Omer Day 9: Learning

I hope the low-hanging fruits of yesterday tasted good!  I know mine have motivated me to keep going.  In fact, tonight, I have a plan to keep working at my organizing that I had started!

But before we get too carried away, we still have some planning to do.  Now that we have identified what areas we might want to focus on, what our strengths, weaknesses, resources, hopes and dreams may be, I'm recommending that we take some time to learn.  Study, research, gain new insight - when we gain acquire new perspectives, we can't help but see the world and ourselves differently.  We change when we learn.

Today's learning is aligned with the Rabbis Organizing Rabbis (ROR) group that I've been working with.  I'm going to do some learning on the topic of Immigration Reform and I invite you to do so, as well.  Here is a blog post by Rabbi Samuel Gordon, who has been a part of the Chicago group of organizers who have had some incredibly powerful (both in an emotional way and in an effectiveness-way) experiences.

I've been reading through these sights in order to further educate myself on the issues involved in immigration reform so that I can become a better advocate.  Though we are at a standstill in congress (what else is new?) it really does seem as though this is not such a partisan issue - everyone sees the need for a better set of laws, it's just a matter of what the laws are and who is brave enough to stick their neck out and stand for something, as opposed to just waiting to see what one's voter base will tolerate.  I'll list the sights below (though I highly recommend if you look at just one, go to the Reform movement's Religious Action Center, where the Jewish basis for Immigration Reform is nicely stated).

The reason our ROR group has been putting out the "I Stand with Ruth" campaign is to bring back to the collective consciousness our struggle for a better system of immigration laws.  We recently heard from a group of organizers in Chicago the story of a meeting between a local organizing group who is seeking immigration reform and a conservative congressman who came to office by affiliating with the Tea Party movement.  They brought to his attention the story of an individual who was going to be deported after being pulled over for a broken tail light.  That "crime" led the police to discover his status as a person who had come here illegally.  The problem was that his child (or children - unsure about this detail), who is/are US citizens, would be here in the US without a parent.  This congressperson stepped into write a letter to the judge advocating that the individual in question NOT be deported, so that his family could stay together.  He said it went against his Christian values to separate children from their parents. Yet, he said he felt he could not commit to larger reforms to address such problems for fear that he would be challenged by that same Tea Party group that helped him get into office in a future primary.

Regardless of how one might feel about immigration reform as a whole, a story like this one exposes the challenges our current system brings to our society.  Enforcing the law could lead to a slew of children growing up in the foster care system in America or at the very least, growing up without being able to see one of their parents - not because the parent cares little for their children, but ultimately because they care that much for their children.  This is one of many reasons to continue pushing for a system to be changed.

Ha-Yom tishah yamim she-hem sh'vuah achad ushnai yamim la-omer

Today is Day 9 of the Omer, which is one week and two days of the Omer

DAY 9 JOURNAL: What have I learned today that can help me continue to improve myself?

DAY 9 ACTION: Spend some time researching a topic that can be helpful in the quest for self-improvement, helping us to our goals.




My Journaling:

So, my learning today was geared towards immigration reform.

• I learned of the following great site from the National Immigration Forum - it taught me that there may be some more local groups here in NC that I might be able to partner with in taking action locally.  

• These are the kinds of heart-breaking stories caused by the current system - they do not have to continue to emerge!

• I found a great resource for those who might have questions about immigration status and application. 

• I learned that House Speaker John Boehner may not be so opposed to immigration reform, afterall. . .

• Immigration success stories like this one are getting harder and harder to find, as many of the most talented who are even studying here in the US cannot get the proper paperwork to continue advancing our homegrown companies and technological advances.