Determined to win reform legislation this year, California immigrant advocates and others are seeking to better coordinate their movement's efforts by launching a $4-million national lobbying campaign and a "unity blueprint" laying out their policy goals.
As Congress prepares to restart debate over immigration reform, the dual actions are aimed at seizing the political offensive and bridging internal differences among advocacy groups over such issues as a guest worker program.
Without unity, activists say, they could fail to win reform before the 2008 political campaign season gets in full gear and potentially jeopardizes their chance of success.
"This year, more than ever, we really want to make sure we're as united as possible," said Angelica Salas of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles. "If we hit the 2008 election season without a bill, I think we'll be in a much worse position."
The lobbying campaign was announced this week in Washington, D.C., by a coalition of national policy groups, labor unions, religious and ethnic organizations and advocates for illegal immigrants. Campaign manager Clarissa Martinez De Castro said the effort would feature the same fervor and tactics as a national election, including a multimillion-dollar war chest and field operations in 30 key states.
The 21-page "Unity Blueprint for Immigration Reform," conceived over the last few months under the leadership of Los Angeles area labor and community activists, presents a comprehensive wish list of measures. Activists consulted with more than 150 organizations in California, Texas and Arizona and plan to begin presenting it to congressional members next week.
The blueprint urges a path to legalization for nearly all of the nation's 11 million undocumented immigrants. It advocates stronger labor protections and an expansion of permanent visas for workers, rejecting a temporary guest worker program as exploitative.
The document also calls for a repeal of some enforcement measures adopted in the last decade, including funding for a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border and sanctions against employers who hire illegal immigrants. It also supports stronger family rights, including more visas for relatives of U.S. citizens and new ways to win legal status for undocumented immigrant parents.
Activists say that last year's fast-moving action on immigration issues -- a flurry of legislative proposals, massive rallies and national congressional hearings -- left them with little time to craft their own policy vision.
