January event coverage « Reform Immigration For America

AZ: EXAMINER: The need for immigration reform highlighted at Mesa event
January 15, 9:27 AMMesa Independent ExaminerChristina Wijfjes-Smit

Mesa, AZ. google maps
The East Valley Tribune reported on an event, held Wednesday in Mesa, which highlighted the need for immigration reform. Religious leaders along with community and business members gathered at Mercy Christian Fellowship in east Mesa “as part of a national movement.”
During the event attendees watched performances depicting the plight of illegal immigrants through skits and interpretive dance. The skits performed painted illegal immigrants as victims of the current immigration system while showing those that enforce the law as aggressive and mean spirited. (Read the Tribune article here.)
The Tribune reported that the Arizona spokeswoman for Reform Immigration for America, Fabiola Reyes, “blamed a poor immigration system for broken families, economic strife and security concerns raised by immigrants breaching the U.S. border en masse.” While what Ms. Reyes says is true what she fails to acknowledge is that these are the consequences faced by immigrants who choose to come here illegally. There is also more to the story.
Raising awareness to the defunct immigration system is needed however to do so, with any credibility, all aspects of illegal immigration must be addressed. That means advocate groups must recognize rather than avoid the darker side of illegal immigration; human smuggling, kidnappings and gangs, people who come to the United States illegally for nefarious purposes. Until these elements of illegal immigration are included in the dialog for reform, all attempts by advocate groups to “take up the fight” will be pointless and ineffective.

CA: LOS ANGELES TIMES: Study: Legalizing undocumented adult Latinos would be boon to state’s economy

CA: OAKLAND TRIBUNE: Appeal for immigration reform

CA: AURORA SENTINEL: Activists pack Aurora church for immigration reform rally

CA: PRESS DEMOCRAT: Lowered expectations for immigrant rights advocates

http://www.petaluma360.com/article/20100105/ARTICLES/100109774?Title=Lowered-expectations-for-immigrant-rights-advocates&tc=ar

CA: LOS ANGELES TIMES: Study: Legalizing undocumented adult Latinos would be boon to state’s economy
By Teresa Watanabe
January 12, 2010

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/01/california-could-reap-an-economic-boon-worth-16-billion-by-legalizing-its-18-million-unauthorized-latino-adult-immigrant.html

CA: CONTRA COSTA TIMES: Pleasanton residents appeal for immigration reform
By Sophia Kazmi
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 01/13/2010 04:34:52 PM PST
Updated: 01/14/2010 07:02:33 AM PST

PLEASANTON — About two dozen residents delivered postcards Wednesday to the local office of Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Pleasanton, asking him to vote in favor of comprehensive immigration reform.
The delivery of the cards is just one of hundreds of activities planned across the nation, said Polo Morales of Reform Immigration for America, one of the groups that organized the delivery.
Members of the faith community and other like-minded organizations attended the delivery.
They want McNerney to support an immigration plan that would require undocumented immigrants to register, go through background checks, pay taxes and study English on their way to becoming U.S. citizens; focus enforcement on those who pose the most danger to national security; keep families together; and protect due process.
The group dropped a batch of postcards at the Concord office of Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez, on Tuesday.
Afterward, they prayed together outside the office.

CA: DESERET NEWS: Immigration reform advocates seek plan
By Nicole C. Brambila
January 15, 2010

http://www.mydesert.com/article/20100115/NEWS01/1150313/Immigration+reform+advocates+seek+plan

CA: OAKLAND TRIBUNE: Appeal for immigration reform
By Sophia Kazmi
January 13, 2010

http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_14182442

CA: SONOMA VALLEY SUN: Immigration reform rally in Plaza

http://3hmm.com/thesun/?p=15112

CT: HARTFORD COURANT: Immigrants And Advocates Urge National Leaders To Pass Reforms
By MARK SPENCER
January 16, 2010

http://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-immigration-reform-0116.artjan16,0,3965793.story

CO: DENVER POST: Sen. Bennet joins Denver rally to change immigration laws
By Mike McPhee
January 14, 2010

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14185288

http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-immigration-reform-011410,0,4343759.story

CO: LONGMONT TIMES CALL: Latin league to host discussion
LONGMONT — The League of United Latin American Citizens will host a discussion of immigration reform at 6 tonight at Las Palmeras Mexican Restaurant, 1950 Main St.
The meeting is part of the Reform Immigration For America Movement, an organization formed to support comprehensive immigration reform.

CO: LDVR Large crowd in Denver demands immigration reform in U.S.
Nearly 1,000 attend town hall meeting
Tammy Vigil, reporter KDVR Denver
January 14, 2010

DENVER – Some Coloradans are joining the rest of the nation in coming together to push for comprehensive immigration reform.  U.S. Senator Michael Bennet got an earful at one of four town hall meetings. He spoke at the largest event at Manual High School in Denver Wednesday.  About 1,000 people turned out to ask lawmakers to fix America’s immigration system, including an anonymous 17-year-old high school student.  ”Viridiana” says she came to Colorado when she was 6. She said when she first saw the bright lights on I-25, she was so excited. There are no bright lights in Mexico, she says. And those lights came to symbolize her own bright future. But not any longer.  ”I feel so hopeless,” she says softly. She has taken college-credit courses since she was 15. But she says that hard work won’t translate into a higher education. She cannot afford to pay out-of-state college tuition, which she says is up to five times more than in-state tuition. She realizes her education is over–despite her dreams of becoming an immigration lawyer.  ”My fear is not just getting caught, getting sent back (to Mexico). It’s living in this cage forever. you know, living this fake life,” she says.  Speakers at the meeting talked about a recent report that said legalization would add $1.5 trillion to the economy and generate up to $5.4 billion in new tax revenues.  Senator Michael Bennet will be one of Colorado’s two senators whose vote could change the lives of immigrants like Viridiana.
He says he supports immigration reform. He personally understands because his mother came to America from Poland decades ago. But he also says it’s a difficult issue that’s misunderstood.  The U.S. House introduced an immigration reform bill in December. The Senate is expected to do so next month.  But Bennet said Congress’ next priority is jobs. He says they’ll tackle immigration

GA: WXIA NEWS: Activists Kick Off Push For Immigration Reform
January 13, 2010

http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=139641&catid=3

GA: EXAMINER: Atlanta immigration activists begin the “Immigration Reform Week of Action”
January 13, 10:40 AMAtlanta Political Buzz

The Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO) is kicking off a series of events geared towards promotion of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity (CIR ASAP) Act of 2009 introduced in U.S. Congress last December by Rep. Luis Gutierrez.

