Telling a Shared Story
Working for Immigrant Rights

Immigrants are—and always have been—a vital part of our national community. They are our neighbors, coworkers, and key contributors to our economy and culture. But newcomers often face a range of challenges and hostilities, and addressing these issues is crucial to ensuring opportunity and human rights for all. We therefore need national and local policies that welcome immigrants, while promoting the economic security and mobility of everyone.

The Challenge
Although most Americans favor immigration, discussions around the issue have grown contentious and divisive. Though small in numbers, the anti-immigration movement has successfully controlled the public discourse, and consequently thwarted positive solutions. Media research shows that while immigration opponents have been disciplined in their core messages, no similarly coherent or compelling story about integrating immigrants into the fabric of society has broken into the media discourse.

The Opportunity Agenda's Approach
The Opportunity Agenda helps advocates across issues craft and use values-based messages to amplify existing campaigns, while building a long-term constituency for opportunity. To address fragmented or uncoordinated communications, we bring people together for the movement-level communications strategy development that is often missing in social justice efforts. Partners then tailor shared themes to create messages that move their particular audiences, while at the same time contributing to a drumbeat of messages that build public will for opportunity.

Our Activities
The Opportunity Agenda brings together immigration allies to develop and promote a common, values-based narrative about immigration that taps into Americans’ core values and counters the divisive and misleading story that opponents have so effectively promoted.

We analyzed public opinion and media coverage, and worked with partners to create a series of communications tools, including talking points, model op-eds, and letters to the editor. To further encourage a shared strategy and message, we facilitated a Strategic Messaging Forum, which included more than 100 leading voices in the field. The Forum, and the efforts that followed, have helped immigrant advocates and supporters pursue a shared message on a range of issues, including fair wages and working conditions, access to medical care, due process and detention policies, and a pathway to citizenship. Advocates and policy makers are now using a shared message to fight off harmful policy proposals and advance affirmative solutions.

As with all of our work, we have linked these types of immigration activities and partnerships with efforts to ensure economic and racial justice for all Americans.