ted-cruz-announces-presidential-run/
3. http://www.latintimes.com/rand-paul-immigration-7-quotes-explain-senators-evolving-position-307985
4. http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2015/04/13/marco-rubio-announcement-drew-diverse-crowd-young-old-rich-and-poor/
5. http://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/hispanic-vote-wont-come-easy-marco-rubio-or-ted-cruz-n343011

“NOTE:  The opinions express in this blog are the opinions of the author only.  It is not to be assumed that the opinions are those of GALEO or the GALEO Latino Community Development Fund.  For the official position on any issue for GALEO, please contact Jerry Gonzalez, Executive Director of GALEO at jerry@2014old.galeo.org.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 14, 2015

CONTACT:
Amanda Bosquez, abosquez@naleo.org
(202) 546-2536, (361) 548-6989 (cell)

Paula Valle Castanon, pvalle@naleo.org
(213) 747-7606 ext. 4414, (323) 253-6431 (cell)
White House Task Force on New Americans Releases Recommendations

Proposed plan strong step towards making naturalization more accessible for
nation’s 8.7 million eligible legal permanent residents

Washington, D.C. – Today, the White House Task Force on New Americans outlined the federal government’s goals to strengthen its integration efforts nationwide and build welcoming communities. The Task Force, which is a formal interagency body created by President Obama in November 2014, is comprised of representatives from sixteen federal departments, agencies, and White House offices.