In a statement issued Nov. 13 during the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' annual fall general assembly in Baltimore, Los Angeles Archbishop Jose H. Gomez, committee chair, called on Obama and congressional leaders to work together on a bipartisan immigration reform bill.
He also encouraged people to make their voices heard in support of an immigration system "which upholds the rule of law, preserves family unity and protects the human rights and dignity of the person."
With the strong turnout of Latino voters in support of Obama's re-election Nov. 6, politicians from both parties have said they are willing to revive and follow through on the long-stagnant efforts to fix the problematic U.S. immigration system.
An estimated 11 million people in the U.S. lack legal immigration status.
Most of them have no path to legalization that does not involve returning to their home countries to wait in lines that can take decades to clear.
Many of those people live in families in which some members are U.S. citizens and others have legal immigration status.