200,000 marched for America this weekend. Now it's your turn...

by: Restore Fairness

Tue Mar 23, 2010 at 17:13:15 PM EST

From the Restore Fairness blog.

Do you know what it feels like to be a part of a  200,000  person-strong protest? In a word- amazing. But why scrimp on  words when  describing the largest demonstration for immigration reform since 2006!

On Sunday March 21st we joined tens of thousands  of people from every  corner of the country as they came together in  Washington D.C. to  demand humane immigration reform NOW. With thousands  of workers, faith based groups, young   people, LGBT  folks and African-Americans demonstrating, the atmosphere on   the National Mall was electric. Once we finished taking in the sheer   magnitude of the sea of people that stretched across five blocks of the   Mall, we held our signs up high and joined in the innovative and   energetic rallying. It was difficult to not be distracted by the variety   of colorful banners, signs, puppets and slogans that people creatively   designed, and we were inspired by chants of “Sí Se Puede”, “No Human   Being is Illegal,” and “Change Takes Courage.” The most prominent colors   of the day were red, white and blue as demonstrators proudly waved   American flags as they marched for justice.

Drawing on the  history of the civil rights movement, Reverend Jesse  Jackson was one of  the enigmatic speakers who spoke of immigration as a  civil rights  issue that impacted all Americans. Other speakers included  Rep. Luis  Gutierrez, the leader of the movement for immigration reform,  whose speech mirrored the spirit of urgency palpable in   the crowd.

We’ve been patient long enough. We’ve  listened quietly. We’ve  asked politely. We’ve turned the other cheek so  many times our heads  are spinning…It’s time to let immigrants come out  of the shadows into  the light and for America to embrace them and  protect them.

Cardinal  Roger Mahony from L.A. made a touching and inspirational speech reminding us of the pain visited upon immigrant families impacted by the broken   immigration system.

Consider what happened to little Gabby, a   U.S. citizen whose father  was taken from their home at 5 a.m. when  she  was nine.  Now 14, instead  of playing with her friends she takes  care  of her baby brothers while  her mother tries to make ends meet.  Gabby  prays that Congress and the President enact immigration reform,   so that  she can once again feel the warmth of her father’s embrace and   never  again have nightmares that she will be left alone.

The  surprise highlight of the “all star” line-up was President Obama’s video speech that was projected   on giant screens to the vast crowd.

If we work together, across ethnic,  state  and party lines, we can build a future worthy of our history as a   nation of immigrants and a nation of laws…I have always pledged to be   your partner as we work to fix our broken immigration system, and  that’s  a commitment that I reaffirm today.

As health  care reform passed by evening, the time for talk seemed  likely over.  Sunday showed us that the lack of forward movement on  reform and the  unending enforcement actions targeting innocent workers  and families  would be tolerated no further. The next day, we joined a national action organized by FIRM at the Republican   National Committee offices to call for stronger support and leadership   for immigration reform from Republican leaders. As we picketed  outside,  organizers marched into the RNC office and demanded a meeting  with RNC  Chair Michael Steele, who had rejected an earlier request. The  strategic  sit-in action met with success as a meeting was fixed for March 31st.

There will  be a lot of hard work in the upcoming weeks. For now, we  need you to  send a free fax and tell your Members of Congress that if   they “don’t choose courage over hate, we’ll elect people who will.” And   keep tuned for our video of this momentous event.

Coming up to March 21st, raids undermine White House talk of immigration reform

by: Restore Fairness

Mon Mar 15, 2010 at 16:23:16 PM EST

From the Restore Fairness blog.

With less than a week to go, advocates across the  country are gearing  up to “March for America,” the massive mobilization for   immigration reform where 100,000 supporters are expected to descend on   the nation’s capital on March 21st. In anticipation of the march,   members of the National  Day Labor  Organizing Network (NDLON) have set off from  different  parts of the country to Washington D.C., with the aim of  building  support amongst local communities on the way and calling  attention to  the desperate need for reform of immigration laws that  tear families  apart and repress the immigrant community.

