Reform Immigration FOR America news

sent by Rich Stolz, ReformImmigrationFORAmerica.org

Campaign Update: Immigration, Health Care and Veterans

The Reform Immigration FOR America Campaign has its eyes set on the week of October 13 as thousands of grassroots leaders gather in Washington, DC and other communities across the country calling for comprehensive immigration reform in the name of family unity and faith. Representative Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and congressional allies are now preparing principles for legislation that will help turn the dreams of millions into reality. The urgency of this moment builds everyday. For more information on how you can get involved in the events of October 13th, please contact Nora Feely at nfeely@immigrationforum.org.

Health Care Reform Updates:
This week, the Senate Finance Committee rejected a number of anti-immigrant amendments to its health care reform proposal, including measures that would have created strict identification requirements and barred legal immigrant access. This outcome would not have been possible were it not for the thousands of phone calls that community leaders generated into Senate Finance Committee Members over the last two weeks. At this time, the committee is likely to complete consideration of its bill next week, and we'll have our work cut out for us to make sure the bill that gets brought to the Senate floor and voted on by the full Senate will do right by immigrants and citizens alike.

Other Important News:
This week, Arlington County, VA adopted a resolution in support of comprehensive immigration reform. To see the resolution that the county will send to its congressional delegation and to the President, click here.

Also this week, a broad coalition of national and local community groups called Ya Es Hora announced the launch of a campaign to ensure that Latinos are counted in the census and incorporated fully into the American political process.

Last week the Rights Working Group and the American Friends Service Committee released an organizational sign-on letter addressed to Senator Schumer, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Immigrant Sub-committee. Outlined in the letter are "Principles for Immigration Policies that Protect Community Rights." Please take a moment to sign on to this letter. To do so, please contact Pabitra Benjamin at pbenjamin@rightsworkinggroup.org or Christian Ramirez at cramirez@afsc.org.

On October 9th, Brave New Foundation will release an on-line video highlighting the stories of two veterans whose families are being torn apart by the immigration system. The preview to the video that highlights immigration issues is called "Second Battle" and can be viewed here. The tag line: "Second Battle is about the wives of two US service members who cannot stay in the country their husbands proudly served - and in one case died for." Here is the trailer: In Their Boots: Second Battle.

-- Rich Stolz, ReformImmigrationFORAmerica.org