Center for Popular Democracy Statement on President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 31, 2021
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 31, 2021
CONTACT: Marly Valiente press@populardemocracy.org (201) 838-5457
“Center for Popular Democracy commends President Biden for committing to a once-in-a-generation infrastructure plan to ensure we ‘build back better.’ This bold package starts to address many of the nation’s most intractable problems by creating millions of jobs, accelerating the fight against climate change, promoting racial equity, investing in affordable housing, expanding home and community based care, and strengthening our economy.
However, this legislation is only a first step in rebuilding our nation around the needs of the people. We call on the Biden administration to use the full power of the federal government to further support communities in the United States, Puerto Rico and all territories. This includes reforming unemployment insurance, canceling rent, raising the minimum wage, passing the THRIVE Act and fully enacting the Green New Deal, creating a swift and inclusive pathway to citizenship, and dramatically expanding access to healthcare for everyone.
As multiple crises continue unabated, now is the time for lawmakers to take action. This infrastructure plan is the start of changing the trajectory of this country. We now call on elected officials to build on this legislation and continue this critical work.”
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level.
Center for Popular Democracy Network Statement on the Introduction of the Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 18, 2021
CONTACT:
Marly Valiente
cpd@fenton.com
(201) 838-5457 ...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 18, 2021
CONTACT: Marly Valiente cpd@fenton.com (201) 838-5457
“Today, we celebrate the introduction of the Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act of 2021 by Representative Nydia Velazquez, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bob Menendez. If passed, the legislation would empower Puerto Ricans with a democratic, just mechanism to determine their own political future.
For over 120 years, Puerto Rico has been a colony of the United States. It has extracted wealth from Puerto Rico, persecuted political dissidents, used its land for military testing and treated its people as human guinea pigs for big pharma experiments. More recently, its failed economic policies have left the island suffering through a debt crisis, exacerbating the harms resulting from natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic.
This Congress and the Biden-Harris administration now have a historic opportunity to take a serious look at the impact colonialism has had on Puerto Rico and finally change course. The Self-Determination Act provides a clear path to decolonization through self-determination that could put an end to Puerto Rico's colonial status and ensure that its people have a voice in their future. Now is the time for Congress to pass this legislation and take an important step in addressing the human rights abuses that have been inflicted on the island.” ### The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level.
Center for Popular Democracy Network Statement on the American Dream and Promise Act
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 18, 2021
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 18, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Center for Popular Democracy press@populardemocracy.org
“Today we celebrate the passage of the American Dream and Promise Act and the movement that made this moment possible. If it becomes law, this legislation would provide a pathway to citizenship for immigrants who came to the United States as youth and for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) beneficiaries. The passage of this bill is the result of organizing efforts led by immigrant youth, who have built and exercised their power over decades. Immigrant youth won temporary reprieve through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, fought over the past four years to preserve it, and are determined to win permanent protections for themselves, their families and their communities.
We won’t stop now. We look forward to working with the White House and our champions in the Senate to use every opportunity to ensure that this bill becomes law, continue fighting for a pathway for the 11 million undocumented immigrants, and advance policies that center the dignity of all immigrants. In doing so, we must be grounded in a vision of racial justice that rejects any further importation and entrenchment of the harms of the criminal legal system into our immigration system.”
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level. www.populardemocracy.org
House Passage of HR1 Marks a Hopeful Day for Democracy and Racial Justice
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 3, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT:
Center for Popular Democracy
press@...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 3, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Center for Popular Democracy press@populardemocracy.org
New York, NY — We applaud the leadership of House members who passed HR1 today. They took action urgently needed to work toward an inclusive, multi-racial democracy and to push back against white supremacy. They heard the call of so many people, including Center for Popular Democracy affiliates and their members, saying now is the time to make the promise of our democracy real for all of us and to chart the course out of crisis.
HR1 is a crucial step forward for democracy and racial justice, removing structural barriers to participation designed to silence Black and Brown communities. The democracy reforms in this bill work together as a comprehensive package to protect the freedom to vote, to unlock big money's grip on our politics, and to allow for fair and diverse representation. HR1 also sets the stage for restoring the Voting Rights Act (HR4) and establishing DC statehood (HR51).
