For immediate release
June 26, 2009
Contact: Rosario Díaz-Cintrón (215) 324-0746 x 205
rdiaz-cintron@esperanza.us
The Reverend Luis Cortés, Jr. Thanks President Obama For His Commitment to Enact Comprehensive Immigration Reform
PHILADELPHIA, PA — Today, the President met with Congressional leaders at the White House to discuss comprehensive immigration reform. Following the meeting, after reviewing the President’s statement and discussing the meeting with Congressional leaders, Rev. Luis Cortés, president of Esperanza, issued the followingg statement:
“I thank the President for his statement that his ‘Administration is fully behind an effort to achieve comprehensive immigration reform.’ We will accelerate our efforts with the White House, Secretary Napolitano and Congressional leaders of both parties to forge bipartisan agreements that will see comprehensive immigration reform enacted within the year.”
Rev. Cortés also congratulated the President on the progress his Administration has already made clearing the backlog of background checks, speeding up the processing of citizenship petitions, cracking down on unscrupulous employers and working to protect all workers from workplace exploitation.
“We look forward with great anticipation to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) new website that is being designed to enable applicants to obtain updates on the status of their applications online and without the endless bureaucratic shuffles and red tape of the past,” Cortés continued, “Families across the nation and across the world will welcome this new system.”
Last evening, Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) spoke to Rev. Cortés about the meeting and asked Rev. Cortés to share his optimism and gratitude with the Hispanic faith community. “Last night would not have been possible without the support and hard work of Hispanic churches across the nation and the Familia Unidas movement,” said Congressman Gutierrez.
The Reverend Luis Cortés, Jr. is president of Esperanza, the largest Hispanic faith-based Evangelical network in the United Sates. With a national network of more than 12,000 churches, ministries, and community organizations, Esperanza is one of the leading voices for Hispanics in America. For more information, go to www.esperanza.us.