Last month, UNITE-LA's Executive Vice President, Amy Cortina, participated in the United We Stand Immigration & Democracy Summit as a panelist on “The Opportunity Pipeline – Defending Access to the CA Dream” with the Small Business Majority and Warehouse Worker Resource Center, moderated by Building Skills Partnership.

The summit included 500 leaders from across California, including activist Dolores Huerta, and a gubernatorial forum with former State Controller Betty Yee, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra. UNITE-LA contributed to the day’s message by sharing ways in which UNITE-LA has broken down, and continues to break down, barriers for undocumented students and workers to education and workforce development programs. This includes our advocacy and business engagement to pass AB 540 (California Dream Act) so undocumented students could access financial aid for postsecondary education, as well as SB 1159 to enable undocumented talent to pursue professional licenses and WIOA Title II funding that, until June 2025, enabled workforce development programs to provide services to undocumented talent.