On the June 23, more than 100 representatives from numerous immigrant organizations gathered in front of City Hall to in order to petition the City Council to restore the $5 million budget for the Immigrant Opportunities Initiative (IOI), and ensure that new immigrants in New York City will have the opportunity to learn English.
Margaret Chin (D-District 1), Daniel Dromm (D-District 25) and other City Council members also joined the protest, pledging their very best to secure the budget.
The Immigrant Opportunities Initiative was set up by the City Council to primary provide English language, legal, and naturalization services. Last year, it provided 72 organizations and 4,000 new immigrants with various services. However, this year, because of budget cuts, many of the services needed by the immigrants were cut. Daniel Dromm, Chair the Immigration Committee of the City Council urged all the City councilmen to join him to protest the cuts to these services. Jumaane Williams (D-District 45), Melissa Mark-Viverito (D-District 8), and Julissa Ferreras (D-District 21) were also present.
Many immigrant organizations also joined the protest. The participants held protest signs and shouted "IOI," while activists emphasized that New York is a city of immigrants. They pointed out that of the city's $6 billion budget, only $5 million went to the IOI, which now the city threatened to cut – a move that penalized immigrants.
According to an attorney from Asian Americans for Equality, Asian Americans make up 12 percent of the population, but they could not get even 1 percent of the budget. If the budget, which is already limited, were cut, it would make it harder for immigrants to become part of the mainstream society.
If the City Council does not solve this problem, starting the second half of the year, nonprofit organizations that provide English-language, legal, and other services to immigrants would find it very difficult to serve the immigrant population. Among the organizations that would be affected by the budget cuts is the Service Center in Chinatown, which could close down.
The teachers led many students to join the protest. They joined immigrants from different ethnicities who came with the hope that City Hall will help them to continue to learn English.
