National campaign for Congress Members to sign Reps. Grijalva and Clarke’s letter to President Obama, requesting him to grant temporary protection to all immigrants eligible for legalization, through deferred action by exercising his executive authorityAs we predicted, the Republican leadership that controls the U.S. House of Representatives has blatantly refused to act on immigration reform and ended any possibility of bipartisan legislation to resolve the plight of 11 million immigrants, that will continue to face massive deportation and the separation of families. They deserve the President’s temporary protection for humanitarian reasons and to strengthen the U.S. economy.Thus, we ask all Californians to contact your Congress representative and urge them to sign and support the progressive members of Congress led by Reps. Raul Grijalva and Yvette Clarke, and over 30 other members of congress that have already signed the following letter to President Obama:
“PROTECT OUR FAMILIES” LETTER TO PRES. OBAMA
Dear Colleague,
We ask that you join us in signing the letter below asking President Obama to expand the successful deferred action program and suspend any further deportations of those who would be potential citizens under immigration reform.
The civil disobedience action on Tuesday, October 8th has shown our commitment to making sure immigration reform is brought to the floor and families stop being separated. Thousands of people, including labor unions and faith groups, joined our effort on Tuesday to underscore the urgent need for House Republican leadership to take concrete action to ensure that the House of Representatives has votes on immigration reform this year. Those affected by deportations spoke at the rally, including Angel Aguilar, an eleven year old boy whose father was deported. Support Angel and children just like him by urging the President to stop deportations while the House works on a comprehensive immigration reform bill.
The United States is now deporting people at a faster rate than at any time in our modern history, more than 1,100 people per day. Between the years 2008 and 2012, an estimated 1.5 million immigrants were deported. Although the administration has reportedly prioritized deporting only criminals, our broken immigration policy has separated far too many families. According to a 2009 report by the Department of Homeland Security, only 11% of those detained were held for violent crimes.
As we continue our push for immigration reform, and as it is met with opposition, working people should not have to continue to live in fear of separation from their families and our communities. Deferred action would give millions of families the opportunity to contribute to our great nation in a variety of ways. We urge you to join us in building a humane immigration system that addresses our needs as a single society connected by family values, economic needs, and the desire to create a life for ourselves and those we love.
Some of our colleagues worked with representatives from 543 organizations across the nation making this request to the President and we are pleased to formalize it in this letter.
Raúl M. Grijalva Yvette Clarke
Member of Congress Member of Congress
Dear Mr. President,
The undersigned Members of Congress respectfully request that you expand the successful deferred action program and suspend any further deportations of those who would be potential citizens under immigration reform.
We stand by the 543 faith-based, labor, neighborhood, legal, and civil rights organizations, including the AFL-CIO, MALDEF, United We Dream, and NDLON that support this proposal, and agree that this is the best way to advance the path to citizenship for undocumented individuals across the country.
We appreciate your commitment to reforming our nation’s broken immigration policies for the benefit of all. In the context of the intransigence of a small number of legislators that are willing to hold the legislation hostage unless we pass a series of incredibly extreme proposals, a cessation of the deportation of the 1,100 potential citizens expelled daily would do a great deal to set the parameters of the conversation.
Let us not take these policies lightly. Every deportation of a father, a sister, or a neighbor tears at our social consciousness; every unnecessary raid and detention seriously threatens the fabric of civil liberties we swore to uphold. We are talking about American families and American communities. Criminalizing American families or giving local law enforcement the responsibility to choose who stays and who goes, is not the right option.
Our efforts in Congress will only be helped by the sensible and moral step of stopping deportations.
As we have seen with deferred action for childhood arrivals, such relief brings with it the benefit of active participation in the debate by undocumented people themselves. When their stories are known and voices are heard, we have witnessed how the debate shifts. The fear and xenophobia that block progress only shrink in the display of their courage. But left unchecked, the threat of deportations will prevent so many from coming forward and contributing to the national conversation. Instead, the specter of deportation removes the human and grounding element in any political discussion—those individuals who are most directly impacted.
The senseless opposition that neither reflects the public’s will, nor the moral responsibility we hold, should not allow us to prolong the needless suffering of those who could so soon have their place in our society fully recognized. In fact, taking a strong step toward granting relief would move us in the direction of where the immigration debate rightfully should start, with the legalization of eleven million men and women who call the United States their home.
As the debate proceeds, it is necessary to expand the protections of our future citizens that were established by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and grant it to the family and neighbors and all of those who have made their lives here but are yet to be fully recognized.
We cannot continue to witness potential citizens in our districts go through the anguish of deportation when legalization could be just around the corner for them. We look to you to firmly contribute to advancing inclusion for immigrants by suspending deportations and expanding DACA.
Sincerely,
The undersigned
Raúl M. Grijalva, Yvette Clarke, John Delaney, Jan Schakowsky, Del. Eni Faleomavaega, Dina Titus, Mark Pocan, Marc Veasey, Alcee L. Hastings, Mike Honda, Tony Cardenas, Barbara Lee, Lloyd Doggett, Charles Rangel, Rubén Hinojosa, Filemon Vela, John Lewis, Grace Napolitano, Del. Eleanor Holmes-Norton, Sam Farr, Sheila Jackson Lee, Rush Holt, Bobby L. Rush, Madeleine Bordallo, Gwen Moore, Beto O’Rourke----------------------------------------------------------Please contact your congressional representative and ask them to sign the above letter and contact Christina Partida at 202- 225-2435 or at:
christina.partida@mail.house.gov
California Congress Members not signed-on to Grijalva/Clarke letter to Pres. Obama:
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* MEMBERS ALREADY SIGNED-ON TO GRIJALVA/CLARKE LETTER TO PRES. OBAMA:
2nd Issue of Letter & Challenge Due to a Lack of Response !
