Today, on June 10th, NOPA's
Board of Directors and Advisory Council send their warm greetings to all
those celebrating Dia de Portugal. Today we celebrate the life of Luís Vaz de
Camões, the renowned Portuguese poet who died on June 10, 1580 whose epic
verses immortalized the prominent role played by Portugal in the great age of
exploration and discovery. Today's observance is also a special time to
reflect on Portugal's remarkable achievements, history, and traditions.
Although there are many significant dates
on Portugal's rich historical calendar, June 10th is regarded as a National Day both in
Portugal and by members of the Portuguese-American community of the United
States whose roots are traceable back to the middle of the 19th century. And, today, more than two
million citizens and residents of the United States are of Portuguese
heritage. Our Portuguese-American community has produced leaders in academia,
arts, business, government, journalism, sports, and many more have forged a
well-deserved reputation as honest, hard-working and grateful contributors to
the United States.
Best wishes, and
we hope you enjoy the celebration.
To view the message from Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton on the behalf of President Obama Click Here.
Press Release: NOPA Celebrates 1st Year Anniversary and Accomplishments June 3, 2010
This past May, The National Organization of Portuguese Americans (NOPA)
celebrated its first anniversary of serving US citizens and residents
of Portuguese descent. NOPA was established last year on May 15, 2009
with the mission of empowering Portuguese Americans through advocacy,
community development, education, and organizational support. For the
past year, NOPA has played a supporting role to organizations and
elected officials serving our community, served as an advocate for
issues that impact the Portuguese-American community, provided capacity
and development support to community organizations, supported
Portuguese language education efforts, promoted the Portuguese culture
in the US, and assisted in strengthening Portuguese - US relations. Please click here for the complete release.
The
National Organization of Portuguese-Americans
Press Release & Call to Action
May 12, 2010
NOPA's Statement on Immigration Reform
The
National Organization of Portuguese Americans (NOPA) recognizes that
the United States' outdated immigration system is igniting
counterproductive reactions throughout the country, like the recent
passage of SB 1070 in Arizona. This law allows a police officer in
Arizona to question and, if necessary, arrest and detain any person if
the person fails to provide adequate identification and the officer
suspects that the individual is in the United States unlawfully. While
the law is extremely popular in the state, with 70 percent of Arizona
voters approving of it and just 23 percent opposing it, it has raised
controversy. As a response, Gov. Jan Brewer signed a follow-up bill on
April 29th, approved by Arizona legislators, that makes revisions to SB
1070 -- changes she stated that should quell concerns that the original
law would lead to racial profiling. With this new bill, no one can be
asked about their immigration status unless they had committed an
offense as a predicate to the police officer having stopped them. Please click here for full message.
Press Release:
NOPA Welcomes New
Members to its
Board of
Directors & Advisory Council
March 8th, 2010
The National Organization of Portuguese Americans (NOPA), in compliance of its
bylaws, has expanded its Board of Directors and Advisory Council so that our
organization is representative of the community we serve. Not only is NOPA
committed to maintaining equal representation of women and men on the board, we
have a commitment to ensure that the Portuguese American community has proper
representation on NOPA's leadership by including seats on the Board of
Directors that represent the clubs, nonprofits, corporate, and elected
officials.
On
behalf of NOPA's Executive Committee, Arcindo Santos (Chair), Jason Moreira
(Vice-Chair), Tony Ferreira (Treasurer), and Mary Jo Rodrigues
(Secretary), I am proud to welcome the following new board members: Please Click Here for Complete Message