Thread: National Mobilization to Support Immigrant Workers!

May Day 2007

National Mobilization to Support Immigrant Workers!
January 29, 2007 - National Immigrant Solidarity Network Open letter to the Congress

(We draft the following letter to the Congress, your endorsement is highly applicated!)

Date: January 29, 2007

The Honorable Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi
The Congress
Washington D.C.


Dear Speaker Pelosi

The National Immigration Solidarity Network is a national coalition of multi-ethnic groups that include grassroots community-based organizations, labor, student and youth groups, human rights groups, and peace and global justice organizations all of whom are united in the defense of undocumented immigrants. We oppose immigrant bashing, we support immigrant workers rights, we say no to sweatshop exploitation and we resist the perpetuation of racism in our communities.

It is our hope that in the coming 2007 legislative year that through your leadership true comprehensive immigration reform legislation can be passed by the House of Representatives. Our areas of concern are the following:


1) No to anti-immigrant legislation, and the criminalization of the immigrant communities.
We oppose any immigrant legislation that will include criminalization of the immigrant community, "enforcement-only" bill, and the government surveillance program, such as: H.R. 4844 - Federal Election Integrity Act of 2006 ("Voter ID bill"), H.R. 6089 - Illegal Immigrant Deterrence Act, H.R. 6090 - Immigration Enforcement Act, and H.R. 5825 - Electronic Surveillance Modernization Act ("Wire Tap bill"); we also oppose any government languages and legal terms that demonize immigrant communities, such as: "aliens" or "illegal aliens".


2) No to militarization of the border.
We oppose H.R. 6061 - Border Fence Bill that will fund a border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, and H.R. 6091 - Border Security Enhancement Act. It is believed that these pieces of legislation will terrorize the border immigrant communities. We believe this is a waste of tax payer money, forces migrants to cross borders at more dangerous and deadly locations, and fattens the profit margin of migrant smugglers.


3) No to the immigrant detention and deportation.
We oppose any legislation that will empower state and local law enforcement agencies to act as Federal government to enforce Federal immigration law, such as the CLEAR Act or legislation that authorize indefinite immigrant detention, speedy deportation and immigrant raids. We want the Congress to repeal these laws. We demand an improvement of the conditions of current immigrant detention facilities, we oppose future funding to build immigrant detention centers.


4) No to the guest worker program.
We are against an immigrant worker visa program that creates a two-tiered labor system, allowing corporations to pay lower wages to the visa workers, without offering strong labor protections to them including the right to change jobs, and no chance to gain U.S. citizenship.


5) No to employer sanction and "no match" letters.
We oppose any legislation to punish hard working undocumented workers because of their immigration status, and we want the Congress to repeal the employer sanction law. Historically it is not the employers that are punished by the law, but rather immigrant workers themselves. We also oppose 'No-Match' letter that could become de facto immigration enforcement tools since employers could use 'No-Match' Social Security letters to fire immigrants.


6) Yes to a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
We support one tiered legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants in the United States to gain legal status within a reasonable amount of time with an opportunity for citizenship.


7) Yes to speedy family reunification.
We support legislation that provides additional visa numbers and eliminates long and inhumane family backlogs. We support the elimination of the 3 and 10 year bars for family members of citizens and permanent residents. We support the reinstatement of 245(i) adjustment inside the United States.


8) Yes to civil rights and humane immigration law.
Undocumented immigrants DO pay taxes, but are not eligible to receive any government benefits and assistance, we support legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants in the United States to receive government assistance and medical benefits, and guarantee of civil rights and legal assistance when immigrants are detained at immigration detention facility.


9) Yes to labor rights and living wages for all workers.
We support legislation which strengthens the enforcement of existing labor laws to protect immigrant workers rights. We support the right of workers to establish and join a union REGARDLESS of immigration status. It is important that undocumented immigrants do not face harassment or threats from the workplace because they are fighting for their labor rights and right to join the union.


10) Yes to the DREAM Act and LGBT immigrant legislation.
We support reintroduction of the DREAM Act and the extension of benefits to lesbian-gay-bi-sexual-transgender (LGBT) families within the family reunification laws, We support the passage of the Uniting American Families Act, and the lifting of the HIV ban on immigration.


Immigration became a divisive, wedge issue under the Republican leadership. With this new Democratic Congress and with you at the helm we believe that a balanced civil dialog can be opened. It is our hope that the suggestions we have offered can be incorporated to draft a truly compassionate piece of immigration legislation that will benefit millions of hard working immigrants in this country.



Sincerely;


National Immigrant Solidarity Network


.www.immigrantsolidarity(dot). org/MayDay2007/openletter12907.html

Welcome to Alipac Shadow.

Yea, we know they are marching again. It's no big deal.

Dixie

Originally Posted by Dixie

Yea, we know they are marching again. It's no big deal.

Dixie

I'm kinda looking forward to it myself.

Every time they take to the streets demanding their nonexistent rights they wake up more Americans.

Keep up the good work guys!

Nancy will eat this refuse up and love for one vote.

Well, what they are saying in a nutshell is, NO to enfrorcing our laws, NO to securing our borders, NO to anything to protect Americans jobs (except theirs), NO to any legislation that would punish employers of illegals.......well they want their cake, and to eat it too!!!!!

Well, they are just about the most anti-American group there is.

So, they think that demanding 100% protection for illegals and marching in our streets to say this all is going to get attention on this issue, well it is, but not in the way they think.

I am seeking out as many Oregonians as possible to join our fight. There are more of us, than there is of them, it is time they sit down and shut p they are not the majority!

well that should even make Pelosi LOL. what they want is complete run of OUR country with no laws at all, jobs and the chaos of Mexico so they can feel at home. well I myself wish someone would tell them that
undocumented is not even in dictionary,it is NOT A WORD, but don't worry I sure websters will be quick to accomidate them so they will be politically correct, why not everyone else does.

had_enuf wrote:

I'm kinda looking forward to it myself.
Every time they take to the streets demanding their nonexistent rights they wake up more Americans.
Keep up the good work guys!

So true, it was one of those disgusting marches that was the last straw for me and I noticed that when other Americans realized how many of them there were here illegally, it totally freaked them out. So, when they fill the streets yelling with their idiotic signs.....they are shooting themselves and their cause in the foot!

This is sad that it has even come to this,,,Bush should be impeached for even allowing it even one tenth of what it is. I don't understand why ICE trucks are not picking them up in these events.

If our government backed ICE on this and encouraged them to do their job it would be happening. Things will change when everyone decides enough is enough and take a stand to take politicians out of the jobs they refuse to do properly. To wait for them to do the right thing is pointless, they will get away with as much as they can or as much as we allow them to get away with.

They sure have unrealistic goals, don't they?
I really think that they are asking for more rights than the average American citizen gets.
What is it about our laws that illegal immigrants cannot comprehend? I just don't understand why they feel so entitled to have every single benefit that Americans have earned.
They need to be taught a lesson. And that is- no one gets to sneak into our country, use false social security cards and other phoney id's to steal American jobs, and then DEMAND freedom, and the right to gain citizenship, and other monetary compensations given to American citizens. They need to be arrested, shackled, and deported. And they should be banned from EVER gaining access to America again.