If you missed the first training, this is your chance to get involved!
In October, we launched our Adopt a Corner campaign at four sites in the metro area where day laborers have been targeted: MLK and Everett, outside Centro Cultural in Cornelius, the Voz Worker Center, and the Mall 205 Home Depot. More than 200 people came to the first training, ready to show up with courage and solidarity. Since then, volunteers have been out at corners every morning, talking with workers, sharing resources, and building a steady presence that workers can count on.
We are already feeling the impact at the Worker Center. Over the past few months, daily attendance dropped as detentions in the city increased, and workers feared being singled out on their way to jobs. After launching this campaign, more workers are signing in again. They tell us that they feel safer, supported, and seen. Having volunteers outside the Center, keeping watch and checking in, sends a message that matters: you are not alone, and this community will protect each other.
Join us!
Tuesday, December 2nd, 2025
6:00pm-7:30pm
Via Zoom
Register here!
No one should face deportation alone. Stand with Marcos.
We are raising $2,500 for one of members, Marcos Briceño, who was taken by ICE in the middle of his workday. On November 4, Marcos showed up early for a long day of landscaping work. He did exactly what day laborers do every single day in this city. He worked hard, followed instructions, and was simply trying to earn his pay.
While he was completing a landscaping shift outside the McDonald’s on 122nd and Glisan, ICE agents stormed the parking lot and aggressively detained him without even asking for identification. Marcos was not hiding or trying to evade anyone. He was out in the open, doing his job. What happened was an attack on a worker in broad daylight. It was targeted, political, and meant to intimidate a community that already lives with constant fear.
Marcos is now being held at the Tacoma detention center, where conditions are harsh and dehumanizing. People go missing inside detention. Abuse goes unreported. Families are torn apart. Marcos sees this every day, and it is why he made the painful decision to stop fighting his case and prepare for deportation.
When he is deported to Venezuela, Marcos will arrive with nothing. No resources, no housing, no support. This is the real impact of raids. They do not protect anyone. They destroy lives, families, and communities.
At Voz we refuse to let Marcos face this alone. The $2,500 we are raising will cover commissary while he remains detained and basic necessities once he is forced to start over.
Day laborers and migrants are being targeted because those in power believe our communities will stay quiet. They are wrong. We will not abandon each other. We will not normalize raids and violence against our workers. We stand with Marcos because his fight is the fight of every worker who deserves to live and work without fear.
Solo el pueblo salva al pueblo. Always.
Resilience isn’t taught - it’s lived
Last week, nine day laborers graduated from Voz’s third annual Emergency Preparedness Cohort. Over the last two months, they grounded emergency readiness in their own lived experience, sharing knowledge, skills, and the everyday wisdom workers already carry.
Instead of focusing on perfect kits or certifications, the cohort centered the tools workers use daily and how to adapt them in any crisis. Participants built practical skills for climate, environmental, and political emergencies - from extreme heat and wildfire smoke to natural disasters, mutual aid, and immigration-related emergencies.
These lessons matter deeply for day laborers, who are often on the frontlines of dangerous weather, hazardous job sites, and escalating threats.
What stood out most was how much knowledge workers already carry. Many shared stories of surviving war, extreme conditions, or natural disasters, and talked about how those lived experiences shape the way they respond during emergencies. Others named skills they rely on every day, like first aid, CPR, de-escalation, responding to fires, and knowing how to gather essential information quickly. Workers also uplifted the personal qualities that help them act under pressure, including courage, calmness, empathy, quick thinking, humor, resourcefulness, and the commitment to support the people around them. As one participant said, “I can stay calm and figure out what needs to be done before acting.”
These conversations reminded us of something we see every day at the Worker Center. When something goes wrong in our neighborhoods, day laborers show up. They stay calm, they problem-solve, and they help however they can. This is why day laborers are often considered “second responders”. Their lived experience, resilience, and leadership strengthen our entire community.
This cohort is part of Voz’s long-term commitment to climate justice, worker rights, and community defense. When workers have the space to build skills and care for one another, everyone benefits, and our city becomes stronger and more prepared for whatever comes next.
Today is another Big Give Day! Donate $10+ to win!
We’re aiming to raise $35,000 by December 31 through the Give!Guide to keep building safety, dignity, and power with day laborers in our community. Thank you to everyone who has already donated and reminded us of the strength behind solo el pueblo salva al pueblo.
Today’s Big Give Day is all about taking a breath and finding a moment of rest. With a donation of $10 or more, you’ll be entered to win a set of prizes meant to bring a little calm into your life while supporting the fight for worker justice.
Today’s prizes include:
⍟ Passes for two to the beautiful Cascada Thermal Springs in the Alberta neighborhood
⍟ A $250 gift card to Nostrana Italian restaurant
⍟ Two tickets to the Oregon Symphony
⍟ A $30 gift card to Tipsy Scoop ice cream barlour (non-alcoholic options available)
⍟ A “Flavor of Portland” standard gift basket from Give Portland Gifts
Donate today, Tuesday 11/25, for a chance to win!
