By Chanel Ward
Over a hundred eager participants gathered last Saturday afternoon to begin their door-to-door canvassing for Elizabeth Warren and to welcome Former Presidential Candidate, Secretary Julián Castro, who hosted a Canvas Kickoff Meet and Greet in the Elyria Swansea neighborhood in Denver, Colorado.
Adrastos Da Silva, a Warren field organizer introduced Secretary Castro to a full room of enthusiastic supporters.
This is the first time Secretary Castro has visited Colorado after endorsing Warren for President in early January and clearly explained why he believes Warren is best fit to lead. “This is what I learned about Elizabeth Warren, number one; she’s the hardest working candidate out there and secondly, she is so well prepared.”
Castro pointed out to last Friday’s debate, “what you saw last night is what we’ve been seeing at debates the whole way through and she is a person that is prepared to be president of the United States.
“The other thing that I saw very clearly last night, and I think we all did; was that she’s able to connect the dots of all these things so well. About how the challenges we have in healthcare, or climate change, or dealing with equality; all of them run together,” praised Castro. “If we’re going to have a country where everybody is able to prosper, we need a president that understands the nuance, that understands the different ways that policies impact different communities. She made a point in that answer about race yesterday at a level that was so high up that set a new bar on that debate stage, but that’s who she is.”
“The one thing that I know, is that she is not taking any single vote for granted, she is not going to take the Latino communities vote for granted, she knows that the Democratic party has to work for votes from the Latino community.”
Secretary Julián Castro
In an interview with The Weekly Issue/El Semanario, Secretary Castro explained that Senator Warren acknowledges that an effective strategy will be to engage Latino voters.
“The Warren campaign is making a lot of outreach into the Latino community here in Colorado and also in states like California, Texas, Nevada as well as other states,” added Secretary Castro. “She is also trying to work with community leaders to both listen and incorporate the ideas of Latino leaders into the campaign.”
Colorado policy makers, including State Senator Julie Gonzales (D-Denver), have already endorsed Warren for President, including Senators, Kerry Donovan (D- Chaffee, Delta, Eagle, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Lake, Pitkin), Faith Winter (D-Adams) and Mike Foote (D-Boulder). Representatives, Dominique Jackson (D-Arapahoe) and Chris Kennedy (D-Jefferson) are also on board with Warren, including Broomfield City Council Member, William Lindstedt and Edgewood City Council Member Michal Rosenoer.
The Warren campaign understands the influence of the Latino vote, which according to recent research, projects 32 million Latinos nationwide have the potential to participate in the upcoming elections.
“There was an announcement of 100 different Latino and Latina leaders from across the country that are supporting Senator Warren. So she’s reaching out to the Latino community, she’s listening, she also has a vision for the country that I’m confident will resonate really well with the Latino community; about healthcare for everybody, about better educational opportunities, about fixing our broken immigration system and making sure that we invest in small business entrepreneurship,” said Castro.
When asked about Warren’s views and solutions on immigration, Secretary Castro replied, “Senator Warren has stated very clearly that as soon as she becomes president, without hesitation, she will end family separation. She will move to end these private detention facilities and she will keep families together.
“In addition, she wants to put undocumented immigrants on the pathway to citizenship, protect our DREAMers and their families, but also other undocumented immigrants and she wants to make sure that we fix our broken legal immigration system as well, because that has a lot of issues. She has a track record of supporting good immigration legislation, and not only will she support legislation as president, she will take executive action to improve the lives of immigrants in this country,” stated Castro.
In regards to protecting independent media, Secretary Castro explained, “Well first, she [Warren] believes in the First Amendment and in freedom of the press, unlike this president she wants to make it easier for the press to do their job and not harder. She disagrees with what Donald Trump has done to crackdown on the press and their ability to do their job, she’ll bring more openness and transparency to government,” clarified Castro.
“So, as we go through this primary calendar into Nevada, into here in Colorado, Texas, California, especially. They’re making investments in Latino focused media in both Spanish and English,” assured Castro.
The Warren campaign is taking all measures to meet all people where they are, “the campaign is taking an ‘all the above’ strategy; knocking on people’s doors and talking to them at their doorstep, by engaging people on social media, but also in traditional ways. She also has done town halls throughout this campaign, every single way that the campaign can reach out to voters, they’re reaching out,” assured Castro.
“The one thing that I know, is that she is not taking any single vote for granted, she is not going to take the Latino communities vote for granted, she knows that the Democratic party has to work for votes from the Latino community and the campaign here in Colorado has been doing that for months now,” said Castro. “I met today with Latino leaders, they have been organizing in the Latino community, the campaign team, they’ll continue to do that through Super Tuesday and if she’s the nominee, until November and beyond.”
Castro ended his speech by saying, “¡Adios Donald Trump!”
To learn more about Elizabeth Warren, her campaign or to become involved with canvassing in your neighborhood you can visit ElizabethWarren.com.
Chanel Ward is an Independent Reporter for The Weekly Issue/El Semanario.
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