Embracing Diversity
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
Rebecca Kubacki, former District 22 state representative, recently submitted an op-ed in which she presented a compelling case for the need to embrace our diversity and reject the hate we see all around us. As an Hispanic-American, Mrs. Kubacki shares from experience and from the heart and she should be applauded for her willingness to speak out.
Had she won her primary, she and I would have faced each other in the general election in what would have been a unique campaign that, I believe, would have been governed by mutual respect. To be sure, we would have debated policy differences, but there is much we would have agreed upon.
Hispanics and Latinos represent a vibrant and productive part of our communities. They exemplify hard work and commitment to faith and family. Instead of advocating for mass deportations, as some extremists do, we should be employing mechanisms to assist people in attaining lawful status. While the U.S. Congress remains gridlocked, Indiana can take proactive steps to assist immigrants to work toward that lawful status. There are two policies we can enact now that will aid this process. First, we can issue driver’s licenses to undocumented. This will permit them to obtain automobile insurance and proper identification. Second, we can offer in-state college tuition rates to young people who came here as children and are Americans in every sense of the word.
To be sure, we should more effectively secure our borders and deport violent and dangerous criminals. But these people represent a minority of the Hispanic and Latino communities.
The Kosciusko County Democratic Party embraces our diversity and welcomes Hispanics and Latinos. At our next meeting, July 7 at 6 p.m. at the St. Regis Club, our guest speaker will be Giberto Perez from Goshen College. He will speak about the challenges, hopes and aspirations of Hispanics and Latinos in our area. Our meeting is open to all and we invite the public to join us in what will prove to be an enlightening presentation.
David C. Kolbe
Chairperson, Kosciusko County Democratic Party
Warsaw, via email[[In-content Ad]]
Rebecca Kubacki, former District 22 state representative, recently submitted an op-ed in which she presented a compelling case for the need to embrace our diversity and reject the hate we see all around us. As an Hispanic-American, Mrs. Kubacki shares from experience and from the heart and she should be applauded for her willingness to speak out.
Had she won her primary, she and I would have faced each other in the general election in what would have been a unique campaign that, I believe, would have been governed by mutual respect. To be sure, we would have debated policy differences, but there is much we would have agreed upon.
Hispanics and Latinos represent a vibrant and productive part of our communities. They exemplify hard work and commitment to faith and family. Instead of advocating for mass deportations, as some extremists do, we should be employing mechanisms to assist people in attaining lawful status. While the U.S. Congress remains gridlocked, Indiana can take proactive steps to assist immigrants to work toward that lawful status. There are two policies we can enact now that will aid this process. First, we can issue driver’s licenses to undocumented. This will permit them to obtain automobile insurance and proper identification. Second, we can offer in-state college tuition rates to young people who came here as children and are Americans in every sense of the word.
To be sure, we should more effectively secure our borders and deport violent and dangerous criminals. But these people represent a minority of the Hispanic and Latino communities.
The Kosciusko County Democratic Party embraces our diversity and welcomes Hispanics and Latinos. At our next meeting, July 7 at 6 p.m. at the St. Regis Club, our guest speaker will be Giberto Perez from Goshen College. He will speak about the challenges, hopes and aspirations of Hispanics and Latinos in our area. Our meeting is open to all and we invite the public to join us in what will prove to be an enlightening presentation.
David C. Kolbe
Chairperson, Kosciusko County Democratic Party
Warsaw, via email[[In-content Ad]]
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