The Puente   Movement, and their “Human  Rights Caravan” of day laborers, advocates  and community members  left Phoenix on March 6th for a three-week,  awareness-raising journey  through Arizona that will culminate in  Washington D.C. on March 21st.  As part of their efforts, they have been  organizing events in small  towns and big cities to highlight the civil  and human rights crisis in  Arizona and other places where large  communities are impacted by  increased enforcement policies. On March  13th, the caravan was joined  by Rep. Luis   Gutierrez in Houston for a large rally that  called for immigration reform. On  the East Coast, several day laborers  from New York and New Jersey began a  300-mile “Walk for Human  Dignity” on Saturday, March 13th.  Inspired by the courageous “Trail of Dreams” walkers, they will be stopping at   various day labor corners, churches and worker centers on their way to   Washington D.C.

So is all this buzz around the “march” reaching  Washington D.C.? When  President Obama announced three meetings on the issue of   immigration reform last Thursday (March 11th), it seemed like the message that immigrant rights advocates across the   country were sending out was finally hitting home. After the President   had a “feisty” meeting with representatives from   immigrant rights groups on Thursday morning, Sen. Schumer and Sen. Graham  presented their legislative plans for the bill on comprehensive   immigration reform in the Oval office. The Senators requested the   President for his support in ensuring  bipartisan support for the bill,   and while the President committed his “unwavering support” to reforming   immigration laws, he gave no concrete plan of action or time-line for   moving forward. However, as summed up in a New York Times editorial about the meetings that President Obama had with immigrant    rights advocates, with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and with Sen.    Charles Schumer and Sen. Lindsey Graham, “What we’d rather know is  when   the bill is coming, what it will look like and what he is going  to do  to  get it passed. Enough with the talk.”

In a statement released by the White House after the   meetings-

Today I met with Senators Schumer and  Graham and was pleased to  learn of their progress in forging a proposal  to fix our broken  immigration system. I look forward to reviewing their  promising  framework, and every American should applaud their efforts to  reach  across party lines…I also heard from a diverse group of grassroots   leaders from around the country about the growing coalition that is   working to build momentum for this critical issue. I am optimistic that   their efforts will contribute to a favorable climate for moving  forward.  I told both the Senators and the community leaders that my  commitment  to comprehensive immigration reform is unwavering, and that I  will  continue to be their partner in this important effort.

As indicated  by White House press secretary Robert   Gibbs, it seems that while  immigration remains an important issue for   President Obama, it is not a  priority in this election year, thereby   making the concrete action that  the Obama administration had promised   within the first year of office,  seem like a distant dream. It is clear   that the meetings were a result of the mounting pressure for action on   immigration reform from the grassroots and community level. In spite  of  the build-up towards the nation-wide mobilization on March 21st, the   outcome of the meetings, beyond a reiteration of the promise of  support,  remains unclear.

As if to highlight just how pressing  the need for reform of the  broken immigration system is, while Obama  was meeting with advocates who were frustrated with increased enforcement and   deportations under the Obama administration and anxious to enlist his   support for moving reform forward, a series of raids in Maryland led to the arrest and   detention of 29 workers. Not far from D.C. on Thursday morning,   Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted simultaneous raids in Anne Arundel and   Baltimore counties at two restaurants, several residences and an office.   On Friday, advocates from the immigrant rights organization Casa de Maryland were back outside the White House,   but rather than meeting with the President, they had gathered to protest the raids and splitting of families as a   result of enforcement policies. Gustavo Torres, Executive Director of   Casa de Maryland denounced the raids-

Everyday,  tens of thousands of  hardworking immigrants in Maryland leave their  families to go to work,  and tonight twenty-nine of our brothers are  detained as their families  are left to grieve…This is not an acceptable  way to treat members of our  community who work hard every day to make  Maryland strong for us all.

In the face of the push for the  nation-wide push for reform, the  efforts of mobilization towards the  March for America, and the  Presidential meetings, it is not difficult  to wonder about the timing of  the ICE raids in Maryland. Either way,  the continuation of such unjust  and inhumane enforcement policies is  unacceptable. We can only hope that  the final push for support over the  next week bears fruit and the  impact of the march in Washington D.C.  is felt by everyone.

