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Health & Fitness

Black Groups Initiate Letter to Improve Immigration Reform

A 10 Point Plan for Just Immigration

BLACK GROUPS INITIATE NATIONAL LETTER AND DAY TO UPLIFT ISSUES IMPACTING IMMIGRANTS 

Diverse Coalition Demand Fair and Inclusive Amendments to Immigration Bill

 

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[Atlanta, Georgia - May 13, 2013] Across the country many millions are fighting for immigration reform, however the content of that reform is still largely up for debate. Within this debate, groups are emerging that are challenging the current narrative of the immigration bill that is largely focused on moving the immigration system from a family based system to one that’s based on merit and employment. To challenge this notion, a national group called, Black Immigrations Network (BIN) initiated an Open Letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee challenging 10 core pieces of the proposed bill. The letter is being delivered to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday May 13th and has been signed on to by a diverse set of organizations and individuals nationwide.

The ten themes outlined in the letter are: 1) categories of family members that are eligible for visas should be expanded not contracted;  2) De-link legalization programs from border security;  3) Maintain the Diversity Visa program;   4) Extend the path to citizenship to other immigrants on all temporary statuses;  5) Shorten the length of time to reach citizenship and extend the eligibility date;   6) Stop inhumane enforcement programs and activities  7) People with so-called “criminal” records should not be automatically excluded from the program;   8) Dispense with prohibitive costs for filing fees, penalties and back taxes; 9) Eliminate the biometric identification card and the Electronic Verification program (E-verify); and 10) Allow all immigrants access to health care and public benefits. 

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Some of the leading organizations in the fight for immigrant rights and social justice that have signed on to the letter are: Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, Florida Immigrant Coalition, Highlander Center, US Human Rights Network, Black Alliance for Just Immigration, Priority Africa Network, The Black Institute, Southeast Asian Action Center, 1Love Movement, Watts Labor Community Action Committee, Culture Strike, Justice Strategies, Derechos Humanos, Dream Activist DC, Immigrant Youth Justice League, United Methodist Women Racial Justice Programs, Faith Action Network of Washington State.  These groups that have signed on represent thousands of people nationwide.

On Monday May 13, hundreds are participating in various activities to uplift these points throughout the country. Activities will include visiting Senators’ local offices, making phone calls to the Senate Judiciary Committee members, and holding press conferences to show public support for fair, just and inclusive immigration reform.

Opal Tometi, the National Coordinator of the Black Immigration Network explains, “Many are dissatisfied and down-right insulted with some of what has been proposed in this bill. Many aspects of this bill ignore the fact that immigrants are integral to this society. And some Senators discount the fact that immigrants are connected to families, friends and the larger community. It’s our collective duty to remind them that we demand fair, just and inclusive immigration reform for all.”

 Gerald Lenoir of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration adds to the conversation by sharing, “Many in the African American community see immigrant rights as one of the cutting edge issues in the fight for racial justice for all. Our communities continue to fight for justice because it’s the right thing to do and because our strategic alliances will help us win social and economic justice for all.”

Jordan Logue of Amnesty International at Georgia Southern University, “Amnesty International at Georgia Southern strongly urges Congress to amend S. 744. Implementation and enforcement of the bill in its current form would still leave the basic human rights, families, and dignity of immigrants in shambles. The goal of immigration reform should be to ensure a policy that allows people the freedom to leave a bad situation and willingly enter a new environment without penalty. As it is now, the bill would still put a long and arduous process in front of immigrants seeking citizenship, as well as an inhumane system of punishment for undocumented immigrants. Much more can be done to streamline the process and make it more inclusive for millions."

Eva Cardenas of the Georgia Undocumented Youth Alliance, “GUYA fully supports any proposal in which mass incarceration and detention of immigrants is stopped immediately, and where there is a path to legalization that is immediate, realistic and economically accessible. We demand the end of deportations and the continuance of a militarized border. Furthermore we demand the government to cease any contracts with CCA and any other prison for profit as the privatization of jails and detention centers has lead to a profit gaining market in which communities only suffer at the hands of greed and xenophobia." 

Paul McLennan of the Atlanta Public Sector Alliance, “The Atlanta Public Sector Alliance, a local human rights organization, is in full support of the Open Letter on Immigration Reform because we see just immigration as an essential part of advancing the struggle for human rights in this country. The present proposed legislation has too many deficiencies and will not be inclusive of everyone who has a human right to live in this country, regardless of status.”

Ringing endorsements of the 10 themes outlined in the letter also came from the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, the United States Human Rights Network, the Vermont Worker Center, and the National Economic and Social Rights Initiative. 

 Bishop Findlayter of Churches United to Save and Heal shares, “In a country that says it values families, it is unconscionable that the Senate immigration bill will devalue families by not allowing siblings and many adult children to join their families in the US.”

Nunu Kidane of Priority Africa Network, “The diversity visa program is an important way that African immigrants get to the US.  The proposal to eliminate this program will mean that US immigration policy will be less equitable”

Participants in the May 13th National Day of Demands and the signatories of the 10 Demands Letter are members of the Black Immigration Network (BIN) and its allies. BIN will continue to mobilize communities to support the progressive changes in the Senate bill and to defend the human rights of immigrants, undocumented and documented.

Some of the participants in the National Day of Demands are in places ranging from Arizona to Florida, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, California and more.

Marybeth an undocumented Nigerian immigrant who works with Dream Activist DC adds, “African and Caribbean immigrants are becoming more visible in the fight the fight for fair and just immigration reform.”

BIN is a national network of people and organizations serving black immigrant and African American communities focused on supporting fair and just immigration, as well as economic and social policies that benefit these communities and all communities of color and create a more just and equitable society.

 

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