Towns and Clarke, the Road to Comprehensive Immigration Reform
They Agree on Essentials but Prefer different Options to achieve it

When it comes to the key elements of immigration reform, two Brooklyn federal lawmakers see eye-toeye, are on the same page, if you will.

Where Edolphus “Ed” Towns of the 10th Congressional District and Chairman of the House of Representatives’ Influential Oversight Committee, and his next-door political neighbor, CongresswomanYvette Clarke of the historic 11th District part company is how to get a divided Congress to approve it.

Yes, both told the CaribNews in different interviews that immigration reform must be a priority issue for the nation. Also true, a pathway to citizenship for the millions of undocumented immigrants across the nation was absolutely essential. In addition, they see the need to strengthen family re-unification by speeding up the process that allows close relatives to join legal immigrants in the country. But it’s how to force a Congressional vote on the divisive issue.

“We aremoving forwardwith calls on theObama Administration to take up this issue as an important matter that has to be resolved,” Clarke said. “We have seen a framework for a Senate reformbill established by U.S. Senator “Chuck” Schumer and we are continuing to gather sponsors in the House. We continuing to advocate and agitate for comprehensive immigration reform to take place this year.

If not as soon as possible. Family re-unification is vital; pathway to citizenship and Homeland security is key. We have to ensure that we create for ourselves a thorough knowledge of who is in the United States and under what circumstances.”

But Towns worries about the reform proposals becoming bogged down in the Congress in an election year, a time when the divisions between the proimmigration Democrats and the anti-reform

Republicans become a gulf too large to bridge. He said that the best way to sidestep the logjam is to create an immigration Commission whose members would study the proposals and present a plan to both the House and Senate which “can only vote up or down,” meaning approve or reject”

Otherwise, hewarned, the bill’s provisionswould be picked apart by opponents on both sides of the aisle and in the end would delay, if not reject reforms altogether.

The ultimate goal for both theAdministration and the Democrats is to gain approval of themeasures, they both agree.

The Commission he has in mind would operate much like the military base closing panel whose recommendations are either approved or rejected as a whole and therefore not subject to clause-by-clause amendment.

Happy Mother’s Day,
Relaying A Small Part Of Our Debt

On Sunday, people across the country and around the world will pause and with joy in their hearts, an extra spring in the step, and sheer delight in their voices will celebrate Mother’s Day.

Actually, the Mother’s Day observation can be traced to a simple truth: the vast majority of people cherish mothers because of their success in shaping our personalities and characters and for making most of us the productive citizens society considers us to be.

It’s a delightful experience when we hear children and indeed grandchildren extol the virtues of the women in their lives, portraying them as nation-builders in general and allies and friends in particular.

What’s interesting about Mother’s Day is that when we reflect on the times we were upset with “Mother” for telling us to clean the room, fold our shirts properly, put on clean underwear at all times or ensure that we eat our vegetables we couldn’t help by admit that the “nagging” did us a whole lot of good.

That’s especially true of daughters, whose close relationships with their mothers are often called the world’s strongest partnership, bar none.

In the case of sons who often find themselves derisively labeled as “mothers’ boys,” never mind that they are married and have sons and daughter of their own, they are a special breed.

Now admit it. You either enjoy the memories of the loving embrace or regret that you didn’t take full advantage of your mother’s instinct to protect her own, when she was alive or well. Of course, there were and are some mothers who abused or neglected their children, no questions asked. But they are in the minority.

Some children whose mothers died early in their lives would be the first to tell you that something was missing in their journey from childhood and adolescence to being adults.

That brings us to another group, those whose mothers left them in the care of grandmothers or aunts while they worked hard in foreign lands to ensure that their children back home are able to enjoy a much better life than they would have been able to provide if they had remained at home.

The remittances they send back to relatives often do more than support the children. It’s the lifeline forhouseholds, putting food on the table and improving housing conditions throughout the Caribbean.

In Jamaica, for instance, the barrels containing every conceivable necessity and some luxuries as well are considered crucial in the daily existence of hundreds of thousands of households.

Little wonder that the beneficiaries of this love and commitment are often called “barrel children.”

How about the grandparents? The story is often told of the grand old lady who while enjoying the pleasures of having her grandchildren almost under her feet, remarked with a smile on her face: “If I had known they were going to be such joy, I would have had them first.”

Those playful words underscore an important reality in today’s world: the valuable and increasing role of grandparents in grand children’s upbringing. That may explain why grandmothers will be front and on center-stage during Sunday’s celebrations across the country, next door in Canada and in the Caribbean where the tradition of hailing mothers is also firmly rooted.

Grandmothers and indeed grandfathers are stepping in more and more and showering their children’s offspring with the love, direction and care that all too often the youngsters’ parents are either too busy or unable to provide.

So, it’s for a good reason that we pay special tribute to our mothers, whether they have been called to the great beyond or are still on earth.

In our different ways we collectively pump billions of dollars into the economy buying flowers and greeting cards, making telephone calls or taking the precious lady of the house to a restaurant for a celebration.

Some of us prepare special and delicious meals and place Mother or Grandmother at the head of the table. We do these things because (1) it’s the right step to take; (2) our mothers and grandmothers have earned the attention, and (3) love commands much more. So as we thank our mothers for giving us life and for drying our tears and picking us up when we fell we are but repaying a small, a tiny, part of their kindness and generosity.