Ethnic groups led by Latino organizations in Los Angeles has called for united actions to push forward a just immigration reform to legalize 11 million undocumented Asian immigrants in the United States. The call was made in response to this week's announcements by U.S. President Barack Obama and a bipartisan group of U.S. senators known as the "Gang of 8" proclaiming that immigration reform is a national policy priority.
Group leaders announced the formation of a coalition to unite Asian and African communities, and called for the suspension of family separation and status change from the beneficiaries of the Temporary Protected Status to Legal Permanent Residents.
Nearly half of the 4.3 million family members waiting abroad in family backlogs are from Asian countries. The top five loaded countries include four Asian countries -- the Philippines, India, Vietnam and China, according to Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC).
There are approximately 1.3 million undocumented Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States, who often bear the burden and heartbreak of long years of family separation, according to APALC.
According to the National Asian American Survey, 58 percent of Asian Americans support a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants in the United States, an increase from 32 percent in 2008.