Category Archives: Comprehensive Immigration Reform

My friend Katherine Gorell, of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, wrote this about the Florida delegation that came to the March For America.

The sense of hope and determination could be felt throughout the massive caravan of more than 40 buses filled with parents, children and spouses, many of whom have deeply and personally felt the pain of our broken immigration system. Throughout the 18-hour journey, young people and veteran activists who call Florida home shared their stories and dreams of moving ahead with their lives, attaining educational degrees and more than anything else, living without fear of being criminalized when they just want to fully participate in our democracy.

“It was a long ride. The bus was not luxurious. The whole experience was exhausting, but no one on my bus complained because we know better than most that life is not easy, and winning the reform we want to see will not be easy,” said Jessica Sanchez, a youth leader with Esperanza Juvenil/Youth for Change and member of FLIC’s Board of Directors.

“At the end of the day, my feet were dusty and they hurt, but my soul felt renewed. I had been a part of something larger. I had been a part of history. No matter how taxing the journey, I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. That march meant everything to us.”

This was the spirit of the march and rally. Many people put their heart and soul and sweat into the effort to make it a success.

The Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) is proud to have been part of the historic mobilization of hundreds of thousands from across the country at Sunday’s March for America in Washington D.C. Nearly 2,400 residents of the Sunshine State made their powerful voices heard, voices that demand justice and fairness for immigrant families and communities, and desire to come out of the shadows and be respected for their contributions to our country.

“Just two weeks before the march, our plan was to send just four buses to DC,” said Rita Mendez, a FLIC leader in Immokalee. “Very quickly we realized that our members and allies were hungry to hit the streets of Washington in extraordinary numbers. It was a challenge, but we knew we had to move heaven and earth to give people the opportunity to be part of the biggest day our movement has seen in 4 years. We filled 43 buses in two weeks!”

“Floridians made up one of the largest delegations on this historic day,” said Juan Pablo Chavez, Florida state director with the Reform Immigration FOR America campaign. “We were determined to represent our state. We achieved our goal.”

Our work isn’t over. The march wasn’t a beginning or an ending. It was a significant step that has helped revive momentum for comprehensive immigration reform. We all look forward to taking the next steps toward winning just and humane immigration reform that makes our state and our nation a better place for everyone.

Photo courtesy of Joe Burbank of the Orlando Sentinel.

Today, 12 grassroots leaders sat down at the table with President Obama to have an open and honest discussion about delivering immigration reform in 2010. Deepak Bhargava, Executive Director of the Center for Community Change, kicked off the meeting by putting things in perspective for the President.

“The President today heard two messages loud and clear.  He heard about the pain caused by the administration’s enforcement only approach to immigration and how it is tearing families apart.  He also heard about the possible consequences of breaking his promises to deliver comprehensive reform: a growing backlash in the immigrant and Latino communities.”

That growing backlash will soon be descending on the nation’s capitol as tens of thousands of people prepare to march for immigration reform on March 21st. It is the looming prospect of this mass mobilization that drove the administration to meet with grassroots leaders today. We’ve been building our power as a movement and now we are demonstrating that power. We have earned our place at the table and the President has promised concrete next steps.

“We walk away from this very productive meeting optimistic that if the White House follows through on its commitments, comprehensive reform can be achieved this year.  Organizers are doing their part. This meeting is the direct result of the tens of thousands of people preparing to march on Washington on the 21st of this month.  Now, the President and Congress need to do their part.”

Today, we heard yet another affirmation of the President’s commitment to our issue. On March 21st, we will affirm that commitment is not enough, we need real action on immigration reform this year.

On Sunday March, 21st tens of thousands of people will flood the National Mall in our nation’s capitol, demanding immigration reform now. From the We March FOR America site:

Our vision of reform includes immigrants and native-born U.S. citizens working shoulder to shoulder to achieve better wages, working conditions, and labor protections.

As activists, organizers and communities ramp up efforts leading up to the march, I want to make sure we highlight the great work happening at the local and state levels too.

In Illinois, a diverse group of organizations and individuals (including faith, labor and community organizations) has pledged to bring over 10,000 people to the march. Led by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the motto of the group is “Friends Keep Promises”, with a specific focus on Obama’s campaign promise of immigration reform in his first year in office.

Emilio Lozano from local organization Centro Sin Fronteras said:

“It’s showdown time. We are united as never before. We will mobilize as never before.”

It is, indeed, showdown time. And Illinois is ready to march!

In New York, Make the Road NY is organizing buses to DC for the march.

Make the Road New York wants to send 40 BUSLOADS OF NEW YORKERS to deliver our message to President Obama and our Representatives to “Keep Your Promises”…

Last week, the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition was busy recruiting community leaders and volunteers to help in the fight for immigration reform this year. From TIRRC’s website:

In order to pass a bill that reflects our values, we will need to invest a lot of time and energy to move our members of Congress. But we can’t do it alone. Community leadership will be the key that opens the door to real, meaningful reform.

In Texas, local Reform Immigration FOR America affiliate, Reform Immigration FOR Texas held a conference in Austin this past weekend. Over 700 folks turned out to hear various speakers from labor, faith and community organizations commit to fighting for immigration reform this year. Ali Noorani was the keynote speaker and delivered the following message:

Across the country, people are mobilizing for real immigration reform. While Washington pundits continue to tell us immigration reform is dead in the water, we refuse to back down.

Will you march with us?

From the NY Road Trip for Our Future blog:

In Pittsford NY yesterday a strong and hearty contingent of the Raging Grannies joined us in the snow to lift our spirits with a tune they penned themselves in support of immigration reform. Their tune is followed by words from Gary Pudup director of NYCLU’s Gennesee Valley chapter. We went straight from this song to meet with Representatives Lee and Massa! Thanks for the warm-up ladies!

Be sure to follow the New York Road Trippers as they make their way across the state – follow on twitter @NYImmReform.

On Monday, 10 riders in New York State launched “the NY Road trip for our future“. The riders have come together because their future is at stake and they are fighting to fix the broken immigration system.

From the NYImmigrationReform site:

Today we fight to reunite our families, protect our workers, give our students the opportunity of higher education and a path to earned citizenship for all.

The road trip will take the group all of New York State to meet with their members of Congress, hold community actions and build a powerful statewide movement for immigration reform. You can check out the full itinerary here and meet the riders!

Yesterday, one of the riders, Jessi Jaramillo, took it to the NY Immigration Reform blog to talk about the last few days:

The last two days have been a whirlwind. We left a press conference in NYC on Monday [check out the video here], where many riders shared their stories and headed upstate to beautiful Carmel, NY. We arrived just after 4, to a crowd of over a hundred people, cheering and trying to stay warm in the 20 degree weather. The welcomed us with singing and chants and left us feeling completely energized for the week. We followed the crowd to a church down the street where there was music, food, and gifts waiting for us. That night we saw a community come together, inspired to be a part of this movement. Thanks to the Hudson Valley patriots and the whole community for making us feel welcome!

The group has also gotten some great coverage in the Latin American News Dispatch, and the Lower Hudson Valley newspaper.

To keep up with the road trip, follow @NYImmReform on Twitter or check out the group’s blog.