In an effort to emphasize the importance of immigrants to the economy and the dramatic consequences of a broken immigration system, the tech-funded immigrant rights organization FWD.US has launched its #Freedom2Innovate campaign.
The campaign’s goal is to ramp up pressure on Congress to reform the current immigration laws, including the use of social media and grassroots efforts. With the hope that the hashtag #Freedom2Innovate goes viral, its main objective is to highlight how immigration reform makes sense from an economic, humane and political standpoint.
FWD.US stresses that failing to fix the current immigration system has made the United States pay a high price.
“We educate the best and brightest only to tell them there is no place for them to create jobs here,” the organization states on a blog post.
The consequences of current immigration policies includes a diaspora of high-skilled immigrants who end up finding jobs in other countries, rather than staying in the U.S., and $37 million dollars lost every day because of Congress’s inaction, states FWD.US.
The campaign will direct the public to sign the #Freedom2Innovate petition, an online document which emphasizes that the best and the brightest immigrants should have the freedom to innovate, launch their own businesses and stay in the United States.
It will also provide a link to the public to directly call their local representative office. Users are urged to make the case during the call that immigration reform will help the economy, with an emphasis on immigrant entrepreneurs and their ability to ignite economic growth by creating jobs.
The month-long campaign will end on April 1, 2015, coinciding with the date the USCIS will begin accepting new H1-B visa petitions for the 2016 fiscal year. The H1-B visa cap is expected to be reached within 5 business days of the date when the USCIS starts receiving new applications, spotlighting the shortage of visas available.
The campaign will also highlight how a broken immigration system affects families, especially how an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the country live in constant fear of being deported and separated from their children and spouses.
The #Freedom2Innovate campaign will showcase stories of entrepreneur immigrants who have struggled to create businesses due to outdated immigration laws to create urgency for reform. It will also work with individuals who would benefit from reform laws, the technology industry and politicians from both sides of the aisle.]]