The Face of The Immigration Policy Fight

Written by Adam Bermudez

Photo c/o seiu.org.

Eliseo Vasquez Medina, the secretary-treasurer and former executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) who recently went on a publicized hunger strike, has been a very visible face of the immigration fight brewing on Capital Hill and the White House. Medina fasted for weeks to bring attention to his cause.

As Elise Foley at the Huffington Post reports:

“Undocumented immigrants have come out of the shadows, activists have chained themselves together outside deportation centers and others have infiltrated detention facilities to expose conditions there. Medina decided to push Congress one last time to take action. All told, he went without food for 22 days, a powerful protest that helped save immigration reform from being forgotten in Washington. Lawmakers may be starting to get the message. Fewer than 48 hours after Boehner’s office rejected a meeting with Medina, the House speaker began signaling that he would move forward on immigration reform.”