Roberto de la Cruz (SEIU), Nancy Berlin (Mobilize the Immigrant Vote), and Angelica Salas (CHIRLA).

The UCLA Labor Center hosted a one-day convening, “Today We March, Tomorrow We Vote: Latino Migrant Civic Engagement,” on May 27, 2008, bringing together civic leaders and advisors to discuss Latin American immigrant integration into U.S. society. The overarching objective was to identify the factors that encourage or block immigrants’ direct political participation and engagement in civic life. Three panel presentations on citizenship campaigns, getting out the vote, and binational civic engagement allowed time to discuss the ins and outs of immigrant organizing.

In-depth interviews with leaders of migrant-led organizations, labor organizations, and neighborhood groups, conducted prior to the meeting, shaped the discussion areas. This two-step approach of interviews followed by a convening was designed to address the challenge of disentangling which factors weigh most heavily in the decision-making process and how that reflection can guide targeted action and educational strategies.

The convening was an opportunity to consider ways to translate the extraordinary civic energy experienced in the recent years’ immigration marches into the nitty-gritty of building representative organizations with staying power and of encouraging immigrants to exercise their right to vote.