By Mario A. Cortez 
Former Los Angeles Mayor and Speaker of the California State Assembly Antonio Villaraigosa has launched a new voter activation committee designed to empower Californians to become involved and participant ahead of the November 2016 general election. Building Bridges, Not Walls is a federal political action committee (PAC) looking to counter the expected anti-immigrant policies and rhetoric which has been abused by presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Building Bridges Not Walls was founded by Villaraigosa, and will be run by a veteran campaign team. The initiative has a unique goal, as it seeks to get Californians involved in reaching out to immigrant voters outside California in swing states and encouraging these voters to participate in the November election.
Building Bridges Not Walls will begin by reaching out to voters in Arizona, Florida, Nevada and Colorado. However, the campaign will also mobilize wherever it is strategically needed to stop Trump.
“Building Bridges, Not Walls is about Californians rising to the occasion and fighting for candidates and policies that will move America forward,” said Antonio Villaraigosa. “Californians want to step up and respond in every way possible to protect our families, friends and neighbors from the threat of Donald Trump’s scapegoating anti-immigrant politics. We have the power of passionate people who will engage on a person-to-person level to mobilize and turnout people to vote.”
Villaraigosa added, “Building Bridges, Not Walls is about standing up and saying, ‘Enough!’ We will help mobilize the passion we see in Californians who say ‘No!’ to Trump and direct it – through calls, texts and emails – towards swing states where it matters most.”