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LULAC Praises the Appointment of Cecilia Muñoz as the Director of the Domestic Policy Council for the White House

January 10, 2012

Contact: Paloma Zuleta, pzuleta@lulac.org, (202) 812-4477



Washington, DC – Today, President Obama appointed Cecilia Muñoz as the Director of the Domestic Policy Council, making her the top Latina official over matters concerning immigration. Since January 2009, Ms. Muñoz has served as the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House and has been the main point of contact for the Hispanic community. Ms. Muñoz replaces Melody Barnes as the new Director of the Domestic Policy Council.

“Cecilia Muñoz is a respected and strong civil rights advocate for the Latino community,” said LULAC Executive Director Brent Wilkes. “As the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, she forged partnerships with organizations and engaged communities across the country with a clear goal of advancing the issues important to Hispanics. Ms. Muñoz has also fought diligently against the discrimination of Latinos and the negative images that are portrayed of our community. I have every confidence that Ms. Muñoz will build upon the strong track record established by Melody Barnes and continue to represent the needs of the Hispanic community for this Administration.”

In her new role, Ms. Muñoz will oversee policy development on a wide range of domestic issues. Ms. Muñoz has made clear that immigration reform is an important issue to the President and speaks of immigration as an issue in need of immediate action and focus, not only because of its importance to the country but also because affording everyone an opportunity to live the American dream is the right thing to do.

In 1988 Ms. Muñoz worked for the National Council of La Raza, as Senior Vice President for the Office of Research, Advocacy and Legislation. In her work with several nonprofits, she focused on improving opportunities for the Latino community, including undocumented immigrants. In 2000, she was named a MacArthur Fellow for her work on civil rights and immigration.

About LULAC: The League of United Latin American Citizens, the largest and oldest Hispanic membership organization in the country, advances the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, housing, health and civil rights of Hispanic Americans through community-based programs operating through 900 LULAC councils nationwide.