Immigration Reform 2014: NYC Holds Rally for National Day of Action for Immigration Reform

A coalition of immigrant rights groups gathered at Foley Square, New York City on Thursday, April 10 as part of a national day of action to call for immigration reform, the Epoch Times reports.

The NYC groups, as well as immigrant rights groups in other major cities, called for Congress to pass national legislation that provides a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and an end to deportations. Immigrant advocates claim that around 1,000 people are deported each day.

The Senate passed a comprehensive reform bill last June, which would provide a path to citizenship for an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States.

But the bill has yet to come up for a vote in the House of Representatives; a majority of the Republican-controlled legislative body is opposed to comprehensive immigration reform.

"We are still waiting for the House Republican leadership to allow a vote on an immigration reform bill and they have failed to do so," said Steven Choi, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition, which was present at the NYC rally.

"These people are not statistics. They are fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, people that we know and love and hold dear, and now they're being separated form their families, perhaps forever," Choi said.

Choi and other immigration activists argue that undocumented immigrants would be able to contribute to the economy and the community if they obtained full citizenship rights.

Yet, those who oppose immigration reform say it is unfair to grant amnesty to immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally. Some opponents of reform also claim that granting amnesty would increase the unemployment rate for U.S. citizens and further burden the social welfare program.

"All [S. 744 ] does is legalize 11-18 million illegal aliens who are now in the country, and has provisions that another 20 million can come in in the next few years," said Jim MacDonald, a member of New Yorkers For Immigration Control and Enforcement. "It is absolutely the last thing that America needs."

However, immigration advocates argue that most undocumented immigrants would eventually work at lower-skilled jobs that most Americans would not want.

During the rally Thursday, city council members introduced legislation to provide municipal IDs for all New Yorkers, including undocumented immigrants. Supporters of the new legislation say it will give undocumented immigrants access to services that they have previously been denied.

"Until Washington gets their act together we here in New York City are going to make sure that we prove our leadership," said council member Carlos Menchaca, chairman of the City Council Immigration Committee and co-sponsor of the legislation.

Immigrant advocates are now questioning how the IDs will be implemented; if only undocumented immigrants have the IDs, they will become a symbol of undocumented status.

City council members will therefore hold hearings in the coming months to hear community feedback about the IDs before the law is finalized.