Born in Mexico City, Salas immigrated to the United States at the age of 26, working an assortment of factory, restaurant, and radio jobs while pursuing a college degree.
[1] Before announcing his intention to run for Congress, Salas was working with a variety of Chicago media entities, including local radio station WLEY-FM, as a broadcaster; Hoy!, as a weekly columnist; and WOCK-TV's Noticias MundoFox, as a contributing commentator.
In that role, Salas focused his attention on policies related to the Hispanic community, small business growth, and immigration issues.
He was one of the radio hosts who, along with other grass roots community groups, organized hundreds of thousands of pro-immigrant supporters to march in Chicago in 2006.
He also lobbied with hundreds of families in Springfield for drivers licenses for undocumented in Illinois, a benefit that was supported by the Governor and which the state began implementing in 2013.