SAN JUAN — A local social justice advocate who has devoted much of her time to immigrant and LGBTQ rights was invited to a reception at the White House in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.
Dani Marrero Hi, who serves as director of communications for La Unión del Pueblo Entero, was invited to the ceremony last month for her years of work and devotion to the plight of immigrants and the LGBTQ community.
Marrero Hi said the invitation to Washington was last minute, but an opportunity she could not pass up.
“I got the invitation like 10 days before the event, and I was like, ‘I don’t know if I can have a chance like this again,’” she recalled. “So I made the plans, and I said, ‘I gotta go take advantage of this opportunity.’ It was an event in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, so it was a surreal experience, you know, being able to be there and walk into the White House and seeing the portraits of presidents and Michelle Obama’s portrait, and Barack Obama’s portrait. It was a really special experience.”
Marrero Hi was born in Reynosa, Mexico but currently lives in Mission. After becoming a United States citizen at the age of 18, she began volunteering for LUPE’s communications department. She fell in love with the organization and the ability to tell important stories about its people, while also impacting policies centered around immigration.
“I really love being able to help people take ownership of their stories, and using that to change policy and advocate for better conditions for themselves,” Marrero Hi said. “Since then I’ve pretty much dedicated all of my work to it, whether it’s digital or communications — passing fairer and more compassionate immigration policies and also on LGBT issues.”
President Joe Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, were among the approximately 150 attendees at the Sept. 30 reception.
“We did get to hear from President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden,” Marrero Hi recalled. “They were, you know, doing the whole spiel on thanking Latinos and Spanish contributions. President Biden did mention some stuff on immigration. He mentioned about how the lack of action from Congress on immigration is leaving a lot of people in an impossible position. It was nice to hear that, but it was also like, ‘Wow! If only you knew someone that could do something’, you know?”
While she acknowledged that there is still much work to be done when it comes to immigration reform, Marrero Hi said that attending the reception helped her feel rejuvenated and encouraged to continue the work she’s tirelessly pursued throughout her career.
“I walked away from the experience very inspired and motivated, and at the same time knowing that if they do share our values, then we need to push harder because President Biden and Congress have a chance to really do something meaningful and permanent for immigrants,” she said.
Marrero Hi is keeping a close eye on the midterm elections and hoping for more changes to policies that affect immigrants and the LGBTQ community.
“There’s still a little bit of time, but with midterms, things could change and the cards could change,” she said. “We’ve been motivated by the changes that he’s made, but considering that he’s halfway done with his term, and we haven’t, you know, got any hope that we’re gonna get like a pathway to citizenship, or he’s also been really slow to revoke Trump era policies like (Migrant Protection Protocols) and title 42. We have so much more that we need to go, so that means that it’s crunch time for the next two years for him to deliver on his promises.”
Monitor staff writer Valerie Gonzalez contributed to this story.
