Get on the Bus

THERE are just two weeks to go before the Irish lobby day in Washington, D.C. to push for immigration reform.

Last March a record 3,000 showed up from all over the U.S. for the day, organized by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR). There has never been an Irish crowd like it in modern times to descend on Washington.

Organizers are hoping a similar sized throng will make their way there this year. It is up to every Irish and Irish American person who cares about this community and its future to try and make the trip.

One of the most heartening things about ILIR’s growth this year is the number of legal Irish as well as Irish Americans who have become involved in the organization. From a small sliver originally, they now make up a decent percentage of the membership.

They have made their presence felt in large numbers at recent mass meetings in San Francisco and Philadelphia, and will surely be out in force in upcoming events in New York and Boston. Many have grasped the message that without the vibrant young community there is very little to look forward to in the future.

It is vital beyond words that this year’s event on Wednesday, March 7 is a similar success. Without immigration reform the community is in dire trouble.

Already organizations are suffering because of the departure of many for back home and the lack of incoming legal immigrants from Ireland. Just last week two teams participating in the New York GAA announced they were folding for the upcoming season due to lack of players.

The Irish lobby has come too far in such a short time to allow any slowdown in its efforts to win reform. Our undocumented community is even more in need this year of immigration reform.

Another long year has passed in the shadows, another year of fearing the midnight knock or the enforced departure. Another year has passed without seeing loved ones back home, and the reality is that time is now of the essence if our community is to hold on.

The lobby day was an extraordinary success last March. It attracted Senator Edward Kennedy, John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer to the public rally, among other speakers.

Let us not forget that it was at the lobby day that Senator Clinton first made clear her support of the McCain/Kennedy immigration reform package, something Senator Schumer had done a few weeks earlier in Queens at an ILIR meeting.

There is real clout behind the Irish organization, and it is needed now more than ever. Last year the immigration reform movement surpassed expectations by getting a bill through the Senate before the Republican controlled House refused to deal with it.

This year, the indications are much more positive because Democrats now control both houses of Congress, and President Bush has made passage of comprehensive reform a clear priority.

The Irish lobby day also puts down a vital marker that it is not only our Hispanic friends who are interested in immigration reform.

The sight of the thousands of Irish last year, clad in their “Legalize the Irish” t-shirts, was an inspirational one. All over Capitol Hill, staffers, senators and representatives were mostly warm and welcoming to the Irish, many hearing about the crisis in the community for the first time.

We need to go back in even better numbers this year. It is now an article of faith that immigration reform will occur at some point in the future. We need to ensure that it happens as soon as possible.

The Irish from across America, from San Francisco to New York and everywhere in between, need to show up in large numbers to pound home the message again and again that immigration reform is our biggest priority.

The ILIR website is www.legalizetheirish.org. Join them if you can.