This Week in Immigration Reform – Week Ending April 11

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Week Ending April 11, 2014

This week in immigration reform: New reports document that the majority of the people deported under the Obama administration’s immigration enforcement efforts have never committed a crime or only had minor infractions, such as traffic violations; President and CEO of NCLR Janet Murguía wrote in the National Journal that the deportation crisis is personal to Latinos; and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus met with Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson to encourage him to enforce and enhance the protection of immigrant families under the administration’s current prosecutorial discretion policy.

–The New York Times and TRAC talk deportation numbers. This Monday April 6th, the New York Times published a report based on internal government records that demonstrates who gets deported. Two-thirds of the 2 million deportations involved people who had committed minor infractions, traffic violations, or who had no criminal record at all. On the other hand only 20%, (394,000 cases) involved people convicted of drug-related offenses or more serious crimes. TRAC, the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, also analyzed records released by ICE regarding the 2.3 million deportations. Their findings indicated that for FY 2013 only 12% of all deportees had been found to have committed a serious offense. More than half of the total 2.3 million had charges regarding immigration or traffic violations.

–President and CEO of NCLR, Janet Murguía tells both political parties that for Latinos, the deportation crisis is personal. Janet Murguía offered insight into the devastation deportations have on families and children. Murguía stressed the need to hold both the President and Speaker Boehner accountable. In the past two years 200,000 parents of U.S. citizen children have been deported posing taxing challenges on younger Americans. Murguía also mentions the repercussions for both parties in the short and long term if there is no personal, real, or meaningful action to mend our broken immigration system.

–The Congressional Hispanic Caucus met with Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson. On April 9th members of the Hispanic Caucus and Jeh Johnson engaged in a discussion over prosecutorial discretion efforts previously carved out by the administration. The CHC also presented the Secretary with a memo detailing measures the Obama administration could take under the current law to protect immigrants and American families from deportations.

NCLR and Affiliates in Action

  • Florida: On Monday and Tuesday, NCLR Affiliate, RCMA and NCLR staff visited state lawmakers in Tallahassee to encourage the passing of legislation that would help Florida youths. Thanks to the advocacy efforts of RCMA and others, the in-state tuition bill (SB 1400) has passed the Senate Appropriations Education Subcommittee. The bill will now go to the Senate Appropriations Committee and then the Senate floor. ImmReformUpdate_4_11_2014_pic1Five RCMA 8th grade Latina students join Sen. Garcia (FL-36) as they lobby for KidCare/Medicaid Expansion, In-state Tuition and drivers licenses for DACA recipients
  •  Across the Country: NCLR Affiliates TODEC, El Pueblo, and CARECEN participated in rallies to stop deportations this past weekend in California, Raleigh NC, and Washington D.C. ImmReformUpdate_4_11_2014_pic2About 20 youths from El Pueblo and the Youth Power Program protesting against f deportations in Raleigh, North Carolina.ImmReformUpdate_4_11_2014_pic3
    NCLR Affiliate, TODEC rallying against deportations April 5th in California