5% Hispanic Delegates at RNC vs. 11.8% Hispanic Delegates at DNC
Hispanic Texas Legislators Champion Pedal Power at Democratic National Convention
Photo Gallery - Latinos at Democratic Convention
DNC Notebook - August 24 - 28 from La Bloga (I enjoyed reading this)
The following is a transcript of remarks as prepared for delivery by Xavier Becerra, Tuesday, August 26, 2008:
Are Democrats in the house tonight? Are you ready to work? Ready to win? You say you’re ready to work. But before any of us arrived here, men and women were already hard at work cleaning, fixing, improving. And when we leave, they will still be here, working and working.
These Americans turned on the lights for this convention, and they will be there to turn them off. They are among the millions of Americans who patrol our streets, harvest our food and care for our loved ones. They are our nation’s backbone, the bedrock of our cherished ethic of perseverance. My friends, let’s let all of America’s workers know: they are in the house tonight!
Yet after eight years of failed economic policies-policies Senator McCain has promised to continue-so many of these folks are feeling invisible and insecure. Over the past eight years, family incomes have dropped $1,000. In just the last six months, 460,000 people have lost their jobs. More than a million family homes are in foreclosure. Record deficit — record and growing debt. Republican fiscal policy — the “gift” that keeps on giving!
If that’s what Republicans mean by con-serv-atism, then we’ll have no more of the con that they’re serving! That’s why we need Barack Obama. Because he’ll take on the naysayers and the special interests. He’ll fight for the forgotten middle class.
Just as our beloved Cesar Chavez dared farmworkers to believe, “sí se puede!”… “yes, we can.” Barack Obama will say to every American that if you work your heart out every day — if you leave it all at the construction site, in the laboratory, in the classroom, at the operating table — then we’ll help you open the door to college and to the doctor’s office. We’ll help you save for the down payment or a dignified retirement. We’ll help you build a better life for your family.
I am the proud son of immigrants, a former member of Local 187 of the laborers union in California, first in my family to receive a university diploma, privileged to have served 16 years in the people’s house representing the great city of Los Angeles. And there is a saying I’ve always believed in: dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres. Tell me with whom you walk and I will tell you who you are.
Well, my friends, I know with whom I walk. I walk with those who build and drive, cook and clean, feed and bathe, protect and serve. And, my fellow Americans, in January, 2009, we will finally have a leader who walks with us — the next President of the United States, Barack Obama! “
Bill Richardson won’t get shot at the convention podium til Thursday
Blogs: un poderoso medio usado en las convenciones políticas en EEUU
DNC Hispanic Caucus : Loretta Sanchez Says She Knows Nothing About Miss. Raids (and calls me girl)
Day 1.5 in Denver - The Unapologetic Mexican
My First Day at the Democratic Convention in Denver - Patricia Campos from LatinosNJ
Anti-Immigrant Rally Fizzles As DNC Opens
Day 1 at the DNCC with DNC committee woman and delegate Debbie Marquez
THE 2008 CONVENTION: Remarks by Miguel del Valle, August 25, 2008
The Honorable Miguel del Valle
Democratic National Convention
Monday, August 25, 2008
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery
Four years ago at this convention, millions of Americans were introduced to Barack Obama. But for me and thousands of Chicagoans, we’ve worked with him for many years.
I first heard of Barack back in 1992. The year 1992 was a little like 2008. Then, as now, we needed to save the country from the misguided policies of a president named Bush. I was working with my old friend, Lou Pardo, a retired machinist, on an effort to register Latino voters in Chicago. One day, we were talking about how we could reach more voters and cover more ground, but we needed more resources. Lou told me we should go see Barack Obama, who was directing a voter-registration drive called Project Vote. So Lou met with Barack and, without missing a beat, Barack Obama helped us out. Barack Obama made sure that the thousands of Latinos in Chicago were registered to vote. He helped empower the Latino community and ensure that we were full participants in our democracy.
Now, he is doing it again. From New York to Los Angeles, Barack Obama is helping to bring Latinos and Americans from all backgrounds into the political process and into the national conversation about our future. Because Barack Obama knows that to turn the page on the failed policies of George W. Bush and John McCain, everyone needs to be included. All voters need to be empowered. All voices need to be heard. And all of us must stand up for the change we need. And make no mistake: Barack Obama will deliver that change!
A few years later, in the middle of his first state senate race, Barack Obama came to see me. He asked me about how he could be an effective legislator, what he needed to do to make sure he delivered for the people he represented.
See, for Barack Obama what mattered wasn’t scoring political points, but making a difference in the lives of the hardworking people he saw every day. And that’s what Barack did in the state senate. He fought to bring quality, affordable health care to more Illinois residents, and to make sure that prescription drugs were priced fairly.
He led the successful effort to rein in the lobbyists in our state. He worked alongside me to boost minority access to college, and we increased Latino enrollment in all our state’s universities and community colleges. He supported my efforts to improve the lives of immigrants and, in the U.S. Senate, worked to provide them a path to citizenship. Barack Obama did all of this with the support of Republicans and Democrats, by not engaging in petty politics, but by making his case carefully and with strong conviction.
Now, I watch Barack’s candidacy with immense pride for my former colleague and my friend, and with hope. This is the best opportunity in my lifetime to elect a president, who can unite the country and lead the nation to address the struggles that we all grapple with on a day-to-day basis, from high gas prices to violence in our streets, to finding a good job and a good school for our children. It’s the best chance we have to put America on a different course, a course that will restore our faith in what we can do as a people and restore our standing in the world.
Barack Obama will do that. He will deliver the change we need. He did it in our state house, and I know that he will do it when we send Barack Obama to the White House!
Thank you.
SOURCE 2008 Democratic National Convention Committee “
