Glenwood Springs — Alex Sánchez, founder and CEO of Voces Unidas de las Montañas and Voces Unidas Action Fund, today decried tactics being deployed in western Colorado spreading hateful messages and aiming to limit the voices of Latino voters.
As reported earlier this week in the Colorado Sun, the America First Legal Foundation, which was founded by former Trump confidant Stephen Miller, has delivered Spanish-language mailers and radio ads with anti-transgender messaging to Colorado’s Latino voters on the Front Range. Sánchez said Thursday that mailers targeting Latino and Latina voters in the central-mountain region have been reported to Voces Unidas de las Montañas and Voces Unidas Action Fund.
“These dishonest attacks are not only designed to fuel hate and vilify transgender Americans — their true intent is to spawn hate and to strip Latinos of their voice by making our electoral process seem like a cesspool that is not worth venturing into,” said Sánchez.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, has an entire page devoted to Miller. He is infamous for designing Trump’s cruel immigrant family separation policy, which left children in cages at the border; shutting down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which defers deportation for immigrants brought to this country as minors and allows them to work, but requires regular renewals; and banning Muslim immigrants.
Miller’s group isn’t just targeting Latino and Latina voters in Colorado, however. According to media reports, their dirty tricks are being used in ads in California and Arizona as well.
Last week, unaffiliated Eagle County voters received a text message from the county GOP urging them to only vote on Election Day and not participate in Colorado’s mail ballot system. The message, Sánchez said, is designed to limit voter participation and sow doubt in Colorado's system.
"We will not let hate groups, racists, anti-immigration radicals or anyone else succeed at suppressing our voices and our votes," said Sánchez. "These partisan actors and dark-money groups are bullies who are betting that we will remain silent and sit on our ballots. We must stand up, speak up, and tell them we will not let them take away our voice — and we will not let their hateful and harmful rhetoric go unchallenged."
He urged anyone who's seen a mailer or an ad trying to intimidate or discourage voters to let the organization know by calling or texting: (970) 340-8502.
Voces Unidas has launched a dedicated elections website with nonpartisan information and links to official state and local government websites. Visit www.vocesunidas.vote to learn more.
###