Darryl Morin, rising Hispanic leader known for building coalitions, renounces GOP membership

Jesse Garza | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

For years Darryl Morin has been a solid Republican, but he's never followed a "straight party line."

He's also never been a fan of Donald Trump, opposing both Trump's nomination as the GOP's presidential candidate and his immigration policy since he captured the White House.

And while strongly adhering to the party's conservative core values — like free markets, fiscal and individual responsibility, a strong military and the societal role of religion and faith — since the president's election, Morin has clung precariously to the notion that the party was committed to helping people rise above adversity.

"I believe that commitment is no longer there," Morin said of his decision to renounce his membership in the Republican Party.

That's important, because Morin is a rising force in the Milwaukee Hispanic community and beyond. He's held state and regional positions with the League of United Latin American Citizens, and is currently running to become its national president. LULAC is the oldest Hispanic civil rights organization in the country, and its national convention is coming to Milwaukee next year.

Morin's also emblematic of the widening umbrella of Latino activism. His family lives in Muskego and he's the CEO of a wireless tech company based in Franklin. A profile this month in Milwaukee Magazine emphasized his coalition building across political lines. He's not known as confrontational.

Still — as first reported by the magazine — Morin issued a strongly-worded letter last week, even posting it on his Facebook page, detailing his reasons for leaving the GOP.

He started by acknowledging that he's been seen as something of an outsider. “As a proud American of Hispanic descent, for years I have faced criticism by many, applause from few, and held at arm’s length by yet others as my party affiliation was Republican," he wrote.

He characterized the GOP's gravitation toward white nationalism and party officials' defense of Trump's "clearly racist remarks" about immigrant families as the main reasons he now will be identifying as Independent.

And he closed with a ringing defense of the value of immigrants.

"America’s strength flows from the constant influx of the immigrant work ethic, from the benefits of diversity and inclusion, from our commitment to freedom and to providing equal access to opportunity and the American Dream to all," he wrote. "I look forward to the day when this is once again the prevailing understanding among Americans."

"The defense of human dignity was the primary driver," behind his decision, Morin said in an interview with the Journal Sentinel. "It's not just an attack on immigrants, but an attack on all Hispanics."

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In the Journal Sentinel interview, he stressed that his decision is strictly personal, that LULAC is completely nonpartisan, that his change has nothing to do with the organization's presidential election next month, and that it does not endorse political candidates or political parties.

"Not every good idea comes from one party," he said. "Earnest debate leads to the best solutions."

At the same time, LULAC does take positions on policy issues, he said.

"And as an organization, we have come out very strongly against the policies and procedures this president has put in place," he said.

LULAC's main thrust is advocacy for Latinos, whether it be economic, political, social, educational or legal, and to support policies that promote Latino advancement, Morin said.

If elected national president, Morin said, one of his priorities would be to get more young people involved with LULAC.

“I believe the organization needs to evolve into the next generation of itself to attract more youth and young adults, to bring them in to develop their talents and skills and capabilities to lead us into the future," he said.

Morin said he'd also like to employ new mechanisms like social media, as well as traditional media, to advocate for Latinos, including immigrants and asylum-seekers.

And although he believes the president's "inflammatory rhetoric" has led to an increase in hate crimes against refugees, immigrants and U.S.-born Latinos, he said Trump's immigration policy alone did not drive him from the GOP.

The party's support of Trump policies Morin believes are increasing the national debt, creating trade wars with allied nations and attacking the dignity of "certain populations" were also factors in his decision, Morin said.

"Sadly," Morin said in the in the statement, "the Republican Party now carries the Trump brand."