For the 23rd year in a row, we’re making our voices heard at the State House! Join us for Immigrants’ Day, the biggest lobbying day of the year for immigrants, refugees and allies. Let’s fill those halls with new Americans and allies ready to share our stories and tell legislators why 2019-2020 is such a crucial session!
Top on our agenda is the Safe Communities Act. We will also be supporting legislation to make driver’s licenses available to ALL qualified drivers in our Commonwealth, and to ensure that ALL kids have the health care coverage they need. And as always, we’ll be stressing the importance of key investments in immigrant integration, especially English classes for adults and specialized job training.
Watch this space for more details and our speaking program (11am in the Great Hall).
Now more than ever: Support the Safe Communities Act!
Two years ago, we launched a movement: immigrant advocates, civil rights groups, service providers, faith leaders and allies committed to ensuring that in Massachusetts, no one has to live in fear, and everyone’s civil rights will be respected. We built unprecedented support on Beacon Hill and across our Commonwealth. Dozens of communities also adopted local pro-immigrant policies.
Now it’s time to bring our work to fruition. A new Safe Communities Act is before the Legislature: SD.926 (Sen. Jamie Eldridge) and HD.1520 (Reps. Ruth Balser and Liz Miranda). It’s streamlined but has the same core provisions to restore community trust in police by avoiding entanglement in immigration matters, and protect due process for all.
The first step in our 2019–20 campaign is to recruit cosponsors in both the House and Senate. The deadline is February 1.
Will you contact your legislators today to urge them to sign on? Click here to send emails, look up their phone numbers, and/or join our Jan. 30 lobby day!
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
KEY THINGS TO KNOW (updated Jan. 31, 2019):
It’s been a rollercoaster ride, but DACA is still alive, despite the Trump administration’s many efforts to end it. Because the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear DACA cases this term, we expect DACA renewals to continue to be processed until at least October 2019. If your DACA expires in 2019 (or if it already expired), we urge you to apply to renew ASAP!
Individual circumstances vary, but in our judgment, in almost all cases, the benefits of DACA outweigh any risks from renewing. DACA enables you to work legally, and in Massachusetts, it’s also decisive if you want a driver’s license or in-state tuition at public colleges. MIRA can help you with the paperwork if needed; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. United We Dream’s RenewMyDACA.com has lots of information to help you. If you can’t afford the $495 fee, MIRA has a DACA Renewal Fund; ask when you come in for your paperwork, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
For authoritative, regularly updated information on DACA litigation, see the National Immigration Law Center.
We also recommend this excellent overview of DACA’s positive impact on beneficiaries and the whole economy.
How to make the most of Worcester’s global talent pool?
MIRA Executive Director Eva A. Millona invited Chamber members to join her in advocating for investments in integration and policies to protect vulnerable immigrants.
WORCESTER, December 18, 2018 – As President and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, Tim Murray represents a wide range of business leaders, more than 2,000 in all. But despite their diversity, they share a common challenge.
“The single biggest issue that I hear from our members… is the need for a motivated, educated workforce,” Murray said. And immigration, he added, is “clearly a major component of that.”
Worcester is home to about 40,000 foreign-born people, and the Worcester Metro Area, to about 100,000 – from Ghanaians to Vietnamese, Brazilians to Albanians. More than one-fifth of the city’s population is foreign-born, more than double the share in 1990.
Read more: How to make the most of Worcester’s global talent pool?
Help make college dreams a reality for Boston students!
Contribute to a scholarship for undocumented immigrants who’ve just graduated from city schools.
Thousands of immigrants attend Boston’s high schools. They work hard and have big dreams, but at graduation time, many face a huge obstacle: If they’re undocumented, they don’t qualify for federal financial aid, and if they enroll in a public college in Massachusetts, many will have to pay out-of-state tuition.
Nationwide, only about 3% of undocumented students finish college, mainly because of the cost. The Unafraid Scholarship was created by a group of teachers to help students from Boston Public Schools who’ve been accepted to college but aren’t eligible for federal financial aid.
Read more: Help make college dreams a reality for Boston students!