The intensified attacks on voting rights in states like Arizona and Georgia drive home the importance of these federal protections and changes. We must make sure the politicians who rely on voter suppression to cling to power do not take us backward.
As we work at the state and federal level to expand access to our democracy, we look to the Senate to pass their S1 companion bill and join the House in serving the people who elected them, without letting the undemocratic filibuster stand in the way.
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level. www.populardemocracy.org
Center for Popular Democracy Network’s Statement on the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, February 18, 2021
CONTACT: Amanda Ebrahim cpd@fenton.com (516) 492-9757
“Today we celebrate the introduction of the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, a bill that lays out President Biden’s vision for reforming our broken and inhumane immigration system. This bill represents not only a departure from Trump’s white-supremacist immigration policies, but most importantly, it represents a new direction for reforming our immigration system grounded in a vision of an inclusive society. The introduction of such a progressive legislation is a testament of the power and tenacity of immigrant communities and allies that have organized for decades to protect our families and to demand an end to the deportation machine.
But the introduction of this bill is only the first step. Now, President Biden and Democrats in congress must use their power to ensure that the vision laid out in this bill is realized, starting with inclusion of immigrant youth, TPS holders and essential workers in the next COVID relief package.
We look forward to working with the White House, and our champions in Congress, to use every opportunity to make sure that we are advancing policies that prioritize the safety and dignity of all immigrants, and significantly shift away from the punitive and harmful detention and deportation system”
Below please find additional quotes from leaders in Center for Popular Democracy’s network:
"I have called the United States home for nearly two decades. I've worked hard to raise my two kids—one a DACA recipient and the other, a U.S. citizen—here in New Jersey. Today's introduction of the Citizenship Act of 2021 demonstrates the strength of our movement— we won't stop fighting until all 11 million undocumented people are on a pathway to citizenship. I am also filled with hope that I won't fear being separated from my children for the first time since I came to this country. I thank Senator Menendez and President Biden for their leadership and urge our representatives to pass this legislation as soon as possible." Angeles Barranco, Make the Road NJ member, Union City, N.J.
“My family is happy. Our two oldest daughters and youngest two sons are U.S. citizens. My husband finally achieved permanent residency. Now, our middle daughter and I are next! After so many years, living with uncertainty, especially after this past administration, we are hopeful about all of us finally having the same status together. We are so happy that many other families in our situation will have an opportunity to do the same. Now, it is up to North Carolina Senators Burr and Tillis and North Carolina’s congressional delegates to do the right thing and support our president.” Silvia Sanchez, Action NC board member
“For decades, immigrants like me have worked in farms all over the country with fear that one day we would be deported. During COVID-19, we have stayed in the fields exposing ourselves to the virus so that others could be able to stay home protected. We did this knowing that if anything happened to us, we would get no support. I know that my work is essential and that I deserve dignity. For this reason, I look forward to the passage of this bill so all immigrants can live in peace in the place they call home.” Martha Lopez, PCUN Member and Community Organizer in Oregon
Clara Cortes, member of Make the Road New York, said, “This bill brings me hope for a better future. For over twenty years, I have waited for Congress to pass legislation like this. Immigrants like me have built our lives and our families here. This country is our home. Over the last year, while facing the constant risk of being torn from our loved ones, immigrants like me have also been trying to survive the COVID-19 pandemic. My husband has been hospitalized for almost a year after contracting the virus, and every time I see him, he worries about me since because of my lack of immigration status, I could be separated from my family. Today, I am happy to see that fixing our immigration system is a priority for the current administration, and it is crucial that Congress quickly acts to make a pathway to citizenship a reality.”