Yesterday, GALEO held the first press conference for “Immigration Reform Week of Action” in Norcross. The conference took place with numerous Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) groups such as GLAHR, MXACIR, GALEO, ABLE, CLILA, and Cobb Immigrant Alliance.

GALEO, the non-profit and non-partisan group committed to helping Latino communities in Georgia, said in a statement on their website: “CIR ASAP presented by Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) reopens the debate between Congress, the White House and other important players across the nation about the necessity of passing Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) this year; Therefore, throughout the United States from January 12th – January 20th, grass-roots organizations, human rights groups, unions, professional associations, business men, legal offices, etc. will hold numerous events in support of CIR. “

Other events in Atlanta area scheduled for the next few days include a Latino Town Hall meeting for the community to learn about the proposed legislation on the 16th, a Latino Prayer Service/Vigil on the 17th, and a Rally at the Capitol on the 20th.

Throughout the week GALEO will be recruiting volunteers to make phone calls to Georgia lawmakers. “Your voice of reason is needed! Make a few phone calls today to put pressure on Georgia’s Congressional delegation to move forward with a workable solution to our failed immigration policies. In order to uphold our values as Americans and end the separation of families, we need your voice. Together, we will make the difference necessary for us to achieve immigration reform in 2010. We must all do our part. Doing nothing is not an option.” For a full list of events and dates click here.

The nationwide events are organized by the Reform Immigration for America organization. According to their website “this week over 100 events are happening throughout the country to call for immigration reform in 2010. From the evangelical community in Grand Rapids, Michigan to labor leaders in Alaska, diverse voices from around the United States are standing up for what is right.” For the full list of nationwide events click here.

Reform Immigration for America also released a memo few days ago underlining the findings by the Center for American Progress and the Immigration Policy Center that support the Reform:
“On Thursday, January 7, the Center for American Progress and the Immigration Policy Center released important new research findings that demonstrate that the legalization of America’s undocumented immigrants will result in $1.5 trillion in economic growth over the next 10 years, lift the wages of native born workers, and create hundreds of thousands of jobs.
“This benefit stands in stark contrast to the alternative proposed by opponents of reform – deportation of 12 million undocumented immigrants would drain the economy by $2.5 trillion over 10 years.” Click here to read the memo.

While calculating the exact number of how many illegal immigrants are currently living in United States is impossible, according to the 2007 study by the Department of Homeland Security there were about 11.6 million illegal immigrants living in the country, and about 490,000 of them were residing in Georgia. The three states with the largest unauthorized immigrant population are California, Texas and Florida. In 2006, Georgia came in seventh.

ID: IDAHO PRESS TRIBUNE: Local coalition urges immigration reform
By Sharon Strauss
January 14, 2010

http://www.idahopress.com/news/?id=29272

IL: MEDILL NEWS: Immigrant advocates take the wheel on reform
BY HEATHER SOMERVILLE JAN 13, 2010
Immigrant advocates took a whirlwind tour of Chicago on Wednesday, rallying support for comprehensive immigration reform.
Formed as a caravan, they visited local offices of congressional leaders to pressure them to endorse legislation introduced last month by U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Chicago) that would offer illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.
The caravan, organized by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights in partnership with the Reform Immigration for America campaign, kicked off a week of activities that are part of a nationwide push for immigration reform.   The caravan targeted eight congressional offices in the city, meeting with staff because representatives have already returned to Washington for the legislative session.
“The idea is to kick up dust in their own backyard,” said Stephen Smith, campaign manager for Reform Immigration for America.
The caravan’s first stops were the offices of immigration reform supporters Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. and Rep. Bobby Rush (both D-Chicago). Rush is one of the 92 co-sponsors on Gutierrez’s bill.
“I know you’re here to apply political pressure. You don’t have to do that here,” Younus Suleman, Rush’s deputy district director, told the caravan.
Other offices were less receptive. Staff to Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-Chicago) declined to meet with advocates.
Victory won’t come easy for Gutierrez’s bill, known as the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity Act, or CIR ASAP, which has been called generous even by supporters. Congressional leaders face immense pressure from constituencies that are largely anti-immigrant.
“I’m ready for this fight,” said Stephanie Gadlin, press secretary to Rush. “I’m ready for this one. We’re coming out of health care, so our fists are already balled up. But this one’s going to be vicious.”
CIR ASAP would offer undocumented workers a path to citizenship though paying fines or performing community service; reunite families that have been separated by deportation; and enable youth to become residents and full citizens within three years in exchange for two years of military service or higher education. Advocates argue that legalizing immigrants would stimulate the economy.
“This is a pressing issue,” said caravan member Rev. Carl Quebedeaux of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, a Latino parish on the South Side. “It was in past years, but it is also now more than ever.”  U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is expected to introduce a reform bill to the Senate later this month or next.
“The biggest hurdle immigration reform will face is getting the 60 votes in the Senate,” said Nathan Ryan of the Illinois coalition.

IL: NAPERVILLE SUN: Interfaith immigration reform event set
January 14, 2010

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1989249,Interfaith-immigration-reform_NA011310.article

Local faith and community leaders will gather at 7 p.m. Thursday in Naperville to participate in an interfaith event designed to draw attention to the urgent need for comprehensive immigration reform.

The event is one of many mobilizations occurring in Illinois this week as part of the Reform Immigration FOR America Campaign, a national effort to pressure Congress to finally fix the broken immigration system with comprehensive immigration reform.

Titled “Loving the Stranger: A Community Gathering for Immigration Reform, part of a national campaign to Reform Immigration FOR America,” the event will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at 1st Congregational United Church of Christ, 25 E. Benton St., Naperville.

Attending will be leaders from Local Evangelical, Catholic, and Mainline Protestant churches, local elected officials, including DuPage County Board Member Tony Michelassi, Hayley Meksi, executive director, World Relief DuPage-Aurora, student Leaders from the College of DuPage and Wheaton College. The public is invited.

