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♪♪♪ damian: and we begin with that important topic of this week on "comunidad del valle." with me is ambassador alejandra bologna. she's the consul general of méxico right here in san josé. ambassador, welcome back to the show. alejandra bologna: thank you so much for having me. damian: thank you for being here. and, you know, what a week it's been, and probably more to come. you can probably imagine. you probably witnessed it. but when i'm doing news stories in the community, you can feel the fear that is being felt by a lot of the immigrant community. alejandra: yes, of course. that's why at the consulate our main goal it's to inform; to have information to our community, to keep them informed, to support them, to giving the documents that

they need. and also we have a special program, a legal program in the protection department. so if there's a need to have some legal assistance that--we can also provide that need. damian: we are showing video of the protest and the march that happened this past tuesday in san josé by students at overfelt high school and then some community members. but you have direct orders from the president of méxico, is that correct, president sheinbaum, you and the other consul generals, to make sure that th protections that are afforded to the mexican nationals are provided to them. alejandra: yes, of course. we are committed to do that. we want to remember our community that there is a consular notification right. so if they are detained, it doesn't matter which authority, could be the police, could be a sheriff, could be also immigration, they have the right to call to their consulate.

and that's the way that we can help them and knowing what is their situation. and there are multiple ways that we can help them, support them during the process that they will challenge. damian: what have you seen this past week and the last couple of weeks there at the consulate? what are people coming in with to see you with? alejandra: you know, we have had an increase of dual citizen requestments. so people have come normally. as i have mentioned in the past, we open appointments 1,000 a week for a passport, for a matrícula consular, or a credential for--or id for voting. and what we have seen normally, fluently people coming back and forth for those documents, but we have seen more increase in dual citizens since november last year. damian: wow. what does that tell you, that more people want to make sure that they do have that dual citizenship?

alejandra: well, you know, i think that it's an advantage to have dual citizen; that you can grow up by national, by cultural, and that's an advantage. so having this dual citizen is maybe to be prepared. and sometimes we have seen cases of born here in the united states with one parent that is from the united states, other one from mexico, but they are going back to mexico and they are going to play in a soccer team or they are going to play in a basketball team or they are going to do some researches or some studies back in mexico. so that's importance of having those both citizenship. so that--i think that one is that impact and second is that in case that maybe the persons will be deport, they want to be prepared to have their mexican documents to their children. damian: so the--since election day then--you said last november, so that would be since election day, you've seen an increase in dual citizenship.

alejandra: i think it's since october. since october we have had a vast increase. yes, is--one is because more people is informed about the right that they have. it's not just mexicans that are born--are both. they keep--they are mexicans, but they need to be registered as mexicans now so they can use their passports and they can arrive to mexico with a mexican passport. so i think that is part of the fact and also families that want to be. but we have cases of parents coming with their children, but also growing up more than 18 years old that they want to become mexicans and they want to work in mexico or do other activities also in mexico. damian: good information. well, there is the address for the consulate of méxico in san josé and also their website. meet--again, appointments are given out on tuesdays. they give out about 1,000 appointments per week. we'll wrap it up with ambassador alejandra bologna here on "comunidad del valle." stay with us.

daan: and we are back with ambassador alejandra bologna here on "comunidad del valle." she is the consul general of méxico in san josé. and i know that our--the--our immigration expert on "comunidad del valle," andrew newcomb, is a frequent visitor at the consulate. so you're providing these legal services, whatever they may be, to the folks who c--the thousands who come in every month into the consulate. ejandra: yes, of course. and we have a special program that is called pale, in spanish means programa de asesoría legales externas. so it's a group of attorneys that through the consulates they can have a legal representation. damian: and, i mean, this is one. you have the--your departamento de proteccion. a lot of different departments are providing these services to ma--again, to make sure you're following the president of méxico's orders to make sure that your citizens here are protected. alejandra: yes, that's correct.

