Comunidade Católica Brasileira em NYC

Esse vídeo é de fim de Julho mas traz interessantes argumentos de ambos os lados, reafirmando a crença e respeito por nossa constituição e valores constitucionais. A Constituição Americana é a única constituiçnao no mundo que nunca foi modificada. Esse fato não é um acidente, mas resultado do traballho suados de milhares de pessoas que se preocupam com as próximas gerações e querem deixar na terra um mundo melhor quando partirem.



Rezemos por todos aqueles que tentam trazer luz ao mundo, e fazer que a condição de vidas dos mais nescessitados sejam elevadas.

DOUGLAS, Ariz. (CNS) -- In a small town like Douglas, the mayor and the Catholic pastor tend to be in the middle of most of the important things that happen.

So when it comes to the current hot debate about illegal immigration, Father Gilbert Malu, pastor of St. Luke's Catholic Church and two other nearby parishes, and Mayor Michael Gomez, a Douglas-area native who retired from his dental practice before getting into politics, are in prime positions to see how the nuances play out in this city of 20,000 people on the Mexican border.

Both men find themselves trying to address the sometimes conflicting interests of the people they serve while dealing with everyday events.The two talked to Catholic News Service in separate interviews in their offices in July. Gomez worries about Arizona's new immigration law, S.B.1070, scaring off the trade with Mexico that keeps his city alive economically.

He would like to see new roads in Mexico and a modern port-of-entry building that can draw to Douglas some of the truck traffic that now bogs down at the closest major port in Nogales. But he also wants a stronger Border Patrol presence to help the people of his town feel more secure from the drug trafficking-related violence that has rocked some Mexican border cities.

CLICK HERE TO PLEDGE BOYCOTT TO RACIAL PROFILING AND INTOLERANCE IN ARIZONA

The rhetoric of hate groups, nativists, and vigilantes -- once limited to the fringe of American politics -- has gained a strong foothold in the public debate. Their policy positions frame the country's political discourse, and their members have penetrated the mainstream media. In short, extremists are defining the debate on immigration, and the portrayal of Hispanic Americans, at every level. The latest example comes from the state of Arizona, whose Governor, Jan Brewer of Arizona signed a bill into law, giving local police the power to inquire about a person's immigration status if they suspect them to be an illegal immigrant, just based on "reasonable suspicion," and to make arrests if they are not carrying a valid driver's license or identity papers.

This law not only preempts the federal role in immigration regulation but encourages -- in no uncertain terms -- racial profiling. The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) believes strongly in the values of this nation, in pluralism, and in the ability of every American to share the rights and responsibilities of this great country.

This law undermines the fairness sought through our constitution. We also believe that racial profiling has detrimental consequences for both policymaking and America's ideals, undermining the strength and integrity of our country. NCLR is committed to protecting civil rights and integration strategies that help immigrants become fully participating and contributing Americans. We need your help!

 

WHY THIS ISSUE IS IMPORTANT: President Obama has indicated his support for comprehensive immigration reform and promised during his campaign to move this issue during his first year in office.  Several members of Congress have also stated their support for a comprehensive immigration reform bill to move forward this year.  CLICK HERE TO TAKE ACTION

WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH MY FAITH?  The Catholic Church’s teaching on migration is based on the commitment to promote and defend human dignity with particular attention to the most vulnerable.  These principles include:

• People have the right to find opportunities within their own homeland: they have the “right not to migrate.”
• People have the right to migrate to support themselves and their families where conditions do not exist to meet their basic needs. 
• Sovereign nations have the right to control their borders.
• The human dignity and human rights of all migrants should be respected as part of enforcement and border control practices.      

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) works to reduce the need for people to migrate and protects those people who have little choice but to do so.  Through several initiatives, including the Catholic Campaign Against Global Poverty and the Justice for Immigrants Campaign CRS supports efforts to address the root causes of migration and fair, comprehensive immigration reform.

