Making Immigrant Rights Real in San Mateo County

Sara Matlin, chair of the North Peninsula Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, has had her hands full lately trying to counter the effects of the Trump administration (as well as previously at times the Obama administration). With the current White House hell-bent on getting rid of as many immigrants as possible and San Mateo County a home for a number of them trying to find work and stability, ACLU-NP is often head-to-head with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the San Mateo County Sheriff's office as it looks out for the civil rights of these newcomers.

The local chapter is part of the San Mateo County Coalition for Immigrant Rights which Sara founded in 2010, consisting of attorneys offering legal aid and immigrant rights activists, who along with ACLU-NP try to, as she puts it, "think globally and act locally" regarding immigrant rights. The thinking is statewide as well, with the recent passage of SB 54, the California Values Act, which will make it a sanctuary state protecting immigrants from deportation wherever possible. Even with the measure's enactment, the old ways are likely not to fade away easily.

On February 11, Sara Matlin will be the guest of PASMC with a talk entitled "Making Immigrant Rights Real in San Mateo County". Sara will address efforts to protect civil rights here, and the obstacles to do that and countering different levels of law enforcement. She will also offer ways for citizens to get involved in protecting immigrant rights.

The event is wheelchair accessible.

Sara is a lawyer and community organizer whose work began in her teenage years when she worked against U.S. military intervention in Central America. In addition to being chair of ACLU-NP, she is also the Bilingual Counsel with the Alliance for Justice's Bolder Advocacy Initiative located in Oakland. In this work Sara empowers Spanish- and English-speaking nonprofit organizations to become leaders in policy change movements.

Free, contributions welcome.