“In Arizona, immigrant communities raised from the ashes of racist law SB1070 to fight back against white supremacist policies, agencies and individuals. Since then, we are committed to push bold and permanent protection for all immigrant communities. We support a plan that provides a pathway for citizenship without the growing deportation forces of ICE and CBP.” Genesis Renteria member of Living United for Change in Arizona (LUCHA)
Center for Popular Democracy Network Statement on President Biden’s Immigration-Related Executive Orders
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, February 2, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT:
Center for Popular Democracy
...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, February 2, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Center for Popular Democracy press@populardemocracy.org
New York, NY — Today, President Biden issued executive orders to undo some of the last administration’s most harmful immigration policies. We commend the administration for starting to lay the groundwork to rebuild and improve our country’s asylum system and reunite families separated at the border. We will never forget the horror of watching children being torn apart from their families and kept in cages; those images made the inhumanity of our current immigration systems undeniable and drove thousands to the streets to demand justice.
We also welcome President Biden’s executive order directing immediate review of the public charge rule, a “wealth test” for green cards, and other policies that created barriers to legal immigration. The public charge rule has had a chilling effect on immigrants’ access to healthcare and other critical services, which has been particularly devastating during the COVID-19 crisis when an estimated five million immigrants have been putting their lives at risk as essential workers. In addition to the public charge rule, the previous administration erected many other barriers to already-existing pathways to lawful status that caused uncertainty for many immigrants and their families. We are heartened by this administration’s commitment to reverse these damaging policies.
While these executive actions are critical to start undoing some of the last administration’s most harmful policies, much is needed to transform our immigration system to one defined by dignity and respect. The time is now for the Biden-Harris administration and Congress to take bold, transformative action to achieve immigrant justice. A swift and inclusive pathway to citizenship--including for the five million undocumented essential workers and their families--and the transformation of our immigration system is not only the right thing to do, but also necessary to ensure that the United States can emerge from the COVID-19 public health and economic crises.
The Center for Popular Democracy and its network are committed to working with the administration to achieve the just and welcoming immigration system we deserve.
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level. www.populardemocracy.org
Center for Popular Democracy Network Statement on Moratorium on Deportations
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, January 21, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT:
Center for Popular Democracy
...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, January 21, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Center for Popular Democracy press@populardemocracy.org
New York, NY — The new Biden Administration released a first-ever order to institute a moratorium on deportations. This policy was unimaginable in previous years, and it is the result of many years of organizing by immigrant communities who made visible to the country the inhumanity of our detention and deportation systems. So today, we celebrate this victory, while also calling attention to the fact that detention and some ICE arrests will continue during this moratorium. We look forward to working with the administration and Congress to address the longstanding and ongoing harms of ICE raids, mass detention, and deportations and to transform our ineffective and inhumane immigration enforcement system from one focused on punishment to one focused on facilitating compliance and safeguarding dignity.
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level. www.populardemocracy.org
Opinion: To President-elect Biden: Families need your immediate action to protect the up to 40 million Americans at risk of eviction.
Here is her story:
Today, on President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day, I am going to eviction court in Alamance County, North Carolina—where I will try to...
Here is her story:
Today, on President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day, I am going to eviction court in Alamance County, North Carolina—where I will try to convince a judge to let my five kids and me stay in our home.
I am just one of up to 40 million renters across the country who could be put on the street when eviction protections expire, and have no idea how we could pay back rent since the pandemic started. My family has been housing insecure for years, but COVID has made it so much worse. We don’t even qualify for the CDC Eviction Moratorium, because our landlord has decided to not renew our lease. This is not the first time we have been evicted but before COVID, we could find another place to live. The coronavirus has made it almost impossible to find a home. We thought we’d be able to find something else, but there is no housing available during a pandemic.
Both my husband and I have been to prison, and when I came back from prison, I wanted to turn my life around and create as much good in the world as I could. But now, it seems like the world is telling us we don’t deserve a home. I don’t think that’s right—how could anyone not deserve a place to live?
Here’s what I think: no one should ever be forced to live on the street. Especially children. That’s why I joined a group of mothers across the country who have said that they will stay in their homes and resist our evictions with our communities.
On this day when President Joe Biden moves with his family into government-funded housing, I literally do not know where my family will be sleeping after February 1st. There are tens of millions of American renters who don’t know where they will be sleeping in the next month.
I hope Joe Biden understands that he faces a huge, unprecedented housing crisis--and that he needs to act on DAY ONE–today–for renters.
