This press release comes to TV9 from El Centro Latinoamericano.

El Centro Latinoamericano, the Latino resource center in Waterloo has been responding to the many needs that have been identified by the detainees, their family members and community advocates in Postville and across Eastern Iowa. We have many needs, but most of all we need help financially. We have volunteers and staff members who have been driving back and forth to Postville everyday, transporting family members who want to come to Waterloo to visit their family members who are in detention at the Cattle congress in Waterloo. We have a number of people staying in Waterloo who are waiting for their family members to be released from detention. We have had a number of minors (between 12 and 17) who are in detention that we have been working on getting released (two were released last night). We are providing all of these people with food, shelter, clothing, diapers, baby formula, and other necessities. Our office is being utilized by the press, out of town attorneys and others as a staging point to make phone calls, copies, interview people and help with filling out and filing important documents.

We desperately need financial donations to help pay for these costs. El Centro is a very small non-profit organization and we are overwhelmed with the financial burden that this tragedy is causing. If your congregation or organization can help with a financial donation, please contact any Veridian Credit Union in the State and ask for the “Postville Support” account. You can also drop off donations to
El Centro which is located at 500 E. 4th Street, Suite 321 in Waterloo. For more information, please call 319-234-2660.