Despite the first lady's cancellation, a new grassroots group still hit the downtown mall to push voters to the polls. Latinos in Charlottesville are banding together in an effort to get more voters behind Barack Obama's presidential campaign. The group calls themselves the Charlottesville Latino Initiative.
They gathered Friday morning to show support at Michelle Obama's event, but its cancellation didn't stop them from taking a stand in front of the Mudhouse Coffee Shop. Supporters held signs that read "estamos unidos" which means "we are united" in Spanish.
One of the leaders of the grassroots group hopes their effort moves Latinos to the polls in November.
Gloria Rockhold with the Charlottesville Latino Initiative said, "I believe that a lot of Latinos in this country just don't come from a culture of democracy and the importance of the vote and how one vote can make a difference, so that's the message were getting across to Latinos."
Rockhold tells us the Latino student alliance at the University of Virginia is very active in the initiative and says when they return in the fall - their goal is to get as many Latinos in Charlottesville registered as possible.
If you want to become a part of this group you can go to the Obama office on the downtown mall where they can register you.
