Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio has dismissed speculation that he could be the vice presidential nominee, but is now preparing to make another political play: He is about to release his version of the DREAM Act, one that would offer legal status without a pathway to citizenship for undocumented students.

The Mission District is home to dozens of restaurants—a major source of employment for the many undocumented and marginal laborers who live and work here. But this combination of struggling, sometimes desperate, workers and small business owners in a competitive industry, who are fighting to stay afloat during a down economy, can often lead to labor rights abuses.

On March 29, a day of general strike took place in Spain, organized by Labor Commissions (CC.OO) and General Workers Union, and backed by the great majority of union organizations in the country. The reason for the call: dissatisfaction with labor reform approved by the conservative Popular Party, which has governed the country since its victory in the Nov. 20 election of last year.

Despite a 50 percent decrease in homicides over the past three years in San Francisco, incidents of violence and murder remain unchanged in several of the city’s “hot zones,” defined by the SFPD.

The National Council of La Raza has launched a multi-state voter registration operation ahead of the 2012 election with the goal of encouraging Latinos to participate in the political process, despite the difficulties the community has felt since the last election.