As we’ve written about before, Spencer Bachus (R-AL) is a Represenative whose example more House Republicans should seek to emulate. The 11-term Congressman supports immigration reform with a path to citizenship and has spoken compassionately about how his Christian faith affects his view of immigrants. And Bachus is from Alabama, a deep-red state which just a few years ago passed the harshest anti-immigrant law in the land, HB 56 (the law has since been mostly dismantled by the courts). Bachus himself fended off a primary challenge from HB 56’s sponsor, state senator Scott Beason, just last fall. If more House Republicans could take the kind of principled stand Bachus has, we probably would’ve passed immigration reform for the 11 million by now.
To thank Rep. Bachus for his support this holiday season, members of the Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice this week visited his Birmingham office. Children presented the Congressman’s office with letters and drawings, as well as a colorful turkey that said: “Thank you, Rep. Bachus – our families trust in you.”
And because there’s always more that members of Congress can do to help push for immigration reform, the group asked Rep. Bachus to support and co-sponsor HR 15, the House immigration bill.
As Yazmin Contreras, a member of ACIJ and a constituent from Bachus’ district said in a press statement:
Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks, reflect, and be with family. We know that because of our flawed immigration system, many immigrant families do not have the luxury of spending the holidays together with their loved ones. This Thanksgiving, we are thankful to Rep. Bachus for his public support of keeping families together, and we ask him to take the next step by co-sponsoring HR15 and voting for a path to citizenship.
View photos and video of ACIJ’s visit thanking Rep. Bachus for his support on immigration reform.