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Washington DC, June 5, 2019 … ADL (the Anti-Defamation League) and the Mexican Foreign Ministry on Tuesday launched a new social media campaign, “#DenunciaElOdio” (“Denounce Hate”) to raise awareness among the Mexican immigrant community in the U.S. of the value and importance of identifying, reporting and exposing hate crimes.
At a time of increased hate and discriminatory language being directed at immigrant populations, ADL and the Mexican Foreign Ministry are working together to raise awareness about hate motivated violence and to engender a sense of safety and trust for reporting such crimes.
Through #DenunciaElOdio, people of Mexican heritage will be encouraged to securely and confidentially report bias incidents to their consulate, which will gather data and information on cases where Mexican nationals are being targeted. The awareness campaign is part of a broader effort to ensure that Mexican consulate officials are equipped to effectively respond when Mexican nationals living in the U.S. are targeted for hate crimes or harassment.
“We’ve made great progress in training consulate officials across 27 states and that work continues,” said Sharon Nazarian, ADL Senior Vice President for International Affairs. “At a time when anti-immigrant rhetoric is at an all-time high, there’s no more important moment to be educating Mexican immigrant communities about where people can turn to when they encounter hatred or intolerance.”
Mexico Consul General Rafael Laveaga speaking at Tuesday's press conference in Washington, D.C.
At a press conference in the Mexican Cultural Institute in D.C., Ambassador José Antonio Zabalgoitia, Mexico's Deputy Chief of Mission to the U.S., stressed that the Mexican government is fully committed to protecting Mexican nationals living abroad. She emphasized the importance of this partnership to improve the attention given by Mexico’s vast consular network in the U.S. and reaffirmed the commitment of her country to ensure respect of human rights for all.
Last week in Mexico City, ADL and the Mexican Foreign Ministry signed a Memorandum of Understanding launching this partnership to fight against the rising tide of hate crimes and discrimination facing Mexican nationals and immigrants living in the U.S. The agreement is rooted in shared values between ADL and the Mexican Government: opposing hate and discrimination; promoting respectful and inclusive communities; and protecting the rights of every person.
To date, ADL has delivered training on hate crimes and bullying to more than 2,100 consular officers and community leaders – the first line of attention to Mexican communities. Since the current administration started in December 2018, ADL has delivered trainings to more than 300 consular officers in 20 Mexican Consulates in the U.S.
The foreign ministry will continue to work to enhance its capabilities to ensure better consular protection and assistance, as a priority of the Mexican government.
More information on the awareness campaign is available on the ADL Latinx web site at https://www.adl.org/latinx.