01 OCT 2021
Hub Highlights: Demand for Immigration Reform in Build Back Better Legislation Intensifies, Republicans Continue to Resort to Fear-Mongering
Washington, DC — As congressional Democrats continue to work around the clock to pass the Build Back Better reconciliation package and deliver on President Biden’s agenda, calls continue to grow demanding the inclusion of lasting protections for undocumented immigrants. With time running out, leaders, organizations, and editorial boards around the nation, including in key battleground states, are making clear this is an opportunity Democrats cannot afford to miss.
Highlights to Follow:
Former Director of Domestic Policy Council Pushes Back Against Parliamentarian on Immigration Proposal: Cecilia Muñoz, Former Director of the Domestic Policy Council in the Obama White House and current Senior Advisor at New America, wrote an opinion piece arguing that the Senate Parliamentarian “had to work plenty hard” and employed “egregious reasoning” to arrive at her decision to disallow an immigration proposal to provide a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, farmworkers, TPS holders and essential workers from the reconciliation process. In her piece, Muñoz urged Senate Democrats to move ahead with immigration proposals as part of the budget reconciliation bill writing, “After several heartbreaking brushes with the finish line over the last 15 years, Senate Democrats know that it is long past time to do what the American public supports and get this issue resolved.”
The Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) Urges Rep. Stephanie Murphy (FL-07) to Deliver on Immigration Solutions: The Florida Immigrant Coalition announced this week a paid ad campaign urging Florida voters to call Rep. Murphy’s office, urging her to advance immigration reform through the Build Back Better Act. FLIC is spending $25,000 on the radio and digital ad campaign. “There are millions of immigrant families in the state of Florida who are counting on Representative Murphy to do the right thing and deliver on her promise to help push for citizenship for TPS holders, DREAMERS, essential workers, and agricultural workers," said Yareliz Mendez-Zamora, federal campaign lead for FLIC. "The time to act is now, we need justice for our immigrant families.”
Orlando, FL, Mayor Buddy Dyer called on Congress to seize a once-in-a-generation chance to pass substantial immigration reform: Mayor Dyer argued in an op-ed that it is time for the country to start considering immigration reform as the key for local economies to thrive as opposed to only a highly divisive national political issue. He wrote, “Our economic and social vitality depends on the creation of a path to citizenship for immigrants. Immigration reform will help localities face our biggest issues today and help us get ready for a brighter future. Now is the moment for us to unite and create a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants in our country.”
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Editorial Board published “Broken Immigration Policy Needs Fixing”: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Editorial Board this week urged Congress to take meaningful action to fix our immigration system. “You can tell a lot about a country by the way it treats the foreigners and strangers in its midst. This country has always attracted the most talented and ambitious migrants in the world as well as those fleeing catastrophe and oppression who simply yearn to breathe free. The only way America can truly live up to its creed is to be welcoming to both.”
Meanwhile, the Republican response continues to center on scapegoating immigrants and deploying scare tactics to gain political points and deflect from their failure to protect the health and safety of Americans from COVID-19.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis filed a lawsuit and issued an executive order this week under the pretense of protecting Floridians from migrants - including refugees, children and other vulnerable individuals - being relocated to the state. DeSantis called on state agencies to withhold assistance from migrants, and ordered a series of scare tactics, including the gathering of information on the number and identities of individual migrants and stricter e-verify enforcement, placing targets on the backs of agencies, children and families. Governor DeSantis additionally called for the detention of vehicles suspected of transporting undocumented migrants, increasing the likelihood of racial profiling and other discriminatory actions against immigrants and people of color. Responding to Gov. DeSantis’s reprehensible actions, Immigration Hub Executive Director Sergio Gonzales said, “DeSantis, and other Republicans are using the same playbook, and must stop politicizing public health and the lives of families, regardless of their immigration status. Their actions are a shameless affront to Florida, its rich immigrant culture, and a diverse workforce at the frontlines of the pandemic.”
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The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.