2/15/2022
With early voting in full swing and so much at stake for women and working families in Texas, Latino Victory Fund-endorsed candidate Rochelle Garza, sat down with People Chica, an extension of People en Español targeting Gen Z and Millennial Latinas, to discuss the inspiration that led her to run for office, her historic candidacy, and her fight to protect reproductive rights in Texas.
“Right now, choice is at issue in the state of Texas, and it is really difficult with the six-week ban where people are not allowed access to reproductive health care. In my own situation, as someone who is pregnant, when the ban went into effect, I was nine weeks pregnant, and I was worried about getting access to health care," said Garza.
Key points from People Chica profile:
In 2017, Rochelle Garza made history when she took on the United States Supreme Court, under the Trump administration, when they tried to prevent an undocumented immigrant teenager from exercising her right to choose.
The former ACLU attorney's win resulted in the "Garza Notice," which requires the federal government to notify undocumented immigrant teenagers who are detained across the country of their right to abortion without retaliation and obstruction.
Now, Garza is poised to make history again in November as she runs for the position of Texas Attorney General, where she would be the first Latina to hold the title.
“Latino representation in the state of Texas is something that we really need. We're almost 40% of the population of the state of Texas, so it's time that our representatives reflect our communities because we keep getting laws that are harmful to women, to Latino communities, black and brown communities, because we don't have the representation that understands what we're going through.
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“I hope in this position—the Attorney General is a state position and immigration is a federal issue—to be an ally and to be a supporter of border communities and of every Texan. Immigration isn't something that just impacts border communities, it impacts the entire state and impacts the entire country.”
Read Garza’s profile in full on People Chica.