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| Renato Soto |
by Joel Ebert, The Tennessean, February 3, 2016 - House Republicans aren’t the only ones who have questions about a resolution honoring Renata Soto, the founder of the Casa Azafrán Community Center.
The resolution, which the House approved last week with a 66-10 vote, was pulled from the Senate’s calendar on Wednesday, at the request of Republican Majority Leader Mark Norris.
“I had a member who had questions about (the National Council of) La Raza,” Norris said after the floor session. (
link)
The National Council of La Raza (“La Raza”) is a left-of-center Hispanic group that opposes many American immigration laws. La Raza describes itself as a civic-minded Hispanic advocacy group. Critics complain La Raza supports amnesty for illegal immigrants. La Raza believes that Hispanics in America are victims of terrible racism.[1] La Raza opposes English-only laws.[2] Critics contend that La Raza (literally translated “the race”) is part of a larger movement that seeks to extinguish United States borders and control much of the American west as the rightful owners of that land.
History and Mission ....(
link)
National Council of La Raza From Wikipedia - The
National Council of La Raza (
NCLR) is America's largest Latino advocacy organization. It advocates in favor of progressive
immigration reform policies, including a path to citizenship and reduced deportations.
Founded in 1968, NCLR is headquartered in
Washington, D.C. and has regional offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Phoenix, and San Antonio.
[4]
NCLR has historically received three-quarters of its funding from
private sources, including individuals and corporations, and one-quarter
of its funding from the federal government.
[5] (link)
Below is a copy of the resolution that honors Ms Soto:
HJR0506
007924
-
1
-
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 506
By
Clemmons
A RESOLUTION
to honor and commend Renata Soto of Nashville
on being named Chair of the Board of Directors
of the National Council of La Raza.
WHEREAS, it is fitting that the members of this General Assembly should salute those
citizens
who, through their extraordinary efforts
,
have distinguished themselves as community
leaders of whom we can all be proud; and
WHEREAS, one such noteworthy person is Renata Soto of Nashville
, who was recently
named
Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Council of La Raza, the largest national
Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States; and
WHEREAS, the first Central American
and the first Tennessean to serve in this
important leadership role,
Ms.
Soto
, a native of Costa Rica,
is the
co
-
founder and executive
director of Conexión Américas and has built a reputation as a fierce advocate for Latinos
and
their families
and a valuable asset for the
entire
Nashville community; and
WHEREAS, under Ms. Soto’s dynamic leadership, Conexión Américas promotes the
social, economic, and civic integration of Hispanic families into the Tennessee community,
drawing national recognition and acclaim that led to a visit by President Barack Obama in 2014
to host a town
-
hall meeting; and
WHEREAS,
Ms. Soto played an integral role as Metro Nashville Public Schools joined in
partnership with Conexión Américas to open a pre-
kindergarten program, the Casa
Azafrán
Early Learning Center, at the Casa Azafrán Community Center
. This new program not only
helped ease long waiting lists, but also strengthened services for students from non
-
English
-
speaking backgrounds, who make up to a quarter of all Metro students; and
WHEREAS,
no stranger to awards and accolades,
Ms.
Soto was named the 2013
Nashvillian of the Year by the
Nashville Scene, selected as a Woman of Influence by the the Nashville Business Journal in
Nashville Business Journal
in 2008, and inducted into the YWCA Academy of Women of
Achievement in 2012; and
WHEREAS,
Ms.
Soto
is most grateful for the love and companionship she
shares with
her husband
, Pete Wooten, and their two children, Gabriel and Camila
; and her husband
, Pete Wooten, and their two children, Gabriel and Camila
; and
WHEREAS, the members of this General Assembly find it appropriate to acknowledge
and applaud
Ms.
Soto
for her
dedication to her community and its citizens; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED
NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE, THE SENATE
CONCURRING, that we hereby honor and commend
Renata Soto
upon being named Chair of
the Board of Directors of the National Council of La Raza and extend to
her
our best wishes for
every future success.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that an appropriate copy of this resolution be prepared
for presentation with this final clause omitted from such copy.
My Comment: Just go ahead and give it to her. While La Raza is a liberal lobbying group, Connexion Americas does some good deeds. We don't have to agree with the La Raz position on open borders to pass this little polite congratulatory resolution. Anyway Renato Sota is a nice person. I know she is a liberal, but she means well. This is one of those little social niceties that don't amount to much. It is simple civility. Someday liberals might be in charge and conservatives might want to give an award to someone who got appointed to the board of Eagle Forum or the National Association of Independent Businessmen or who became a scholar with The Cato Institute. It would be petty for a State legislature with liberals in the majority to reject such a resolution. It is OK to delay the resolution and get some questions answered about La Raz, but now the Senate needs to go ahead and approve this. I can congratulate someone on their success, even if I do not agree with the position they take on every issue. Congratulations Renato Soto.
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