November 18, 2016

Unity Statement of National Hispanic Leadership Agenda and Muslim Advocates: 
Stand United in Response to President-Elect Trump’s Recent Actions and Statements

WASHINGTON - The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA) and Muslim Advocates issued the following joint statement urging unity:

"Latino and Muslim communities stand in solidarity in the face of the rhetoric, policy proposals, harassment, and hate crimes threatening us. As representatives of communities that were repeatedly maligned during this presidential election, we have approached the days since the November 8 election with eyes wide open and the hope that President-elect Trump would take the necessary steps to begin healing our divided nation.

"Unfortunately, the signals this president-elect has chosen to send have been disheartening and downright frightful ones. The appointment of Steve Bannon to the position of Chief Strategist to the President, a white nationalist with a history of trafficking in racist, anti-Semitic and anti-LGBT tropes, signals that as president, Trump will continue to rely on divisive and hurtful rhetoric – rhetoric which has likely caused a rise in hate crimes recently reported by the FBI.

"Parents are reporting their young children are afraid to go to school for fear of being bullied and every day seems to bring several new reports of Americans being assaulted because of their skin color, sexual orientation, religion or race.

"President-elect Trump said that he plans to deport between two to three million immigrants in the United States, a number that goes far beyond the limited number of truly dangerous individuals he claims to want to target. The stocking of Trump’s transition team with anti-immigrant figures such as Kris Kobach, the architect of Arizona’s SB1070 and other draconian anti-immigrant measures, as well as U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions and his aides, suggests that we can expect the Trump administration to pursue anti-immigrant measures, such as workplace raids, that would divide families and spread fear among immigrant communities across the U.S.

"Trump’s advisors also leave us to understand that a President Trump would follow through on campaign promises to engage in racial and religious profiling – including an unconstitutional “registry” for Muslim immigrants in the U.S.

"Today, we remain concerned as to what a Trump presidency will mean for members of our communities but we are comforted in facing that challenge together, in solidarity. We will not allow ourselves to be pitted against each other. Instead, our unity and determination will only strengthen as we continue advocating for policies that enable our communities and all Americans to more fully contribute to the social, political, and economic fabric of this nation.

"Our life’s work is advocacy and we will promise to continue using the tools given to us by the Constitution in defense of our communities and all Americans seeking justice and equality under the law."

# # #

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

| Brenda Arredondo | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | (915) 373-1483 |

| Debi Kar | 510-356-7733 |

ABOUT THE NATIONAL HISPANIC LEADERSHIP AGENDA

The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda is composed of 40 of the leading national and regional Latino civil rights and public policy organizations and other elected officials, and prominent Latinos Americans. NHLA coalition members represent the diversity of the Latino community – Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and other Latino Americans. NHLA’s mission calls for unity among Latinos around the country to provide the Latino community with greater visibility and a clearer, stronger influence in our country’s affairs. NHLA brings together Latino leaders to establish policy priorities that address, and raise public awareness of, the major issues affecting the Latino community and the nation as a whole. For more information, please visit: www.nationalhispanicleadership.org.

NHLA MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS

Alianza Americas | American GI Forum | ASPIRA Association, Inc. | Avance | Casa de Esperanza: National Latin@ Network | Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute | Cuban American National Council | Farmworker Justice | Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities | Hispanic Federation | Hispanic National Bar Association | Inter-University Program for Latino Research | Labor Council for Latin American Advancement | Latino Justice PRLDEF | League of United Latin American Citizens | MANA, A National Latina Organization | Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund | NALEO Educational Fund | National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives | National Association of Hispanic Publications | National Association of Latino Independent Producers | National Conference of Puerto Rican Women, Inc. | National Council of La Raza | National Hispana Leadership Institute | National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators | National Hispanic Council on Aging | National Hispanic Environmental Council | National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts | National Hispanic Media Coalition | National Hispanic Medical Association | National Institute for Latino Policy | National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health | National Puerto Rican Coalition, Inc. | Presente.org | SER – Jobs for Progress National, Inc. | Southwest Voter Registration Education Project | United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce | United States Hispanic Leadership Institute | United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce | U.S.-Mexico Foundation