FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 15, 2017
Immigrant Dreamers’ Lives in the Balance
Radio Bilingüe Live Town Hall Broadcast Sept. 20
Radio Bilingüe will convene and broadcast a live town hall meeting on the urgent concerns of Dreamers in the Fresno area who are experiencing heightened stress and uncertainty as President Trump sends dramatic mixed signals about the future of DACA and the protection from deportation of young undocumented immigrants who have lived most of their lives with their families in the U.S. The public is invited to attend and participate in the forum being co-hosted by Fresno City College and other partners this Wed. Sept. 20 from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Fresno City College Old Administration Building (intersection of Van Ness and McKinley avenues in Fresno, doors open 4:30 p.m.).
The forum comes in the wake of a week that saw President Trump rescind the DACA program ordered by President Obama and then ignite expected prolonged fighting in Washington by calling on the Republican-controlled Congress to pass legislation protecting Dreamers. After the president’s first 8 months of aggressively fulfilling his promised anti-immigration agenda, what are immigrant dreamers and their families to believe lies ahead? And what can be done immediately to ensure their safety and right to continue with their lives, families, work, education and contributions to their communities?
Young DACA leaders themselves will lead the forum discussion, posing questions to panelists representing fellow Dreamers along with local stakeholders and decision-makers. Many are calling on immediate bipartisan solutions in a climate of the Presidents’ crackdowns already on immigration detention, eligibility, travel, sanctuary efforts and due legal process, and his push for ramped up immigration policing and deportations throughout the country. What are Congressional representatives and other elected officials doing to protect DACA recipients and other longstanding neighbors from harsh detention practices, deportation, family separation and loss of livelihood? What is being planned to ensure access to work, basic health care and education?
The forum will be broadcast live from Fresno, reaching audiences across Radio Bilingüe’s network of non-commercial stations in California and the Southwest U.S. The forum will be also streamed live and distributed via podcast at radiobilingue.org and Facebook Live. Fresno City College President Carole Goldsmith is Radio Bilingüe’s host for the town hall, joined by other community partners.
The following is a partial list of organizations that are sponsoring this event: Central Valley Immigrant Integration Collaborative, Central Valley Labor Council, Centro Indígena Oaxaqueño Binacional, CSUF’s Education and Leadership Foundation, Despertar del Sueño Americano, Every Neighborhood Partnership, Fresno Building Healthy Communities, Fresno Interdenominational Refugee Ministries, Health Access, Mi Familia Vota, Pan Valley Institute, Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, UFW Foundation, and others.
Radio Bilingüe’s special broadcast is supported by The California Endowment, The James Irvine Foundation, The Hellman Family Foundation, The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, The Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, The Marguerite Casey Foundation, the W.K. Giving Fund and others.
For information, please contact Maria de Jesús Gómez at chuyag@legacy.radiobilingue.org, 559-455-5782.
