The 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act was last week, prompting Latino and African-American leaders in Cleveland to join together to discuss issues from immigration reform to Ferguson.
According to WKYC, an open forum at a high school on Cleveland’s West Side — hosted by grassroots Latino organization HOLA — saw state senator Nina Turner and others calling for continued activism through non-violence and voting.
“Your vote is your voice,” said Turner. “Change is not only possible it’s inevitable.”
“I feel like if we really, really, do work together and don’t just talk about it but really really do it then we’ll be in a better place,” said Elizabeth Perez, Project Director for HOLA.
A number of African-American civil rights organizations have been strong partners in the fight for immigration reform, throwing their weight behind the cause of keeping families together and mobilizing for African American and Latino voting rights. In a showing of solidarity, a number of immigration advocacy groups, including United We Dream, have stood with Ferguson residents and called for the end of law enforcement abuses in minority communities.
Watch video of the Cleveland event below: