Normally quiet, FSH volunteer Irene Carillo lets her voice be heard in Apopka.Farmworkers Self-Help joined the Farmworker Association of Florida and Florida ACORN in kicking off the Equal Voice for America's Families Campaign in Florida. The campaign is a national effort by the Marguerite Casey Foundation. The Equal Voice for America’s Families campaign is bringing together low-wage working families from across the country to develop an agenda that voices issues that concern families. The Campaign includes townhall meetings, cross-region work and a concentrated media campaign to draw attention to the social and economic barriers low-wage working families face. The Mayor of Apopka attended as well as members of the local school board and the Mexican Consulate. Participants were asked to define the issues that mattered the most to them. Delegates from each table then came to the front to voice their concerns. Irene Carillo, a volunteer at FSH, was elected to speak for her table. The issue there was farmworker rights. Other issues were affordable housing, better wages and immigration reform. The Apopka meeting was the first of several townhall meetings to be held in Florida, the next will be in Miami.
