Latest news with #LULAC
The Hill
25-06-2025
- The Hill
Mother of Naval Station Norfolk sailor killed seeks Navy accountability
NOTE: The video above is the full LULAC press conference. WASHINGTON, D.C. (WAVY) — The mother of a sailor who disappeared from Naval Station Norfolk and was found dead in a Norfolk neighborhood is in Washington D.C. Wednesday demanding transparency and accountability from the U.S. Navy. Angelina Resendiz was initially reported missing May 29 and was last seen in her barracks at Naval Station Norfolk around 10 a.m., according to the Navy. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service confirmed June 10 the body found in Norfolk was that of Resendiz. Esmeralda Castle, Resendiz's mother, was in D.C. with the League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC, for a news conference surrounding a variety of issues regarding her disappearance. The issues include a public timeline and accountability from the Navy and NCIS, disclosure of non-disclosure agreements service members were required to sign involving the case, collaboration on a civilian family guide, and access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for the Resendiz family, among others. 'I'm (also) outraged because what happened to Angelina was not just a tragedy but a preventable failure,' said CEO of LULAC, Juan Proaño. 'Her disappearance on May 29th was mishandled from the start. Instead of immediately treating Angie a missing person in danger, the Navy reportedly marked as AWOL and waited six days before filing a missing persons report.' 'Even giving her family false reassurances that she may still be alive,' Proaño explained. The LULAC is demanding a full investigation into the apparent delays, miscommunications and lack of urgency from the Navy. In addition, LULAC has written the Secretary of the Navy, John Phelan, demanding answers. 'We insist on accountability at every level. Any commander or official who failed to act appropriately must answer to it under the uniform code of military justice,' said Proaño. The LULAC expects swift justice against Jermiah Copeland, a former Culinary Specialist Seaman and the man Castle's attorney identified as the person detained in connection to Resendiz's death, and anyone else responsible for this crime. Castle also spoke during the press conference, grateful for the support showed towards her and her family, but also seeking justice for her daughter. 'There is a system in place and it does not work and I don't know if it's ever worked. I don't know if anyone would acknowledge that there is a problem and accept responsibility for it to make a change.' Castle claimed that when she called and spoke to the officer on deck, it appeared the officer in question did not know who Resendiz was, but insisted she was ok and would not let Castle speak to her. 'I spoke with the officer on deck, Chief Anderson, and he said: 'Angie or Cindy? Oh yeah she's fine. She's just in another room,'' Castle recounted. ''The missing report that was given was more dramatic; she's fine.' WAVY-10 Andy Fox spoke to Dr. Ray Serrano Tuesday leading up to the press conference, who believes 'there were a lot of missteps from the military side, and a lot of unaccountability from that that could have prevented the situation.' 'Delays in the military,' Serrano said. 'There's no answer. At some point, her mother calls, and they say she's in another room, that they have found her, and she's alive, and she wasn't. They had no answers. They had no clue where she was.' The flow of inaccurate information to the family was also a concern to Marshall Griffin, Castle's attorney. 'We are very early in the case,' Griffin said, 'and I would expect to get clarity on those issues, and what happened, and when, and why things were said, and what reports were made and when.' The Latino Civil Rights group also brought up the memory of U.S. Army soldier Vanessa Guillen, who was murdered by a fellow soldier, the victim of sexual harassment and assault within the military. 'In the case of Vanessa Guillen, there were a lot of delays from the military, a lot of backtracking, a lot of like, not being forthcoming with details to the family,' Serrano said. There are a lot of similarities to Guillen's and Resendiz's cases. 'They go missing, the military in both cases listed them as AWOL, does not institute an Ashanti Alert, which was in place even then, in 2018,' Serrano said. 'There are certainly questions that we have that may necessitate an apology down the road, and I look forward to getting answers to the questions as the case moves forward,' Griffin said The news conference also considered the possible harassment Resendiz was receiving. 'There's alleged reporting from Angelina Resendiz about the harassment that she was experiencing,' Serrano said, 'and yet nothing was being done about it.' The LULAC says the events between Resendiz's disappearance, May 29, and the day her body was discovered, June 9, is still unclear. Griffin says the next procedural step would be to have another preliminary hearing under Article 32, in hopes of answering some of the questions Castle and the family still have regarding Resendiz's death.
