National Organizations Call on the Senate and the House to Secure a Pathway to Citizenship to Undocumented Immigrants

January 22, 2021

The Honorable Chuck Schumer
Majority Leader
United States Senate
U.S. Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker of the House
United States House of Representatives
U.S. Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Majority Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi,

As the country remains mired in a public health and economic catastrophe that has claimed the lives of more than 400,000 Americans and worsened racial and economic inequality, a primary responsibility of the Biden administration and of the 117th Congress must be to swiftly enact a long delayed comprehensive national relief package to help the country defeat the coronavirus pandemic and put the nation’s economy and struggling American families on the path to
recovery.

For those efforts to be successful and for the recovery to be as bold, dynamic, inclusive, and equitable as it must be to meet the multiple challenges before us, we, the undersigned 513 national, state, and local civil and human rights, labor, racial, gender, and economic justice, LGBT, national security, faith, education, and immigrants’ rights and allied organizations call on the Senate and House of Representatives to include in such legislation permanent protection and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have long contributed to this country in myriad ways, particularly Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, and those essential workers who have been on the frontlines during this pandemic and their families.

An estimated 5 million undocumented individuals—nearly 3 in 4 of all undocumented immigrants in the workforce—are working every day alongside other Americans in essential roles. They are providing health care as doctors, nurses, and home health aides, and keeping health care settings safe and open as custodians, food servers, and administrative workers. They are protecting the nation’s food security, from farms and food processing facilities all the way to grocery stores and restaurants. They are first responders, and they are teachers. And they are the backbone of the nation’s care workforce, which is itself the foundation upon which nearly everything else is built.

These workers have stepped up for our country and put their lives—and the lives of their loved ones—on the line when we needed them most and they will play an equally critical role in rebuilding our economy and our country in the years ahead. But even as undocumented workers have continued to perform essential work they have too often been treated as disposable. From being left out of most aspects of the relief packages that have been signed into law to most recently being treated as an afterthought in some vaccine distribution plans, the country has failed to live up to what should be the most fundamental lesson of this national public health nightmare: that we can only beat this virus, and rebuild our economy, if we work together.

Last year, House Democrats recognized the important contributions and sacrifices of undocumented essential workers by including in both versions of the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act a provision offering temporary protection from deportation and work authorization to these individuals. The 117th Congress can and must do better by instead offering permanent protection and a path to citizenship to all undocumented essential workers and delivering this provision to the president’s desk for his signature.

As Congress develops a governing agenda to meet the greatest challenges of our times, providing a path to citizenship for undocumented essential workers and their families should be a primary tool to protect the workers who are working to protect us and rebuild the economy in a way that advances racial and gender equity and strengthens worker justice, including by reducing people’s vulnerability to exploitation and abuse. As you assemble a recovery package, we urge you to use all necessary legislative tools to deliver meaningful relief that the country so badly needs and include permanent protection and a path to citizenship for Dreamers, TPS holders, and these essential workers and their families.