IL: NAPERVILLE SUN: Forum puts a face on immigration
January 15, 2010
By DAVID SHAROS For Sun-Times Media
The First Congregational United Church of Christ in Naperville was alive with a different sort of energy Thursday night as leaders from various church denominations, college student leaders, County Board members and local residents met for a faith rally aimed at immigration reform.
The hourlong evening program, “Loving the Stranger: A Community Gathering for Immigration Reform,” was held as part of a national campaign known as Reform Immigration For America, a coalition of business, labor, community, and faith-based groups that have been organized both at national and local levels.
Matthew Soerens, who serves as the church engagement representative at World Relief DuPage, said the primary purpose of the event “was to raise attention for the urgent need for immigration reform.” The program included testimonies from immigrants and their family members including persons from China, Pakistan and Mexico. Group prayer was also part of the program.
“This evening was also organized as a faith-based event, and those in attendance are encouraged to pray both for the immigrants in neighboring communities as well as for our legislators, who need courage to address the many problems in our immigration system, which does not work either for immigrant families or for our nation’s economy and security,” Soerens said. “We actually took the title of the program from Leviticus, Chapter 19, which talks about the treatment of the stranger in another land.”
Tom Cordaro, justice and outreach minister for St. Margaret Mary Parish in Naperville, said his church has been active in immigration issues since the Bush administration proposed reform. Raising awareness, he said, focuses on three issues.
“The key components are creating a pathway to gaining citizenship for those who remain undocumented, as well as keeping families together instead of using immigration to break them apart,” Cordaro said. “The third issue is to secure our borders and create a common-sense regulation allowing those who wish to come and work here temporarily to do so and then return to their own country.”
Soerens added that the event this week was a “re-launch” of a campaign, “calling on President Obama to fulfill his promise to push hard to reform our nation’s broken immigration laws in a way that works for our economy, keeps us all secure, and keeps families together.”
Wheaton resident Liuan Chen Huska, who works in Lisle, delivered a brief address about her family, which has been separated because of deportation which took place last year. Homeland Security, she said, began looking into her family’s affairs in 2008 and her stepfather was detained for nine months during which he received inadequate medical treatment. Her parents’ restaurant business and savings were also compromised.
“We need to build solidarity through events like this, and show it isn’t shameful to be undocumented,” she said. “It’s important to bring people out like this and put a ‘face’ to the issue.”
Mary Beno of Lisle said she found out about Thursday’s event at her church and said that “educating ourselves” was the first step in launching a reform movement.
“I’m interested in learning more about the issue and believe our government needs to get more involved rather than turning away from the problems,” Beno said. “Turning away is not the way to solve things. The first thing you have to do is educate yourself.”
A larger collaborative event is planned with several African-American churches in Chicago this Saturday, to be held at the First Baptist Congregational Church at 1613 W. Washington.

IL: WLS NEWS: Chicago clergy gather in support of immigration reform
January 8, 2010

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=7208673

IL: NAPERVILLE SUN: Interfaith immigration reform event set
January 14, 2010

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1989249,Interfaith-immigration-reform_NA011310.article

IL: WLS NEWS: Chicago clergy gather in support of immigration reform
January 8, 2010

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=7208673

ME: BANGOR DAILY NEWS: Groups press for immigration reform
By Jessica Bloch
January 14, 2010

http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/134781.html

Representatives from Maine organizations in favor of immigration reform marched Thursday to the district offices of U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, requesting meetings during the coming Presidents Day break in order to discuss federal immigration policy.

“We feel that fair and just immigration reform actually helps everyone,” said Blanca Santiago, executive director of the Portland-based group Centro Latino, speaking at a pre-march gathering at St. John Catholic Church on York Street.

“Centro Latino has been working … to help bring about a groundswell of support, and we really need the support of ordinary people,” she said. “The right has often said that, well, we just need to take care of the people here in this country. But the fact of the matter is that we all are here in this country, together.”

Marchers presented letters to the senators requesting meetings to discuss the effects of federal policy, the senators’ thoughts on the issue, and ways to find bipartisan solutions in the U.S. Senate.

“We are calling on the Congress and president to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation this year,” said Ben Chin, federal issue organizer of the Maine People’s Alliance, which organized Thursday’s event. “We think we have waited long enough, and now is the time.”

The letters to Snowe and Collins were signed by seven people, including Bishop Richard Malone of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland; Ed Flanagan, CEO of blueberry grower Jasper Wyman & Son of Milbridge; University of Maine System Chancellor Richard Pattenaude; and Westbrook Chief of Police William Baker.

Santiago said undocumented workers are subject to raids and long separations from families while immigration status is worked out in the legal system.

“The raids terrorize families, and they actually devastate economically many communities all across our nation [which] are affected greatly by the loss of the workers that results,” Santiago said. “The town sees a death in its economy, and the place itself does not do very well when those workers are gone.”

During Thursday’s gathering, Anais Tomezsko of Mano en Mano (Hand in Hand), a Milbridge organization that seeks to build relationships between residents and the immigrant community, read a letter from an anonymous undocumented worker in Washington County, where many immigrants work in agriculture.

“We ask you to accept immigration reform in order to obtain greater social welfare for our families. … We are working people. We are not criminals. We consent that we violate some of your laws, but we did it because of necessity.”

State Sen. David R. Hastings III, a Fryeburg Republican who serves on the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee, said in a phone interview Thursday that he does not believe in closed borders and that there are some businesses in his district that use seasonal workers.

“I do not justify mistreatment of undocumented workers at all,” he said. “The core problem is we need to be sure those noncitizens in this country are here legally. Once they’re here legally I feel they’re entitled to all the employment protections that the rest of America is entitled to. I have no sympathy for the employer who takes advantage of the undocumented immigrant.”

The Rev. Seamus Griesbach said at the York Street event that St. John Catholic Church recently held its first Spanish-language Mass. He said the parish and the diocese are interested in making sure the growing community of immigrant workers in the Bangor area and the rest of the state is not forgotten.

“Certainly it’s not just a matter of prayer or of what we can do in the church walls, but also of public policy,” Griesbach said. “The church really does believe and insist that there needs to be serious thought into how we are treating those people.”

ME: WABI NEWS: Rally for Immigration Reform
By Meghan Hayward
January 14, 2010

http://www.wabi.tv/news/9501/rally-for-immigration-reform

Local community and business leaders came together in Bangor Thursday in a show of support for migrant workers in rural and northern Maine.

The group marched to the offices of Senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins to request a meeting on federal immigration reform.

Today’s event was part of a nationwide mobilization of “Americans for Comprehensive Immigration Reform.”

In all, there were more than a hundred such events, spread through all fifty states.

Ben Chin of Maine People’s Alliance says it’s the right thing to do for the communities in Maine and for the economy to make sure everyone has equal rights in the workforce.

“Well what we hope is that we’ll be able to sit down with them and support their efforts in the Senate to find workable solutions for immigration reform this year. So that there’s an earned path to legalization, so that families can stay together, so workers can have their rights and we can restore due process.”

And Chin says they are confident those solutions will be found.

