After 27 years in Cambridge and 6 years in Somerville Centro Presente moves to East Boston

(Press release issued from Centro Presente )

After 27 years in Cambridge and 6 years in Somerville Centro Presente has moved its offices to East Boston.  Centro Presente’s membership lives throughout the Bay State, but many have had their initial homes in the U.S. in the immediate Boston area.  By definition immigrants are people in motion. Our members at Centro Presente have travelled many hard miles from Latin America to Massachusetts in search of a better life for themselves and their families. Our organization has decided to emulate our members and has moved to East Boston.

While in Somerville we established close connections with municipal authorities, the school system and allied organizations in this diverse and rapidly developing community and plan to maintain those relationships while expanding new ones in Boston. During its time in Somerville, Centro Presente spearheaded the passage of a resolution banning the use of the pejorative term ‘illegal’ to refer to undocumented immigrants, first by the School Committee and then by the Board Aldermen. More recently, the Mayor passed an executive order, limiting the city’s participation in Secure Communities, the controversial federal immigration program in which local police assist in holding immigrants for possible deportation. This decision came as a direct result of work that Centro Presente and the MA Trust Act Coalition have done to promote the Trust Act, a bill that would restore trust between local law enforcement and the immigrant community.

Additionally, Centro Presente joined with other local labor activists to advocate for the successful passage of the State’s first municipal wage theft ordinance. Over our six years in Somerville we have hosted a number of bilingual electoral forums which have helped connect the local Latino immigrant population to the political life of Somerville. Furthermore, we have hosted numerous documentary showings, panel discussions and presentations both in our Inner Belt office and in locations such as the Somerville Public Library. Whether we are hosting English and citizenship classes, providing legal assistance, or marching up to the State House hand in hand with our community, we have always continued to strive towards the self-determination and self-sufficiency of the Latin American immigrant community of Massachusetts.

We are proud to have served the community in Somerville for many years and excited to now build upon our momentum in East Boston. We see this as a great opportunity for Centro Presente as we continue working with our members, allies, sister organizations and the local city officials to build a more just society.

On behalf of our staff and Board of Directors, we also welcome you to visit us at our new East Boston headquarters (12 Bennington Street, Suite 202) any time.