Mayor Bloomberg Calls for Immigration Reform

January 20, 2011

From the New York Immigration Coalition:

Immigration Coalition Responds to Mayor’s State of the City Address

(Wednesday, January 19th, 2010) Following is a statement from Ms. Chung-Wha Hong, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition:

“In his remarks today, the Mayor said with conviction that immigration reform ‘is the single biggest step we can take’ to promote innovation and economic growth. This simple truth should resonate deeply not only with immigrants but with all those who care about the future of our city and nation.

“In the face of federal inaction on immigration reform, Mayor Bloomberg has committed to working nationally to push for reform and continues to articulate a positive message about immigrants’ economic contributions. What a breath of fresh air, and what a welcome antidote, to the localities across the nation who are jumping through hoops to outdo Arizona in pushing for ever more punitive, divisive, anti-immigrant policies.

“We hope the Mayor’s steadfast commitment to immigration reform will bolster President Obama in his determination to achieve immigration reform, and help stem the tide against the increasingly hostile political climate immigrants face in the new Congress.

“At the same time that we are buoyed by his comments on immigration reform, we are also concerned that immigrant students still learning English have been left out of the graduation-rate gains he cited in his speech. Students still learning English have significantly lower graduation rates, and we need to see the Mayor make a real commitment to improving outcomes for these students, who otherwise represent an enormous loss of economic potential that our city cannot afford.

“We look forward to working with the Mayor to ensure that immigrants are included as key players in the various promising initiatives he cited. That means making sure that development projects include affordable housing and take into account immigrant community needs; and that initiatives around summer youth employment, workforce development, and other areas are inclusive of immigrants as vital contributors to our city’s vitality and identity.

And finally, we call on the Mayor to recognize that all sectors—business, labor, faith, civic, human service—must come together as valued partners to achieve real progress for all New Yorkers.”

Full text of Mayor’s speech: http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2011a/pr020-11.html