Advocate for workers and immigrants receives Cardinal Bernardin award

Published: 2004-11-22

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The Catholic Campaign for Human Development gave its 2004 Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award to Donald De Leon for his work as an advocate for immigrants and workers, especially low-income laborers. Since 2002 De Leon has staffed the Interfaith Council on Religions, Race, Economic and Social Justice in San Jose, Calif. He has been involved in numerous campaigns to support workers and their rights. He also has organized and taught social justice workshops training others to take leadership roles in parish social action committees and in economic justice campaigns. He has organized several "breaking of bread" events -- between workers and management, between immigrants and U.S. citizens during an Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride march in San Francisco, and at the end of a hunger strike at Stanford University by students protesting the treatment of temporary workers. "The breaking of bread," De Leon said, "alters the relationship among people. ... We recognize each other as having equal human dignity and treat one another as such, not simply as people we pay or people for whom we work." The CCHD award is given annually to a Catholic between the ages of 18 and 30 who has demonstrated leadership in bringing about long-term, community-based solutions to poverty in the United States.

Copyright (c) 2004 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .