Meeting with Consuls General of Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico

One of the great things about being the dean of UC Davis School of Law is the opportunity to meet interesting people. Last week, I was able to meet some extremely interesting diplomats.

In the morning Consul General Shlomi Kofman and Deputy Consul General Ravit Baer from the Israeli consulate in San Francisco visited King Hall. They were on campus for an agricultural conference and stopped by to discuss the possibility of UC Davis collaborating on legal issues with Israel. We had a wonderful discussion of immigration and the Supreme Courts in both countries and what changes might happen on the U.S. Supreme Court with the possible confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

In the afternoon, I visited the Mexican Consulate in Sacramento. Consul General of Mexico Liliana Ferrer, an alum of UC Davis, introduced me to the Consuls General of Guatemala, Patricia Eugenia Lavagnino Spinola, and El Salvador, Ana del Carmen Valenzuela Peña. A group of immigration attorneys, including some from the private sector and non-profit organizations were in attendance, along with UC Davis Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Diversity and Professor of Law Raquel Aldana.  

Consul General Ferrer warmly lauded the wonderful support that the UC Davis campus, and specifically the law school, has provided to immigrant students. I was able to discuss some of the pressing human rights issues facing immigrants in the region, and the support network that exists in Northern California for immigrants. The three Consuls General signed a “Tricamex agreement” calling for cooperation on human rights issues by the three consul offices.    

In addition, through the UC Davis School of Law Summer Fellows program, we are hosting two Sacramento Mexican Consulate legal staff through our formal relationship with the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The events of the day reminded me of the international presence of UC Davis!