TALKING POINTS

 Tell your members of Congress that fixing our broken immigration system is important to you.  Such comprehensive immigration reform legislation should include the following provisions:
 
1) A path to citizenship for the undocumented persons currently in our country.
2) Reform of our employment-based immigration system so that migrant workers can enter the United States and work in a safe, regulated, and humane manner.
3) Reform of the family-based immigration system so that waiting times for families to reunite in the U.S. are significantly reduced.
4) Restoration of due process protections for immigrants, including judicial discretion in removal proceedings, reform of our detention policies, and elimination of the 3 and 10-year bars to re-entry.
5) Initiatives that address the root causes of migration, such as promoting economic development in poor nations. 

For further information contact:
Tina Rodousakis, CRS Grassroots Advocacy Manager, 1-800-235-2772 x 7462; This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

As the Arizona controversy brews with responses from both sides of the political alley, another story comes from a southern state: Republican gubernatorial hopeful Tim James aired a commercial in which he states that if elected, Alabama will no longer offer driving tests in multiple languages. “This is Alabama,” he says in a thick Southern drawl. “We speak English.” He cites that having tests in various tongues elevates costs for the state, and in the end asks voters if that makes sense.



But the fact is that even if voters get behind him, it’s highly unlikely that he will be able to enforce the concept. After all, even if Alabama is one of 27 states to declare American English as its official language (there are several states, such as Hawaii, Vermont and Maine, which have more than one), there is the fact that according to the 1964 Civil Rights Act (Executive Order No. 13166) public entities receiving federal funds must have all vital documents available in every language (should I say that again? Every language) that their clients speak; That happens because despite several efforts, nor English nor any other language (including German, which was once considered – really) has never been officially adopted by the United States.

As Pres. Kennedy correctly stated in 1963, “Simple justice requires that public funds, to which all taxpayers of all races colors, and national origins contribute, not be spent in any fashion which encourages, entrenches, subsidizes or results in racial [color or national origin] discrimination.”  I saw several posts on the Internet in support of Mr. James’ idea, but the fact is that legislators in some southern states think that they can trump Federal laws simply because of their principles (or lack thereof).

Their attitude is like the Old South that pressured Hollywood to portray African-Americans as happily subservient slaves in period films like Gone With The Wind or Jezebel under the threat of having their films blocked in the area. It is little wonder why in this day and age, we still need the Voting Rights Act to be enforced. Politicians like Gov. Brewer, Tim James, the Tea Party Traveling Freak Show and celebrities like Sarah Palin need to stop deceiving their supporters with bogus promises and false accusations.

Why don’t they talk about the truth? Defend your gun rights if you want to, but don’t waste taxpayer money (and my waning patience) by passing laws that will be ultimately challenged in court. And stop blaming immigrants for your own shortcomings, because this writer – the son of an Brazilian mother and a husband to a Polish-born wife – will be watching closely.

Last week Republican Arizona governor Jan Brewer signed a controversial (and some say illegal, but I will leave that to the courts to decide) law that makes it a crime to be an illegal alien within the borders of that state.

The law also gives the police powers to stop and demand documentation from anyone they suspect might be an illegal foreign national.  The passing of this law was a terrible mistake that is already getting a lot of flak from civil rights activists, Democratic politicians and concerned citizens.

The tourism industry is also wondering how Arizona – which depends heavily on tourist dollars – might fare if foreign visitors or legal immigrants make plans to visit other areas of the country instead. And there are many boycott threats looming as of this writing.  On Wednesday’s edition of the New York Daily News , NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg mentioned that many potential tourists are already cancelling plans to visit Arizona.

According to Bloomberg, who would be interested to visit, say, the Grand Canyon “if you could end up getting hassled by the police – or even arrested – if you leave your passport in the hotel?” Earlier in the piece, he also mentioned that the law is “so vaguely written that it may force officers to stop people who look or dress differently, or who speak a foreign language, or English with an accent.” This kind of harassment is what the constitution states as “unreasonable search and seizure,” from which all citizens and legal aliens are protected from.

 I would personally be annoyed if a cop walked up to my Polish-born wife to demand her Green Card (I would end up getting frisked as well, as I speak with a “standard” accent that is unlike any specific region of the US) because he or she found her speech pattern ‘different.” As a result, I have no plans of visiting that state anytime soon, even if I am a regular contributor to the Phoenix New Times and would love to actually get to see Grand Canyon and the various venues where the many artists I write about perform during their tours.
 
