Message from the President and CEO

¡Felices Fiestas!

As we come to the close of 2021, I hope you and yours are well. It’s hard to believe this year is almost over. It felt like a whirlwind of challenges, and I know many of you, like the UnidosUS team, have barely had a moment to take a breath.

But it’s vital, especially at this time of year, to take a pause, reflect, and acknowledge that, while there were many painful and difficult times, our community, allies, and critically important supporters like you came together to do everything possible to forge the path to a brighter future for the Latino community. For example, thanks to your remarkable generosity, our Esperanza Hope for All Campaign has raised close to $12 million to support COVID-19 recovery including closing the equity gap in vaccines for the Latino community!

Going into 2022, while we will continue to tackle the health, economic, and educational impacts of the pandemic, there are multiple related priorities we are also fighting for, such as the Child Tax Credit and ensuring families’ access to it via our Economic Equity for Latino Families Campaign. In addition, we are pushing to include housing assistance and expanded access to health care on President Biden’s Build Back Better agenda, and advocating for the budget reconciliation process to incorporate a path to legality/citizenship for undocumented individuals like our essential workers, farmworkers, DREAMers, and TPS recipients.

On that note, I want to take this opportunity to express a heartfelt thanks to our Corporate Champion, Wells Fargo, for their support in helping to distribute the groundbreaking book Immigration Reform: The Corpse That Will Not Die by our very own Charles Kamasaki. Charles—a civil rights veteran, UnidosUS Senior Cabinet Advisor, and my friend—delves into the critical role that NCLR, among others, played in the fight to pass the Immigration Reform and Control Act in the 1980s, which helped three million undocumented people obtain legal status in the United States.

I’m deeply grateful for our donors and supporters—old and new—like you, who have stood by us over all these decades, so we can be a powerful voice and change agent for our community. The New Year will undoubtedly bring new challenges and opportunities for all of us. With you by our side, we will continue to forge that brighter path in 2022.

In the meantime, we continue to be very grateful to you for investing and believing in us. Wishing you the happiest of Holiday Seasons!

Thank you,

Janet Murguía
President and CEO