the main one is protection department, also documentation because it's important to them to get their documents and also given the whole information that they will need if they decide to go back to mexico or--we have also programs to empower our community. we consider we have 800,000 mexicans and mexicans americans so--in the four counties that we serve here from the consulate in san josé. damian: and i don't know how we can even begin to describe it, ambassador, but what would san josé--the counties that you serve, benito, santa cruz, monterey in california, what would it be without the immigrants from méxico? alejandra: just consider that--the remittances. and we have seen a lot of statistics about remittances, but remittances represent only 20% or less than their income. so the 80%, if you can make the adds, you will see the

contribution that they have to this area. and we have talented people that is working as professionals in services, in recreation, in health, in education. so the impact--the economic contribution that our community has it's incredible and also--we know that also our mexicans pay taxes. it doesn't matter if they are undocument or not. so that's something that it's important to see, to review. damian: yeah, it's--and it's sad because i spent a day at the tropicana shopping center, the heart of the immigrant community, and some of the folks were even afraid of us the media because they don't know what we're reporting on or they're just simply afraid, and it's sad to see. what else do you want to relay to the folks in the bay area, ambassador, about what's been happening?

alejandra: well, of course, comfort r nationals to be prepared, not be afraid, and to trust that the consulate anything they need--for the protection department, they don't need any appointment. they can come from 8 to 5 o'clock, they--from monday to friday. and it's important to review just official networkings, official news because there's a lot of disinformation and that makes worse impact in our community. so it's important, and that's--the main goal that we have is to inform them to have the correct information that they need. damian: yeah, and that's the important work of the rapid response network in santa clara county; to make sure that if they see something on social media, they'll go out and they'll verify or say no, it's not happening just to make sure that everyone is at ease.

that--and that's important, like you mentioned, telling the truth and being factual on social media. alejandra: yes. and we work with different organization, with the rapid response group, and also with local authorities. so that's the main goals that we have at the consulate at this moment. damian: all right. well, ambassador, thank you very much for what you're doing and for keeping the protection going for those who really need it and deserve it. thank you, ambassador. alejandra: thank you for having me. damian: thank you. well, again, the consulate of méxico in san josé is here on south san josé on enzo drive. there is the website for more information. again, they do take you right away without an appointment if you have an emergency, but it's wise to make an appointment. those are offered on tuesdays. they give out about 1,000 appointments per week. so log on to that. whatsapp is the best way to get a hold of them, to make your appointments that way. well, up next here on "comunidad del valle," a little--something a little bit different, a campaign to educate folks about child car seats, then we'll get back into immigration.

so stay with us.

damian: there is a campaign to improve the child car seats. with me is anna aistrich. she's a child passenger safety program manager for the county of santa clara. anna, welcome to the show. anna aistrich: hi, thank you for having me. damian: thank you for being here. well, tell us about your program. anna: so we've had this program in the county for quite some time where we provide free car seats and education for families who otherwise might not be able to afford them. and as always there's never enough money to go around so it's been a difficult thing to provide enough seats to the people who need them, but we recently received a grant from the office of traffic safety that supplements our funds and allows us to purchase more seats. damian: oh, what does that mean? does that mean that folks can just come in and if they qualify get those free car seats?

anna: our process is that we don't just hand them out. the thing that's most critical about car seats is making sure that they're used correctly. so we want to make sure that people get the education when they get the seats. so either they come in and they take one of our car seat education classes and take the seat home with them or they come to one of our car seat checkup events or an appointment with our department to learn about how to put the car seat in their car correctly and then they get the seat. damian: and who qualifies for a program like this? anna: so anybody who's receiving the typical sort of cash aid or medi-cal recipients or wic recipients, head start. any of the people that qualify for those programs also qualify for a free car seat. damian: and the--is the program started now? it's been ongoing? people can start applying at this moment. anna: yes, we will be holding some public car seat checkup events, but we don't have those scheduled quite yet.

