Latino leaders plan to discuss rising ICE raids during gathering in KC
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Latino leaders and advocates are gathering in Kansas City this week to share tools, training and solidarity at the UnidosUS national conference.
Why it matters: UnidosUS president and CEO Janet Murguía told Axios the conference is designed to educate people on their rights, especially as aggressive enforcement tactics escalate.
- "This is a very scary time," Murguía told Axios. "People are coming together here in Kansas City because they want to be in solidarity, to re-energize, educate and protect one another."
The latest: Murguía pointed to last week's ICE raid in the Kansas City, Kansas, area as an example of the concerns driving this year's agenda.
- Members of Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation (AIRR), said in a press conference that ICE agents entered two El Toro Loco restaurants in Lenexa and Kansas City, Kansas, during lunch service and detained workers without warning.
- In a statement to Axios on Friday about the raid, Department of Homeland Security public affairs assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said ICE was carrying out a criminal federal search warrant to "rescue victims of human trafficking" and that people "tried to interfere with law enforcement."
Zoom in: The conference returns to Kansas City for the first time in a decade through Thursday. It will include Know Your Rights workshops and legal defense training aimed at helping participants navigate immigration enforcement.
- Attendees will learn strategies for safely documenting ICE encounters in their communities.
- Sessions will also cover housing access, workforce development, and long-term economic opportunity.
- Among the planned speakers are Beto O'Rourke, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, and Thomas Saenz, who leads the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.
The bottom line: Murguía said she wants people to leave the conference feeling inspired.
- "Maybe it's just writing to your member of Congress or showing up at a town hall, but everyone can do something."