Sincerely,

National

1. A Better Balance
2. ACCESS
3. Advocating Opportunity
4. African American Ministers In Action
5. African Bureau for Immigration and Social Affairs
6. African Communities Together
7. African Public Affairs Committee
8. Alianza Americas
9. Alianza Nacional de Campesinas
10. ALIENTO
11. All Our Kin
12. America’s Voice
13. American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
14. American Association of People with Disabilities
15. American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
16. American Friends Service Committee
17. American Immigration Lawyers Association
18. Americans for Democratic Action (ADA)
19. Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF)
20. Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC
21. Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO
22. Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence
23. ASISTA
24. Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents (ALAS)
25. Asylum-seekers Sponsorship Project
26. AsylumConnect
27. Athlete Ally
28. Autistic Self Advocacy Network
29. Be A Hero
30. Bend the Arc Jewish Action
31. Black Alliance for Just Immigration
32. Border Network for Human Rights
33. Brave New Films
34. Bridges Faith Initiative
35. Casa de Esperanza: National Latin@ Network for Healthy Families and Communities
36. Center for American Progress
37. Center for Gender & Refugee Studies
38. Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)
39. Center for Popular Democracy
40. CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers
41. Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc.
42. Children’s HealthWatch
43. Church World Service
44. Clearinghouse on Women’s Issues
45. Coalition for Prisoners’ Rights
46. Coalition of Labor Union Women
47. Columbia Law School Immigrants’ Rights Clinic
48. Community Catalyst
49. Community Change Action
50. Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, U.S. Provinces
51. Council for Global Equality
52. Council of Administrators of Special Education
53. Daily Kos
54. Demos
55. Detention Watch Network
56. Disciples Refugee & Immigration Ministries
57. Doctors for America, Immigrant Health Justice Working Group
58. Earthjustice
59. EDGE Consulting Partners
60. Education Reform Now
61. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
62. Faith in Action
63. FaithAction International House
64. FAREHD(Federation des Associations Regionales Haitiennes de la Diaspora)
65. Farmworker Justice
66. FORGE, Inc.
67. Freedom Network USA
68. Futures Without Violence
69. FWD.us
70. Generation Progress
71. Girls Inc.
72. GLSEN
73. GreenLatinos
74. Haitian Bridge Alliance
75. HIAS
76. Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities
77. Hispanic Federation
78. Human Rights Campaign
79. Immigrant Defense Project
80. Immigration Advocates Network
81. Immigration Equality Action Fund
82. Immigration Hub
83. ImmSchools
84. In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda
85. Indivisible
86. International League of Advocates
87. Japanese American Citizens League
88. Jobs With Justice
89. Justice for Migrant Women
90. Justice in Motion
91. Kids in Need of Defense
92. Labor Council for Latin American Advancement
93. Lambda Legal
94. Latin America Working Group (LAWG)
95. Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG)
96. Leadership Conference of Women Religious
97. League of United Latin American Citizens
98. League of Women Voters of the United States
99. MALDEF
100. Marked By COVID
101. Medical Mission Sisters
102. Mi Familia Vota
103. MomsRising
104. MoveOn
105. NAACP
106. NARAL Pro-Choice America
107. National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
108. National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF)
109. National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders
110. National Association of Secondary School Principals
111. National Black Justice Coalition
112. National Center for Lesbian Rights
113. National Council of Jewish Women
114. National Domestic Workers Alliance
115. National Education Association
116. National Employment Law Project
117. National Employment Lawyers Association
118. National Equality Action Team (NEAT)
119. National Farm Worker Ministry
120. National Health Law Program
121. National Hispanic Media Coalition
122. National Immigrant Justice Center
123. National Immigration Forum
124. National Immigration Law Center
125. National Immigration Litigation Alliance
126. National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild (NIPNLG)
127. National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice
128. National Latinx Psychological Association
