Critical Analysis of the US Elections

María Alegría Rodríguez is the Executive Director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC). She is described as a movement architect. Maria’s inclusive leadership has yielded impressive wins in college access, wage protections and combating criminalization, allowing more people to live, love and work without fear. Maria has co-founded or helped establish half a dozen award-winning organizations, including a free medical clinic, a housing cooperative, an arts & therapy group and an electoral entity, which are all thriving today. From foreign policy advocacy on Southern Africa and Central America, to domestic organizing for quality housing and healthcare at home, Maria brings principled and effective leadership that yields concrete results. She has been actively participating in the Florida for All Coalition.

Abel Núñez joined CARECEN as its incoming Executive Director in March 2013. Mr. Núñez has a well-rounded background in nonprofit management and fundraising, as well as a history of community activism. Prior to CARECEN, he was Associate Director of Centro Romero in Chicago, IL, and was primarily responsible for the day-to-day operations, fiscal management, program administration, and communications. Mr. Núñez has a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from Hofstra University. Before he moved to Chicago, he worked in D.C. for the Latino Civil Rights Center. From 1998 to 2000, he was also on the staff of CARECEN serving first as its Citizenship and Civic Participation Project Coordinator and later as its Deputy Director. Nationally, Mr. Núñez has served on the Board of the Salvadoran American National Network (SANN). He is one of the founding members of the Residency Now campaign which was launched in January 2012 and seeks to obtain lawful permanent residency for immigrants from El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua under Temporary Protected Status (TPS) now known as the Alianza TPS. Mr. Nunez serves as a commissioner for the Access to Justice Commission in Washington DC He has received the Georgetown University’s John Thompson Jr. Legacy of a Dream Award, the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia’s Hugh A. Johnson, Jr. Memorial Award and the Life Time Award for Service from the DC Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs in Washington DC.