Our Long-Term Vision
Posted Jan 23, 2004

As our regular readers know, last week, I attended the Board of Trustees meeting of the American Immigration Law Foundation (AILF) in St. Thomas, USVI. We discussed various interesting projects that we want to publicize, involving volunteers from all over the country. We will be letting you know more about this as things are developed.

Soon after returning from the AILF meeting, on January 20, 2004, I had the opportunity to address the Maryland General Assembly on an overview of the immigration process to help explain immigration law and its benefits. There were over 100 Maryland State Senators and Representatives in attendance either personally or through their immigration aides. The Maryland Office of New Americans (MONA) and various other organizations planned this Conference. In being available to address such a gathering, it fits in with our law firm's and my personal long-term vision and plans to help introduce Bills and pass laws, at both the local and national levels, that truly reflect the contributions of immigrants to our society. It is important for both local and national legislators to understand the importance of immigration to their constituents and to their communities. Although states cannot pass laws on their own dealing exclusively with immigration, states often will pass laws that impact immigrants, directly or indirectly. In my address, I tried to dispel various myths, including the one that immigrants take more than they give to their communities. The Conference was a great success and we received many compliments on our ability to simplify the immigration process so that lay people can understand the nuances and complexities involved.

~ Sheela Murthy