Immigration Reform at a Dangerous Juncture

 NALACC (National Alliance of Latin American and Caribbean Communites):

By Oscar Chacón, Executive Director, NALACC

Since late last year, immigrant communities in the US have watched carefully, as first the Senate and now the House of Representatives takes up the issue of immigration reform. As anyone familiar with the system can attest, the country is in urgent need of public policies that can start to repair the many years of neglect that have pushed our immigration laws far out of sync with the realities of modern global migration.

As immigrant communities from Mexico, Central America and the rest of Latin America, we have listened to elected officials tout the growing importance of Latino voters.  In this context, we had high hopes that the US Congress would put an end once and for all to the toxic rhetoric about immigration, and recognize the multiple ways in which immigrant communities, particularly those who reside in the US without authorization, have generously contributed to economic growth and fiscal revenues at all levels of government. Read More...