CBS News
13-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Latino leaders in North Texas urge peace amid ICE raids and protests
Latino organizers and city leaders across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex are speaking out against ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids. At a press conference Friday at Dallas City Hall, groups including LULAC, the American Business Immigration Coalition, and the Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce urged the community to keep protests peaceful. The event addressed both Friday's anti-ICE demonstration and the "No Kings" protests planned for the weekend. Concerns over political climate Latino organizers and city leaders across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex are speaking out against ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids. CBS News Texas "There is a storm cloud right above us," said Besty Grimaldo, a student at UNT Dallas. "With the ever-changing heavy political climate that we're in right now, America is seeing the highest rate of change, both positive and negative all across the board." Advocates said the ICE raids are terrorizing Latino communities. LULAC President Roman Palomares criticized recent moves by President Donald Trump and Gov. Greg Abbott to deploy the National Guard, calling them politically motivated. Criticism of military presence "This weaponization of military force is against peaceful dissenters, and it has a very chilling effect on our communities," Palomares said. "We cannot ignore the signs of authoritarians." LULAC also addressed a separate incident involving U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, who was forcibly removed and handcuffed Thursday while attempting to question Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem at a press conference. Calls for investigation into Padilla "When a Latino lawmaker is physically silenced for asking about ICE raids, it signals that no one—not even Congress or a senator—is safe from this administration's contempt for accountability," Palomares said. LULAC is calling for a full investigation and congressional review of the incident involving Padilla. Protest strategy and safety While organizers support public demonstrations, they are urging participants to remain peaceful. "Go to the march, but know what to do at the marches. Do not go against the police officers," said Hilda Duarte with LULAC. When asked about Friday's protest, which aims to shut down Interstate 35, organizers said they do not believe blocking streets is the most effective way to deliver their message. City leaders echo peaceful message Dallas City Councilmember Jaime Resendez echoed the call for nonviolence. "Peaceful protest is powerful, but violence and destruction will distract from the important issues that need to be heard," Resendez said.
USA Today
13-06-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Court sides with Trump over control of National Guard in California: Live updates
Court sides with Trump over control of National Guard in California: Live updates Show Caption Hide Caption See how Los Angeles protests intensified over one weekend What started as a small protest over immigration raids on Friday ballooned into large demonstrations throughout the weekend. Here's what happened. As cities across the country braced for hundreds of protests planned for the weekend, California leaders and President Donald Trump remain in an intense showdown on Friday after an appeals court allowed the president to maintain his deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday temporarily blocked a federal judge's order that required Trump to return control of California's National Guard to the state. The court's decision followed U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer's ruling that the president's deployment of the Guard was unlawful. Breyer's ruling was a short victory for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who filed a lawsuit over the president's move to deploy members of the Guard without Newsom's authorization. The judge's order was to take effect at noon on Friday. Meanwhile, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and other national Latino organizations condemned the forceful removal of Democratic U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's news conference in Los Angeles on Thursday. LULAC, which is the oldest and largest Latino civil rights organization in the United States, has demanded an immediate investigation into the incident. Videos showed Padilla being forced to the ground and handcuffed after trying to ask a question during the news conference, where Noem was discussing the protests over federal immigration raids. In a video statement released Thursday night, Padilla said he had been escorted to the news conference by a National Guardsman and an FBI agent after waiting for another scheduled briefing. "Now, I'm OK for people who are wondering how I'm doing," Padilla, who is from California, added. "But the big lesson here is if they can do that to me ... what are they doing to a lot of the folks that are out there when the cameras are not on?" Following days of protests in Los Angeles, which were mostly confined to parts of the city's downtown area, a partial curfew remained in effect for the third consecutive night. The curfew, lasting from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. PT for pockets of downtown Los Angeles, was implemented on Tuesday. 