Another problem is that various conservative organizations – including the where angry white conservatives who support the Tea Party traveling freak show are pushing for similar legislation in other Red States. But what many fail to see is that those so-called ‘patriots’ have total disregard on how those measures might hurt our economy.

Which makes them traitors, in reality.  I have already mentioned the tourism industry. But let’s also consider the many foreign-owned companies (or businesses owned by immigrants) who do business here. Would they be happy if their executives were routinely frisked by the police? I don’t think so. Would they take their businesses elsewhere in case such laws passed and went on unchallenged? Most certainly. 

Xenophobia is no news to this country. The Irish, Italians, African-Americans, Asians and many other groups have suffered discrimination over the years from those who wanted to wanted to keep this country ‘pure.’ However, the levels of distrust and anger (specially towards Latinos) are getting out of hand. 

That is why it is so urgent that we pass immigration reform that would end this horrible situation in which we have more than 12 million taxpayers who are stripped of any kinds of rights because of their status – some of them youths in their 20s who came here as toddlers and have no cultural or affectional connection to their nations of birth. We have waited for too long already.

O Centro de Apoio ao Migrante organizou dia 05 de julho de 2009, junto à Associação da Praça Kantuta, em São Paulo um ato em comemoração à anistia para os imigrantes irregulares no Brasil.

O Evento teve como objetivo dar maior visibilidade à lei de anistia (LEI No-11.961, DE 2 DE JULHO DE 2009), bem como ao decreto presidencial (DECRETO No - 6.893, DE 2 DE JULHO DE 2009), ambos assinados pelo Presidente da República no dia 02 de julho de 2009, em Brasília DF e publicados no Diário Oficial da União na sexta feira dia 03 de julho de 2009. 

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JESUS RESSUCITOU ! REFORMA IMIGRATÓRIA JÁ!

Ainda comemorando a belissima demonstração de coragem e comprometimento com o próximo que levou centenas de milhares de pessoas a Washington DC para participarem da marcha pela Reforma Imigratória no dia 21 de março último - CONTINUAMOS AGINDO. Em tempo que quaresma muitos americanos e imigrantes regularizados carregaram a cruz dos imigrantes irregulares e ajudaram a realizar a maior manifestação públicas de apoio a reforma imigratória até hoje.

Analisando a história dos movimento sociais, observamos que além da coragem e disponibilidade é nescessário ter resistência e perseverança. Hoje em dia o ativismo on-line (através da internet) nos permite reforçar e complementar nosso ativismo comodamente.

São muitas as campanhas que grupos comunitários estão desenvolvendo para fazer com que o congresso e o senado americano não esqueçam a grande MARCH FOR AMERICA e que compreendam a nescessidade da aprovação da Reforma Imigratória ainda em 2010.

A comunidade imigrante precisa de nossa ajuda - nós podemos e devemos fazer parte desse movimento. Visite os links abaixo, preencha os campos necessários e enviem mensagens ao legislativo americano pedindo a REFORMA IMIGRATÓRIA AGORA. Assim você estará, não apenas, ajudando a escrever um futuro mais justo para milhões de imigrantes nesse país como vivendo e provando sua esperança na mensagem de vida plena de Cristo ressucitado.

 - Campanha de cartões postais do grupo JUSTICE FOR IMMIGRANTS
Ajude a mostrar aos senadores e deputados que catolicos e outras pessoas que apoiam imigrantes querem que os congressistas eleitos ajam de maneira significativa e humana pela reforma imigratória.

Para enviar um cartão clique AQUI.

- REFORME A IMIGRAÇÃO USANDO SEU CELULAR !
Esse é um momento crucial para o movimento pela reforma imigratória, devemos nos apoiar mutuamente. O projeto de lei "CIR ASAP Act" já tem mais de 70 co-apoiadores no congresso, mas ainda é nessessário muito mais para fazer com que a reforma imigratória compreensiva vire lei. Para assinar a petição clique AQUI.

Para receber alertas dizendo quando é preciso que você participe, enviando um SMS ou email ao congresso, e para receber as últimas notícias das redes de ação pela reforma imigratória envie uma mensagem de texto dizendo : JUSTICE para o número 69866.

Seja o primeiro a saber quando o projeto de lei pela reforma imigratória entrar no congresso - somente com sua ajuda poderemos ganhar !