DANBURY, CONN. — The humanitarian crisis surrounding recent Central American immigration to the United States will be the theme of “Crossing Borders,” a forum to be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014, at Western Connecticut State University.

Edith Portillo, a community organizer in El Salvador who has championed the defense and advancement of women’s rights in her native country, will be a featured speaker in the panel presentation in Room 103 of Warner Hall on the university’s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury. Coralia Ring Martinez, a Salvadoran-American who holds a dual degree in anthropology and French from Fordham University and currently performs volunteer service in El Salvador, also will participate in the discussion. Admission will be free and the public is invited to attend.

Topics to be addressed during the forum will include the role of U.S. foreign policy in creating the immigration humanitarian crisis, and the response to the crisis by the Salvadoran government and social movements in El Salvador. The forum will be sponsored by the WCSU Diversity and Equity Office, School of Arts and Sciences and Department of Social Sciences.

Portillo has been engaged in community work since 1999 with CRIPDES, a grassroots organization formed three decades ago that is now active in approximately 300 rural communities in El Salvador. The primary mission of CRIPDES is to provide a framework for organization at the community, regional and national levels to promote policies and practices that increase access to economic and infrastructure development, basic services, employment and improved living conditions for inhabitants of El Salvador’s countryside.

Portillo currently serves as the secretary of the CRIPDES National Board of Directors, coordinator of women’s programs for CRIPDES in the San Vicente department, and member of the leadership of the National Roundtable of Rural Women in El Salvador. As part of her work with CRIPDES, she visits women in rural communities throughout San Vicente to raise awareness about women’s rights and facilitate the organization of local women’s committees and projects.

For more information, contact the Office of University Relations at (203) 837-8486.

Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England’s best small private universities.