Newly Formed Group To Work For Immigrants

Intent Is To Raise Awareness, Improve Lives

February 27, 2006
By ROBIN STANSBURY, Courant Staff Writer

In the basement of a Hartford church Sunday, a grass-roots effort was launched to improve the lives of immigrants in the region as well as to fight against what organizers termed an anti-immigrant movement gaining momentum across the nation.

The event was organized by the Greater Hartford Interfaith Coalition For Equity and Justice, an organization of about 40 churches from across the state.

The group hopes to hold an educational forum each month to raise awareness about issues facing immigrants in Connecticut, including job exploitation and access to health care.

Ana Maria Hernandez Alstrum, who helped organize Sunday's event at the St. Augustine Catholic Church, said things have gotten worse for immigrants in Connecticut and nationwide since the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

"We need to work to diminish the anti-immigrant feeling that is around. These people are not threatening anyone. They are not felons," Alstrum said. "They are hardworking people who are not taking jobs from anyone, but instead are taking the jobs no one wants."

About 100 people attended the one-hour educational forum, where speakers talked about the struggles facing many immigrants in Connecticut, including the ability to get proper medical care.

Margarita Ledesma, a social worker, said immigrants who have cancer or AIDS are not receiving medical care because they are afraid they will be arrested if they show up at a doctor's office.

But members of the group said it also hopes to have an impact on immigration issues on a statewide and national level, including fighting legislation they say is negative for immigrants.

As illegal immigrants have spread throughout the country and Congress has been unable to pass an immigration reform bill, some states have passed their own legislation to address the issues. In the first six months of last year, states considered nearly 300 immigration-related bills and passed 36 of them, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Florida allowed state law officers to arrest illegal immigrants. Arizona barred day laborer centers from receiving public funds, and Virginia denied some state benefits to undocumented workers.

This year, the proposals include cutting off benefits to illegal immigrants, allowing local police to identify those in the country illegally and, in Arizona, sending National Guard troops to secure the Mexican border.

Alstrum said she hopes a different type of legislation can be passed in Connecticut, one that will protect the rights of immigrants. A recent study estimated that there are about 395,000 immigrants in the state, giving Connecticut the 18th-largest immigrant population in the country.

The group was supported Sunday by Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez, who attended the event and said he would work with the organization to pass resolutions supporting the rights of residents regardless of immigration status.

"I want to join forces with this coalition to make sure this anti-immigration movement doesn't gain momentum," Perez told the crowd.

"Rather than being reactive, I hope to be proactive on these issues."