BAKERSFIELD, California (July 3rd, 2012) — The UFW Foundation (UFWF) is hosting a series of town halls in Kern County on immigration issues. The events that are planned for the communities of Lamont, Bakersfield and Delano are in response to the recent decision of the Supreme Court on the Arizona law, and on the new immigration policy changes that will protect young immigrants from deportation announced by President Obama.
"There is a lot of happiness and enthusiasm from the community due to the announcement of deferred action by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that will stop the deportations of hundreds of thousands of youths" said Diana Tellefson-Torres, Executive Director of the UFW Foundation, "But there is also a lot of confusion. In the same week we learned that the Supreme Court nullified parts of the Arizona law, while it gave its approval to the provision that permits state and local law enforcement to ask everyone they stop about their immigration status if they think there is “reasonable suspicion” that the person is undocumented. With these changes, people want to know what their rights are and how the changes will affect the immigrant communities in California."
The first town hall will take place in Bakersfield at the Truth Tabernacle Church at 214 Hosking Ave. in Bakersfield at six in the afternoon on July 3, 2012. On Saturday, July 7th the UFW Foundation will have a town hall in Lamont at 10 in the morning at Vineland Elementary School and at three o’clock in the afternoon the same day, July 7th at the 40 acres of the United Farm Workers (UFW) in Delano.
The town halls will present information on the recent changes in the law, including information on anti-immigrant laws at the state and local levels, as that of Arizona. There will also be up-to-date information on the deferred action process for young immigrants that arrived at the country before the age of 16 years, and how these DREAM Act-eligible youths are able to obtain work permits.
The events are free and they are organized with the support of Radio Campesina, our sister organization and part of Cesar’s Chavez Farm Worker Movement. The UFW Foundation is a non-profit organization 501(c)(3) that offers direct services to immigrants and farm workers. Currently in Bakersfield since 2008, the UFW Foundation has offices in Bakersfield, Salinas and Greenfield, California and in Phoenix, Arizona.