Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have trained local officers around the country to act as their agencies’ immigration officers. Working either in jails or in the field, the officers can check the immigration status of suspects and place immigration holds on them.

read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-02-17/immigration-enforcement-program/53134284/1

… supporters of the accord so far include the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, the Arizona Interfaith Network, Tolleson, the Mesa Human Relations Advisory Board, the Phoenix Human Relations Commission, Chicanos Por La Causa, East Valley Patriots, Sundt Construction and McCarthy Construction.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2012/01/23/20120123arizona-accord-aims-guide-immigration-dialoague.html#ixzz1kUJdj9og

Current and former Border Patrol agents said field offices around the country began receiving the order last month – soon after the Obama administration announced that to ease an overburdened immigration system, it would allow many illegal immigrants to remain in the country while it focuses on deporting those who have committed crimes.

Read More

The training covered all aspects of running an effective Get Out the Vote campaign, including door-knocking strategies to engage voters, the importance of volunteers sharing their own personal stories, roles and timelines leading to Election Day and running an effective GOTV.

“The skills the volunteers learned here today are the ones they’ll be able to use throughout their lives,” said Raquel Teran, Deputy Director for Promise Arizona.

Many of the volunteers were high school students who live in the areas where more than 1,055 voter registrations were collected this summer. Volunteers came from Carl Hayden, Trevor Browne, North and Maryvale high schools.

Now the second phase of the project will be to ensure those voters cast their ballots, whether its in an early mail ballot or by going to a poll.

The GOTV campaign is part of a project to register voters for the upcoming City of Phoenix elections for Mayor and Council. Promise Arizona, which collected nearly 13,000 voter registrations last year for the mid-term federal elections, initiated this voter project to get involved in the local elections and impact the budget decisions made by the city.

“We’ve seen too many library hours cut, afterschool programs decimated and parks go without proper maintenance,” said Petra Falcon, executive director of Promise Arizona. “We need to make sure the interests of working families and those not in the upper income brackets get their fair share of city services.”

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2011/04/20/20110420immigration0420.html#ixzz1NCwv8kqo

WASHINGTON – Under pressure from advocates and the 2012 re-election calendar, President Barack Obama on Tuesday enlisted a diverse group of elected officials and religious, business, labor and civil-rights leaders to help build support for a long-stalled overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws.

Obama is making a new attempt to fulfill his campaign pledge to enact a broad immigration overhaul early in his term. His failure there has angered some Hispanics and immigrants’ advocates, voters who helped elect him in 2008 and whom he’ll need at the polls again next year.

A White House meeting with a group of about 70 people led to no legislative breakthroughs, but rather a call to action.

“The president asked the group to commit to moving forward to keep the debate about this issue alive . . . in the sense that it can get before Congress, where the ultimate resolution of it will have to be obtained,” said Bill Bratton, the former police chief in Los Angeles and New York City. “The idea being to go out into our various communities and to speak about the issue.”

Obama promised to continue working to build a bipartisan consensus around immigration and said he will lead a “civil debate” on the issue in the months ahead, the White House said.

Petra Falcon, executive director of Promise Arizona, a Phoenix group pushing for comprehensive immigration reform, said she was encouraged to see Obama say Tuesday that he is still committed to immigration reform but thinks he needs to put action behind his words.

She said it will be difficult for Obama to get the bipartisan support he needs in Congress to pass immigration reform before the next presidential election. In the meantime, she said there are several administrative actions he could take, such as ending the deportation of parents with U.S. citizen children and the deportation of immigrants who might qualify for the Dream Act. The Dream Act, which was defeated in Congress in December, would have allowed certain young undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children to gain legal status and eventually citizenship if they served time in the military or completed at least two years of college.

“Those of us who are continuing to say that the system is broken and it needs reform would tell the president you can take it a step forward and actually do something in lieu of a bill,” Falcon said. “He can halt deportations. He can halt the behavior of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) in some communities, especially with raids and that type of behavior.”

Tuesday’s meeting marked an attempt by the White House to include voices often not heard in the debate, such as San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro and Sheryl Sandberg, a Facebook executive.

Republic reporter Daniel González contributed to this article.
Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2011/04/20/20110420immigration0420.html#ixzz1NCwprcGl

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Contact: Ahlam Said 602-288-3663 Ahlam@promiseaz.org

SB 1611: Attack on Children and Businesses
Statement by Petra Falcon, executive director of Promise Arizona

Phoenix – Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee will hold a hearing on SB 1611, a bill introduced by Senate President Russell Pearce on Monday that would among other things force children to show proof of their citizenship or legal status to go to school and would force businesses to enroll in a flawed federal employment verification system or risk losing their licenses. The following is a statement by Petra Falcon, executive director of Promise Arizona:

“Apparently Pearce isn’t satisfied with the damage he’s done to the state and wants to completely drive us off a cliff. Already, Pearce and a handful of other elected officials have created a climate of hostility and division in the state with their anti-immigrant rhetoric and actions, and have tarnished the state’s reputation everywhere giving the false impression that Arizonans are intolerant and racist. Now, Pearce is working to solidify that image with a law that makes SB 1070 seem tame.

“Attacking children, imposing onerous requirements on businesses and continuing to scapegoat immigrants is exactly what Arizona does not need. Arizona has very real, pressing problems, starting with a crushing deficit. Pearce has abused his position, seemingly using it to satisfy a personal vendetta and ignoring Arizona’s needs.