MD: BALTIMORE SUN: Local faith leaders call for immigration reform
January 13, 2010

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bal-md.briefs130jan13,0,2361713.story

Several Baltimore-area faith leaders speaking at St. Vincent de Paul Roman Catholic Church on Tuesday called for immigration reform, a month after Congress introduced legislation addressing the topic. The Rev. Joe Muth of St. Matthew Roman Catholic Church on Loch Raven Boulevard said he opened an immigration center at his church 10 years ago. He said the center guides people through the legalization procedure and would like to see the federal government adopt a model that would expedite the naturalization process. The Northeast Baltimore parish includes many immigrants from Africa and the West Indies. “There needs to be laws that have humane treatment for immigrants,” Muth said.

MA: BOSTON HERALD: Mass. immigrant advocates to hold rally for reform
January 10, 2010

http://news.bostonherald.com/news/politics/view/20100110mass_immigrant_advocates_to_hold_rally_for_reform/

Immigration advocates in Massachusetts are planning a Boston rally to support federal immigration reform.

The Massachusetts Immigrants & Refugee Advocacy Coalition has scheduled a rally Thursday at Boston City Hall to push major overhaul of federal immigration laws, including a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.

The rally comes as immigration advocates nationally try to gather support for a bill introduced in Congress by Rep. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois, a Chicago Democrat.

The proposal seeks to legalize undocumented immigrants by requiring them to learn English, register with the federal government, pay a $500 fine for each adult, pass background checks and meet other requirements.

MI: ASSOCIATED PRESS: Detroit hearing pushes US immigration law overhaul

http://www.dailymail.com/ap/ApTopStories/201001130181

Wednesday January 13, 2010

DETROIT (AP) – Backers of the Obama administration’s promise to overhaul U.S. immigration laws are holding a town hall meeting at a Detroit church.

State Rep. Rachida Tlaib (rah-SHEE-dah tah-LEEB), D-Detroit, is among the sponsors of the Wednesday night event at St. Anne’s Church.

Organizers say the meeting is part of a national effort to overhaul U.S. immigration policies. The Comprehensive Immigration Reform and American Security and Prosperity Act was introduced in Congress on Dec. 12.

Participants include Monsignor Don Hanchon of Holy Redeemer Church, the Revs. Thomas Sepulveda of St. Anne’s and John Pitts of Temple of Praise International Church, and Chris Michalakis of the United Food and Commercial Workers union.

MI: DETROIT FREE PRESS: Immigration reform to be discussed
January 13, 2010

http://www.freep.com/article/20100113/NEWS02/1130380/1001/News/Wayne-County-news-briefs

MI: DETROIT NEWS: Rally urges reforms on immigration
By Oralandar Brand-Williams
January 14, 2010

http://detnews.com/article/20100114/METRO/1140390/Rally-urges-reforms-on-immigration

MI: GRAND RAPIDS PRESS: Rally participants at Nueva Esperanza Church hope to raise awareness for immigration reform
By Rick Wilson
January 12, 2010

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2010/01/rally_participants_at_nueva_es.html

MI: GRAND RAPID PUBLIC RADIO: Immigration Reform Rally In Grand Rapids Kicks Off Larger Effort
Lindsey Smith

http://www.wgvu.org/wgvunews/index.cfm?id=sdetail&sty=5550

MI: GRAND RAPIDS INSTITUTE FOR INFORMATION DEMOCRACY: Bi-lingual event organized around Immigration Reform
2010 JANUARY 13
by Jeff Smith (GRIID)

http://griid.org/2010/01/13/bi-lingual-event-organized-around-immigration-reform/

NE: OMAHA WORLD HERALD: NEW VOICES JOIN IMMIGRATION DEBATE
By Cindy Gonzalez
January 14, 2010

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100114/NEWS01/100119795

Rallies by Nebraskans to urge changes in national immigration laws are not new.

But there were some new voices speaking out today at a press conference calling upon Congress to update laws and create a path to citizenship for many of the 12 million illegal immigrants in the country today.

Mike Fahey, former mayor of Omaha; Jim Partington of the Nebraska Restaurant Association; and Michael Nolan, a representative of the Nebraska League of Municipalities; were among the new voices.

Nolan said immigration is important to the state’s economic growth because new immigrants could help repopulate rural areas that have seen population declines.

“The primary issue is how do we grow the state,” he said.

Partington said he expects the restaurant industry to grow by 15 percent in the next decade but that current trends indicate the workforce would grow by only half of that. “If we intend to support that growth, we’re going to do it with immigration,” he said.

Fahey said resistance to immigrants is not new and he cited the less than welcoming atmosphere present when his own ancestors came to America from Ireland.

All agreed that Congress should change immigration laws to both beef up border security and to create a path to citizenship illegal immigrants.

Opponents repeatedly have said that people who enter this country illegally should not be rewarded with “amnesty.”

The rally, which drew about 75 people, was held at St. John’s Church on the Creighton University campus. It was among 100 similar events held across the country in the last few days to bring attention to the immigration issue.

NC: CHARLOTTE OBSERVER: Advocates join call for immigration reform
By Franco Ordoñez
January 12, 2010

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/local/story/1176012.html

Local faith and community leaders will gather together tonight as part of a nationwide effort to pass immigration reform legislation.

Pastor Rusty Price, Rev. Mark Renald, Jessica George, interim director of the Latin American Coalition will share their opinions on the need for reform. Two Latino students will also talk about the growing number of young Latino voters and one will share her story of her father who died while in detention. The event is part of part of a national week of action, and there will be other events taking place in Greensboro, Durham and Raleigh, and across the country.

The 7 p.m. event, at the St. Paul Baptist Church on Allen Street, will also include a candle ceremony and stories from other young Latinos about being separated from their parents who were detained by immigration officials.

NC: WCHL NEWS: Local Students Put Hopes For Education On Display
By Elizabeth Friend
January 12, 2010

http://www.wchl1360.com/details3.html?id=13052

Local students hope art will draw attention to their dreams for higher education.

Kat Rangel, a teacher at Northwood High School, says students participating in the Dream Walk project hope to highlight the need for immigration reform.

High-schoolers from Northwood, Jordan Matthews and Carrboro High will use photography and mixed media to showcase their dreams for higher education.

The show is organized by the Orange/Chatham chapter of Reform Immigration for America to garner support for a bill introduced by Congressman Luis Gutierrez that would help undocumented students gain access to higher education.

Rangel says she hopes to bring the show to Chapel Hill next month.

The first show will run in conjunction with Siler City’s Art Walk, this Friday from 6-9 p.m.
NV: NEVADA APPEAL: Local leaders call on Congress to reform immigration
January 12, 2010

http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20100112/NEWS/100119960/1070&ParentProfile=1058

Local labor, faith, business and community leaders will gather at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Fuji Park in Carson City to participate in a national mobilization of the Reform Immigration for America Campaign, a national effort to pressure Congress to fix “the broken immigration system” with comprehensive immigration reform, said spokeswoman Claudia Servin.

