LAS CRUCES, NM—In preparation for this weekend’s national Marches for Dignity and Respect, Representative Pearce issued a statement to the Border Network for Human Rights highlighting his perspective on priorities for immigration reform. 
Below are reactions to the letter from Executive Director of Border Network for Human Rights and Director of the Regional Center for Border Rights at the ACLU of New Mexico:
“Congressman Pearce has not fully embraced the needs of Hispanic families who hold immigration reform with a path to citizenship as a central priority,” said Fernando Garcia, Executive Director of Border Network for Human Rights.  “Although he signals that he is willing to modify the wrongly named SAFE Act, this bill is so deeply anti-immigrant that there is no remedy for it.  We continue to ask that he remove his name as a co-sponsor of the bill.”
“We are glad, however, that Rep. Pearce recognizes what border communities known for years, that the current border enforcement system needs more oversight and that it must be accountable to border communities.”  Garcia adds, “The border surge is wasteful, unnecessary and harmful to peaceful American communities.  We’re glad that the militarization approach to border enforcement that the Senate proposes does not have the support of Congressman Pearce.”
“Rep. Pearce rightly recognizes that appropriating yet more resources to an already bloated border enforcement apparatus without an assessment of true needs is wasteful and unnecessary. He also concurs that we need greater accountability and oversight measures as well as improved training of Border Patrol to ensure respect for Constitutional rights of all individuals within the United States,” stated Vicki B. Gaubeca, director of the Regional Center for Border Rights at the ACLU of New Mexico.
“However, immigration reform should not include enforcement-only proposals, like the SAFE Act, which focuses on expanding the role of local jurisdictions in immigration enforcement. This proposal would make our communities less safe, harm local economies, and unnecessarily expand the already-costly immigration jail system. Many law enforcement officials, including the Major Cities Chiefs Association, oppose the SAFE Act. They recognize our communities are less safe when local police enforce federal immigration laws by creating a climate where victims or witnesses of crime are afraid to come forward.”
 

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The Border Network for Human Rights, founded in 1998, is one of the leading human rights advocacy and immigration reform organizations located at the U.S./Mexico Border. BNHR has over 7,000 members in West Texas and Southern New Mexico.

 

The ACLU of New Mexico Regional Center for Border Rights, located in Las Cruces, represents ACLU of New Mexico in the southern region of the state and works in conjunction with ACLU state affiliates and immigrant rights advocates to address civil and human rights violations that stem from border-related immigration policies.

ALBUQUERQUE, NM—Today, nearly 140 faith leaders from rural and urban ministries across the state and representing a broad cross-section of denominations and faith traditions, endorsed the freedom to marry for all New Mexicans in a full page ad that ran in the Albuquerque Journal, The Santa Fe New Mexican, Las Cruces Sun News and The Alibi.  
 “Today’s ads represent the outpouring of support among people of faith in New Mexico who know that every gay or lesbian person is a member of someone’s family, and should be treated with compassion and respect,” said the Reverend David Wilson Rogers, Pastor at First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Carlsbad.  “Many of us serve thousands of families every year and the freedom to marry is consistent with our faith and our values.”
 
The ad was purchased by the Why Marriage Matters New Mexico, a campaign by the ACLU of New Mexico, the national ACLU, Equality New Mexico, Freedom to Marry and the National Center for Lesbian Rights.  It comes a week after the coalition released a September 2013 poll that found 53% of New Mexicans support a favorable ruling by the New Mexican Supreme Court on marriage equality.  The Court is scheduled to hear arguments on Oct. 23^rd.
“Nearly all faiths abide by some version of the Golden Rule, to treat others as we would like to be treated ourselves,” said Rev. Cannon Dr. Thomas Arrowsmith-Love of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Alamogordo.  “Finding a soul mate, marrying them, and spending the rest of one’s life with them is something that we all hope for both for ourselves and our children.  Denying that to gay and lesbian New Mexicans violates that Golden Rule.” 
“While many of us support marriage equality, should gay and lesbian couples be allowed to marry in New Mexico, churches would still be protected,” said Pastor Harry Eberts of First Presbyterian Church in Santa Fe.  “No church or faith leader would ever have to perform marriages for couples if it went against their religious beliefs or violated their church doctrine.”
The full ad and list of signatories is here. Selected faith leaders are available for media interviews. 

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IMPORTANT NOTE: Due to a misprint in the Torch Newsletter, the Annual Meeting was listed as Saturday, October 5. The annual meeting is scheduled for Saturday, October 19 from 11:00 to 11:30 AM.
 
Saturday, Oct. 19 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Live online broadcast via AnyMeeting.com: http://www.anymeeting.com/ACLUNM1 (The link to the meeting will go live Saturday, Oct. 19 at 11 AM):
Members are also invited to attend in person at:
1410 Coal Ave SW Albuquerque, NM 87104
Executive Director Peter Simonson will discuss the ACLU-NM’s successes and strategic priorities during the last year and into the future. The meeting will precede the bimonthly meeting of the ACLU-NM Board of Directors, which is open to members. The board meeting will not be broadcast.
For questions contact [email protected].