A New York Times op-ed states that the “March for America” could be the “game changer” in   the equation, so come to Washington D.C. and make it count! Like we said before, this is your march, so see   you at the National Mall in Washington D.C.!

Photo courtesy of  flickr.com/photos/americasvoice

Is the Tea Party's racist rhetoric going to save broken families?

by: Restore Fairness

Mon Feb 08, 2010 at 17:52:54 PM EST

From the Restore Fairness blog. 

While it is difficult to find much coherence within the fractured and fast-changing Tea Party Movement, a look at their convention in Nashville last week shows that the issue of immigration seems to have gained greater popularity, emerging largely from the links made between immigration and the healthcare debate at their town hall meetings held last summer. Spearheading this issue for the Tea party agenda was Tom Tancredo, a former Colorado Congressman who kicked off the Nashville Tea Party Convention with a slew of racist comments meant to further the argument against immigration reform.

And then because we don’t have a civics literacy test to vote, people who couldn’t even spell vote, or say it in English, put a committed socialist ideologue in the White House named Barack Hussein Obama.

The Nashville Convention sought to unite the movement against the path to legalization. Tancredo’s opening speech included the argument that while Obama’s plans for immigration reform needed to be halted, it was a good thing that McCain had not been elected or he would already have ensured that Rep. Gutierrez’s bill for immigration reform was passed and “amnesty” given to the country’s undocumented immigrants. He incited the audience to protect the country’s culture saying “our culture is based on Judeo-Christian values whether people like it or not!”

While some, such as a Tea Party blogger Keli Carender said that immigration was not a part of the official agenda, Tancredo’s opening remarks, the prominent presence of the anti-immigrant group NumbersUSA, as well as a number of signs against “amnesty” from their individual supporters at the convention indicated that immigration issues could become a prominent feature on the movement’s agenda.

So what would Tom Tancredo have to say about the latest report by the Urban Institute that holds that immigration enforcement has a large-scale, detrimental effect on children? The truth is that the immigration system is in dire need of reform and racist rhetoric is not going to solve the complex problems caused as a result of a broken immigration system.

The report is based on research conducted amongst over 100 children of undocumented immigrants that were targeted by raids and arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in six U.S. states. Of the 190 children interviewed for this study, two-thirds were U.S. born citizens. The study says,

Children whose parents were detained for longer than a month experienced more changes in eating, sleeping, frequent crying, fear, anxiety, regression, clinginess, and aggressive behavior.  68% of parents or caretakers questioned said they noticed at least three behavioral changes in the short-term, or three months after a parent was arrested. In the long-term, or nine months after an arrest, 56 percent of children ages 6 to 11 and 12 to 17 showed angry or aggressive behavior. The most typical changes were an increase or decrease in eating among all age groups.

Long-term separation of children from their parents is “exceptionally harmful” to the development and growth of children. The report recommends immigration reform must include alternatives to detention such as electronic monitoring and supervised released, as well as a priority quota for immigrants with children to be considered for legal residency.

It’s groups like Tancredo’s that have gone on about the connections between immigrants and crime. An ACLU brief finds that the increasing criminalization of undocumented immigrants has led to a diversion of attention and resources away from more serious criminal offenses such as organized crime, gun trafficking and white collar crimes. For starters unlawful presence in the United States is NOT a “crime”. And secondly only the Federal Government can regulate immigration. So when states and localities use criminal laws to go after undocumented immigrants, they are not only adding to the misinformed rhetoric around “criminal” immigrants but actually diverting resources from where they should be applied. Moreover, studies have shown that increased immigration does not lead to increased crime and that immigrants are less likely to be incarcerated for violating criminal laws than non-immigrants.

Once again, we urge the leaders and citizens of this country to step away from their petty vendettas and take a look at the bigger picture, both in terms of what already exists and in terms of what would be best for all.

Weekly Diaspora: Moving Immigration Reform Forward

by: The Media Consortium

Thu Oct 15, 2009 at 11:08:59 AM EST

By Nezua, Media Consortium Blogger

A crowd of thousands gathered on Capitol Hill Tuesday, to lobby for and support immigration reform, as Debayani Kar writes for RaceWire. Representative Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus "presented his key principles for comprehensive immigration reform" at the rally. They include: