Thousands of advocates are expected to descend on the nation\u2019s capital Wednesday afternoon to press for comprehensive immigration reform and a path to citizenship.<\/p>\n
The demonstration, dubbed the \u201cTime is Now\u201d rally by its organizers, is the brainchild of the immigrant community group Casa de Maryland and the labor union SEIU 32BJ, which represents service workers such as janitors, security guards, and food service employees. The two host organizations are members of a national pro-reform coalition called the Alliance for Citizenship.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rally tomorrow is really an effort to make sure our legislators understand just how critical immigration reform is to our communities,\u201d Kica Matos, director of immigrant rights and racial justice for the Center for Community Change, told MSNBC.com on Tuesday. Matos\u2019 organization is one of dozens that claim membership in the Alliance for Citizenship, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the YWCA, several of the country\u2019s largest labor unions, MoveOn, and the Center for American Progress.<\/p>\n
Comprehensive immigration reform has been on the agenda since President Obama second inauguration, and progressive groups have been mobilizing around the issue since at least early February. Organizers hope Wednesday\u2019s rally will open a new phase in the campaign.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see this big day as a kickoff for a campaign that we realize is going to be challenging,\u201d said Hector Figueroa, president of 32BJ. He emphasized that while this rally would be a grassroots-style attempt to raise awareness, the coalition would also continue to play the inside game in Washington.<\/p>\n
Pro-reform activists have a few reasons to believe this could be the tipping point for a comprehensive reform package. For one thing, representatives from organized labor and the business community have reached a compromise that takes one of the major points of contention off the table. In late March, AFL-CIO, America\u2019s largest labor federation, and the Chamber of Commerce announced that they had reached a mutually acceptable deal on reforming guest worker law.<\/p>\n