Another rally will be held Thursday at Pine Middle School in Reno.

For more information, call Servin at 445-9912.

Organizations and individuals interested in joining the Campaign to Reform Immigration for America can do so by visiting www.reformimmigrationforamerica.org/ or in Spanish at www.reformamigratoriaproamerica.org/.

NV: NEVADA APPEAL: Immigration reform advocates rally in Carson
By Brian Duggan
January 14, 2010

http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20100114/NEWS/100119821/1070&ParentProfile=1058

Immigration reform advocates filled the exhibit hall at the Carson City fairgrounds Wednesday night, filling out hundreds of cards to send to Nevada’s U.S. senators, calling on them to put the issue in the national spotlight.

The organizing group, Reform Immigration for America, is staging events across the county this week to kick off an effort to put an immigration reform bill on the congressional agenda by next month, something President Barack Obama pledged to address while running for the White House.

About 350 people attended the event Wednesday evening that featured Latino speakers recounting their journey to the United States. A band entertained attendees who were served tacos as children played with red and blue balloons.

Elvira Diaz, who organized the Carson City rally with another planned in Reno today, said immigration reform would lead to more tax revenue for the United States.

“It’s a national campaign and what we want to do is fix a broken system so we can provide 12 million poor people who are undocumented a path for legalization,” said Diaz, adding the group is supporting a 700-page bill introduced by Rep. Luis Gutiérrez, D-Ill., in December that would overhaul the nation’s immigration system.

The bill would require undocumented immigrants to pay a fine among other penalties before starting a process toward legal status, but according to some national media reports the bill already has detractors on the right and left.

“It’s not free citizenship,” Diaz said. “It’s a procedure.”

Congress last addressed immigration reform in the summer of 2007, which failed to garner enough support in the Senate.

Among the organizations supporting Reform Immigration for America include the Nevada-based Si Se Puede Latino Democratic Caucus and the Progress Leadership Alliance of Nevada.

Mario Dela Rosa, a community organizer with PLAN, said the immigration reform supporters should be more organized in 2010 than they were in 2007 considering they are now using technologies such as text messaging to organize supporters and events.

“We know what we want and we know how to get it,” he said. “We are connecting people and that is our power.”

Jan. 15, 2010
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

NV: LAS VEGAS REVIEW JOURNAL: Rally spotlights immigration reform

Demonstrators at LV event say politicians need to put issue on the to-do list now

By LYNNETTE CURTIS
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
A coalition of labor, student and immigrant rights groups gathered downtown Thursday to launch the local leg of a national campaign pushing for comprehensive immigration reform.
About 75 people attended the morning event outside the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse to encourage lawmakers to change America’s immigration laws this year in a way that emphasizes keeping families together.
“We are working for family reunification and a path to citizenship,” said Michael Flores, Southern Nevada director of Reform Immigration for America, which hosted the event.
Flores expressed frustration with politicians who have put the issue on the back burner in favor of such concerns as health care overhaul and the limping economy.
“We have waited too long,” he said. “We have turned our heads too many times.”
Jose Padilla, a local construction worker, agreed.
“This is the time for elected officials to do what they promised us when they were elected,” he said in Spanish.
Padilla said immigration reform that includes a path to citizenship will help exploited workers.
“I am documented, so I can speak up when I feel I’m being abused,” he said. “But what happens to those who can’t?”
Recent Rancho High School graduate Francisco Morales, 18, spoke in support of change that would allow undocumented students who have been raised primarily in the United States a chance to gain legal status.
“These young people are scholars and athletes,” he said. “But when they graduate, they can’t go to college because they don’t have papers. This is unfair.”
Congress has considered comprehensive immigration legislation in previous years, but it has failed.
It’s time to try again, said those at Thursday’s launch.
“We have been waiting too many years,” Padilla said. “Too many people are suffering.”
Contact reporter Lynnette Curtis at lcurtis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0285.
NV: LAS VEGAS SUN: Daylong rally aimed at immigration reform
By Tiffany Gibson
January 14, 2010

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/jan/14/daylong-rally-aimed-immigration-reform/

People gathered in front of the Lloyd George Federal Building Thursday night with candles and signs to kick off a national campaign to reform the U.S. immigration system.

The kickoff began Thursday morning with more than 100 people holding signs in front of the federal building, said Michael Flores, state director of Reform Immigration for America.

Throughout the day, residents and business owners displayed signs and made phone calls to elected officials, encouraging them to support the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity Act. The act would place stricter sanctions on employers who hire illegal immigrants and encourage illegal immigrants to register for citizenship.

Flores said similar events were held in Reno and Carson City to launch the campaign for the legislation.

“This is just the beginning,” Flores said.

Melissa Munzo said she attended the rally to show her support for the bill and to encourage immigrants to become legal citizens.

Munzo, a native of Mexico, became a citizen on Jan. 6, 1982.

“I still remember that day,” she said. “This is a great country, and if I could be born again, I’d like to be born American.”

Members of the organization spoke to Rep. Dina Titus via conference call about the tremendous effect the bill could have on the economy.

Flores said if all illegal immigrants were to become citizens, the federal government would gain $1.5 trillion in taxes over the next decade.

The act also encourages families to register with the federal government so they are not separated.

Kenia Pedroza, a 17-year-old Rancho High School student, said she knows what it’s like to be separated from a loved one because of the immigration system. She said her godmother’s husband was deported and her godmother had to leave the country, too.

“She was like a mother to me because my mom died when I was 2,” Pedroza said. “Separation of family affects everyone.”

The campaign also supports a revival of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act — also known as the DREAM Act — which would give thousands of young adults the opportunity to attend U.S. universities and have permanent residency as long as they have been in the country five years before the bill’s authorization.

The Rev. John McShane of Holy Child Catholic Church in Caliente prayed for the U.S. to make changes to the immigration system so children are able to receive a quality education.

Luis Estinoza, 11, said the DREAM Act is important to all immigrant children. Clutching a “Stop the suffering” sign to his chest, he said immigrant students should keep fighting until the act is passed.

As the rally came to a close, participants chanted “si se puede,” which means “yes, we can,” and departed to the song “Heal the World” by Michael Jackson.