in the meantime we are taking appointments through our 1-800 number, and that way if people need to get their car seat checked soon they can contact to us that way. damian: so that means if i already have a car seat in my van or in my car and i want to make sure that i installed it correctly, that's when you make one of these appointments to make sure that i did. anna: yes, that's correct. it seems like it might be easy, but if you've ever looked at the instructions that come with the car seat, they're very complicated and each car and each car seat is different so making them work together is not easy. so our experts who are trained technicians can help look at the seat, make sure it's the right seat for the child and the right seat for the car. damian: and if they're not installed correctly, i mean, i can imagine the consequences. anna: yes, the consequences could be fatal. car seats are the number one way to protect children in a vehicle, and they have to do their job-b--they cado their job

when it's the right fitting car seat and it's installed correctly in the car. without that, then anything can happen. damian: i--and doing my news reports for nbc bay area this past week, i witnessed a dad in a pi--big pickup truck, and i would imagine the child was 4 years old just from observing. child was in the front seat and wasn't even tied down with the truck's seatbelt, let alone the appropriate car seat. how smart was that? anna: not smart at all if you love your child. most of us as parents want to make sure we do everything we can to protect our kids, so it's really important that they are properly restrained in the car. and the reason that we use car seats is that adult seatbelts are meant to fit adults. so they don't fit children properly and so they can't hold the child in the car in the case of a crash. so the car seats are made in different formats, in different

sizes for different size children to make sure that no matter what size they are, they are going to have the restraints supporting them properly so that they are safe in the case of a crash. damian: i am, i would say, 8, 9 years removed from using a car seat on my children so i can't even imagine remembering what it's like because, like you mentioned, it is complicated and you want to make sure that it is right. that's why you're there to help make sure that we do install those car seats correctly. anna: yes. and even if you have had children and you've done this before, the car seat laws can be varying from state to state or country to country. so if you've moved here from somewhere else, it's really important to familiarize yourself with the local laws around car seats. and also the car seats themselves change with growing technology and, you know, better materials and all of that. so it's really important to stay current and also be using a seat

that is current. they do expire. a lot of people don't know that. but after about 7 to 9 years, they expire and you have to get a new one. damian: i did not know that, and i--if i remember correctly, also you could buy one for $60 at target. they go up to $100, maybe $200. so they can get quite expensive. this is a great way the--to avoid that cost on these families who might not be able to afford that. anna: one point i can say, though, is that any car seat that is certified, crash-tested, and meets federal safety standards will do the job. it doesn't have to be the most expensive seat, the fanciest-looking seat. as long as it's passed those federal standards, it will protect the child. damian: and i would imagine that stores would not sell those car seats that did not pass federal standards. anything else you want to add? anything else you want to add, anna? anna: that also it's tempting to borrow a seat from a friend or buy one from a garage sale because they are expensive, but those you can't be guaranteed that they weren't in a crash or

that they have all of the, you know, safety components that they are supposed to have. so it's really important to either get a new seat or get a seat from us or some other trusted source where you know the history of that seat. damian: a lot of great information. thank you so much, anna aistrich, who is the program manager for the child passenger safety program for santa clara county. thank you so much. anna: you're welcome. thank you. damian: all right, thank you. and, again, we're going to show you that website on how you can maybe obtain your free car seat in santa clara county. they are available through a nice, generous grant through the county public health department. there is the website on your screen, sccphd.org/carseat. some great information. well, up next here on "communidad del valle" we're going to get back into immigration. important topic these days. we'll see you back in just a moment.

i guess what i'm looking for from you is, i mean, i know how the fire affected me, and there's always a constant fear that who's to say something like that won't happen again? that's fair. we committed to underground, 10,000 miles of electric line. you look back at where we were 10 years ago and we are in a completely different place today, and it's because of how we need to care for our communities and our customers. i hope that's true. [joe] that's my commitment. [ambient noise] damian: and one other note, santa clara county will not ask you for your immigration status, anything like that if you want

that car seat. that's where you can also make an individualized appointment if [joe] that's my commitment. you want to feel more secure that way. well, we're going to get back into the immigration topic. it's just the top of mind for so many people right now. we're going to go back to an interview we did with former hud secretary julian castro, who is now the executive director of the latino community foundation, on what we do now going forward. we'll see you here n next week damian: with the--julian castro, who's former hud secretary and now the current ceo of the latino community foundation. mr. secretary, welcome to the show. julian castro: thank you, damian, for having me. damian: thank you. welcome to the bay area as well. i know you're spending your time in various parts of the country, but welcome to bay area. let me ask you, sir, since we have you and it's very timely, what impact will the election results have, do you think, in not only latino communities across california but across the country? julian: well, the election is going to have a wide ranging impact on the latino community. let's just start with what donald trump has made clear.

