Chris Newman wore two bags when we recently sat for breakfast in Homegirl Café In downtown Los Angeles.
One was a new cardboard holder holding his laptop and papers for the cases he works on, which involves some of the most sadly famous moments of the Trump administration deluge.
Newman was Coconsseil of a trial that won A temporary ban order against blind immigration raids who have afflicted southern California since June. He also represents the family of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a day worker who was expanded by mistake to his native Salvador in the spring, then returned to the ordinance of a federal judge. HAS The takeover of the border patrol of the MacArthur park Earlier this month, Newman was running the video and made fun of the show as “a dystopian episode of” The Apprentice “.
“If we can plead the calamity [of Trump] At the most large local level, which can help democracy survive, guy, “said Newman by choosing black beans and two eggs.
The other bag, a large straw catch-all, was filled with anti-top and anti-emigrate T-shirts, posters and stickers. Wherever Newman goes these days, he hands them like a progressive Santa Claus.
“I want to keep the right amount of anger to have the fuel to do it all,” he said. “The pendulum is sweeping so wide and so quickly. We must be ready.”
Over the past 21 years, Newman has been a pivotal and omnipresent part of the Movement for Immigrants’ Rights in South California as a legal director for the national day’s organization network, better known as the Ndlon. His work takes him street corners advising day workers About their rights on my Alma Mater, UCLA, where he is part of the faculty of the research and employment research institute.
The influence of Newman, however, extends far beyond Los Angeles. It is a regular presence on the national media, fast and eloquent with ideas and just anger. Sacramento politicians in Washington know that he is not afraid to tear them down if they think they are too timid to publicly call xenophobia or support the laws that protect undocumented migrants.
“It doesn’t bother to be the bad cop,” said Angela Chan, assistant prosecutor at the San Francisco public defender’s office. In her previous job last, she and Newman helped develop a trio of invoices that made California a sanctuary state.
“It can make a meeting very uncomfortable, but Chris cuts all the bulls – so you get much closer to have an honest conversation,” said Chan. “It does not expect or continues the pump or the circumstances.”
Chris Newman, Legal Council for the Organizational Network of the National Day, Outside Homegirl Cafe in Los Angeles.
(All J. Schaben / Los Angeles)
Salvador Reza, a long -standing organizer from Phoenix, first worked with Newman in the mid -2000s after asking Ndlon to help put pressure on the city to let the work workers look for work. Newman participated in forums, organized rallies and finally convinced of the city officials to dismiss by citing A 2006 trial against Redondo Beach on which he had worked. In this case, an order prohibiting the workers of the day was considered unconstitutional.
Newman and Reza continued numerous successful campaigns in Arizona, from Defeat the Sheriff of the county of Maricopa Joe Arpaio in the polls to fight Local law enforcement organizations are associated with immigration and customs application. The two musical legends even convinced like Zack de la Rocha, Los Tigres del Norte and the late Jenni Rivera to bypass the copper state During their tours in 2010 To protest against a state bill that sought to make life miserable for undocumented immigrants.
“He cares a lot about people, and he will do everything possible to help anyone who needs it who is mistreated by the system,” said Reza, who saw Newman earlier this year when the two met Home Depot managers for allegations that their stores in Phoenix were chaboying. “He is super busy there in California at the moment, right?”
A quick speaker who gives off confidence but is not a boastful, Newman looks much younger than 49. His full hair head, his round frame glasses and his freshly sprouted mustache gives the native of Chicagoland the look of a well-being of the era of depression.
“I try to keep the anger scene so that I do not go up in the sad scene,” he said. “And I don’t want to get there because it will lead to the acceptance scene, and too much is already there.”
Newman has never planned a career like this, even if his mother was from Denmark, his father is a Hungarian Jew and that his brother is of Salvadorian origin. He frequented Denver’s right of law, who became a death penalty lawyer, until the making of “it was not as if I thought it was in the films”.
