Danny Solis, prior to his work as an Alderman, made his mark in public service and community organizing through his efforts in immigration reform. In 1980, he confounded the United Neighborhood Organization (UNO), and for 16 years, he acted as Executive Director, organizing grassroots citizenship and voter registration initiatives.
Immigration Legislation

In 2005, Solis called on the citizens of Chicago to show support for the McCain-Kennedy-Gutierrez Immigration Reform Bill by introducing a resolution to the Chicago city council. In the resolution, Alderman Solis acknowledged his dedication and that of the City of Chicago to responsible and respectable immigration reform.

Citizenship and Immigration Expo
Since his appointment, Solis has advocated for undocumented immigrants and new citizens. More recently, in 2004, Alderman Solis joined the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, along with U.S. Congressman Luis Gutierrez, and the 25th Ward Legal Clinic to sponsor the 2004 Citizenship Expo at Benito Juarez High School in Pilsen. Vendors at the expo provided information to new citizens and undocumented residents on citizenship and immigration processes.

Mayor Daley’s Citizenship Assistance Council
In 1995, Solis was appointed to Mayor Daley’s Citizenship Assistance Council. The mayor’s council, a 21-member board, collaborated on methods to spur naturalization and voter registration. In that same year, the UNO had registered over 36,000 new voters in Chicago. The following year, Mayor Daley appointed Solis to the seat of city Alderman.

Census Participation
In 1990, the UNO coordinated large swearing-in ceremonies and encouraged new citizens to register to vote and to actively contribute to their communities. Danny Solis also encouraged these new citizens to participate in the 1990 U.S. census, and as a result of their mass participation, substantial resources were allocated to the Latino community. In 1992, Solis once again lead the UNO in sponsoring citizenship drives to assist eligible immigrants applying for citizenship with fingerprinting, obtaining photographs and filling out applications forms; this naturalization campaign assisted well over 50,000 Latinos applying for citizenship.

Immigrant Advocacy
In 1986, Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), giving millions of immigrants amnesty in the form of temporary residency, eventually allowing them to apply for citizenship. In the subsequent two years, almost 120,000 undocumented immigrants in Chicago applied for amnesty under the IRCA. A substantial number of these applicants filed through UNO signup locations and information sessions.

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