ILIR at the White House for Immigration Meetings

The Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform ramped up their campaign in the US on Friday with a meeting in the White House with Ed Gillespie, the top advisor to President George W Bush.

ILIR Chairman Niall O'Dowd, Vice-Chairman Ciaran Staunton, Executive Director, Kelly Fincham and Immigration Consultant Bruce Morrison met Mr Gillespie to discuss a limited immigration reform package which could include an Irish element among its provisions.

Chairman Niall O’Dowd said the meeting, which was set up by senior figures in the Republican Party US, was one of the most positive developments in recent times.

Hear Niall O'Dowd on RTE's News at One

New stories on Irish in the US

We received an email from the ILIR today which we are posting in full below;

The ILIR will be holding a series of town halls to address concerns in the community about immigration reform in the coming weeks. We will be emailing times + venues in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, we have gathered a selection of recent articles and radio shows here which have appeared in different sites this week. The articles are listed below with the relevant links. Please feel free to comment on the official ILIR blog at or The 33rd County which is run by the Friends and Family in Ireland.

An Open Letter to Bertie (Niall O'Dowd) The Irish Star, Feb 22, 2008
Excerpt: I was disappointed that you never mentioned the Irish undocumented issue in your remarks though...it is important for you to know that thousands of Irish undocumented emigrants in America will be watching and listening too. You see you are their last real hope of achieving legal status in the United States.

Irish Government Slammed after Hands are Tied Claim over Undocumented
The Irish government has been slammed over its inaction on the undocumented issue. Activists have compared comments by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern to those of the Mexican President who this week pledged to up his commitment to Mexican immigrants in the US.

Deportation Fear Cost Man His Life
The father of a County Derry man who died in the US said he believes his son delayed seeking medical treatment because he feared being deported.

ILIR on Irish Radio Show
Interview with ILIR vice-chairman Ciaran Staunton and an undocumented Irish man on the "Right Hook" radio show in Ireland

And the work goes on....

I just recieved this round up for February from the ILIR. It makes for good reading and it just shows that on both sides of the Atlantic the fight is continuing. All we're lacking is the support of our government.

ILIR eNewsletter:

The ILIR will be holding a series of town halls to address concerns in the community about discussions with the Irish Government and also the wider effort for immigration reform. We will be emailing times + venues in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, we have gathered a selection of recent articles and radio shows here which have appeared in different sites this week. The articles are listed below with the relevant links. Please feel free to comment on the official ILIR blog at or The 33rd County which is run by the Friends and Family in Ireland.

An Open Letter to Bertie (Niall O'Dowd) The Irish Star, Feb 22, 2008Excerpt: I was disappointed that you never mentioned the Irish undocumented issue in your remarks though...it is important for you to know that thousands of Irish undocumented emigrants in America will be watching and listening too. You see you are their last real hope of achieving legal status in the United States.

Irish Government Slammed after Hands are Tied Claim over UndocumentedThe Irish government has been slammed over its inaction on the undocumented issue. Activists have compared comments by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern to those of the Mexican President who this week pledged to up his commitment to Mexican immigrants in the US.

Deportation Fear Cost Man His LifeThe father of a County Derry man who died in the US said he believes he delayed medical treatment because he feared being deported.

ILIR on Irish Radio Show

Irish American Anger as Bertie Backs Off On Undocumented Irish

Irish Americans have reacted with anger to the latest statement from Taoiseach Bertie Ahern on the undocumented Irish.

This week the Taosieach said there was no hope of any deal on the Irish undocomented in the US and his comments sparked fury among the Irish in the US, and their families back home.

ILIR vice-chairman Ciaran Staunton, who succesfully tackled Mitt Romney on US television over his anti-immigrant campaign, said he was extremely disappointed in the Irish Government.

"Why didn't they look for a bilateral visa deal that would facilitate Irish and U.S. citizens alike," he said. "The Irish government has closed the door on a bilateral. They have clearly walked away from the undocumented," Staunton said.

His words were echoed by undocumented Irish immigrants in New York.

Deirdre Foy, who has been living in the U.S. for 11 years, expressed her upset with Ahern's attitude towards her situation. "I'm very disappointed with his comments. Both he and (Foreign Minister) Dermot Ahern have promised our community that every effort was being made by the Irish government to rectify the Irish undocumented situation in the U.S.," she said.

Asking if Ahern had forgotten the cross-party agreement that was entered into last fall in which all Irish political parties pledged to do their utmost for the undocumented, Ms Foy said, "Those of us here in the U.S. don't have the same short term memory like they do and neither do our friends and family in Ireland. His comments have not been taken lightly on either side of the Atlantic."

Samantha Melia, who has been living in New York for eight years with her husband Liam, was also upset with Ahern's comments."He is an absolute disgrace — I just don't understand the whole thing. There are other countries that negotiate deals, such as Australia or Chile. Why can't we?" she said.

Ms Melia feels the Irish government has left down its Irish citizens. "Bertie will go down in history for the man who turned away an opportunity that was created by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) to get status for the undocumented Irish," she said. "We give the United States Shannon so why can't we get 10,000 visas for our citizens in return?" she said.

Meanwhile, the executive director of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform, Kelly Fincham, said she was surprised to hear of the Taoiseach's comments given that discussions are still ongoing in Capitol Hill.

Ms Fincham said that she had been attending meetings with the Coalition for Comprehensive Immigration Reform in Washington this week which debated details of new negotiations in Capitol Hill.

"The Hispanic caucus in the House of Representatives is spearheading an effort to negotiate a five-year temporary work and travel visa for the undocumented as part of a package which would see passage of a bill aimed at expanding the H-2B temporary work visa program," she said.

"Surely our representatives in Washington should have told the Taoiseach that the issue of immigration reform is still being debated in Congress. It's not dead. It's not off the agenda," Ms Fincham said.

"The issue is still very much alive in Washington with the Hispanic caucus effort at the moment to try and cobble together some sort of legalization program in this Congress in this session," she said.

She also pointed to the fact that the President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, is continuing his week-long tour of the US which is aimed at letting the undocumented Mexican community know that they have his backing.

Ms Fincham said: "It is so poignant to watch the news this week and see the president of Mexico so actively reaching out to the undocumented Mexicans to let them know that he has not forgotten them and he is working on their behalf to find a solution.".

Immigrants Gain Support from Their Government

It would be funny if it weren't true.

This week, the same week that the Irish Government slammed the door shut on the undocumented Irish in the US, the leader of the Mexican Government is heading to the US to lobby on behalf of his citizens.

This week, the same week that the Irish Government doffs its cap and says it can't be seen to be asking for favours from the landlord, the leader of the Mexican Government is battling on for his constituents.

This week, Felipe Calderon, the Mexican president, says:

The message I hope to convey to Mexicans in the United States is that their government has not abandoned them and will help protect their civil rights, even if they broke the law by crossing the border.

The fundamental message is that we are with them, that the Mexican government is paying attention to Mexicans here in Mexico and in whatever other part of the world, and we are ready to help them with their problems.

Where have you gone Bertie Ahern? What about your Irish citizens in the US? Are you going to dump them like the emigrants to Britain were dumped?

What is Bertie Up To?

There's a piece in today's Irish Times which quotes Bertie Ahern as saying the issue of the undocumented Irish is off the agenda. Since When? What is going on here? We've been told time and time again that the undocumented Irish are the "highest priority" for the department of foreign affairs. How can they be off the agenda? Can anyone tell us what is going on? There's also a piece in today's New York Times which says the White House is looking at changing some of the temporary working programmes. If immigration is not off the agenda for the White House, how come it's off the agenda for Bertie?