‘Not going to stop’: Immigration Reform group meets in Fresno 

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A roundtable of industries that employ immigrants sat down with elected officials Friday to discuss immigration reform. The meeting was organized by the non-profit Nisei Farmers League (NFL).

Legal status and social security status were chief among the topics. President of the NFL, Manuel Cunha Jr., says this is just the first step, and it starts with opening up the floor to all industries, not just agriculture.

“When you have all the industries coming together, congressional people cannot look the other way because that’s who puts them there,” Cunha said. 

Cunha says many employers were afraid to come to today’s meeting. “They’ll get fingered for an audit, or the Border Patrol will go to their business,” he explained. 

He says more than 20 individuals from various industries attended in person, while about nine of the 33 congressional representatives invited joined via call. “Very disappointing on some of the staff that didn’t show up. Very disappointing. We’re not going to stop,” Cunha added.

Two topics of conversation included creating a ‘Temporary Work Authorization Program’ that would lead to permanent legal status for those currently working in the United States.

“The 1986 law called IRCA, the Immigration Reform of ’86, by President Reagan, made the people stay here and register here. If we could do it during that Republican administration, why can’t we do the same thing here?” Cunha asked.

The other was Social Security. “For these people that work 65, or they work until they can’t work anymore. But at the end of the tunnel, there’s nothing for them. So what’s next for those people? Those are very important topics that we need to take care. We need to take care of our seniors,” said Mendota Mayor Victor Martinez.

The group that met on Friday is going by the name ‘Immigration for Jobs.’ And they want to hold elected representatives accountable.

“We don’t want you to come back to us and say, none of this is going to work because it can’t pass. So we’ll pass immigration that passes. But what good did that do? That only appeased your little comment about I’m going to get immigration done? We’ve heard that since 1990. We’ve heard that continuously and used as a pawn to get reelected, reelected,” Cunha added.

The group plans to meet again in about three weeks, with the hopes that more people will join in on the conversation.