'My hope is after continuing it a few more days, that people will get the message that we are serious,' Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said at a Thursday news conference. Shortly before the curfew went into effect on Thursday night, the Los Angeles Police Department's Central Division reported people in a crowd throwing bricks, concrete, and commercial-grade fireworks. "Less lethal munitions have been authorized," LAPD said in a post on X at about 7:55 p.m. local time. "No Kings" Day organizers say it is more important than ever to have a "national day of peaceful protest" on June 14, following the decision by Trump to send 700 Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles. "I think we will see the largest peaceful single day protests that this country has seen certainly since the first Trump term," said Indivisible cofounder Ezra Levin, one of the organizers. Now, about 2,000 protests and rallies named "No Kings" Day are planned to oppose what they see as Trump's power grab, nearly double that of the April 5 "Hands Off" protest that saw millions of Americans turn out in big and small cities nationwide. Organizers expect millions of Americans to turn out across the country on June 14. Contributing: Reuters
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Latino civil rights group warns against ‘reckless behavior' at protests
The nation's largest Latino civil rights organization is warning against 'reckless behavior' at protests as demonstrations against President Trump's immigration policies spread across the country and National Guard troops are mobilized in multiple states. The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) on Thursday issued a 'National Safety Advisory' following Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's (R) announcement that 5,000 National Guard troops and 2,000 Texas state police officers would back up local law enforcement ahead of mass protests planned this weekend. LULAC President Roman Palomares said his organization 'stands for lawful, nonviolent protest' and the group advised those who might participate in protests to avoid carrying objects that could be viewed as weapons and to follow 'lawful dispersal orders.' 'Anyone joining a demonstration must understand that an act even perceived as assaulting National Guard soldiers or federal agents is a federal crime that can carry serious prison sentences. We should avoid reckless behavior that overshadows our just cause or endangers our people,' Palomares said. The group previously voiced support for those protesting the Trump administration's immigration raids in Los Angeles while condemning President Trump's decision to deploy National Guard members to the city. According to a press release, Palomares traveled to LA and joined local leaders from the group to protest federal immigrations operations. The Trump administration's immigration crackdown has sparked recent protests throughout the U.S., and more protests are expected in cities across the country. On Thursday morning, President Trump said California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) should be thanking him for sending the National Guard and Marines to respond to demonstrations in Los Angeles over the president's immigration policies. Trump suggested that the situation in the Southern California city had gotten better, holding up the assistance of the 700 Marines and thousands of National Guard troops he had sent there over the objections of state leaders. 'Los Angeles was safe and sound for the last two nights. Our great National Guard, with a little help from the Marines, put the L.A. Police in a position to effectively do their job. They all worked well together, but without the Military, Los Angeles would be a crime scene like we haven't seen in years,' Trump said on his Truth Social platform. Abbott announced the surge of National Guard and Texas public safety officers on Thursday morning, saying in a statement: 'Peaceful protests are part of the fabric of our nation, but Texas will not tolerate the lawlessness we have seen in Los Angeles in response to [Trump's] enforcement of immigration law.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iowa Supreme Court overturns ruling, blocks non-English voting materials
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa Supreme Court ruled against the League of United Latin American Citizens and overturned a district ruling allowing non-English voting materials. The 2002 'English-only' law requires all official documents to be in English unless necessary to maintain a person's Constitutional rights. In 2008, a district court ruled this applied to election materials, like ballots, and placed a permanent injunction barring the state from using non-English materials. Kimballton water tested safe following days of uncertainty LULAC sought to overturn that ruling a sued Secretary of State Paul Pate in 2021. A district court sided with LULAC in 2023, dissolving the injunction and allowing voting materials in other languages. Pate then appealed the ruling. On Friday, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled that LULAC lacked standing in the case and said there was no proof that the organization faced a direct injury to its legal rights. Following the ruling, Pate released a statement saying Iowa would continue to follow federal standards. This includes providing translated versions of official documents and forms in areas where certain population thresholds have been met. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
