Ana Avendaño, assistant to the president and director of immigration and community action at the AFL-CIO, will appear on the Melissa Harris-Perry show on MSNBC Saturday morning at 10 a.m. EDT to discuss creating a commonsense immigration process for America's 11 million aspiring citizens. 

Follow the Melissa Harris-Perry show and Avendaño on Twitter.

Earlier this week, we told you that a coalition of unions and community groups were able to move a paid sick leave bill to near fruition in New York City, while we also brought you a column by Ellen Bravo, director of Family Values @ Work, that explored the momentum behind the growing paid sick leave drive in cities across the country.

Gregory Cendana, executive director of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA), warns that the national debate around creating a commonsense immigration process “has largely ignored a disturbing trend in businesses: the modern-day indentured servitude of temporary workers.”

With reports that comprehensive immigration reform legislation being shaped by the U.S. Senate’s “Gang of Eight” may reduce the number of family visas for aspiring citizens, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and a group of faith leaders today reiterated that family reunification is a core tenet of creating a commonsense immigration process.

This week, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) joined what Washington Post's Greg Sargent calls the "slow down" caucus. Meaning Rubio, who is a member of the "Gang of Eight", and a group of Republicans are starting to back away from creating a commonsense immigration process for the nation's 11 million aspiring citizens. 

Forget the silly fluff pieces mainstream media are reporting about sequestration's effect on White House tours—there is real pain happening all over the United States.

Sam Stein and Amanda Terkel of The Huffington Post cover 99 stories of the job losses and pain felt in states across the country in Sequestration Effects: Cuts Sting Communities Nationwide.

Read the first 10 stories after the jump. 

In just two weeks, the movement for paid sick days has seen three victories—in Portland, Ore., Philadelphia and, most recently, New York City. Local coalitions in each place encountered fierce opposition, and yet the wave of wins continues.

Why now?

Because people need it, demanded it and built the capacity to win.

New York City workers would receive five paid sick days a year under a measure the New York City Council will vote on soon. The New York Times reports the paid sick leave bill is expected to pass with enough votes to override Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s promised veto.

A powerful coalition of workers, unions and community groups mobilized around the issue that had been bottled up in the City Council. The groups were able to come to an agreement with Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn to bring the paid sick leave measure to a vote.

Through its NutterWatch campaign, the Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces has been counting down the days until Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter (D) is required to act upon a new earned sick days bill, making the case that the legislation should be passed. Nutter has until April 4 to sign the bill or it will become law without his signature. If the law goes into effect, it would pave the way for 200,000 of the city's workers to have the opportunity to earn sick days at work.

In case you missed it over the weekend, check out C-SPAN's Newsmakers segment with AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka talking about creating a commonsense immigration process for aspiring Americans that benefits all workers. 

See video after the jump or click here: