Immigrants and their supporters rallied in East Boston on Saturday to bring attention to the effects of deportation on families and to call for immigration reform.

Numerous immigration advocacy groups, including the Student Immigrant Movement, Mass Uniting, and the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, organized the event in honor of Mother’s Day.

Conrado Santos, a member of the Student Immigrant Movement, said the possibility of immigration reform gives hope to a community living with the constant threat of deportation.  “Our community is already suffering so much under the weight of deportation,” he said.  “But on the other hand, I think people are excited.  For the first time in 26 years, immigration reform is a real possibility.”

Santos is an undocumented immigrant who came to the U.S. with his parents from Brazil when he was 13.  He graduated from Somerville High School, and studied philosophy and public policy at Umass Boston without graduating because it was too expensive.

Monique Nguyen of Quincy, MA also attended the rally.  She’s the director of MataHari: Eye of the Day, a human rights organization for immigrant women and women of color.  She urged people to consider

“When people think about immigration reform, they should think about families,” she said.

Nguyen’s parents fled Vietnam during the war and moved to Canada, where she was born.  The family later moved to Houston, Texas to help take care of her aunt who was injured in an automobile accident.  After spending 15 years in the U.S., her parents’ visas lapsed and they gave up trying to become citizens.  “After being in the US for 15 years, they all dropped their lives to start over in Canada,” she said. “They moved around their whole life, losing their country and then coming here. It’s been really difficult.”

Nguyen became a permanent U.S. resident in 2007 after marrying a New Yorker of Filipino descent, and no longer has to face the threat of deportation.  She studied nutrition and global business at the University of Houston.

Boston Immigration Attorneys

At the Law Offices of Jacob D. Geller, we understand how deportation affects families in the Boston area.

Please contact us at 781-462-1356 or online for a free consultation if you or a loved one are facing the threat of deportation. Our experienced deportation/removal attorneys can advise you of your rights and use a number of legal strategies to try to prevent the deportation/removal process.

Source: At rally, immigrants focus on deportation’s impact on families, www.bostonglobe.com, May 12, 2013.
Immigrants and their supporters rallied in East Boston on Saturday to bring attention to the effects of deportation on families and to call for new immigration laws.

Immigration Reform Should Move Forward in the Wake of the Boston Marathon Bombings.

As an attorney located in Boston only blocks away from the site of the Boston Marathon bombings last week, I am particularly sensitive to the issue of the alleged bombers’ status as immigrants.  Shortly after the bombing, the bipartisan group known as the Gang of Eight released a proposed bill for immigration reform (for more information on the substance of that proposal, see our article Immigration Reform Would Affect Immigrants in Boston).  Hearings on this proposal began on Friday and continued on Monday, where Republicans raised the Boston Marathon bombings as an example of why immigration reform should be delayed.  There is absolutely no rational behind such a suggestion.

The truth is that the alleged bombers were both immigrants.  One of them was a U.S. citizen and one was currently a lawful permanent resident.  They had immigrated to the United States with their parents and received their status through asylum.  Asylum is a form of relief mandated under international law and the United Nation to protect certain people from being persecuted in their home countries.  Immigration reform does not seek to limit asylum nor change the way asylum is construed under U.S. immigration law.  It would not have prevented the legal immigration of the two alleged bombers.

In fact, the approximately 11 million persons currently in the United States without legal status are more difficult to detect than the people who legally immigrate.  Reform would actually lead to additional people being fingerprinted and placed in federal databases.  It would allow cross-checking of people and, in fact, would improve the government’s ability to combat terrorism and crime as these records could be cross-checked with foreign crime agencies.

Immigration reform that led to people gaining status in the United States would foster civic passion in the new immigrants.  They would eventually be able to take part in the political process and this would foster feelings of inclusion rather than the exclusion and marginalization that occurs with many immigrants with no legal status.  This can only improve our safety, contrary to what opposing politicians might suggest.

The Boston Marathon bombings were a horrendous occurrence.  There is no question that we should take steps to prevent anything similar happening in the future.  However, delaying or defeating comprehensive immigration reform is not going to make our country safer or prevent an event like this from happening again in the future.

We here at the Law Offices of Jacob D. Geller feel very strongly about the need for immigration reform.  Many of our clients are in immigration proceedings with no viable means of relief.  We urge everyone capable of supporting immigration reform to do so for the sake of the United States, a country that was built by immigrants.

Sources

Sen. Leahy continues to pursue immigration reform, by Neil P. Goswami, Bennington Banner News, April 23, 2013.

Q. and A.: The Senate Immigration Bill, by Julia Preston, New York Times, April 22, 2013.

Immigration Reform is making progress.

Congress will be considering comprehensive immigration reform legislation that could lead to big changes in the way the federal government deals with immigrants unlawfully present in the Boston area and throughout the country. On Tuesday, a group of Democratic and Republican senators known as the Gang of Eight introduced a bill to give legal status to the 11 million people who illegally entered the United States or overstayed their visas.

“Our immigration system is broken and it is time for a national conversation about how to fix it,” the Senators said in a joint statement Wednesday. “We believe common-sense immigration reform is vital in order to secure America’s borders, advance our economic growth, and provide fuller access to the American dream.”

Law Offices of Jacob D. Geller has been closely following the immigration reform debate over the past few months.  Here’s how this proposed legislation could impact the approximately 160,000 immigrants living without status in Boston and the rest of Massachusetts:

• Undocumented immigrants would have a path to citizenship if they came to the country before December 31, 2011, hold a job, pay a $500 fine and all back taxes, and haven’t committed a felony or three misdemeanors.
• Someone meeting all those requirements would become a registered provisional, and be able to stay in the U.S. legally without the threat of deportation.  He or she would not have access to some public benefits.
• The provisional status would be renewed after six years if the individual has a consistent work history, isn’t a criminal, and pays an additional $500 fine.
• Four years after that, he or she could apply for a green card that would require a steady work history, continuous presence in the U.S., regular tax payments, knowledge of English and civics, no criminal record, and payment of a $1,000 fine.
• The individual would be eligible three years later to become a citizen.  This pathway, in total, would take 13 years and a minimum of $2,000 in fines plus all back taxes, in addition to the other requirements.
• Three years after that, the person would be eligible to become a citizen.

In total, the path to citizenship would take 13 years and requires a minimum of $2,000 in fines plus all back taxes among other requirements, according to the Washington Post.

The bill would offer an easier route to citizenship for people who entered the U.S. when they were young, the aptly named “Dreamers”.  Students who came to the country before they were 16, graduated from high school, and have been in the country for five years could apply for permanent residency in five years.  They would be able to apply for citizenship immediately after that if they finish at least two years of college or serve two years in the military. 

President Obama indicated his support for the legislation before its release, saying “I urge the Senate to quickly move this bill forward and, as I told Senators Schumer and McCain, I stand willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that comprehensive immigration reform becomes a reality as soon as possible.”

For more information about how immigration would affect Boston-area immigrants, please contact us at Law Offices of Jacob D. Geller or email us at esben@jdgellerlaw.com.

Sources:

Bipartisan group introduces immigration reform bill, www.latimes.com, April 17, 2013.
Gang Of Eight Unveils Immigration Reform Details, miami.cbslocal.com, April 17, 2013.
Statement by the President on Commonsense Immigration Reform, www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office, April 16, 2013.