Wells Fargo Bank donates for "mobile matriculas events"

In the bare-knuckles, confrontational style of legendary community organizer Saul Alinsky, some 1,000 church and community organizers gathered July 17 in the asphalt schoolyard of St. Rose of Lima Church, Maywood, to confront city, county, state and federal officials about their community problems and needs.

The grassroots leaders from the South East Cluster of One LA-IAF (Industrial Areas Foundation) zeroed in on four broad areas --- consulate identification, education, safety and immigration rights --- affecting seven cities, including Lynwood, South Gate, Huntington Park and Maywood...

...Community leaders praised Well Fargo Bank for being the first local financial institution to let individuals use consulate identification to open accounts. And Chris Rommel, a Wells Fargo officer, reported that more than 500,000 checking accounts using matriculas consulares as a valid form of identification had been opened to date. Then, to cheers, he presented a blown-up check to the community organization.

"One LA is doing fantastic work in the community, and we want to make sure that we're supporting that," he said. "To help them continue their work this year, I brought with me the contribution in the amount of $25,000 to help One LA continue to have mobile matriculas events."

Please read: Can anyone search for more information on these "mobile matriculas events" or up-to-date information on these organizations?

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"Over the years, I have received letters and e-mail correspondence charging that a social action group, the Industrial Areas Foundation, was, at best, a front group for the Communist Party. Since I had always heard the name of its founder, the late Saul Alinsky, linked with Lenin, Stalin, and Castro, I more than half-believed the charge... [article goes downhill]"

IAF's Active Citizenship Campaign Memo

Says project turned criminals into citizens just in time to vote

Saul Alinsky and the Lessons He Taught Bill and Hillary

Ernesto J. Cortes Jr got a Heinz Foundation award

more on One L.A. IAF

GABRIELA RICO Statesman Journal March 6, 2005 Nearly 2,000 people converged on McKay High School on Saturday to obtain services from the Mexican government. They came seeking documents, information and help. They came seeking assistance in finding a job, a place to live and securing a driver's license. There were stories of unpaid wages, workplace discrimination and missing family members. In the end, fewer than a fourth of those who showed up at the Salem high school were accommodated by an overwhelmed Mobile Consulate program. Partnering with Oregon state agencies, the Mexican government's daylong event was an attempt to reach out to its rapidly growing community in the Mid-Willamette Valley. Estevan Garcia Neri, 62, and four nephews were there for matricular consular cards, necessary to cash payroll checks and obtain driver's licenses. The men arrived at the school at 2 a.m. and were surprised to find that there already was a line at the door -- a door that wouldn't be opening for eight more hours. They were issued card No. 14 and clutched it like a life line, fully aware that they were among the lucky ones who would be seen by the Mexican Consulate this day. The men, from Hidalgo, Mexico, work in a Salem steel mill and said the eight-hour wait was worth it. As he waited in the long, winding line, Alejandro Ortiz, 47, a native of Mexico City, said he didn't mind because he was thankful that the consulate came to him. "I can't take time off from work," he said about the alternative of having to travel from his home in McMinnville to Portland for his matricular card. Even though he was at the tail end of the line, 30-year-old Mario Vichecha of Veracruz, Mexico, remained optimistic that he might get a break and walk away with his matricular card in order to get his driver's license next week. Wrapped in blankets, sitting in folding chairs and munching on sandwiches, they waited and waited. The practice of a roving consulate is a growing trend in states like Oregon, where only one office exists, said Martín Alcalá Salgado, the state's deputy Mexican consul. Twelve of the 16 employees of the Mexican Consulate for Oregon were on hand at McKay High School. "Clearly, it's insufficient," Alcalá said of the resources. "We need more space and more staff to meet the needs of the growing community." According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Hispanic population in Oregon swelled by 318 percent from 1980 to 2000. The majority of that growth is from the Mexican community. Alcalá lamented that only 300 families could be served at the event, but explained that the new security features of the matricular card are laborious. The new system, centralized in Mexico City, requires fingerprint imaging and photos to reduce the likelihood of fraud, he said. That's an important feature for Oregon agencies such as the state Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division. "We're walking hand-in-hand with the consulate," said Ana Gomez, a DMV transportation services representative. "We're here because I know that's what they're here for." Citizenship is not a requirement for obtaining a driver's license in Oregon, one of only 11 states with such laws. And because the license is an avenue to employment, banking privileges or the ability to rent an apartment, Alcalá said, state officials rely on the consulate to ensure the matricular card's security. <.....> THE CONSULATE A consulate is a body of public officers maintained by a government in foreign countries to protect the persons and interests of its nationals and to aid them in every possible way. Consuls are officially recognized by a foreign state through the issuance of an authorization known as an exequatur, which may be revoked by the admitting state at any time.<..................................> The Mexican Consulate sets these things up, usually at a High school or a middle School.

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