SIM Blog

On Thursday, President Obama gave his first speech on Immigration reform. In his speech, he outlined the major issues with our current situation and stressed the need for change. President Obama was very clear on with the problems. He noted some of the causes for this situation and that band-aid solutions like those practiced by Arizona (and almost MA!) are not the correct recourses for the states. He called for congressional action and said he would maintain his commitment to reform. 
At one point, he called out the DREAMers, and reiterated his support for the DREAM act. This is very good for us, it spotlights our campaign and highlights the attainability of...

To SIM and their Supporters,

Year after year, from kindergarten through high school, teachers would praise the fundamental liberties and innate power that we possess as “the People” of America’s democratic republican form of government. In stark contrast to any centralized government before us, the sovereignty of America’s government was based on the consent of “the People.” However this facet of our history is hardly seen in modern times. Our American society is plagued with countless tales of the federal government and omnipotent conglomerates, who often seem to be too closely intertwined, acting wholeheartedly in their self-interest without the consent of “the People.” Whether it’s politicians...

My name is Anthony Zuba and I am the lead organizer in Massachusetts for Interfaith Worker Justice, a group that organizes religious communities to support campaigns to improve the lives of low-wage workers, especially immigrants. We are a proud member organization of the Boston New Sanctuary Movement, an interfaith coalition of religious leaders and participating congregations, called by our faith to respond actively and publicly to the suffering of our immigrant brothers and sisters in the United States. We are new and growing coalition, with members from 20 congregations and faith-based organizations. We hope many more faith communities will join us.

We feel honored and privileged to have kept vigil with the courageous...

We have done it!

The state legislators have voted. Nearly 90% of the language in the amendments were removed.
They took away the 1-800-Hotline, the in-state tuition ban, the agreement between the Attorney General and ICE to increase excessive enforcement of immigration laws and anything else that took the law too far.

What they kept was anything that was already practiced. No provisions were extreme and the overall message is no longer anti-immigrant....

Following news of the passage of the Amendments in the Massachusetts Senate Budget bill, members of the Student Immigrant Movement met and decided to take action. The idea of a vigil came up in solidarity with the ongoing vigil in Arizona. The recent passage of the toughest anti-immigrant legislation in the country by Arizona led to a 24 hour vigil beginning April 22nd and has remained ever since.

The vigil in MA began on Monday June 7th at 6PM. A handful of students set up on the...

Hi friends,
 
I hope you are doing well. I want to talk about something that is important to me. I organize on the side with the Student Immigrant Movement (www.simforus.com) and we are organizing against the MA amendments that were just passed in the Senate (Senate Amendment 172.1). And I hope that you and your group join our campaign as sponsors.
 
These amendments were introduced less than 24 hours the decision time and went through little debate passed 28-10. These budget amendments, if accepted by the House of Rep, would detrimentally affect our immigrant and greater community. These amendments...

Here are some of the basics on the amendments:

-This is a bill intended to punish people and business for interacting with undocumented people.

-It is limiting what we already do not have. Undocumented people do not have access to any state benefits other than low-income housing.

-Increased cost to state for background checks and verifying programs. 

-Increased red tape for all, more hurdles for documented and undocumented people. 

-Requiring businesses that work with the state to use some system (like E-verify) to verify paperwork, or the business will lose contract with government and be fined. (Verifying immigration status for employees is the federal government...

Yesterday, May 25^th, in commemoration of Memorial Day, over one hundred students, supporters, and members of the press gathered outside the State House to hear a message of hope and courage as the Student Immigrant Movement put on a press conference to highlight the urgent need for the DREAM Act and the immense support that exists from the community.

 Under a beautiful midday sun, students shared their stories and their hopes not just for higher education, but also for service in the military. The message was clear: This is our country, and we want to make it better, any way we can. Maria...

On May 1^st, 2010, the Student Immigrant Movement was presente at the Boston May Day Coalition march and rally in Boston and the...