A mentor suggested that Newman recharges his bleeding heart by volunteering with The Mininsunfounder of the Denver’s first day worker center. “I didn’t even know that the workers of the day were one thing,” said Newman. But he immediately “loved everything – just dragged there, chew the fat and hear the stories of day workers. “”
Ji assigned it to help clean the toilets of his first weeks. Newman finally graduated to manage the cases of wage theft and volunteered for all that was necessary, in particular by leading a van full of days to an NDLON conference in the suburbs of Maryland in 2002. There he heard Thomas SaenzA lawyer of the Mexican Legal Defense and American Education Fund who led a legal action against Prop. 187, the 1994 anti-immigrant voting voting initiative. Saenz informed the crowd of prosecution against the cities of Maldef against the cities of southern California which were trying to ban the workers of the day.
“It was then that I realized that I could use my diploma in right to do exactly the same thing,” said Newman. “”[It was] Something I liked in theory, but I didn’t know it was happening in real life. »»
About a year later, he called The co-founder of Ndlon Pablo Alvarado.
“It was at eight in the evening, and I was still at [NDLON] Office, “said Alvarado in a telephone interview.” And Chris said: “I want to do a scholarship with you. The deadline for the scholarship will take place at three years in the afternoon the next day. Can I go there now so that we can write it?” “
He started to laugh. “We didn’t sleep all night, but we did – we finished his request. And Chris never left.”
(Newman remembers the moment differently. He said he applied for the scholarship, but Alvarado forgot him until the day before.)
Twenty -one years later, Alvarado says that Newman’s energy and likelihood have not changed.
“Even if he is a lawyer, his feet are on the ground – he is not an elitist. At 8 am, he will have read each article written that day on immigration. He will tell me what we have to do, then he will come out and the fact.”
Like the Abrego Garcia affair.
Newman called Abrego Garcia’s lawyer to offer help, then connected to the family to organize a GoFundme Via Ndlon campaign. Then, artists were recruited in a campaign on social networks to make the difficult situation of Abrego Garcia. Soon, Newman was in flight for El Salvador in an unsuccessful attempt to visit the imprisoned Abrego Garcia, which he would try twice.
“It was like a Venn diagram of everything I have worked in the past 20 years,” Newman said, who has not yet spoken to Abrego Garcia. “At the time, we did not know if he was innocent or guilty. What was intended is that he deserved a regular procedure. ”
Shortly after Newman’s last visit to El Salvador, The summer deportation raids of the.
Chris Newman, on the right, Hands Veronica Wyninger, a trainee employee, a sign at the Homegirl Cafe.
(All J. Schaben / Los Angeles)
I concluded our breakfast by asking if Newman was optimistic that things could improve. Instead of curling up under Trump’s boot, Got it up. The day we met, the Pentagon announced that Half of the 4,000 members of the National Guard were deployed in southern California In the wake of anti-ice demonstrations, would leave.
“I am a disciple Cornel West,” said Newman. “And he said there was a difference between hope and optimism.”
Optimism defined by the West As based on a rational analysis of what exists, while hope is an act of courage against what seems to be impossible ratings.
“No one has ever accused me of being optimistic,” said Newman.
He kept thinking about it.
“I don’t know, but I think the tide will turn. I remember when Arpaio had an approval rating of 85%. And he fell. “
It has become more lively. “I know people can turn the trend, but they have to do their part.”
He stretched his hand in his straw tote and took out his anti-emigrate Swag-A t-shirt with “Arrest Trump, not migrants”, bumper stickers reading “Ice Out of the!” With the “La” in the Dodgers style, the red and white panels declaring “ice on my property get a mandate!”
Our waitress came with the bill, then watched the t-shirt. “It’s really cool!” she exclaimed.
“You want?” Newman answered by tending it to him. Other home staff have caught stickers and panels.
As we left the coffee, Newman left a battery on a table next to the door.
“I’m going to go to Highland Park later to ask companies if they want to publish them on their windows,” he said as a customer looking at the signs.
“Go ahead and take him, guy,” urged Newman. “Take a heap!”