I’m Bree Newsome Bass, and I am an organizer with a statewide housing justice coalition here in North Carolina, where we hear stories like Amy’s every day.
In the midst of the greatest health and economic crisis in a century, millions of Americans have been abandoned. Because everyone understands that housing is health care, even under Donald Trump the Center for Disease Control has said that stable housing needs to be protected in the interest of public health during this pandemic. Instead, weak eviction protections and months of back rent are threatening as many as 40 million renters. From a public health perspective alone, housing insecurity joins the vaccine rollout as the central crisis President Biden must address today.
We are building a grassroots movement led by tenants, and our people power has transformed the political landscape of the country. Mothers and families are calling on President Biden to guarantee housing as a human right to address head on the economic and public health crisis families like Amy’s are facing every day. Families across the country need both immediate short term action as well as long term protections for tenants; they can’t wait any longer for relief.
President-elect Biden should issue a universal eviction moratorium covering every renter in the country and cancel rent and mortgage payments. The new administration must pass expansive tenant protections, regulate the predatory actions of corporate landlords in the housing market, and invest significant resources in the preservation and expansion of public housing. If it weren’t for millions of at-risk mothers, renters, and their families braving intimidation and the virus to vote, Joe Biden would not be taking the oath of office today. It’s time to honor their resilience by recognizing housing as a human right—today.
Racial justice activist Amy Cooper’s eviction hearing takes place in Alamance County (NC) on Inauguration Day. Bree Newsome Bass is a North Carolina-based housing activist who is an organizer with the NC Statewide Housing Justice Coalition and the #NeedaHome2StayAtHome Campaign.
Center for Popular Democracy Network Statement on Proposed Immigration Relief Policies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, January 20, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT:
Center for Popular Democracy
...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, January 20, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Center for Popular Democracy press@populardemocracy.org
New York, NY — After four years of enduring relentless attacks by the Trump administration, today, on his first day in office, President Biden will sign several executive orders reversing some of the most harmful policies enacted by Trump and plans to unveil legislation that would provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants.
Today’s announcements represent a victory for immigrant families and communities. For the last four years, immigrants organized to resist Trump’s attacks, and helped pave the way for President Biden’s victory — all while disproportionately serving as essential workers critical to the COVID-19 response and being overwhelmingly shut out of government relief programs.
We welcome many of the proposed Biden-Harris administration’s immigration policies as necessary first steps in reversing the former administration’s worst harms and outlining a roadmap to a just and humane immigration system and a pathway to citizenship for all.
As we welcome these new policies, we must not lose sight of the decades-long punishment-only approach to immigration our communities have endured — being subjected to SWAT-like ICE raids, mass detention and border militarization, all while being denied a pathway to citizenship. We look forward to working with the administration and Congress to address these harms and transform our ineffective and inhumane immigration enforcement system from one focused on punishment to one focused on facilitating compliance and safeguarding dignity.
We applaud the proposed immediate rescission of the Muslim and African Bans, along with the inclusion of the No Ban Act in the legislation. We also applaud the announcement of critical executive actions, including: the preservation and fortification of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the rescission of the order to exclude noncitizens from the census and apportionment count, the creation of the Family Reunification Taskforce, the halting of border wall construction, the restoration of the refugee admissions program and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Liberians and the mandate to conduct a comprehensive review of all immigration-related regulations implemented in the last four years.
We also applaud many aspects of the proposed legislation, including: the pathway to citizenship, the clearing of family-based immigration backlogs, the addition of permanent partner to family-based immigration, the increase in diversity visas, the guarantee of legal representation for children and other vulnerable populations facing removal and the elimination of the dehumanizing term “alien” from the law.
A swift and inclusive pathway to citizenship and the transformation of our immigration system is not only the right thing to do, but also necessary to ensure that the United States can emerge from the COVID-19 public health and economic crises. An estimated five million undocumented immigrants are essential workers. Meanwhile, undocumented immigrants — and many immigrants with lawful status — have been shut out of government relief programs and afraid to seek out healthcare out of fear of negative immigration consequences.