Open letter to Henry Cisneros and debate challenge on protection of immigrants, instead of massive deportations by President Obama
By Professor Armando Vazquez-Ramos, October 14, 2013
Dear Henry,
In response to the bipartisan group that has warned pro-deferred action advocates that “pushing President Barack Obama to halt deportations could kill the broader effort” of immigration reform, I’d like to denounce the position taken by the Bipartisan Policy Center's Immigration Task Force that you co-chair, and challenge you to a debate as soon as possible.
Henry, lets debate Mano-a-mano anytime and anyplace, or virtually via internet.
Nothing personal, just the facts that separate our point of view.
I am one of those pro-deferred action advocates and have co-authored 2 opinion editorials that propose for President Obama to grant deferred action or temporary protective status to all 11 million undocumented immigrants now, given that Congress will fail to approve a sensible and inclusive immigration reform in 2013.
In fact, as we expressed on our July 26, 2013 Op-Ed (“Time for Obama to give ‘help’, not ‘hope’ on immigration reform promise”*), “deferred action is not amnesty, while Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is a long-established administrative function of the Homeland Security Administration. President Obama would temporarily protect the undocumented immigrant until Congress responsibly legislates sensible comprehensive immigration reform, and force Republican legislators to recognize the economic benefits and the political consequences of their continued demonization of immigrants”.
This is exactly the reason why President Obama should grant temporary protection to all eligible undocumented immigrants, and authorize a registration process for all those that would benefit from a legalization process.
How blasphemous and arrogant for our own leaders to reach that conclusion, and to accept that Obama has surpassed the two million deportations mark during less than 5 years in office, exceeding the amount of Mexicans deported during the 1930’s under the decade of the Repatriation Act era.
As we stated in our Opinion Editorial published by the Hispanic Link News Service (***) last week, “history will judge the path Obama follows: emancipator or deporter-in-chief president. He has the authority and moral responsibility to act on his stated values and end the political charade, as Governor Brown has done to the extent of state (not federal) powers. In addition to the fundamental humanitarian rationale for the president’s protective executive action — the far most important reason for acting — he has a potent economic cause. The United States needs the income. Immigrants contribute a net economic benefit that brings in revenue, subduing the crises currently holding Washington hostage”.
In the final analysis, I believe that in spite of two new comprehensive immigration reform bills introduced by democrats, the acrimony between both parties over the shutdown and the GOP’s disdain for President Obama’s health reform, even Democratic Party and union leaders agree behind closed doors on the demise of immigration reform this year.
In my opinion, the Democratic Party has squandered the opportunity to leverage and use the threat of executive action by the President, as a tool to pressure the Tea Party-controlled GOP on immigration reform.
If the president continues to reject that option, as he stated last month on Telemundo, he also puts at risk that Latinos and other members of immigrant communities may abstain in the 2014 congressional elections.
President Obama has the authority and moral responsibility to do this now as a political ‘check mate’ on the political checkerboard to push back the heinous GOP’s intransigence.
In closing, I’d like to ask you: if your grandfather, Don Romulo Munguia (who fled Mexico due to political persecution), had been deported- where would you be now and would you feel the same way about deportations today ?
I trust that you will accept my challenge for a debate between us, or perhaps between panels with you, Eliseo and Hilda, matched with me and 2 other pro-deferred action advocates like NDLON’s Pablo Alvarado.
Perhaps we may convince you and your group to advice President Obama to exercise his executive authority, granting immigrants temporary protection and leaving behind a Lincolnian legacy.
~ END ~
Professor Armando Vazquez-Ramos is a co-founder of the Cal State Long Beach Chicano and Latino Studies Department and President of the California-Mexico Studies Center (www.california-mexicocenter.org).
Henry Cisneros, was Mayor of San Antonio and former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Bill Clinton.
References:
(*) Piden a Obama aprobar un TPS para todos los indocumentados, Por: La Opinion, EFE Agosto 16, 2013
**Immigration Reform Group: Halting Deportations Would Hurt Effort, The Huffington Post ~ 10/10/2013
44,000 can’t wait for immigration reform in Congress by Pablo Alvarado - 08/02/13
(*)President Obama’s no-Congress strategy,
(*)Immigration Advocates Will Urge Obama Executive Order if Reform Fails
NEWS MAX, Saturday, August 3, 2013
(*)Stopping Deportations Should Be 'Plan A' for Immigration Reform
August 9, 2013 - Los Angeles, CA
(*)Immigration Activists Shift Focus to Obama By Miriam Jordan, The Wall Street Journal, ~ Oct. 13, 2013
Obama must grant protection to immigrants if GOP fails to accept reform now
By Armando Vázquez-Ramos and Primitivo Rodríguez
Hispanic Link News Service, Column No. 5465 ~ 10/10/13
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