
Citizens Commission on Immigration
The goal of the Citizens Commission on Immigration is to demonstrate to Congress and the nation that Americans with differing views on immigration can find common ground. The Commission works in a red/blue balanced way and includes Americans from all sides of the issue. It was launched after a red/blue balanced group of about 750 delegates at the 2024 Braver Angels National Convention gathered and voted to establish immigration as a Braver Angels priority issue. This is following in the footsteps of our successful Trustworthy Elections Campaign.
The Citizens Commission on Immigration encompasses focus on Grassroots Americans, National Leaders, and Congress and culminates in a Report to the Nation, outlining key policy recommendations on immigration that reflect red/blue common ground from the grassroots and national work.
Questions?
Finding common ground on immigration
Focus Areas
Grassroots Americans
Centered around approximately 100 Braver Angels events on immigration including Common Ground Workshops, Local Community Debates and Congress Member and Constituent Conversations.
National Leaders
Centered around the Immigration Policy Roundtable, a small group of nationally prominent experts and advocates representing all sides of the issue and committed to seeking common ground.
Congress
Centered around on-going conversation with Members of Congress, including invitations to observe or participate in Braver Angels events on immigration.
Ways to Help

We need members from across the country to participate in this effort.
Our goal is to have at least one event in every state!
EDUCATE YOURSELF
Watch Immigration 101: A short intro to the U.S. Immigration System, led by two experts who differ on immigration policies but agree on the facts.
DO SOMETHING
Help to organize or participate in an event in your local area to find common ground on immigration.
Timeline
Leadership Team
David (leans red) is a co-founder of Braver Angels and director of the Citizens Commission on Immigration. He lives in South Lebanon, Ohio.
David is president and co-founder of Braver Angels. He is the author of In search of Braver Angels. He co-founded the National Fatherhood Initiative in 1995, founded the Institute for American Values in 1988, and has authored or co-edited 14 books. He grew up in Mississippi and now lives with his family in New York City.
Reena (leans blue) is a Braver Angels moderator and national leader, and was the Project Lead of the BA Trustworthy Elections Campaign. She created the “Common Ground Workshop” so Reds and Blues can address issues constructively. The workshops do a deep dive into a single issue for the purpose of finding unanimous points of agreement on values, concerns and solutions/policies. Common Ground Workshops have tackled such issues as abortion, teaching about race and racism in public schools, antisemitism, addressing climate change – and in ensuring trustworthy elections. Reena is a marriage and family therapist in the DC area.
Kerry Conboy is a multilingual immigration law analyst who has interviewed thousands of aspiring Americans from more than 120 countries to determine eligibility for immigration benefits in the U.S. She has delivered in-person immigration law workshops to more than 10,000 farmworkers, law enforcement leaders, detained children, school administrators, county social services departments, and faith leaders. She has also trained and mentored hundreds of law students, asylum officers, and attorneys in accurately applying our nation’s immigration laws to individual fact patterns. Her case experience is curiously broad but she has spent the most time handling Asylum, DACA, Naturalization, and humanitarian visas for survivors of crime and human trafficking. She has also been responsible for cases involving egregious public safety, fraud, and national security concerns. For six years, she led an interdisciplinary training center at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis, one of the most politically balanced law schools in the country. She also spent seven years as a migration counselor at Catholic Charities Division of Immigrant & Refugee Services in New York. Her professional contributions to the media have been featured in the New York Times, Univision, Telemundo, among others. She is originally from the Lower Hudson Valley, New York and lives in Southern California.
Laura (leans blue) is the outreach coordinator for this initiative. She is a retired engineer and project manager from Hewlett Packard and 3D Systems. In her work for Braver Angels she is also on the Braver Faith leadership team and posts regularly on the Braver Angels Oregon Facebook page. She lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon (near Portland).
Bio coming soon!
Bio coming soon
Bio coming soon!
Jim Robb is Vice-President of Alliances at NumbersUSA, the nation’s largest-member immigration policy group. He has served on the staff since the organization’s founding in 1996. He has authored a book on Hispanics voting trends, Political Migrants: Hispanic Voters on the Move, 2022. He lives with his wife Kim in Falls Church, Virginia.
Diego Sanchez is the Director of Policy and Strategy at the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, an alliance representing over 550 campus leaders dedicated to advancing forward-looking immigration policies and practices at the federal, state, and campus levels. A former immigration attorney, DACA recipient, and community organizer, Diego draws on more than a decade of lived experience as an undocumented individual. He is a passionate advocate for expanding immigration opportunities and advancing bipartisan solutions, working across the aisle to promote policies that benefit students, campuses, and the nation.
John Schwenkler (leans blue) lives in Decatur GA and helps lead Braver Angels initiatives for workshop development/moderating along with faith engagement
Bio coming soon!
Michelle Tolfa (leans blue) is the Data Coordinator for the initiative. She is a software engineer and lives in Seattle, WA with her husband Alex and their elderly chihuahua Charlie. When she’s not helping to support and organize Braver Angels events, she enjoys bike rides through the city and cooking.
Upcoming Events
Event Description (click to sign up) | Date |
---|---|
In person Common Ground Workshop in South Lebanon, Ohio | 1758974400 Saturday, September 27, 2025 |
In person Debate in Philomath, OR. Resolved: Our immigration policy should prioritize economic benefit to the United States over the extended families of immigrants. | 1750852800 Wednesday, June 25, 2025 |
National Common Ground Workshop (online) | 1752926400 Saturday, July 19, 2025 |
In person Common Ground Workshop in Huntington, NY | 1750593600 Sunday, June 22, 2025 |
In-person dIscussion on Immigration: Borders, Values, and America's Future in Williamsburg, VA | 1751112000 Saturday, June 28, 2025 |
Completed Events
Counters updated 6-3-25
Event | Date |
---|---|
Common Ground Workshop in Waltham, MA | May 28th, 2025 |
Debate in Durham, North Carolina | May 21st, 2025 |
Common Ground Workshop in White Plains, New York | May 18th, 2025 |
May 13th, 2025 | |
Common Ground Workshop in Montana/Wyoming (online) | April 26th, 2025 |
Immigration Policy Roundtable | April 24th, 2025 |
National Common Ground Workshop | April 19th, 2025 |
Common Ground Workshop in Minnesota | April 1st, 2025 |
Common Ground Workshop in Utah | March 29th, 2025 |
March 20th, 2025 | |
Debate in Montana/Wyoming (online) | March 20th, 2025 |
Debate in Oregon City, Oregon | March 16th, 2025 |
Common Ground Workshop in Los Angeles, CA | March 1st, 2025 |
February 25th, 2025 | |
Common Ground Workshop in Wenatchee, WA | February 8th, 2025 |
Common Ground Workshop in Atlanta | February 8th, 2025 |
National Common Ground Workshop | January, 26th, 2025 |
January 11th, 2025 | |
National Common Ground Workshop | December 7th, 2024 |
National Common Ground Workshop | November 16th, 2024 |
Common Ground Workshop in Washington DC | October 26th, 2024 |
National Common Ground Workshop | October 26th, 2024 |
National Common Ground Workshop | October 12th, 2024 |
September 28th, 2024 |