{"id":4255,"date":"2014-02-13T10:15:38","date_gmt":"2014-02-13T16:15:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resurrectionproject.org\/?p=4255"},"modified":"2020-01-06T19:18:49","modified_gmt":"2020-01-06T19:18:49","slug":"empowering-communities-citizenship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resurrectionproject.org\/es\/empowering-communities-citizenship\/","title":{"rendered":"Empowering communities through citizenship"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Diana Pando<\/em>
\nDid you know that when immigrants stabilize their status and keep their families together they enrich their communities and strengthen local and national economies?
\nAccording to the Bipartisan Policy Center, \u201cImmigration reform would create 105,923 jobs in Illinois and boost the state\u2019s economic output by $1.8 billion.\u201d The data also states immigration reform would grow the nation\u2019s economy \u201c4.8 percent over the next 20 years and reduce the deficit by $1.2 trillion.\u201d
\nWhile immigration reform is a hot-button issue in 2014, organizations such as The Resurrection Project (TRP) are working with community leaders on immigration reform initiatives and helping people begin the process of citizenship through free workshops. These workshops are a simple way for individuals and families to get access to the information they need to successfully apply for citizenship. Maria Guadalupe Mendez, who attended the last TRP citizenship workshop, felt that everyone was very attentive.
\n\u201cIt was free unlike other places that charge you to fill out the application,\u201d Mendez said, adding that she also convinced her daughter-in-law to start the process and will be accompanying her to the next citizenship workshop.
\n\u201cWe live in this country and our children our citizens,\u201d Mendez said. \u201cBy doing this we will be able to vote and have more of a voice in this country and I think that\u2019s a good thing for the Latino community in general.\u201d
\nAttendees of the citizenship workshops get help filling out the application so they don\u2019t have to pay fees. Attendees also get their application photographs taken and have access to legal referrals.
\n\u201cI\u2019m volunteering at the citizenship workshops because a lot of people are being deported and separated from their families,\u201d says Elia Arenas, a community member.  \u201cI hope that immigration reform will go through because I have friends, neighbors, and family members that need to get documented.  We reach out to people in churches and libraries and we explain the citizenship program. I want people to succeed in the future because they are our future.\u201d
\n\u201cI want to emphasize the importance of becoming a citizen,\u201d says Araceli Lucio, Community Organizer at The Resurrection Project. \u201cKnowing that there is another person that will be able to vote and that can make a change in our community and have access to medical coverage fills me with satisfaction.\u201d
\nLucio encourages people to take advantage of the workshops because they\u2019re a free and valuable resource. \u201cIt\u2019s important for individuals and families to know that they are not alone in this process,\u201d says Lucio. \u201cThere are organizations like TRP and people that can help them take this big step towards citizenship.\u201d
\nTRP is asking participants to save time by bringing the following:<\/p>\n