I ran across this when I was searching for events coming up by the pro illegal groups. Did anyone know of this?

http://www.icirr.org/naeo.htm


New Americans Executive Order News:


I. Top
II. Three Entities Created to Implement the New Americans Executive Order
III. Project Coordinator
IV. More information about Executive Order
V. Press

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich signed the New Americans Executive Order on November 19, 2005 during the Immigrant Justice Convention of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrants and Refugee Rights.

This first-in-the-nation Executive Order calls for the State of Illinois to create a coherent, strategic, and proactive approach to weaving Illinois' immigrant population into the fabric of our State. The Executive Order can be viewed at:

http://www.illinois.gov/gov/execorder.cfm?eorder=43.

The Executive Order states that: "The State of Illinois shall develop a New Americans Immigrant Policy that builds upon the strengths of immigrants, their families, and their institutions, and expedites their journey towards self-sufficiency. This policy shall enable State government to more effectively assist immigrants in overcoming barriers to success, and to facilitate host communities' ability to capitalize on the assets of their immigrant populations."

The effort is a public - private partnership drawing substantially on the talents of such civic partners as the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the Migration Policy Institute and the National Immigration Forum in Washington, D.C. It enjoys substantial support from the philanthropic community, with significant funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Three Entities Created to Implement the New Americans Executive Order:

The New Americans Executive Order creates a new "Office of New Americans Policy and Advocacy" within the Governor's office that will convene with a interdepartmental task force to examine, department by department, how State government can systematically address the rapidly changing demographics of our State and assist immigrant and refugee newcomers quickly become integrated into Illinois society. This Office will also monitor the rapidly developing federal debate on immigration policy and inform and advise the Governor on immigration policy issues and on actions to take on immigration cases affecting specific Illinois families. Finally, the Office will assist in the work of the New Americans Immigrant Policy Council.

In addition, the Executive Order created the New Americans Immigrant Policy Council. The Policy Council is made up of 15 prominent Illinois leaders from the business, faith, labor, civic, and philanthropic communities. The New Americans Immigrant Policy Council will meet regularly over the next two years to study issue areas that affect the integration of Illinois immigrants, including: speeding the acquisition of English and U.S. citizenship, education, healthcare, human services, police - community cooperation, entrepreneurship and workforce development, and home ownership and housing.

The Policy Council will develop a set of practical, concrete recommendations for State action. These recommendations will be published in two reports, shared with elected officials and leaders from other states at a Midwest regional conference, and otherwise distributed widely. Ultimately, this project seeks to develop a national model for how a State can best assist newcomers become self-sufficient and successful New Americans.

The Policy Council is co-chaired by Juan Salgado, President of the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights and leader of the Institute for Latino Progress; Ricardo Millet, President of the Woods Fund of Chicago; and Ngoan Le, Senior Program Officer of the Chicago Community Trust. The Council include leaders such as Marshall Bouton of the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations; Dr. Esmail Koushanpour of the Council of Islamic Relations; former Republican Senator Dave Sullivan; Kankakee Chief of Police Michael Kinkade; and Ricardo Estrada of the Erie Neighborhood House.

Finally, the Policy Council will receive guidance from the New Americans Executive Order National Advisory Council, a group of nationally- known policy experts, and from regular consultations with immigrant community leaders. The National Advisory Council is led by the National Immigration Forum and the Migration Policy Institute, and includes such nationally known experts in the field as Doris Meissner, former Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Services and currently a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute; Cecilia Munoz of the National Council of La Raza; Randall Johnson of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Maria Elena Durazo of UNITE HERE; Marcelo Gaete of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials; and Daranee Petsod of the Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees. The policy work and staffing of the Policy Council is led by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

Project Coordinator from the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights:

Hello!

I am Maralá Goode, the ICIRR Project Coordinator for the Illinois New Americans Executive Order. I am very excited to be part of the first public-private collaboration in the nation created to develop a comprehensive state policy to integrate immigrants and refugees into American society.

Previously I worked at Mujeres Latinas en Acción, where I witnessed heartbreaking examples of immigrant women experiencing abuse and discrimination. But I was also inspired by the stories of hard work and progress, as well as the hope of immigrants in this country. Now, this is a new opportunity for me to make a difference on immigrant public policy issues. I am an immigrant myself from Mexico City and I have been living in Chicago for 5 years. I have a M.A. in Political Science from Northwestern University, and five years of experience in research and public policy analysis.

I look forward in meeting you! If you have any questions regarding this project or future meetings feel free to contact me at mgoode@icirr.org or (312) 332-7360 ext. 23.

More Information about the Executive Order:

New Americans Executive Order Project Overview

Press:

CBS News

Chicago Sun Times

Chicago Tribune

Extra News


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