LULAC President And Rapid-Response GOTV Team Hits North Texas County Where Judge Claims Threat By Latino "Invasion"

Nation's Largest and Oldest Latino Civil Rights Organization Mobilizes Lightning Visit by Voter Registration Strike Team to Parker County, Texas As Answer to False Charges

Washington, DC – The national president and members of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) sent a solid reply to anti-Latino charges made by Parker County Judge Pat Deen. He issued a Declaration of Local State Disaster alleging the "health, safety and welfare of Parker County residents are under an imminent threat of disaster from the unprecedented levels of illegal immigration." Parker County lies west of Dallas-Ft. Worth, and more than 400 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.

On Saturday, the LULAC "Power of the Latino Vote" 45-foot-long, gleaming white luxury bus arrived in Weatherford, Texas, the county seat of Parker County. The vehicle is wrapped with images of the Virgen de Guadalupe, eclectic art of female superhero Rosita, her hand raised in a show of strength and victory, and the words proclaiming, "The Future Is In Your Hands." On board were Domingo Garcia, LULAC national president, and a team of GOTV-trained LULAC members whose message to Latinos everywhere is to register and vote this November.

"Parker County Judge Deen is just one in a pack of right-wing politicians in Texas using the same racist dog whistles to call out the worst in their supporters who are given hate and fear to divide us as Americans," says Garcia. "Using the term 'invasion' is racist and code for profiling all Latinos and even encouraging vigilantes to take the law into their own hands and assault or harm our people. I have personally seen the consequence after the El Paso racist murders and other racist murders by those who act on those words, "adds Garcia.

Texas LULAC recently won two major federal court lawsuits against Governor Greg Abbott and his legislative supporters who tried to suppress the Latino vote. "The governor and his circle of anti-Latino xenophobes are still reeling from the legal defeats they suffered," says Rodolfo Rosales Jr., Texas LULAC State Director. "They will not prevail in this action either, and Judge Deen is seriously mistaken if he thinks LULAC is going to sit by idly and allow it," he adds.

LULAC GOTV members are part of a statewide campaign with a coalition of other Latino and black organizations pushing for communities of color to organize, mobilize and turn out to vote this November. While in Weatherford, LULAC members met with representatives of the NAACP at the Mt. Pleasant Colored School, which is now closed but stands as a historical testament to the "endurance and commitment to education" of African Americans in North Texas who were denied access to public schools.

"This tour serves many purposes," says Hilda Duarte, LULAC District Director. "Foremost, the goal is to register voters. Also, to let the community's brown and black residents know they can count on LULAC for solidarity in civil rights issues. As importantly, we encouraged them to become more involved in what their elected leaders say and do and to speak up for themselves when they are targeted. Being a part of LULAC gives them clout because we have been around for 93 years, and we are organized and respected throughout the United States," said Duarte.

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About LULAC
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1,000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit https://lulac.org/