Spring 2006
THE 2006 SEMINAR OF THE THIRD RECONSTRUCTION
INSTITUTE
The Impact of Immigration on North Carolina
The Third Reconstruction Institute’s annual seminar will
be held June 8-10 in Durham North Carolina, and will examine the
impact of immigration on North Carolina and the contributions of
immigrants to the North Carolina economy. One hundred leaders, allies
and guests of the Industrial Areas Foundation network are expected
to attend.
The Third Reconstruction Institute is an initiative of the North
Carolina IAF Network, which comprises four broad-based community
organizations (CAN in Durham, ROAR in Raleigh, CHANGE in Winston-Salem
and HELP in Charlotte) and the statewide North Carolina Latino Coalition.
The organizations have a track record of successful action in addressing
issues important to families in the areas of education, health care,
community safety and economic opportunity.
The North Carolina Latino Coalition will play a key role in the
Institute. The Coalition will draw immigrant leaders from community
centers, workers associations and religious institutions from throughout
the state. In August of last year, the Coalition demonstrated its
reach by gathering 1,000 leaders for an Assembly at Saint Francis
of Assisi Catholic Church in Raleigh.
Three presenters will help frame the seminar discussions:
• Dr. Jonathan Fox , Professor of Latin American and Latino
Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz
• Xochitl Bada, University of Notre Dame
• Leo Anchondo, Director, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
“Justice for Immigrants” Campaign.
Co-sponsors of the seminar include the Roman Catholic Diocese of
Charlotte, The Kellogg Foundation, The Fenwick Foundation, The Z.
Smith Reynolds Foundation and the Hart Leadership Program of the
Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University.
IAF leaders see the need to fashion a response to the challenges
presented by immigration in North Carolina. Since 1990, the Hispanic
population in North Carolina has grown from 75,000 to 506,206. The
impact has been felt throughout the state, but especially in the
major metropolitan areas where CAN, CHANGE, HELP, and ROAR operate.
Public schools, health care systems, community demographics and
labor markets have been transformed. The success of these organizations
increasingly depends upon their ability to relate to and understand
the interests of immigrants and their families.
The June seminar will be the first of several gatherings focused
on immigration in North Carolina. The IAF sees a need for ongoing
reflection and conversation in order to develop action strategies
to deal with what will remain a challenging situation for North
Carolina. We believe that the institutional leaders attending the
seminar can form a powerful constituency in North Carolina for creating
a humane, pragmatic immigration and immigrant policy.
The goal of the seminar is to have a new and different conversation
about immigration and immigrants. Such a conversation needs to:
• Be tri-racial, involving Latinos, African Americans and
Anglos
• Involve many sectors, classes and regions from North Carolina
• Gather leaders from a variety of community institutions,
such as congregations, community centers, businesses, and other
sectors
Important themes and topics to be explored at the seminar will
include:
• The history of immigration and immigrants in America
• The system of immigration controls and enforcement
• The latest 20 year wave of immigration from Central America
and Mexico
• The economic impact of the recent immigrant flow on North
Carolina
• How immigrants have affected labor markets and labor market
outcomes for white and African-American workers
• Public policy challenges and opportunities
• The values important to a rational and humane immigration
policy
For more information about the Third Reconstruction Institute
Seminar and the North Carolina IAF contact the IAF office in Durham
at 919 530-8515.
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