The immigration reform bill is a hot topic both here in Mexico as well as in the United States. It’s also a topic that is near and dear to my heart. Maybe you remember the entry entitled “American Family Values??”

We are definitely in need of immigration reform. Looking over the provisions presented in the new bill, family is once again left behind. I have in mind the provision that requires heads of households to return to their country of origin within eight years. Maybe this wouldn’t have meant much to me in the past. Now that I have a husband and kids, I would not be willing to let him go just to obtain American citizenship. I think of family and friends who are now living in the United States. These are settled families with steady jobs, friends, and homes of their own. Forcing them to risk losing everything and break up the family unity just to get their papers in order goes against those “family values” I ranted and raved about in a past blog.

There a number of other provisions that are unsettling at best, but there are also a few good ideas. To get a better idea of what the bill contains, take a look at “What’s in the Immigration Bill?”

Now it’s time to get active. Sign up at BlueLatinos.org to send your senators a daily email. While you’re there, check out the petition to stop raids on immigrants as well as a number of other worthwhile causes.

Whatever side of the debate you fall on, be sure to check out Una declaración de amor: Progessive Latinos Speak to America. Then tell me about it, all of it.

Source: Tumis