Photo: On April 10, tens of thousands of supporters of just and humane immigration reform gathered on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol.

Advocates for anti-immigrant organizations will mobilize in Washington, D.C., April 17-18 to pressure members of Congress to reject any immigration reform. It’s important that members of Congress hear a counter message, a message of support for just and humane immigration reform that includes a pathway to citizenship and family unity.

Write your representative and senators with a message similar to the one below, or call their offices and leave a message with the staff member who works on immigration. The Capitol switchboard is 202-224-3121.

I am concerned about the message being espoused by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) during its lobby days on April 17-18. Its rhetoric is out of step with the people of the U.S. and perpetuates misconceptions about immigration.

Members of FAIR reject any process that would allow undocumented immigrants the means of regularizing their status and eventually earning U.S. citizenship. I urge you instead to listen to the voices of those in the U.S. who see just and humane immigration reform as the right moral, economic and political response.

According to a joint study by the Public Religion Research Institute and the Brookings Institute, 71 percent of Democrats, 64 percent of independents and 53 percent of Republicans hold a favorable view of an earned path to citizenship. In addition, all major faith traditions have come out in favor of a pathway to citizenship. The same report found that self-identified Catholics, Jews, Mainline Protestants, Mormons and Evangelicals statistically have a favorable response to a pathway to citizenship. 

As your constituent, I call on you to not ignore the facts nor the views of most people in the U.S. Please support just and humane immigration reform that would include a pathway to citizenship and family reunification.