Dreama Caldwell is a neighbor, a mother and an activist. She has lived in Alamance County her entire life and so the struggles of folks in her county are also her own. As a young girl living in public housing, she witnessed her mother working a full time job while going to nursing school in order to take care of her and her siblings.

“Dreama's agenda is 100 percent shaped by her experiences growing up Black and working class in Alamance County” says Juan Miranda, a member of Mijente and a long time immigrant rights organizer building power for people “with papers and without papers.”

Racial Equity. Social Justice. Social Equality. School Reform. Equal Rights. Are the 5 tenets of Dreama’s platform. She told Mijente that she is running to give working-class, poor, Black and brown communities a voice. 

A candidate on the Democratic ticket, she would be the first Black Commissioner in an all-White Commission in the state. Andrew Willis Garcés, also a Mijente member in North Carolina and local organizer, has mentioned that it has been impressive watching her stand up for immigrants at election forums full of all-white Republicans. “None of the other Democrats are doing that,” says Andrew.

Dreama lives in an area with a lot of immigrants. She feels that Black & brown communities deal with very similar issues in Alamance as far as prejudices and racial profiling. She has gotten to see first hand people who are hurting because their families have been taken by ICE. 

“I often speak about my disapproval of policies that are harmful to immigrant  communities. I will not support such policies when I'm elected to the board,” Dreama told Mijente. Not only is Dreama committed to ending the county’s current contract with ICE, but also to ending cash bail. Her personal experience with the criminal justice system ultimately has led her to run for public office. 

“She understands how the system fails, and thus is equipped to fix it,” says Juan. 

Juan met Dreama several years back and shared that she was the realest person he had ever met. He says that she is someone who is not ashamed of her life experiences, but rather she is proud and has been shaped by them. 

“Dreama is people first. All people first, not just the few,” Juan shared that right now that everything is very polarized and people are looking for enemies in their neighbors, Dreama’s presence has been crucial. “She understands how standing against ICE is as important as doing away with Cash bail and as fully funding schools, because if someone is not getting what they need, it hurts everyone.”

Prior to running for office Dreama was with Down Home, an organization committed to raising the voices of and building multiracial power with working people in small-town and rural North Carolina. Her experience as a grassroots organizer is vast, having spent over 3 years working in bail reform and setting up The Alamance County Bail Fund, the only rural bail fund in the county. 

Dreama is a candidate who is dedicated to listening. Whenever they do protests they go to the people who are most affected, to hear directly from those most impacted. 

“I am not a safe candidate, I don't vote safely, I don't speak safely. I am talking now about white supremacy, that is something that is brand new in our area, I am all about calling things out.” Dreama says she plans to be totally accessible to people in her community.

Dreama needs our help to secure a seat at the table, and continue to stand up and fight for the most vulnerable communities in her county. “Her emphasis on education, police accountability/bail reform, and racial equity are needed,” Juan told Mijente “especially at time where Alamance County is trying to decide if they are going to move towards the future or go backwards to its past.”

Dreama Caldwel is one of the candidates endorsed by Mijente in North Carolina. The Mijente team have been door knocking and calling Latinx voters in support of Caldwell’s candidacy.

‍