NY: LATIN AMERICAN DISPATCH: Rally For Immigration Reform Held in New York City; Immigration Organizations Want Comprehensive Law In 2010
January 14, 2010
By Andrew OReilly

New York — Protesters carrying signs declaring “Justice and Dignity for the Immigrants” and “Reform Not Raids” converged inside the Judson Memorial Church, in New York City’s Washington Square Park, on Wednesday to demand immigration law reform in 2010 as part of a rally set up by the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC).

Members from various immigration organizations from the New York City area, including Cabrini Immigrant Services, Families for Freedom and El Centro del Inmigrante, marched into the church chanting “Yes We Can.”

As members from the organizations representing immigrants from Latin America, Asia and the Middle East settled into their seats, the main talking point of the rally was the Obama administration’s promise of immigration law reform.

“The reason we are here is because we can’t wait,” said Janis Rosheuvel, the executive director of Families for Freedom, who added, “The reality is we are waiting for reforms that are coming too slowly.”

President Obama promised to change immigration laws in 2009, but the same policies are still in place. 2010 is the year that real reform needs to be put in place, said Chung-Wha Hong, the executive director of the NYIC.

“In the course of a year, 400,000 immigrants are detained, 350,000 are deported, and those numbers continue to rise,” according to Hong, who added, “While we are encouraged to see some legislative progress, it needs to pick up speed. We have a solid bill introduced in the House, the ball is in Senator (Charles) Schumer’s court to introduce a similar bill in the Senate; and we call on President Obama to lead on this issue.”

Senator Schumer (D-NY), the Chairman of the Senate Immigration Subcommittee, is tasked with creating a bipartisan immigration reform bill, after he took over the role from the late Senator Ted Kennedy.

Last summer, Schumer outlined seven key points that the reform bill would need to address. Some of these points included curbing illegal immigration, family reunification as a key value of the immigration system and the registration of undocumented aliens as a path toward United States citizenship, according to Schumer’s website.

In December of last year, members of Congress introduced the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity Act (CIR ASAP) to the House of Representatives. The act, introduced by Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), addresses some of the concerns raised by Senator Schumer, such as family reunification, employment verification and improving conditions in detention centers, according to the Immigration Policy Center.

While many seemed pleased with the idea of a more gentle policy toward immigration, which focused more keeping families together and granting due process to undocumented immigrants, the slow pace of the legislative process seemed the main point of contention.

“As we approach the one-year anniversary of President Obama’s inauguration, we remind the president that immigrant communities expect him to deliver on his promise to enact immigration reform. Immigrants won’t be taken for granted,” said Ann Maria Archila, co-executive director of Make the Road New York, an immigrant community group in New York.

The bill enacted must be passed within the year, must address the fundamental principles of family unification, due process and paths to citizenship and must be one that unties people rather than dividing people, Hong added.

Many of the speakers at the rally emphasized the case of Jean Montrevil, a Haitian immigrant, who is currently held in Pennsylvania’s York County jail on a 21-year old drug charge. Montrevil’s case added more significance to the immigration debate as the rally occurred only a day after a massive earthquake shook Haiti and left thousands dead.

“Even though it is a tragedy in Haiti, I believe it is a wake-up call,” said Janay Montrevil, the wife of Jean Montrevil, who added that President Obama needs to create a clear path to citizenship for illegal immigrants so that what happened to her husband does not happen to others.

“I should not have to explain to my children why daddy is not home,” she said.

Montrevil faces deportation stemming from a drug offense in 1989, for which he served 11 years. He is now in jail waiting to see if he is eligible for deferred action, which would allow him to stay in the United States, according to his wife.

“Jean Montrevil’s case illustrates the unfairness and lack of due process in our immigration system,” said Angela Fernandez, executive director of the Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights. “It’s a system where people can be punished retroactively using laws that weren’t even on the books when they were initially detained.”
NY: STATEN ISLAND NEWS: 200 rally outside Borough Hall for immigration reform
By Deborah E. Young
January 15, 2010

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/01/200_rally_outside_borough_hall.html

The impassioned chant rising from a crowd of nearly 200 last night on the steps of Borough Hall spoke to the frustrations of hardworking Americans — people who are separated from their families, whose children are not entitled to work or get financial aid for college, or who live in limbo, worried that at any moment, the government could order them back to a country they left decades ago.

“What do we need? Immigration reform! When do we need it? Now!” came the cry from dozens of community and spiritual leaders, youth organizers and concerned citizens, all of them residents of Staten Island and Brooklyn who arrived in this country from Latin America, Africa, Europe and the Middle East.

“For the first time, you are seeing the communities of Staten Island and Brooklyn coming together to make sure immigration reform passes in 2010,” said Javier H. Valdes, of Make the Road NY, the not-for-profit that organized the rally as part of a 50-state mobilization by the Reform Immigration FOR America Campaign, a broad-based national effort to fix immigration through legislation.

“The system is broken and it needs to be repaired,” said Valdes, ticking off statistics showing how loosening the restrictions on the country’s immigrants would help stimulate and stabilize the economy.

Speakers from places as diverse as Liberia, Poland, Albania, Mexico and Ghana urged Washington to tackle the politically charged issue of immigration law, even as lawmakers move on a heavy agenda including health care reform, a recasting of the financial system and new environmental regulations.

“When election time comes, we want people to know this is important,” said Olu A. Ajayi, of the Nigerian American Community Association, who like many others at the vigil is a citizen but understands the struggles of those who cannot get a toehold on legal status here.

“Being immigrants on Staten Island, we contribute positively to this economy as well as support the community,” said Maria Morales, the owner of Los Portrillos restaurant in Port Richmond, who became involved in the movement for immigrant rights after her store was vandalized in an anti-Mexican hate crime in August 2008.

“We are doctors, we are construction workers, and as everyone knows, we have children and it’s for them we need reform,” said Urszula Cyszkienicz, representing the Polish community and speaking about how young adults and standout students, who arrived here as babies without legal immigration paperwork, are now unable to work or get financial help for college. “We need reform, not tomorrow, not today, yesterday!”
OH: CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER: Local Latinos gain allies in their quest for immigration reform; rally in
By Robert L. Smith
January 14, 2010

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2010/01/local_latinos_gain_allies_in_t.html

In their push to change the nation’s immigration laws, local Hispanics welcomed new allies Thursday.

Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer Arzella Melnyk of Kirtland was one of three people who demonstrated against illegal immigration Thursday outside the Church of the Nazarene, where the rally calling for immigration reform was being held. Representatives from the Asian-American, African-American, Jewish, Sikh and Muslim communities swelled a rally called to push for comprehensive immigration reform.

Their presence at a small West Side church lent momentum to a crusade that rivets the Latino community, as many Hispanics are familiar with a daunting immigration system through personal experience or the experience of a relative.

