Yesterday, President Obama met with key legislators to discuss the details of moving comprehensive immigration reform legislation this year. We are grateful the conversation has begun and are pleased to see the formation of an immigration task force headed by Secretary Napolitano to achieve solid and practical solutions alongside members of Congress.
With the economy, health care, and climate change already on the president’s plate, many reporters and pundits are dismissing the notion that President Obama can pass immigration reform this year.
But the American public thinks otherwise. One of several recent polls shows that public opinion is strongly in favor of practical solutions to fixing the broken system — even during an economic recession. The American people elected a new president and Congress who were willing to tackle the tough issues.
And true to his word, President Obama stepped up and took leadership in Thursday’s bipartisan summit at the White House. He stated,
…what I’m encouraged by is that after all the overheated rhetoric and the occasional demagoguery on all sides around this issue, we’ve got a responsible set of leaders sitting around the table who want to actively get something done and not put it off until a year, two years, three years, five years from now, but to start working on this thing right now … it’s going to require some heavy lifting, it’s going to require a victory of practicality and common sense and good policymaking over short-term politics. That’s what I’m committed to doing as president. [See full remarks here.]
What are we committed to do? As Christians, we have a significant role to play in shaping the moral dimension of the conversation on immigration. You can start by educating yourself on what comprehensive immigration reform might look like. Pledge your support by signing an individual statement of principles which shows that you stand with hundreds of others as a Christian for Comprehensive Immigration Reform. You can take action right now by sending a fax to Congress telling Washington that you want to see a road map for reform.
The president and Congress are rolling up their sleeves and getting to work on immigration reform. What will you do?
Allison Johnson is the campaign coordinator of Christians for Comprehensive Immigration Reform. Her commentary “Shackling the Stranger” appeared in the April issue of Sojourners.
