Morrison to speak at New York immigration rally
By Nora Devin
Emigrant Online (Ireland), April 13, 2010
http://www.irishemigrant.com/ie/go.asp?p=story&storyID=6396
This Thursday, April 15, New York Citys Irish community will gather to listen in on the latest of a series of important public meetings hosted by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform.
The meeting will be held to provide an update on the status of a much anticipated reform bill, and it will additionally seek to spell out the current options available for the undocumented.
Former Congressman Bruce Morrison, who has long called for an immigration reform bill particularly catering to the needs of the Irish, will be the special guest speaker. Morrison, a frequent guest of the ILIR, is no novice when it comes to implementing successful immigration legislation. He co-sponsored the immensely successful Immigration Act of 1990 which became more popularly known as the 'Morrison Visa.'
The bill distributed 40,000 visas each year over a period of 3 years, 40% of which were reserved for Irish men and women.
The ILIR, a grassroots organization headed by Ciaran Staunton, has been working aggressively with the US Congress and Senate since the collapse of 2007s immigration reform efforts.
Staunton explained he has spent much of the last three years traveling across the United States in an effort to organize and rally Irish-American community leaders from each and every corner of the nation.
With Irelands unemployment at its highest since the 1980s, some of the countrys citizens feel there is little choice but to travel to America in search of viable jobs and a new life.
'The passing of an Immigration Reform Bill would forever be an integral part in Irish-American history,' Staunton said. 'Because of education, jobsthe Irish here are reenergized.'
Immigration reform for the Irish was also a much sought after goal of the late Senator Ted Kennedy. Staunton mentioned that President Obamas commitment to passing immigration reform, something he announced at this years St. Patricks Day reception, 'would certainly be a fitting tribute to the late Senator Kennedy.'
