Senator Richard Blumenthal CT is asking to be including the "Little Dreamers" as an amendment of S.744. But there are a group of dreamers who also must be included.

The Associated Press recently stopped labeling immigrants whose legal status is in doubt as "illegals," but individual news outlets still use the label. Labels expressing verdicts for groups of humans close our minds to further investigation of how we should understand those people. Verdicts before trials, in which evidence is presented and we hear from the accused, are a national embarrassment, especially in the case of immigration policy where there is so much ignorance and so little discussion.

A person is a person by any other name. But some names are disrespectful and inappropriate.

As part of immigration reform, we need media outlets to reframe people as "undocumented" rather than "illegal". Now is the time to shift our language to be more respectful and in line with American principles of opportunity and respect. Media outlets are key in this shift to drop the "i" word when referring to people. I want our young daughter to grow up respecting all members of our community as people with value.

Stop the use of the term illegal when referring to human beings.

Stop using the modifier "illegal" to describe an undocumented person. And while we are at it, eliminate "alien" as it sounds like someone from "outer space"

The immigration reform bill recently introduced by the Senate made no specific provisions for LGBT citizens in binational relationships - our LGBT families were EXCLUDED and FORGOTTEN! Presently, the Federal Government recognizes only marriages between a man and a woman. As a result, same-sex couples are “legal strangers” in the eyes of the US government. To remedy the injustices same-sex binational couples endure – discrimination, separation and exile – Congress must include our LGBT families as they address Immigration Reform! Senator Leahy has promised that he will introduce the Uniting American Families Act as an amendment to address the omission of LGBT families. As of today, Senator Dianne Feinstein has not taken a public position on whether she will support the amendment!

A call for responsible journalism

As an American-born Latina, I find it highly offensive to hear "illegal" to describe someone's race, in the media, by government officials and others that do not realize the impact of their words. You never hear undocumented immigrants described as "Latino-Americans" or "Chinese-Americans"—they are always identified by their immigration status rather than their actual ethnicity.

Except in direct quotations, do not use the terms illegal alien, an illegal, illegals, undocumented aliens or undocumented workers. Use the unmodified word immigrant only for people who have entered the U.S. lawfully. Do not describe people as violating immigration laws without attribution. If possible, specify how someone entered the country illegally and from where. Crossed the border? Overstayed a visa? What nationality?

Join Central Florida Labor Council for Latin American Advancement Chapter in calling for a comprehensive plan to reform our ailing immigration system. Dear President,Congress, and Senate : Our immigration system isn’t working. It’s failing the “DREAMers.” It’s failing legal immigrants. It’s failing keeping and having families together. And it’s time we changed it. This isn’t something we can try to fix one piece at a time. I demand a comprehensive immigration reform package that works for everyone.

I received a response to a letter I wrote to President Barack Obama in 2010, concerning the immigrant visa application of my husband, Roberto Cerda Mendez, who is in Mexico. When I initially wrote to the President, I was in search of help in clearing out my husband’s case. He was unjustly accused of reentering or attempting to reenter the U. S. illegally, which never occurred, and with that allegation, he was denied the opportunity to waive the 10 year penalty. After researching and trying to find a way to clear this matter, my sister advised me to request my husband’s FOIA records. After months of awaiting a response, I finally received an encouraging response. There are no records that show that my husband was ever apprehended by any immigration or border patrol official. Therefore, with this I can prove that what was stated by the consular officer that interviewed him at the U. S. Consulate in Ciudad Juarez on September 3, 2009, is false. However, to my disappointment, the officer affirms that my husband stated that he entered, departed, and re-entered the U.S. without inspection under oath. So pretty much there is nothing that can be done although this is plain false. Please help me with this matter. It’s not morally correct for our family to be paying for a consular officer’s mistake and for the government to let him get away with it. I want my husband back in Houston, Texas with me and our children.