Thread: Hundreds Sign up for Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform

http://www.irishecho.com/newspaper/story.cfm?id=17776

Hundreds sign up to ILIR in Boston


By Jim Smith
jsmith@irishecho.com

DORCHESTER, Mass. -- The Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform recruited hundreds more grassroots activists last Thursday night at Florian Hall in Dorchester after a series of speakers urged them to follow the example of those who brought about immigration reform nearly two decades ago.

Nearly a thousand people listened to veteran activists hearken back to the successful struggles of the Irish Immigration Reform Movement in the late 1980s and the issuance of the Donnelly and Morrison Visas, which paved the way for permanent legal status for thousands of Irish men and women.

Acknowledging that coming out of the shadows these days may be more daunting than it was 20 years ago because of the anti-illegal immigration fervor that has swept the country since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, ILIR vice-chairman Ciaran Staunton told a receptive audience that keeping a low profile is not an option.

"The only creatures I know of that continually go around with their heads down are sheep, and they end up in the slaughterhouse," he said to laughter and a rousing ovation.

Staunton and ILIR chairman Niall O'Dowd exhorted the crowd to sign up and leave the hall as political activists, with an eye on the all-important lobbying day in Washington, D.C., on March 8.

"This isn't a Republican, Democrat, liberal or conservative issue. Conservatives actually support our position, and Republicans actually support our position ... You've been on the back burner long enough ... We're getting on buses, we're going to Washington, and we're going to plead our case," Staunton said.

Kelly Fincham, executive director of the ILIR, told the crowd of old-timers and fledgling activists that immigration reform runs in cycles, requiring periodic infusions of experience and youthful enthusiasm.

"It seems like every 20 years the Irish have to battle for legal acceptance in the U.S. This is the year to win the battle once and for all," she said.

Referring to the 1965 immigration reform act which largely restricted Irish immigration to those seeking family reunification, Fincham told the audience that it would be a mistake for Irish immigrants to sit idly by while power brokers in Washington and Dublin formulate new immigration laws. "This is not the time to stay quiet ... We can't afford to be left behind again."

At the end of the meeting, representatives of the GAA, AOH, Irish Cultural Center, and Irish Immigration Center gathered together to share ideas about mobilizing and offering support.

Thomas Keown, spokesman for the IIC, said after the rally that there are about 10,000 undocumented Irish immigrants in the Boston area, the vast majority of whom have overstayed tourist or work visas. The ILIR puts the national number for Irish people living in illegal status at about 40,000.

Sr. Lena Deevy, executive director of the IIC, said that the energy and enthusiasm in Florian Hall Thursday night reminded her of the early days of the IIRM.

"Back then, people working together brought about the kind of reform that many said was impossible," she said. "The presence of the GAA, AOH and other groups at the rally delivered a powerful message to the immigrants of today that they have reason to be hopeful."




This story appeared in the issue of February 15 - 21, 2005

http://www.irishecho.com/newspaper/story.cfm?id=17762

Chicago campaign heats up
By Blathnaid Healy

CHICAGO -- A large number of Chicago Irish immigrants turned out at a meeting on Thursday evening last to show their support for immigration reform.

Organizers of the event, held at Galvin's bar and restaurant on the city's Northwest side, said they would be supporting what is expected to be a month-long intensive campaign ahead of the U.S. Senate's debate on immigration reform.

That debate is expected to take place in late March.

"This campaign is really going to be won by the folks on the ground," said the Rev. Michael Leonard of the city's Irish immigration center.

Committee members from the recently formed Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform addressed the crowd and urged all attendees to take the time to contact senators and state representatives.

"There seems to be people coming out of the woodwork," Leonard said. "The number of people showing up and coming on board is increasing."

News about the city's immigration reform movement has been spreading in the Irish community through word of mouth and local radio shows, according to Leonard.

"It's a snowball effect," said Brian, an undocumented man who traveled to Galvin's from his home in Chicago's Southern suburbs.

The organizers of the campaign said what emerges from the Senate hearings will be influenced greatly by the amount of pressure put on key personnel between now and then.

"At the end of the day it comes down to votes," Brian said. "The more pressure on senators, the more important they will realize it is."

CCIR announced at the meeting that it will take part in both the city's upcoming St. Patrick's Day parades, the one in Downtown and on the other on the South side of town.

Billy Lawless, a prominent businessman in Chicago, told the crowd at Thursday's meeting to ask friends and relatives in Ireland to attend a meeting for immigration reform taking place in late February in Dublin.

"It is very important that the folks back home are brought in on this," Lawless said.

The Rev. Brendan Curran, a parish priest in a predominantly Hispanic community said at the meeting that more than 50 percent of his parish was undocumented. He expressed a strong interest in joining with the Irish community to protest proposed stricter immigration laws.

The Irish Center's Leonard welcomed the idea.

"We want to link in with what is going on in other communities and get them on board," Leonard said.

It has also emerged that a three person Chicago-based Irish delegation met with Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan on Friday to discuss the possibility of making it easier for undocumented immigrants to get driver's licenses in the state.

Leonard, a member of the delegation, said that Madigan was supportive of the proposal. One proposal being considered would allow the undocumented in the state to get a driver's license without a social security number.




This story appeared in the issue of February 15 - 21, 2005