IMMIGRATION
NaLEC I-Reform Campaign!
NaLEC’s Campaign for Immigration Reform
For years, Hispanic evangelicals have committed to make humane immigration reform a public policy priority among the close to 8 million U.S. Hispanic evangelicals. As part of the Church’s response, a diverse group of Latino evangelical leaders with national networks have decided to join NaLEC’s I-ReformCampaign designed to unite and mobilize a growing network of Latino evangelical leaders, institutions, individuals, and other persons of good faith in support of a more-humane immigration reform. NaLEC’s goal will be to maximize the Latino evangelical influence on this issue, consistent with the immigration reform principles shared by NaLEC’s board and sister organizations.
NaLEC’s I-Reform Campaign’s primary objectives are:
- To educate the public, especially the Latino evangelical communities, about Biblical and Evangelical teaching on migration and immigrants.
- To create political will for positive and humane immigration reform.
- To call for legislative and administrative reforms based on the principles articulated by NaLEC.
- To organize Latino evangelical networks to assist qualified immigrants obtain the benefits of the reforms.
Our shared principles below are drawn from the Christians for Comprehensive Immigration Reform Cited below:
- We believe all people are made in the “image of God” and deserve to be treated with dignity and respect (Genesis 1:26-27, 9:6).
- We believe all people have a responsibility to love and show compassion for the stranger among us (Deuteronomy 10:18-19, Leviticus 19:33-34, Matthew 25:31-46).
- We believe that immigrants are our neighbors, both literally and figuratively, and we are to love our neighbors as ourselves and show mercy to neighbors in need (Leviticus 19:18, Mark 12:31, Luke 10:25-37).
- We believe in respect for the rule of law, but we also believe that we are to oppose laws and systems that harm and oppress people, particularly the most vulnerable (Isaiah 10:1-4, Jeremiah 7:1-7, Acts 5:29, Romans 13:1-7).
We recognize that the current U.S. immigration system is broken and reform is necessary. The biblical principles above compel us to support immigration reform legislation that includes the following elements:
- Reform of our family-based immigration system to allow family members to reunite with loved ones in the United States.
- Reform of the employment-based immigration system to provide legal pathways for migrants to come and work in a safe, humane, and orderly manner.
- Restoration of due process protections for immigrants.
- Enforcement initiatives that are consistent with humanitarian values.
- Reforms in our family-based immigration system that reduce waiting times for separated families to be reunited.
- A process for all immigrant workers and their families already in the U.S. to earn citizenship upon satisfaction of specific criteria.
- Developing policies that address the root causes of migration, such as economic disparities between sending and receiving nations.