The time is now for the Biden-Harris administration and Congress to take bold, transformative action to achieve immigrant justice. While this happens, we call on the Biden administration to act swiftly to enact a moratorium on ICE arrests and deportations — without carve outs — to provide a respite from the harms that detentions and deportations cause immigrant communities.
The Center for Popular Democracy and its network are committed to working with the administration to achieve these changes to ensure that our communities are given the dignity and respect we deserve.
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level. www.populardemocracy.org
Center for Popular Democracy Statement in Response to Executive Orders Undoing Trump Policies

Center for Popular Democracy Statement in Response to Executive Orders Undoing Trump Policies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, January 20, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT:
Center for Popular Democracy
...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, January 20, 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Center for Popular Democracy press@populardemocracy.org
New York, NY — “Today, we usher in a new, brighter moment for our people and for our future with a series of executive orders issued and proposed by President Joe Biden. After four years of attacks on Black, Brown and Native communities, we are relieved that the new president’s first action has been to issue orders intended to undo several of the countless harms imposed by the Trump administration.
The executive orders that the president has issued today are necessary first steps, but they are not enough. We urge the Biden-Harris administration to continue to act aggressively and swiftly to put this country on a true course to freedom and justice — and we will hold the administration accountable to make sure our communities get the resources we need. We need policies that ensure we can access the care we need to stay healthy and well; that guarantee our children can learn in schools that keep them safe and help them grow; that provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants; that protect our ability to stay in the homes we know and love; and that begin to restore the centuries of harm we’ve inflicted on the planet that we all call home.
A principal aim of the Trump administration was to target immigrants with cruel and dehumanizing policies and practices — including family separation, SWAT-like ICE raids, mass detentions and border militarization — all while denying any pathway to citizenship. It’s a testament to the advocacy and organizing work of the immigrant community that President Biden’s first actions include sending an immigration bill to Congress that will provide a path to citizenship, rescinding the Muslim Ban, preserving DACA and creating a family reunification task force. Now, we call on the administration to enact a moratorium on ICE arrests and deportations — without carve outs — to provide a respite from the harms that detentions and deportations cause immigrant communities.
In the past year, over 400,000 people have died and millions more have fallen into poverty due to COVID-19 and the government’s dangerous inaction and indifference. We are relieved that President Biden’s actions extend the eviction and foreclosure moratoriums, which will help millions of people keep a roof over their heads. However, our communities are in great need of housing security. We call on the president to work with Congress to immediately institute a comprehensive national eviction moratorium that bars all evictions and foreclosures, and to implement rent forgiveness to help all renters stay in their homes.
As we look to combat the spiraling climate crisis, we welcome the initial steps set forth in the executive orders, including revoking the Keystone XL permit, rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement and elevating climate change as a national security priority. Now, we urge President Biden and Congress to fully divest from systems like fossil fuels, and ensure economic recovery by investing in the pillars outlined in the Green New Deal THRIVE Agenda.
After the damage caused by the Trump administration, President Biden’s executive orders to advance equity are a welcome change, but not nearly enough to address white supremacy and the pervasive anti-Blackness that permeates every aspect of our society. The president must both work with Congress and take independent action toward establishing a transformed criminal legal system, investing in the health of Black and Brown young people, committing resources that support safety initiatives outside of policing and work to reduce the prison population.
Finally, we welcome other significant executive orders signed and proposed, including extending the moratorium on student loans during the pandemic, a federal mask mandate, reversing the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the World Health Organization, a commitment to swiftly and equitably distributing COVID-19 treatment, reducing the undue influence of corporate lobbyists going through the revolving door, ensuring Census appointment data includes undocumented immigrants and strengthening efforts to advance the human rights of LGBTQ+ persons overseas.
This historic day must be credited to the Black, Brown and Native communities who delivered this win by turning out to vote in record numbers, overcoming all adversity and obstacles placed in our path. We are relieved to see President Biden acting to undo several of the policies that target these communities on his first day in office, and we hope to see additional bold reforms going forward.”
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The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level. www.populardemocracy.org
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