Q&A: Trump-Era Raids, Voter Suppression, and a Call for John Lewis–Style Leadership

"We need to rise from this dark moment to really build a strong movement where we can look back and say, 'Never again.'"

Tomorrow, August 6th, is the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, the landmark legislation that prohibited racial discrimination in voting laws. With the Trump administration and state officials waging attacks on voting and civil rights, many of them targeted at people of color, I spoke with Yadira Sanchez, executive director of Poder Latinx, a voter rights and engagement organization, who told me: “This is a moment that’s calling for more of that John Lewis-style of leadership, that getting into good trouble.”

Meaghan: What are Poder Latinx’s priorities now, when there’s so much happening?

Yadira: Our focus needs to be, and is, the midterm elections. We need to be thinking strategically ahead of those elections, because right now our folks are paying the consequences of the last election. The most vulnerable communities right now, the undocumented, are living in fear, and they didn't cast a vote in the election. Lots of other folks, too, are experiencing the ripple effects of the election. So in order for us to really stand up and protect these communities, protect folks who are going to lose their Medicare, who are right now being targeted, being kidnapped off the streets, we need to engage those of us who can vote.

We’re already seeing a lot of voter regret, voter remorse. So, it's our job to organize, build coalitions, create voter infrastructure, and register people to vote. We know the importance of local elections. We know that we need mayors that stand up, city council members that stand up. We need everyone. It's not the presidency that matters. Look at everyone in Congress who voted for the recent budget bill, right? So, we need to make sure that our community is engaging in democracy and participating at every level of government.

It’s been very difficult because we would love to pivot, to just do rapid response for the [immigrant] community full-time. We’ve done Know Your Rights trainings, we’ve had to adapt to the needs of the community. At the same time, our priorities haven’t changed, and we need that laser focus.

Meaghan: What does it mean to lead a Latinx organization at this moment when the administration is vilifying immigrants?

Yadira: A lot of us feel like we're constantly under attack. We’re watching a president openly attack our community and mobilize hate at the national level. There have been deportations before, ICE existed before, but not at this level, not in this way where you don’t feel safe anywhere. There’s a kind of desperation from the administration to hit their mass deportation numbers and that’s led to targeting people outside, in the streets, in their workplace. People going to work don’t feel safe. People with green cards don’t want to travel outside the country. There have been so many scenarios of people losing loved ones and missing the funerals. There are people with citizenship fearing they’ll lose their citizenship. There’s a sense that these detention centers signify something more. It feels like they’re “cleansing” the country, and they’re trying to make America less Brown.

It’s hard to comprehend what it means to be detained. It’s not like it’s no big deal. People have died in ICE custody already. So, folks are feeling a lot of fear. It has been very emotionally challenging to organize and to work. At the same time, we're not being paralyzed by the moment of crisis. We’re seeing this as a moment of opportunity, where we need to rise from this dark moment to really build a strong movement where we can look back and say, “Never again.” I want to know that this is never going to happen to our people again. This is why we have to participate. This is why we have to be very involved in the democratic process. Because the democratic process is not going to look out for us.

Meaghan: Can you tell me about some of the ways that you see political corruption affecting the people Poder Latinx represents and organizes?

Yadira: Corruption is one of the main reasons so many immigrants left their country, their motherland, and came to the United States, seeking democracy, seeking fairness, seeking a government without corruption. So, what the Trump administration is doing is really hitting home for a lot of Latinos of different backgrounds that have experienced corruption, in Venezuela, in Cuba, and in other countries. They're recognizing it, they’ve seen and experienced corruption before.

Because of that experience, for our community in general, corruption builds distrust in government. It can disillusion folks and prevent them from engaging politically.

There’s also a real fear of corruption, a real fear of the United States turning into an authoritarian government, because folks have seen it firsthand before. Folks do not want the United States to turn into another country just like the one they fled. They want democracy. Corruption is an issue that resonates with Latinos, and it could drive a whole new generation of voters in the Latino community.

Look at immigration. Immigration enforcement is being used as a political tool. Funding that should be going to hospitals and schools is being used to snatch people without due process. That is a major corruption issue.

Meaghan: Do you have advice for messaging about corruption to Latinos?

Yadira: More elected officials need to stand up. The Republican Party is falling in line with the Trump administration more than being responsive to its own constituents.

There also needs to be a more united, more vocal front in the Democratic Party. This is the time when we need to have a lot more people like John Lewis. We need to see people step up and think beyond getting reelected in the next election, because we’re talking about the future of our country. We really need leadership to emerge.

If Democratic leaders stood up, they’d be gaining a whole generation of voters that knew that someone stood up for them in their darkest moment. I don’t see [Democrats] understanding that they could earn loyal voters for generations to come. I do want to applaud the Latino Democratic leadership out of California, Congressman Jimmy Gomez and Congresswoman Linda Sanchez and others, who were out in front after the ICE raids in Los Angeles. There needs to be more leadership like Senator Alex Padilla, who really stood up and demanded answers. This is a moment that’s calling for more of that John Lewis-style of leadership, that getting into good trouble.

Meaghan: There are so many terrible things happening across the country. How are you coping?

Yadira: Sometimes it feels like we're just up against too much, from voter suppression to immigration raids and straight out attacks on our democracy. What grounds me is remembering why we do this, our people.

I come from a mixed [immigration] status home, so I know that I have a privilege and other folks don't have that privilege. If I'm overwhelmed, I can't even imagine being in their shoes, not having that clear outlook of what your day or week is going to look like. What keeps me going is the resilience of our community, that we can find joy in the darkest moments, especially the young people who we're seeing step up with their energy, their fight, their grit. That fuels me.

I'm also pregnant, and that's also made me think differently. It's not just about the here and now, it's also about the future. What do we want to leave behind? I don't want my daughter having fewer rights than my mom had! This fight is not just for us, this is for something much bigger. There is light at the end of this tunnel, and I'm really proud of our team for helping us get there.