129. National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund
130. National Network for Arab American Communities
131. National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
132. National Organization for Women
133. National Partnership for New Americans
134. National Resource Center on Domestic Violence
135. National Skills Coalition
136. Natural Resources Defense Council
137. Network Lobby
138. New American Economy
139. New American Leaders
140. New American Leaders Action Fund
141. Next100
142. NMAC
143. Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights (NMCIR)
144. Oil Change U.S.
145. Our Revolution
146. Oxfam America
147. People For the American Way
148. People’s Action
149. PFLAG National
150. Planned Parenthood Federation of America
151. Poder Latinx
152. Positive Women’s Network-USA
153. Presente.org
154. Prevention Institute
155. RAICES
156. Resilience Force
157. Service Employees International Union
158. SEIU 105
159. SEIU 32BJ
160. Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF)
161. Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team
162. South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT)
163. SparkAction
164. SPLC Action Fund
165. Stand for Children
166. Stand Up America
167. Tahirih Justice Center
168. Teach Plus
169. The Advocates for Human Rights
170. The Committee of Interns and Residents/SEIU
171. The Education Trust
172. The Frontline
173. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
174. The Mami Chelo Foundation
175. The National Domestic Violence Hotline
176. The People’s Bailout
177. TIME’S UP
178. TNTP
179. UFW Foundation
180. Ujima Inc.: The National Center on Violence Against Women in the Black
Community
181. UltraViolet
182. UndocuBlack Network
183. UnidosUS
184. Union for Reform Judaism
185. Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
186. UNITE HERE
187. UNITEHERE International Union
188. United Farm Workers
189. United We Dream
190. URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity
191. Veterans for American Ideals
192. Voices for Progress
193. Walking Together
194. Welcoming America
195. Working Families United
196. Workplace Fairness
197. World Education Services
198. World Education, Inc.
199. Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights
State and Local
200. 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
201. Academy of Medical & Public Health Services (AMPHS)
202. ACLU People Power Fairfax
203. Adhikaar
204. Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. (ABLE)
205. Affirmations
206. AIDS Project Rhode Island
207. American Friends Service Committee, Colorado
208. Americans for Immigrant Justice
209. Apna Ghar, Inc.
210. Arab American Association of NY
211. Arab-American Family Support Center
212. Arizona Dream Act Coalition
213. Arkansas United
214. Arlington LULAC Council 22320
215. Asian American Arts Alliance
216. Asian American Federation
217. Asian Americans United
218. Asian Community Development Corporation
219. Asian Counseling and Referral Service
220. Asian Law Alliance
221. Asian Pacific Community in Action
222. Asian Services In Action (ASIA)
223. Austin Sanctuary Network
224. Bay Area Asylum Support Coalition (BAASC)
225. Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation
226. Bhutanese Community Association of Pittsburgh (BCAP)
227. Billy DeFrank LGBTQ+ Community Center
228. Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center
229. Bridge Church
230. Brooklyn Community Pride Center
231. Bruno Soares of Nashua
232. Cabrini Immigrant Services of NYC
233. California Partnership to End Domestic Violence
234. Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association
235. CAMP Rehoboth
236. Capital Area Private Defender Service
237. CAPIUSA
238. Carter Community AME Church
239. Casa de la Cultura
240. Casa San Jose
241. Cascade AIDS Project
242. Catalyst Miami
243. Center for Community Alternatives
244. Center for Health Progress
245. Center for Immigrant Progress
246. Central American Resource Center
247. Central American Resource Center of Northern California-CARECENSF
248. Centro de Trabajadores Unidos – IWP
249. Centro Legal de la Raza
250. Chinatown Manpower Project
251. Chinese Community Center
252. Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC)
253. Christ Temple of the Apostolic Faith, Inc.
254. Church of Our Saviour/La Iglesia de Nuestro Salvador
255. Citizen Action of Wisconsin
256. Cleveland Jobs with Justice
257. CLUE- Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice
258. Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA)
259. Coalition for Immigrant Health
260. Coalition of African Communities
261. Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans of Virginia
262. Colorado Consumer Health Initiative
263. Colors+
264. Columban Mission Center
265. Columbia Legal Services
266. Comite TPS Massachusetts
267. Compass Immigration Legal Services
268. Compass LGBTQ Community Center
269. Congregation Action Network
270. CRECEN
271. DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence
272. Dream Project Inc.
273. Dreamers Mothers In Action (DMIA)
274. Episcopal Diocese of Long Island
275. Equal Justice Center
276. Equality California
277. Equality Nevada
278. Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project
279. Ethnic Minorities of Burma Advocacy and Resource Center
280. Faith in Action Alabama
281. Faith in Action Nevada
282. Faith in Florida
283. Faith in Indiana
284. Faith in New Jersey
285. Faith in New York
286. Faith in Texas
287. Family Action Network Movement
288. Farmworker Association of Florida
289. First Unitarian Universalist Church of Austin Social Action Committee
290. FLIC
291. Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project
292. Florida Asian Services
293. Florida Asian Women Alliance
294. Florida Immigrant Coalition
295. Forefront NYC Church
296. For Our Future Virginia
297. Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York
298. GA Familias Unidas
299. Gay City: Seattle’s LGBTQ Center
300. Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO)
301. Georgia Equality
302. Grand Rapids Pride Center
303. Granite State Organizing Project
304. Greater Erie Alliance for Equality
305. Grupo de Apoyo e Integración Hispanoamericano
306. Hamilton-Madison House
307. Hanover Friends Meeting Peace and Social Concerns
308. Henderson Equality Center
309. Her Justice
310. HIAS Pennsylvania
311. Hispanic Family Cousneling
312. Hometown Action
313. HoPe (Hispanic Organization Promoting Education), Inc.
314. Houston Immigration Legal Services Collaborative
315. Houston Migrant Outreach Coalition
316. Howard Brown Health
317. Hudson Pride Center
318. Human Rights Initiative of North Texas
319. iCountNM.gov
320. Iglesia de la Santa Cruz + Bushwick Abbey
321. Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling
322. Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
323. IMANI’S QUEST MINISTRIES
324. Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota
325. Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project
326. Immigrant Rights Action
327. Immigration Action Coalition, UUAA
328. Indivisible Vashon Immigrant/Refugee Rights Group
329. Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice
330. Inland Empire Immigrant Youth Collective
331. Inside Out Youth Services
332. Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center
333. Interfaith Council for Peace & Justice
334. Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence
335. ISLA: Immigration Services and Legal Advocacy
336. Jefferson County Immigration Rights Advocates
337. Jewish Activists for Immigration Justice of Western MA
338. Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice NW
339. Juntos
340. Justice and Outreach Commission, Christ Our Light Church
341. Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York, Inc.
342. La Conexion
343. Laredo Carnalismo Brown Berets
344. Laredo Immigrant Alliance
345. Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center
346. Latino Community Center
347. Latino Community Fund Inc. (LCF Georgia)
348. Latino LinQ
349. Legal Aid Justice Center
350. LGBT Life Center
351. LGBTQ Center of Bay County
352. Life Changers Global Nation Ministries. Inc.
353. Lighthouse Foundation
354. Long Beach Immigrant Rights Coalition
355. Los Angeles LGBT Center
356. Louisiana Advocates for Immigrants in Detention
357. Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition
358. Maine People’s Alliance
359. Make the Road Nevada
360. Make the Road New York
361. Make the Road Pennsylvania
362. Mano Amiga
363. Memphis United Methodist Immigration Committee
364. Meriden Congregational Church, UCC
365. Migrant Center for Human Rights
366. Ministers’ Alliance Of Ulster County
367. MinKwon Center for Community Action
368. Minnesota Interfaith Coalition on Immigration
369. Missouri Faith Voices
370. Mixteca Organization, Inc.
371. Mothers and Others, Justice and Mercy for Immigrants
372. Motivation Motivates
373. Movement Alliance Project
374. National Association of Social Workers – Florida Chapter
375. NCAP
376. Nebraska Appleseed
377. Neighbors Link Community Law Practice
378. New Hampshire Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees
379. New Hampshire Youth Movement
380. New Haven Pride Center
381. New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice
382. New Jersey Citizen Action
383. New Mexico Immigrant Law Center
384. New Sanctuary Coalition
385. New Sanctuary Movement of Atlanta
386. New York Immigration Coalition
387. Niagara Organizing Alliance for Hope
388. NM CAFe
389. NMIC
390. Nobody Leaves Mid-Hudson
391. North Carolina Justice Center
392. North County LGBTQ Resource Center
393. Northwest Immigrant Rights Project
394. NW Ohio Immigrant Rights Network
395. NYC Coalition for Educational Justice
396. NYCC
397. Oasis Legal Services
398. OCA South Florida Chapter
399. Ohio Immigrant Alliance
400. Ohio Organizing Collaborative
401. OLA of Eastern Long Island
402. one-n-ten
403. OneAmerica
404. OutCenter of Southwest Michigan
405. OutNebraska
406. PEER/NYPAN: Progressive East End Reformers
407. Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition
408. PICO California
409. Pride Center San Antonio
410. Pride Community Center, Inc
411. Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada
412. Prosperity Works
413. QWELL Community Foundation
414. Rainbow Center
415. Reform Immigration for Texas Alliance (RITA)
416. Reformed Church of Highland Park
417. Resource Center
418. RITA – Reform Immigration for Texas Alliance
419. Sacramento Area Congregations Together
420. Sacramento LGBT Community Center
421. Sacred Heart Parish
422. Safe Passage Project
423. Sakhi for South Asian Women
424. Sampreshan Inc
425. San Diego Organizing Project (SDOP)
426. Sanctuary DMV
427. Sant La Haitian Neighborhood Center
428. Santa Isabel Lutheran Church
429. SC Appleseed Legal Justice Center
430. School Service Employees SEIU Local 284
431. Seattle Immigrant Rights Action Group
432. Second Presbyterian Church
433. SEIU – United Healthcare Workers West
434. SEIU Healthcare Minnesota
435. SEIU Local 1
436. SEIU Local 105
437. SEIU Local 2015
438. SEIU Local 26
439. SEIU Local 500
440. SEPA Mujer Inc.
441. Ser Familia, Inc.
442. Shoals Diversity Center
443. Silver State Equality-Nevada
444. SIREN (Services, Immigrant Rights & Education Network)
445. Sisterhood of Salam Shalom Silver Spring
446. Sisters of Mercy NH NE
447. Sisters of St. Joseph
448. Snohomish Immigration Advocacy
449. South Asian Fund For Education Scholarship and Training INC
450. South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center
451. Southwest Center
452. St. Louis Inter-Faith Committee on Latin America (IFCLA)
453. St. Stephan’s Grace Community
454. Stand In For Nebraska
455. Still Waters Anti-trafficking Program
456. Still Waters Anti-trafficking Program of RCHP-AHC
457. Takoma Park Mobilization
458. Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition
459. Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors
460. Texas AFL-CIO
461. Texas Unitarian Universalist Justice Ministry
462. The Children’s Partnership
463. The DC Center for the LGBT Community
464. The Legal Clinic, Hawai‘i
465. The LGBTQ Center, South Bend, IN
466. The LGBTQ Community Center of Southern Nevada
467. The Migrant Center of New York
468. The Montrose Center
469. The Person Center
470. The Pride Center at Equality Park
471. The Source LGBT+ Center
472. Tikkun Olam Chavurah
473. TIRRC
474. Together Colorado
475. Trans Queer Pueblo
476. Transformations CDC
477. Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico
478. True North
479. UCLA Labor Center
480. United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 400
481. Unidad Latina en Acción
482. Unitarian Universalist Church of Concord, NH
483. United Valley Interfaith Project
484. UnLocal
485. Upper Valley Jewish Community
486. Uptown Gay and Lesbian Alliance (UGLA)
487. Valley Insight Meditation Society
488. Vermont Interfaith Action
489. Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
490. VIDA Legal Assistance INC
491. Virginia Civic Engagement Table
492. Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights
493. Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations (VACOLAO)
494. Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy
495. Voces de la Frontera Action
496. Volunteers of Legal Service
497. Wallingford Indivisible
498. Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network
499. Washington National Cathedral Sanctuary Ministry
500. Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence
501. Waves Ahead & SAGE Puerto Rico
502. We Love BuHi, Inc.
503. WeCount!
504. Wind of the Spirit Immigrant Resource Center
505. Womankind
506. Women Employed
507. Women Who Never Give Up, Inc
508. Women’s Law Project
509. Woori Center
510. Worker Justice Center of New York
511. Workers Defense Action Fund
512. Wyoming Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
513. Young Invincibles