Ana María Archila

Ana María Archila (born 1978/1979)^[1] is an American attorney and activist serving as co-director of the New York Working Families Party.^[2] She ran for Lieutenant Governor of New York in 2022. She was formerly the co-executive director of the Center for Popular Democracy (CPD), and has served as a co-founder and co-executive director of Make the Road New York and Make the Road Action.^[3][4][5] On the federal level, Archila has pushed for immigration reform.

Archila received national attention in October 2018 when she and another woman confronted then-U.S. Senator Jeff Flake in an elevator shortly before the Senate Judiciary Committee vote on Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Archila objected to the Kavanaugh nomination due to allegations of sexual assault that had been made against Kavanaugh. Flake had previously expressed support for Kavanaugh; following his confrontation with Archila, however, Flake let it be known that he would not support the Kavanaugh nomination on the Senate floor unless it was delayed for one week to allow the FBI to investigate the sexual assault allegations.

Archila joined Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as a guest of honor at the 2019 State of the Union Address.^[6]

Archila was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia.^[7] At the age of 17, Archila moved to the United States.^[8]

Archila attended Montclair State University before becoming a staff member of the Latin American Integration Center (LAIC) in Staten Island and Queens. The founding director of LAIC, Sara Maria Archila, was a former human rights lawyer from Colombia and was also Archila's aunt.^[8]

After Sara María Archila died from cancer, Ana María Archila became the executive director of LAIC.^[9] She began serving in this role in 2003. Archila advocated on behalf of parents with limited English language skills in Staten Island and Queens, New York, to obtain more information about their children's education. After LAIC merged with Make the Road by Walking to become Make the Road New York (MRNY), she become a co-executive director of the new organization.^[10] Under the leadership of Archila and her co-directors, MRNY became the largest grassroots immigrant organization in New York City.^[7]

Archila subsequently became a co-executive director of the Center for Popular Democracy (CPD).^[10] In her role, Archila spoke out against the immigration policies of US President Donald Trump, as well as his attacks on the Affordable Care Act.^[11][12][13] She told CNN that removing children from their parents and their family would cause damage that would be difficult to repair later in life.^[14] In June 2018, Archila lamented that the zero tolerance policy of the Trump administration which separated immigrant children from their parents was still in operation.^[15]

Archila brought attention to Puerto Rico and problems of lack of power after Hurricane Maria.^[16] She warned that the territory was lacking in proper governmental organization in advance of the following hurricane season.^[17] She advocated for debt relief to alleviate economic problems in Puerto Rico.^[18] Archila pointed in particular to Bank of Santander as an example of economic debt pressures on Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria.^[19] Archila said Puerto Rico was not getting responsive assistance from the US federal government because the United States Congress did not view the locality as within their representation duties.^[20]

On September 28, 2018, US Senator Jeff Flake announced his intention to vote for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Kavanaugh had been accused of sexual assault by a number of women, including Christine Blasey Ford, who testified for several hours before the Senate Judiciary Committee the day before Flake's announcement. Kavanaugh subsequently testified and denied the allegations. Flake said that Ford's testimony was "compelling," but added that Kavanaugh's response was "persuasive" and left him "with as much doubt as certainty" regarding what had occurred.^[21]

Following his announcement, but prior to the Judiciary Committee's vote on the Kavanaugh nomination, Flake was confronted by Archila and Maria Gallagher in a Senate office building elevator. The two women identified themselves as sexual assault survivors, noted the sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh, and loudly criticized Flake about his support for the Kavanaugh nomination. CNN reported that Flake was "visibly uncomfortable" during the encounter and "seemed to have a change of heart" afterward.^[22][23] The exchange was broadcast live on CNN.^[24] On the same day, Flake voted not to subpoena Mark Judge--who Ford said was present during her assault--to appear before the Judiciary Committee.^[25] That afternoon, Flake voted to advance Kavanaugh's nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee; however, Flake added that he was a "yes" vote "only if the final Senate vote [was] delayed for one week, during which time the FBI [could] investigate sexual harassment allegations against Kavanaugh". Senate Republican leaders agreed to support the proposed investigation.^[26][27] Later that day, President Donald Trump directed the FBI to undertake a one-week investigation of the allegations against Kavanaugh.^[26] Kavanaugh's nomination was eventually confirmed.^[28]

Archila was selected by Jumaane Williams as his running mate in the 2022 New York gubernatorial election.^[29] She was endorsed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.^[30] In the Democratic primary, Archila finished second in a three-person race which was won by the incumbent, Antonio Delgado.^[31][32]

In 2023, Archila and education activist Jasmine Gripper were named co-directors of the New York chapter of the Working Families Party.^[2][33]

• Milkman, Ruth; Ott, Edward, eds. (2014), New Labor in New York: Precarious Workers and the Future of the Labor Movement, Cornell University Press, pp. 174–175, ISBN 978-0801452833

• Archila, Ana Maria (July 8, 2017), "How We Can Combat Xenophobia", The Huffington Post, retrieved September 29, 2018