Immigration Reform Too Urgent to Stay in the Shadows
Date and Time
Wednesday Mar 22, 2017
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM CDT
Wednesday, March 21
Location
Nashville Farmer's Market
900 Rosa Parks Blvd
Nashville, TN 37208
Description
Immigrants in Tennessee, particularly in Nashville, aren’t all hovering in the shadows, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Their needs are too urgent:
Executives have come here from other countries to do business and create jobs.
Families have come here who want to work hard and pay their dues.
Young people who came here as children want to finish college so they can stay and contribute.
They all have this in common: They want the immigration system fixed. And they aren’t waiting for that other shoe to drop.
Come listen to some of their ideas at 2 p.m. Wednesday as a diverse group of business, community, and faith leaders gather to look for solutions. This will be a working discussion, not just a photo op with a few leaders giving quotes.
Wednesday’s event in the food court of the Nashville Farmers Market will kick off the FWD.us Tennessee Coalition. FWD.us, an organization founded by Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and other leaders in the tech industry, is advocating for common-sense immigration reform.
Interviews will be available with the following coalition members and others:
Christina Allen, Hispanic business leader and also an advocate for immigrant families. She has a solid grasp of both perspectives and can talk realistically about reform.
Jon Roebuck, a former minister now working at Belmont. A strong advocate of immigration reform, Roebuck is best known for his “Moment That Matters” segment during the CBS “Sunday Morning” show.
Mina Johnson, born in Japan and currently serving on the Metro Council. She works with the Japanese American Association here and can talk about businesses that want to locate here but are hesitant, due to the uncertainty in the immigration system.
Dr. Michael Spalding, retired physician. As CEO/Executive Director of Equal Chance for Education (ECE), he helps DACA recipients get a college
education.