$25,000 / 2018
http://vdlf.org/
Started in 1998, Voces de la Frontera is a membership-based community organization led by low-wage workers, immigrants and youth whose mission is to protect and expand civil rights and workers’ rights through leadership development, community organizing and empowerment. This renewal grant will enable Voces de la Frontera’s Youth Empowered in the Struggle (YES) to continue to organize as an inter-ethnic youth organizing effort to increase black-brown unity, advance racial justice, increase immigrant-rights and supports for undocumented students, to fight for implementation of the YES authored Student Bill of Rights at the school, district and community levels, and to train and educate YES leaders on social justice issues across the state. Last year, Voces mobilized 50,000 Wisconsinites through the historic Day Without Latinos march to protest local police involvement in immigration enforcement and stopped a major anti-sanctuary bill that would have increased deportations and disruption of families. Over the next year, with support from Hazen, Voces will continue to focus on defending immigrant and refugee students, strengthen Black and Brown community alliances and as well push back on efforts of privatization of public schools/resources.