The 2026 National Convention of The League of United Latin American Citizens in Fort Worth is crucial amid national issues affecting Latinos and other racial minority groups, the organization's president said.
"We're making sure that people understand what the rights are of our immigrant neighbors that are coming in, people that are asking for help, and that's what these sessions are all about the next two days," Roman Palomares, LULAC's national president, told KERA News in an interview Thursday.
LULAC is the nation's oldest and largest Latino civil rights group, founded in 1929 in Corpus Christi. It has more than 570,000 members nationally and advocates for several issues, including voting rights, access to education and basic human rights.
Palomares pointed to increased immigration efforts by President Donald Trump's administration and the ongoing legal battle of birthright citizenship as issues the group is focusing on.
"We've got to make sure that those laws are being abided by," Palomares said. "If the Constitution is being violated, then we're going to make that it's not being violated. And if it takes a lawsuit, then we are going to do it, because that's the law of the land."
The convention will have workshops, cultural events and state politicians as guest speakers. It will run through Saturday at the Fort Worth Convention Center — which is also set to host this year's United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce convention in September.
The first day of the convention included a Fort Worth Welcome Celebration with several panelists, including State Reps. Gina Hinojosa, Salman Bhojani, and Bobby Pulido, the democratic nominee for Texas' 15th District.
LULAC also announced its partnership with Tyson Foods Inc. to donate 40,000 pounds of protein to Tarrant Area Food Bank. More than 1,000 books, along with Lego sets, will be also distributed.
Other days will offer information and resources like financial education work sessions, mental health and wellness, Latino and Women leadership, and meetings for LGBTQ+ members and youth groups.
David Cruz, national communications director for LULAC, said Thursday this year's convention is meant to highlight the importance of young people and multi-generational households to become engaged in civic issues in their communities and teach them how these issues impact them.
"We are an important voice for the national Latino community and other communities of color, especially during this time, because we're seeing so many attacks on our civil and human rights in the United States," Cruz said. "The right to vote, the right to have a voice, the rights to speak about education, health care, jobs, veterans access, many of the benefits that we take for granted now that we thought we had resolved are now coming back as issues which we have to, generationally speaking, fight for."
"There's hope that we can continue as a nation to work together, but we have to look beyond partisan politics," Cruz said.
Penelope Rivera is KERA's Tarrant County Accountability Reporter. Got a tip? Email Penelope Rivera at privera@kera.org.
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