President Barack Obama has promised to address immigration reform this year. With Congress wrapping up health care reform, some see an opportunity to be seized.

“We have to jump on this bandwagon because we have four or five months to make something happen,” Veronica Isabel Dahlberg, an activist in the Mexican-American community, told a crowd of about 150 people at the Church of the Nazarene.

The rally to kick off the local campaign for immigration reform drew dozens of young people from Lake and Ashtabula counties, including a teen girl who revealed a dilemma she said she shares with many others at Ashtabula’s Lakeside High School.

Though a high-achieving student, she cannot apply to colleges because her parents brought her into the country illegally at age 5.

“We have the potential, we just need that Social Security number, that green card that they ask us for,” she said, her voice breaking. “We can make it with your help.”

Max Blachman, an aide to U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, drew applause when he said he would support reforms that offered “earned citizenship” to illegal immigrants.

Richard Herman, co-chairman of the high-tech trade group TIE Ohio, said changes in the law need to coincide with changes in attitudes.

” ‘Immigrant’ has become a dirty word” in Greater Cleveland and at a bad time, Herman said.

Today’s immigrants are more likely than native-born Americans to start businesses, earn advanced degrees and obtain U.S. patents, he said. Cleveland, a city once teeming with immigrants, is now only 4 percent foreign-born.

“Guess what?” Herman said. “That’s not good for the New Economy.”

OH: CINCY ENQUIRER: Immigrants Rally to promote reform, jobs and acceptance
January 17, 2010 – B2

PA: ERIE NEWS: Erie area leaders take part in immigration reform event
PUBLISHED: JANUARY 14. 2010 1:16AM

http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100114/NEWS02/301149909/-1/ETN

Local religious, business and community leaders attended a national immigration reform campaign event Wednesday at the Universalist Unitarian Congregation of Erie.

Advocates of the campaign, Reform Immigration for America, are urging President Barack Obama and Congress to make immigration reform a priority this year.

Advocates are calling for immigration reforms that will help with economic recovery, keep families together, create millions of new taxpayers and protect people’s rights.

The reform campaign began Wednesday with more than 100 pro-reform events scheduled throughout the nation.

Several immigration reform events were held in Pennsylvania on Wednesday, including in Philadelphia, Wayne, Jenkinstown and Bensalem.

PA: COUNTY COURIER TIMES: Rally participants want immigration reform

By: GEMA MARIA DUARTE Bucks County Courier Times

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/courier_times/courier_times_news_details/article/28/2010/january/15/rally-participants-want-immigration-reform.html

A few days ago, Jose Montenegro petitioned for his sister in the Philippines to obtain permanent residency in the United States, a process he knows might take well over a decade, he said.

“Sometimes it takes 25 to 30 years,” he said, adding that people from countries other than the Philippines “only have to wait three years.”

Because of the disturbingly long wait to be reunited with his family, Montenegro, who is a naturalized citizen, is adamantly supporting immigration reform, a national movement to push the Obama Administration and Congress to change immigration law.

He was among about 80 residents, and community and religious leaders who rallied at Benjamin Rush Elementary School in Bensalem in support of reform. A proposed bill includes border protection, improving conditions for deportees, employment verification, visa program for qualified undocumented workers, and limits on removal for parents of children with U.S. citizenship.

At Thursday’s rally, residents were encouraged to write and/or call U.S. representatives, such as Congressman Patrick Murphy, D-8, to support the bill.

Reform Immigration for America, the lead organizing group, has been holding events nationwide throughout the week kicking off an effort to put comprehensive immigration reform bill H.R.4321 on the congressional agenda by February.

During his campaign trail, President Barack Obama promised to address immigration reform. National leaders, such as Illinois Congressman Luis Gutierrez, a Democrat whose office drafted the proposed bill, are putting heat on Obama and Capitol Hill to address the issue.

Reform advocates argue that there’s no true process in place for undocumented immigrants to apply to become legal in the United States. There are no visas available for immigrants to enter the country legally, Ali Kronley, state director for Reform Immigration for America, said after the rally.

“There are no visas for skilled or unskilled workers,” she said. “Except for agricultural workers.”

She added that reuniting families takes a long time because there’s a major backlog in a system that she says is broken and desperately needs repair.

Also at the rally in support was John Jordan, president of the NAACP Bucks County chapter.

His group, he said, supports the protection “for agricultural workers and a path to legal permanent residency and citizenship for college-age students.” The NAACP is in “opposition to efforts to penalize anyone for providing humanitarian assistance to their fellow human beings, regardless of the citizenship status of the person in need of help.”

But not everyone is in support of such reform.

“Patrick Murphy is adamantly opposed to providing amnesty to or benefits for illegal immigrants, and broke with his party repeatedly to bolster the E-Verify Program, which ensures that American jobs go to American workers, and to secure our borders by adding thousands of border agents,” Murphy spokeswoman Kate Hansen said Wednesday night.

Kathleen Appell, member of Pennsylvanians for Immigration Control and Enforcement based in Warminster, said Wednesday that the local and federal governments are cutting programs from the elderly and veterans because of budget crunches, while illegal immigrants are reaping the benefits of health care and public education.

“This country is a magnet for illegal aliens,” she said.

PA: PHILLY NEWS: Rally participants want immigration reform
By Gema Maria Duarte
January 15, 2010

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/92/2010/january/15/rally-participants-want-immigration-reform.html

A few days ago, Jose Montenegro petitioned for his sister in the Philippines to obtain permanent residency in the United States, a process he knows might take well over a decade, he said.

“Sometimes it takes 25 to 30 years,” he said, adding that people from countries other than the Philippines “only have to wait three years.”

At Thursday’s rally, residents were encouraged to write and/or call U.S. representatives, such as Congressman Patrick Murphy, D-8, to support the bill.

“There are no visas for skilled or unskilled workers,” she said. “Except for agricultural workers.”

She added that reuniting families takes a long time because there’s a major backlog in a system that she says is broken and desperately needs repair.

Also at the rally in support was John Jordan, president of the NAACP Bucks County chapter.

But not everyone is in support of such reform.

“This country is a magnet for illegal aliens,” she said.

PA: PHILLY NEWS: Pro-reform rally set
By Rose McIver
January 13, 2010

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/92/2010/january/13/pro-reform-rally-set.html

Bucks County labor, faith, business, and community leaders have scheduled a 6:30 p.m. Thursday rally as part of a nationwide effort to seek what they’re calling comprehensive immigration reform. The pro-reform rally will take place at Benjamin Rush Elementary in Bensalem.

