Among La Voz goals: To 'educate the community'
Laura Valle
2007-09-04 16:06:00
I was born and raised in Loudoun County to a mother of Native American, Spanish, and Italian ancestry and a father of distant French and German ancestry. I am married to a Salvadoran immigrant and we have three children. In addition to serving as the interim executive director of La Voz of Loudoun, my husband and I co-own a small business. Co-founding La Voz of Loudoun in 2002 was the result of a culmination of life experiences that inspired me to encourage and assist immigrants as they integrate into the community because Loudoun, and indeed our country, has so much opportunity to offer those with the will to work for it. I know this to be true because I see where my family came from and where we are now.
The name La Voz (The Voice) was chosen in 2002 by a group of concerned citizens during a community meeting. We have always hoped that it would communicate the message that we are an organization that cares for immigrants. It is important to note that our formation was encouraged by government entities and other nonprofits, all of which were scrambling to provide services to a legal Hispanic immigrant population that had increased by 365 percent in 10 years. Indeed, Loudoun’s government and private organizations were scrambling to meet the needs of a staggering increase in the overall population, growth fueled by a healthy economy and burgeoning development. This development would not have been possible without the hard work of immigrants. Prior to La Voz, there was not any organization whose focus was to specifically provide assistance to and help acculturate these new residents.
The majority of the work of La Voz has been general outreach and promotion of the events and services of other organizations, one-time educational presentations, and consultation within the Loudoun County and Town of Leesburg governments. Our new English and Family Integration program is a collaborative effort among several other organizations, in order to help a small group of parents become more involved and engaged in their children’s school lives. There is nothing divisive about this work.
Recent circumstances have led La Voz to be involved with perhaps the biggest domestic issue facing our country – illegal immigration. Until the recent resolution on illegal immigration passed by the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors I worked diligently alongside other dedicated members of La Voz helping immigrants to improve their lives and be productive citizens. The resolution and La Voz’s subsequent involvement in providing information and education relating to the myriad of issues raised by it have brought an enormous amount of attention to our small organization. Because there are no activist organizations in Loudoun, such as Mexican’s Without Borders, La Voz has often been portrayed as the “opposition”. Providing additional information, perspectives, and considerations is not the same as opposing an issue. La Voz is nonpartisan, neutral organization that has become a target for people who are unaware of the wonderful community building work that our board and volunteers are doing.
In response to the resolution, La Voz of Loudoun went right back to our primary mission – educating the community. We believe that every resident has the right to know and understand the implications of the resolution. You cannot imagine the wild rumors that began to circulate among a population that does not yet have the command of English that they need. So, we translated it. We had thoughtful public meetings in English and Spanish to which we invited and included public officials, including the Loudoun County Sheriff and representative from the county's zoning department.
Despite concerns about how the resolution came about, the board of La Voz supported it to the extent that it called for study of an issue that has been overlooked by the federal government for so long. La Voz of Loudoun does not support illegal immigration and we do nothing to encourage it. Given this stance, it has been frustrating to have a bull’s-eye painted squarely on our backs. For what? For helping people. It has been a challenge to navigate through the minefield that is this issue, all the while trying to keep my own opinions and emotions at a healthy distance. It has been a tremendous learning experience, and though I have stumbled along the way, I am proud of my work and the work of the Board of La Voz of Loudoun.
La Voz is ready and willing to meet with any public official or Loudoun resident who has questions about La Voz and the work we do on behalf of all Loudoun residents. Thanks to all of the volunteer members of La Voz, government and business representatives, non-profit leaders, and faith-based community workers who have made La Voz what it is today. The Board of Directors, volunteer members, and paid staff of La Voz of Loudoun wants it known that we will continue to stay on the high ground. We hope that others will join us there.
The writer is the interim executive director of La Voz of Loudoun