CaribWorldNews, NEW YORK, NY, Weds. Nov. 25, 2009: Several members of the New York Congressional delegation this week continued the call for comprehensive immigration reform.
At a pre-Thanksgiving event that recognized New York`s immigrant history earlier this week, several congressional lawmakers admitted that there needs to be immediate progress on immigration reform legislation.
Representative Yvette Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrant parents, told the audience that the current set of immigration laws must change now.
`Our immigration laws are inconsistent and inefficient and place an undue burden on native-born Americans, documented immigrants, and undocumented immigrants alike,` said Clarke. `This system is ineffective and unsustainable. We must never forget that this debate is critical to improving the lives of all American citizens, American businesses, and the lives of those who seek to be Americans.`
`New Yorkers stand proudly with the majority of Americans in their support of comprehensive immigration reform,` said U.S. Representative Charles B. Rangel. `Too many families are being kept apart by the hypocrisy of a system that encourages people to come and work, then tries to criminalize them when they want to stay. We have an obligation - a moral obligation - to see that these laws are changed.`
The event, co-hosted by the American Jewish Committee, the New York Immigration Coalition and the New York Interfaith Network for Immigration Reform at the New York Historical Society in Manhattan, comes at a time when comprehensive immigration reform is gaining momentum. The evening celebrated both the contributions of immigrant religious and community leaders and those of elected officials who are pursuing comprehensive immigration reform.
Representative Anthony Weiner (NY-9) and several local elected officials, including Councilmembers-Elect Margaret Chin and Ydanis Rodriguez, and the NYC Commissioner of Immigrant Affairs Fatima Shama also joined the resounding call for reform.
The event also served to launch a new national holiday postcard campaign to rally support for comprehensive immigration reform and encourage Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation in early 2010.
