For Immediate Release

Contact: media@puenteaz.org
Schedule of Events:

Rally and Press Conference for #ArpaioFreeAZ Thursday September 24 at 5pm 

Legal Clinic for Victims of Arpaio and Public Art Installation of Arpaio’s Legacy Thursday September 24 to Friday September 25, 11am to 6pm

 All events to occur outside of the Sandra Day O’Connor Federal Courthouse, 401 W Washington St., Phoenix.

Phoenix, AZ– As Sheriff Arpaio returns to court facing contempt charges in the Melendres Vs. Arpaio racial profiling case, people who have been victimized by Arpaio will rally outside of the courthouse, calling on all those who know of Arpaio’s abuses firsthand to come out of the shadows and join the movement to get rid of Arpaio and his legacy.

Puente will be holding a rally and press conference the evening before the court resumes, in which people who have been terrorized, criminalized, and incarcerated by Arpaio will share their stories and call on others with similar experiences to fight back against the sheriff who has targeted immigrants and communities of color throughout his 23 years in office. The rally is part of the #ArpaioFreeAZ campaign, which demands an end to Arpaio and his legacy, including the immediate removal of federal ICE agents from the 4^th Avenue Jail and the shut down of Tent City.

Puente will also sponsor a community legal clinic outside of the courthouse.  Community advocates will conduct intakes and document testimony of people who have been victimized by Arpaio in order to assist them with pursuing possible recourse in their individual cases. A public art installation of Arpaio’s reign of terror, including the atrocities and violence committed under his watch and community resistance to his racism and hate, will be displayed.

Noemi Romero, who was arrested in a workplace raid by Arpaio in 2012 and is now helping to run the legal clinic, says, “The day the sheriffs showed up at my work was the worst day of my life. But now I am part of a lawsuit that is suing him to stop the raids and I have learned that when we come out and fight we can make change happen. We need to keep fighting for our entire community so no one else has to suffer like we did.”

Carlos Garcia, Director of Puente, says, “Arpaio is responsible for dozens of deaths in custody, hundreds of families separated, and thousands of people terrorized.  It is people who have faced his hate directly that will be responsible for bringing a new day to Maricopa County, in which we have justice for the harms Arpaio has committed and our communities can live without fear.”

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