he wants mass deportation. that would mean up to 11 million people, many of them latinos and latinas, who would be subject to deportation. this would be terrible for the community. it would rip apart families. it would decimate the american economy. and if history is our judge based on the past and other operations like this, including operation wetback which happened many decades ago, there are even legal residents and american citizens that could possibly get caught up in this kind of mass deportation action. on top of that, whether it's housing policy, education policy, trump has said that he's going to eliminate the department of education. any number of ways, this election is going to have tremendous consequences and unfortunately, i believe,

negative consequences on the latino community. and whether it's philanthropy or people in elected office or the private sector, we have to be prepared to make sure that in the coming years that everybody in this country has an opportunity to be treated with dignity, with respect, to feel safe and secure, and also to be able to fulfill their god-given potential. damian: just like the latino in florida is not the same as the latino in california, the latino in texas is not the same as the latino in california. and it seems like within california latinos are not--it's been said before we're not monolithic, but there are some differences--wide differences even in our own state. julian: yeah, absolutely. you know, i grew up in texas. i'm still based out of texas. of course, texas latinos tend to be somewhat more conservative than latinos in california, or arizona, or colorado, and

so forth. but as you say, even within the state of california, the central valley versus the bay area or la, i do think that there are some things that bring us together. i see our community as an aspirational community, as a very hard-working community, a community that believes in the american dream and that fundamentally wants people in elective office to treat the community with respect and also to do right by people who simply want to work hard, provide for their family, be able to tre--be treated with dignity, and to reach for their american dreams. and so, you know, my concern is that with the way that things are shaping up in congress and also in the oval office, i believe that there's a real threat to many latinos and latinas and the community needs to be prepared for that. damian: i guess the next question, mr. secretary, is now what?

you know, we have 2 years until the midterms and 4 years until the next presidel--presidential elections. what do latinos do now? julian: i think latinos need to be prepared. that means if somebody in the community is undocumented, if somebody is in a mixed-status household, meaning they may be documented but one of their relatives is undocumented, people need to know their rights. and i encourage folks to reach out to many of the immigrant services organizations out there in the state, know your rights, you know, be willing to do what you can also in terms of the broader latino community to push back against things like mass deportation, against a return to the kind of cruelty that we saw with things like family separation in years past. i think latinos also, you know, we're going to do what we always do, which is continue to work hard, and i hope also that we'll

show up at the ballot box in the years to come, starting in 2026, in even greater numbers. the latino community foundation is not a partisan organization. we don't support republicans or democrats. what we do support is as many latinos who are eligible to vote being informed about their choices and getting out and making their voice heard. we believe that the more latinos express themselves at the ballot box, that means that more of those elected officials at the city, at the county, at the--in the capital, at the state, or in washington are going to have to listen to the needs of the community and to respond to those needs. families absolutely should be prepared to ensure that they know what's going to happen if they are subject to deportation. my advice, in addition to being prepared that way, is that if

you're worried, to go find an immigration resource organization that can help you and give you legal advice, some of them provide actual legal representation, and other resources to help make sure that you're safe and secure. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪ i love the way you make me love you. ♪

♪ i love the way you make me smile. ♪ ♪ i love the way you make me want you. ♪ ♪ so sit right down, stay a while. ♪♪

right now on access hollywood, after tears over the deportations, selena gomez responded to the criticism she's faced. zuri: then, exclusive katy perry back on tour after seven years. scott: and we count down to the grammys with six-time nominee shaboozey. zuri: yes. plus, we're at home with fire country star diane farr,