TX: THE MONITOR: Advocates: Sweeping immigration reform an economic boost; opponents see disaster
By Martha L. Hernández
January 14, 2010

http://www.themonitor.com/articles/reform-34422-immigration-sweeping.html

Capitol Hill will probably not take up immigration reform this year.

Even many in Congress who support reform don’t want to tackle the issue until after what will likely be contentious mid-term elections.

“We are going to go back, finish the healthcare bill, finish the job bill, then of course you have the 2010 election,” said U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo.

According to the American Immigration Council, the sooner Congress passes something the better.

“We support comprehensive immigration reform, because we believe that the immigration system is badly broken and that the dysfunctional system does a disservice to all of us, because it weakens the nation’s ability to prosper and grow and be competitive in the 21st century,” said Mary Giovagnoli, director of the American Immigration Council.

The nonprofit, nonpartisan, pro-immigrant organization established by leaders of the American Immigration Lawyers Association released a report last week that claims legalizing the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants already in the United States through comprehensive immigration reform would add $1.5 trillion to the nation’s gross domestic product over the next decade, generate billions of dollars in additional tax revenue and consumer spending and support hundreds of thousands of jobs.

The report states that a comprehensive immigration reform plan that creates a legalization process for undocumented workers and sets a flexible visa program dependent on U.S. labor demands would raise the salary for all American workers.

Undocumented workers often make less than minimum wage and don’t complain because of deportation fears.

Comprehensive immigration reform would take away the cheaper labor pool, reform advocates say, and increase salaries for everyone.

Americans for Legal Immigration, on the other hand, believes “amnesty” for illegal immigrants would mean the “destruction of the United States of America” and considers the report a “desperate political propaganda attempt,” said William Gheen, the organization’s president.

“We resent the fact they are trying to bribe Americans, make Americans believe there is some money to be had here if we go along with this,” Gheen said.

The opposite is true, he said: For there to be a significant positive impact on the U.S. economy, more undocumented immigrants need to be arrested.

“Probably to the magnitude of 50 times the amount they are doing now,” Gheen said. “There is virtually no significant immigration enforcement right now in America today, and there’s been no significant immigration enforcement in the last eight years.”

Steve Ahlenius, president and CEO of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce, advocated a middle ground: A simpler guest worker program that does not include amnesty.

“In our country there is an expectation to let people play by the rules,” he said. “I think the idea that someone has come into the country illegally and then all of the sudden they get to go ahead of the line to become a U.S. citizen … it is against of our sense of fair play.”

However, immigrants and new workers are vital in the United States, where a large component of the workforce will be retiring in a few years but there are few new workers to take their place.

“Right now it takes five working people to support the one person that is retired,” Ahlenius said. “Well, in the next 20 years, they are projecting that is going to drop to three people supporting the one person that is retired.”

And it is doubly important that those workers are in the United States legally.

“With illegal immigrants, we have an underground economy where they are not paying taxes,” Ahlenius said.

According to the American Immigration Council, the temporary worker program generates 0.44 percent of the nation’s GDP — about $792 billion over the past 10 years.

In contrast, continuation of an enforcement-only policy would result in a loss of $2.6 trillion in GDP over 10 years, the council’s report states.

The U.S. Border Patrol’s budget has increased 714 percent since 1992, and fewer Mexicans are coming into the United States due to the contraction of the U.S. job market with the onset of the recession in December 2007, according to the report.

The statistics presented indicate the cost per apprehension in 2008 for the Border Patrol was $3,102 — nearly five times the $630 it cost in 2000.

Despite the unlikelihood of passing immigration reform this year, pro-immigration organizations plan to continue with their lobbying efforts across the nation.

The Reform Immigration for Texas Alliance — a pro-immigrant group here in the Lone Star State — plans to have its statewide convention on immigration on Feb. 20 in Austin.

From 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, the Rio Grande Valley Equal Voice Campaign is offering a panel discussion on the Christian tradition and immigration at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, 2209 Kendlewood Ave., McAllen.

VA: ASSOCIATED PRESS: Groups: Immigration A Federal Matter
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – A coalition of civil rights, business and faith groups are urging Virginia legislators not to pass immigration-related bills this year.
The groups, who came together as Reform Immigration for America, cautioned Thursday that immigration is a federal matter and that state-level laws only complicate the issue.
The Virginia effort comes as immigration advocates nationwide try to gather support for U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez’ immigration reform bill introduced last month.
The Chicago Democrat’s proposal would legalize undocumented immigrants who learn English, register with the federal government, pay a $500 fine, pass background checks and meet other requirements.

VA: THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT: Local religious leaders join push to alter system
Posted to: News Religion Virginia Beach
By Deirdre Fernandes

http://hamptonroads.com/2010/01/local-religious-leaders-join-push-alter-system

Some local Christian and Jewish religious leaders Thursday lent their voice to a national campaign calling for immigration reform.

“Our system is badly, badly broken,” said the Rev. John Manwell of Unitarian Church of Norfolk.

The gathering was part of an effort by Reform Immigration for America urging Congress to act on the issue this year.

The event, which drew about 20 people, was smaller than rallies in Detroit and New York that brought out hundreds of supporters.

Advocates say they believe this could be the year legislators take up the immigration issue after a failed attempt in 2007.

An immigration bill was introduced last month in Congress, and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., also is working on legislation.

Schumer last year said his bill would increase border security, provide a path to citizenship for those in the country illegally, make family reunification a priority and increase auditing of businesses to ensure they don’t hire illegal immigrants.

Schumer is expected to present a draft of his legislation in the coming months.

“It’s 2010 – it’s time to pass it,” said Meghan McNamara of Reform Immigration for America.

The organization is targeting legislators it believes could be critical votes on the issue, including U.S. Rep. Glenn Nye, a Democrat who represents Virginia’s 2nd District.

Nye is facing a tough re-election this November; six Republicans have lined up to oppose him.

The congressman will listen to what immigration reform advocates have to say, said Clark Pettig, Nye’s spokesman, but Nye believes that the federal government needs to enforce current immigration laws and secure the borders. Nye would not support amnesty for illegal immigrants, Pettig said.

Rabbi Israel Zoberman of Congregation Beth Chaverim in Virginia Beach said he is hopeful that there will be changes to the immigration law, but he acknowledged that it would be a challenge.

“Immigration reform is vast and complex,” Zoberman said. “How do you weigh compassion and security? ”

Deirdre Fernandes, (757) 222-5121, deirdre.fernandes@pilotonline.com
VA: VIRGINIAN PILOT: Local religious leaders join push to alter system
By Deirdre Fernandes
January 15, 2010