11 Major U.S. Cities to Join Citizenship Initiative at National Event

For a great overview of our action-packed Monday morning plenary at NIIC 2014, here’s what we shared with local and national media:

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, USCIS Director Leon Rodriguez, and Felicia Escobar, immigration advisor to the President, will join 1,000 advocates and experts at immigrant integration conference this month in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles, CA – On Monday, December 15, 2014, 11 major U.S. cities will join Cities for Citizenship, an initiative launched by Los Angeles, New York City, and Chicago in partnership with Citi, the founding corporate partner, in September which aims to increase citizenship among eligible U.S. permanent residents to forge more inclusive and economically robust cities.

Leading officials from Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chattanooga, Denver, Milwaukee, Nashville, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. will announce their active participation in this growing initiative at a special event during the National Immigrant Integration Conference (NIIC 2014). This action-packed plenary will feature a welcome from Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, a keynote address by Leon Rodriguez, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and Cities for Citizenship leaders, including Bob Annibale, Global Director of Citi Community Development and Microfinance. Tefere Gebre, Executive Vice President of the AFL-CIO, another initiative partner, is speaking in a panel later that day focused on building partnerships in support of immigrant integration.

Cities for Citizenship participants will also be competing in Integration Idol, where high level officials from five cities – Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Philadelphia – will highlight the innovative ways they are working to attract immigrants, integrate them fully, and become globally competitive leaders.

A recent report, Citizenship: A Wise Investment for Cities, by the Center for Popular Democracy, National Partnership for New Americans and the Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII) at USC Dornsife, found profound economic benefits to naturalization.

At the launch event, Cities for Citizenship leaders will also announce the addition of several partner organizations with strong ties to immigrant communities across the country, including AFL-CIO, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), the National Federation of Credit Development Unions, SEIU 32BJ, and Welcoming America.

WHAT: Cities for Citizenship Plenary at the National Immigrant Integration Conference

WHEN: 8:00am-10:00am, Monday, December 15

WHERE: Los Angeles Convention Center 1201 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015

WHO:
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti
Angelica Salas, Executive Director, CHIRLA
Manuel Pastor, Co-Director, University of Southern California’s Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration
Nisha Agarwal, New York City, Commissioner of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs
Tonantzin Carmona, Chicago, Director of the Office of New Americans
Linda Lopez, Los Angeles, Chief of the Office of Immigrant Affairs, LA Mayor’s Office at City of Los Angeles
Monica Fuentes, Atlanta, Chief Service Officer at City of Atlanta
Jennifer Rodriguez, ‎Executive Director, Mayor’s Office of Immigrant and Multicultural Affairs at City of Philadelphia
Joshua Hoyt, Executive Director, NPNA
Shena Elrington, Director of Immigrant Rights & Racial Justice Policy, Center for Popular Democracy
Bob Annibale, Global Director, Citi Community Development and Microfinance
Leon Rodriguez, Director, USCIS
Gustavo Torres, Executive Director, CASA de Maryland