“The state legislature needs to continue standing up to extreme legislation and reject bills that will only set our state back.”
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Promise Arizona is a membership organization whose mission is to recruit, train and support a new generation of leaders from across the state to build a new Arizona, one that will allow all residents to achieve their full potential.

Phoenix – Sen. Ron Gould’s plan to seek a vote on Tuesday for SB1308 and SB1309, the two bills that would deny citizenship to children of undocumented parents in Arizona, has sparked concern among  residents who feel their legislators are disconnected from the issues affecting everyday Arizonans.

In response, Promise Arizona will be hosting an unprecedented community meeting at the State Capitol to discuss issues affecting community residents. The organization’s leaders will invite legislators to connect with their constituents. The following is a statement from Petra Falcon, executive director of Promise Arizona:

“We call on our state legislators to attend to the pressing issues facing our state, most notably a crippling deficit, and leave federal issues to the federal government. Bills like SB1309 and SB1308 will only further divide Arizona and divert us from tackling the real issues that affect our lives.

“We invite our legislators to get back in touch with their constituency and listen to their concerns. We will be setting up meetings with our legislators today, and we hope they will join us in moving our state forward in 2011.”

What: Meetings with state legislators

When: Monday, February 14, 2010: 3:30pm
Who: Connecting Communities for Change: Community Meeting
Where: Arizona State Capitol: 1700 West Washington, Phoenix, AZ

Interview and visual opportunities will be available.

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Promise Arizona is a membership organization whose mission is to recruit, train and support a new generation of leaders from across the state to build a new Arizona, one that will allow all residents to achieve their full potential.

“We would like to thank our legislators forced the withdrawal of SB1309 and SB1308. You have exhibited the type of leadership that has unfortunately been missing in Arizona.

“Anti-immigrant laws will continue to surface on the state level if Congress does not act to fix our broken immigration system. We need comprehensive immigration reform that keeps families together, allows people to live freely and values the contributions of immigrants.

“We call on our state legislators to attend to the pressing issues facing our state, most notably a crippling deficit, and leave federal issues to the federal government. Bills like SB1309 and SB1308 will only further divide Arizona and divert us from tackling the real issues that affect our lives.

“The state of Arizona is going through a severe economic crisis. Thousands are losing their homes to foreclosures, the health care of the most vulnerable in our state is under attack, businesses are shutting down, jobs are being lost and our children are not receiving the education they deserve.

We invite our legislators to get back in touch with their constituency and listen to their concerns. We will be setting up meetings with our legislators, and we hope they will join us in moving our state forward in 2011.”

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Promise Arizona is a membership organization whose mission is to recruit, train and support a new generation of leaders from across the state to build a new Arizona, one that will allow all residents to achieve their full potential.

For Planning Purposes: Friday, January 10, 2011
Contact: Ahlam Said, 469.835.7551, ahlam@promiseaz.org

Promise Arizona Honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with Commemoration Events
Film, vigil and march honor the life and legacy of civil rights leader

Phoenix – Promise Arizona is proud to announce a variety of events it will lead and take part in to commemorate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The events will honor the sacrifices of men and women from generations before us who stood for equality, justice, freedom, peace and harmony for all.

“Just as he had a dream, we also have a dream that all will be treated equal, regardless of color, race or immigration status,” said Petra Falcon, executive director of Promise Arizona.

Below is a list of this year’s events. Interview and visual opportunities will be available.

Sunday, January 16, 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Connecting our Struggles: Film and Discussion on the Civil Rights and Chicano Movements
Centro Soledad, 2106 W Van Buren St. (NW corner 21st Ave & Van Buren)

Community members will gather to watch films commemorating both the Civil Rights and Chicano movements. Discussion on the intersections between these movements will also take place.

Sunday, January 16, 6 p.m. – 7 p.m. (17th Ave & Washington)
Vigil to Honor the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Arizona State Capitol, 1700 W. Washington

Candles will be passed out and brief observances will be shared among Promise Arizona leaders, their families and members of the community who are committed to bringing justice to all in our state.

Monday, January 17, 9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. March
Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church, 1401 East Jefferson St. (SE corner of 14th St & Jefferson)

The March will begin at Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church and proceed to Margaret T. Hance Park (1202 N. 3rd St.) where the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Festival will be held.

This is a community parade to honor the legacy and life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and bring the message of unity to all people.

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Promise Arizona is a membership organization whose mission is to recruit, train and support a new generation of leaders from across the state to build a new Arizona, one that will allow all residents to achieve their full

For Immediate Release
Contact: Shu Ohno (202) 309-5645

Phoenix, AZ – Below is a statement from Dr. Warren H. Stewart Sr., Senior Pastor of the First Institutional Baptist Church of Phoenix, AZ, Board Member of Promise Arizona, and Board Member of the National Immigration Forum:

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to Congresswoman Giffords, her staff and the other innocent victims of today’s terrible tragedy. The Congresswoman and her staff are remarkable, well-loved, public servants who are dedicated to the needs and aspirations of their constituents.

We mourn the loss of those who were killed in today’s tragic events and pray for the speedy recovery of those who were injured. Violence has no place in our democracy and civic life, and we pray for the return of civility to our nation’s public discourse.”

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