Friday, August 9, 2013

CRUCIAL TIME TO CONTACT HOUSE MEMBERS!!

With the House of Representatives on a five-week recess, this is a crucial time for everyone supporting comprehensive immigration reform to contact the local office for your House Member.

The only ones to whom House Members pay attention are constituents who live in their District and who have the potential to vote them out of office.  That's why your voice and viewpoint at this time are so crucial for the sake of our immigrant brothers and sisters.

 A simple and brief email to your House Member is the best.  Or, a phone call to the District office in which you urge the Member to support a comprehensive immigration reform.  Best of all:  try to get a meeting with your Member and bring a small group of immigration reform supporters.

The best approach with House Members is to be positive about our being a nation of immigrants, and how immigrants have strengthened our nation--and continue to do so.  Point out that immigrants keep coming to our country for one reason:  there are jobs here that others will not take.  Many of these jobs are low-skilled and low-wages.  Immigrants are filling those jobs simply because others in the country won't.

Appeal to the Member to be a leader in dealing with some 11 million people living in the shadows of our society, people whose dignity and rights are being denied.  Explain that a comprehensive approach, such as in the Senate, is the best approach to deal with all of the issues that have been neglected over several decades.

Discourage a piecemeal approach to this pressing national issue.  The Senate version is already very onerous for our immigrants, and to stretch out the process even longer helps no one.

Continue to pray for our immigrants and immigration reform.  Try to get Intercessions included in the parish Prayer of the Faithful on Sundays for our immigrants and just reform.

Those opposed to immigration reform are working hard to defeat any meaningful reform.  We must be even more diligent and proactive in our efforts on behalf of these brothers and sisters.

With God's grace, we can make a significant difference on behalf of the least brothers and sisters!