REGISTRATION TO GET ON A BUS ENDS MONDAY THE 15TH.

In January, President Obama's State of the Union marked one year of inaction on our broken immigration system. During his campaign, then-candidate Barack Obama promised to address comprehensive immigration reform in year one. One year later we are still waiting.

By Stephen Fotopulos

Posted Originally at the US Immigration Integration Network

“Immigration to this country is increasing...from races most alien to the body of the American people.”

“[These immigrants], half of whom have no occupation and most of whom represent the rudest form of labor," are "people whom it is very difficult to assimilate and do not promise well for the standard of civilization in the United States...they have no interest or stake in the country, and they never become American citizens.”

In Tennessee, you can turn on conservative talk radio any day of the week and hear these sentiments echoed. But the statements above were made by a US Representative from Massachusetts named Henry Cabot Lodge, and he said them in 1891. He was talking about the immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe, some of the very people who made their new homes in Tennessee a hundred years ago. We are a proud nation of immigrants, but there have always been those who sound the alarm when the newcomers look or sound too different. And people tend to listen.

Most Americans recognize the foundational role immigrants have played in building this country, but has immigration now been relegated to the tattered pages of history books? Does the immigrant experience continue to be a vital element in the character and strength of the nation? What do the immigrants of today promise for the continued prosperity of this country, and what do US-born citizens expect in return for sharing the American dream with newcomers? These are questions essential to the welcome we give today’s immigrants, and a community’s responses can determine the success and speed of immigrant integration.

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Date/Time:  Saturday, March 13th from 2-4pm

Location:      TIRRC Office, 446 Metroplex Dr., Building A, Suite 224, Nashville, TN

Help us send 5 charter buses to DC to send a message to Congress and the President that "Change Takes Courage. America Needs Immigration Reform NOW!"

Join the Middle TN group organizing for CIR and the immigrant community throughout the state. 

In order to pass a bill that reflects our values, we will need to invest a lot of time and energy to move our members of Congress. But we can’t do it alone. Community leadership will be the key that opens the door to real, meaningful reform. 

We encourage anybody who wants to take leadership in their community around immigration reform to attend, and bring other interested friends. 

Light refreshments will be provided.

Questions? Contact us

Wednesday, March 31st

Join us for TIRRC's 4th Annual advocacy day, New American Day on the Hill! This is your opportunity to meet with your state senator and representative and let them know how you feel about issues affecting the lives of Tennessee's immigrant and refugee communities.

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