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Immigration & Civil Liberties


Peaceful Tomorrows has lobbied around legislation affecting immigrants as a result of 9/11, rejecting the stereotyping and scapegoating that sometimes accompanied otherwise positive and meaningful reform efforts.

In July, 2004, members of Peaceful Tomorrows lobbied in favor of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act (S.B. 4515), which would allow certain non-citizen students permanent residency and access to education and employment opportunities, even though their parents might be undocumented or in immigration "limbo."

In October, 2004, Peaceful Tomorrows joined calls to Stop H.R. 10, which added anti-immigrant legislation to the "9/11 Commission Recommendations Implementation Act." Both houses of Congress favored the Act, but the version passed in the House of Representatives included immigration amendments that were never part of the Commission's recommendations. A letter from Peaceful Tomorrows was distributed to the H.R. 10 conferees and read on the floor of the House of Representatives. As the year ended, the resolution’s provisions were successfully removed from the Act.

When many of those same anti-immigrant provisions returned in the form of H.R. 418, the "REAL ID" Act, Peaceful Tomorrows issued a press release stating our opposition to the bill, and our statement was circulated as a "Dear Colleague" letter in Congress. In April, 2005, we organized a press conference, in conjunction with immigrant advocacy organizations, to ask that the REAL ID Act be defeated either as a stand-alone bill or as an amendment to the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill.

In June, 2005, Peaceful Tomorrows wrote a letter to Congress expressing our concerns about, and supporting reforms to, the Patriot Act. We joined the coalition,"Patriots for Checks and Balances," in a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania press conference highlighting the erosion of personal freedoms and civil liberties under the Patriot Act and calling for sensible and effective reforms. Members of Peaceful Tomorrows also appeared in the ACLU video, "Blank Check, No Balance," which called attention to the Act’s more egregious features. In the days leading up to the final vote on the Patriot Act in September, 2005, we issued a letter to House and Senate conferees expressing support for the modest reforms contained in Senate Bill 1389, and underscored our support through targeted visits to Capitol Hill.




PT Member quoted in Newsday article on "Ground Zero Mosque"
by Anthony M. DeStefanoNY Newsday
The mayor was responding to a question about the recent request by Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio that New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo probe the mosque's funding...

Statement by PT Member to the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission on proposed Burlington Coat Factory Building Landmarking Status.
by Valerie Lucznikowska
July 13th, 2010
By: Valerie Lucznikowska Thank you for this opportunity to address the Commission and others here who are interested in preserving the heritage and beauty of our city. My name is Valerie Lucznikowska and I was Executive Director of the Congress of Modern Architects for six years. As someone who lost a family member in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, I also have a keen interest in the area, as do my colleagues in September Eleventh Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, some of whom are in the audience...

9/11 Families Group Announces Support for Islamic Cultural Center in Lower Manhattan
May 20th, 2010
September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows strongly supports efforts to bring an Islamic Cultural Center to lower Manhattan, near the Ground Zero site. We believe that welcoming the Center, which is intended to promote interfaith tolerance and respect, is consistent with fundamental American values of freedom and justice for all...

NY drivers license policy statement
by Talat Hamdani
Text of Talat Hamdani's statement at the press conference in Albany, supporting the NY state drivers license policy as originally proposed.

NYCLU press conference on Immigrants rights
by Valerie Lucznikowska

Efforts Successful on NC Billboard Campaign
ADC
December 28th, 2005

ACTION ALERT: Keep Patriot Act review public!
May 19th, 2005

The "REAL ID" ACT HR 418
February 1st, 2005

Stopping H.R. 10
October 22nd, 2004

Peaceful Tomorrows Speaks Out Against Hate Crimes
July 14th, 2004

Lobbying in Washington for the DREAM Act
July 13th, 2004



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