The White House has announced that President Barack Obama will deliver remarks at Casa Azafran in South Nashville, where he will speak on executive actions he is taking to fix America’s broken immigration system on Tuesday, Dec. 9.

“We are honored that President Obama has chosen our city as a place to talk about the nation’s immigration system,” said Mayor Karl Dean following the White House announcement on Dec. 4.

“Nashville continues to lead the way as a welcoming and open city to immigrants with the recent opening of the Mayor’s Office of New Americans, one of the first of its kind in the South,” said Dean. “This visit will be a great opportunity for President Obama to see first-hand Nashville’s commitment to making it easier for immigrants to adapt to living in our community, be successful here and add to the city’s economic vitality.”
Tuesday’s visit is President Obama’s second trip to Nashville in less than year. In January, he spoke at McGavock High School.

“It’s always an honor and a thrill when a sitting president visits Nashville,” U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper said in praise of President Obama’s upcoming visit to Nashville. “I welcome President Obama to our vibrant, thriving and diverse city. Nashville is the perfect setting for his remarks.”

According to the official White House website: Our immigration system has been broken for decades. Every day we wait to act, millions of undocumented immigrants are living in the shadows: Those who want to pay taxes and play by the same rules as everyone else have no way to live right by the law. That is why President Obama is using his executive authority to address as much of the problem as he can, and why he’ll continue to work with Congress to pass comprehensive reform.

“We define ourselves as a nation of immigrants,” President Obama said on January 29, 2013. “That’s who we are in our bones. The promise we see in those who come here from every corner of the globe, that’s always been one of our greatest strengths. It keeps our workforce young. It keeps our country on the cutting edge. And it’s helped build the greatest economic engine the world has ever known.” In his address to the nation last month, President Obama said clearly: “Now here’s the thing: We expect people who live in this country to play by the rules. We expect that those who cut the line will not be unfairly rewarded. So we’re going to offer the following deal: If you’ve been in America for more than five years; if you have children who are American citizens or legal residents; if you register, pass a criminal background check, and you’re willing to pay your fair share of taxes—you’ll be able to apply to stay in this country temporarily without fear of deportation. You can come out of the shadows and get right with the law. That’s what this deal is.”

At press time no details about the visit, such as the time or who would be admitted, were available. See next week’s edition for complete coverage of President Obama’s visit.