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USA: Presidential action brings relief from deportation to millions of families
an article by Laurie R. Glenn
The members of the National Alliance of Latin
American and Caribbean Communities (NALACC)
have worked tirelessly, in collaboration with many
others, to press for a halt to the deportations and
detentions that rip apart immigrant families. We
called upon the President to take action, to see
the faces of immigrant children and families and
break through the partisan bickering. Today, he
listened. His action could provide relief to millions
of families, families who will no longer have to live
in daily fear of deportation. 
click on photo to enlarge
"This important step forward could never have
happened without the incredible grassroots effort
on the part of students, parents, people of faith,
professionals, and activists who have come
together and showed the nation the terrible
human cost of our broken immigration policy,"
said Claudia Lucero, President of NALACC.
"Although many families will benefit, many more
will not," added Lucero. "We are particularly
disappointed at the exclusion of parents of young
immigrants who benefited earlier from Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals. We had hoped the
President would be responsive to the need for
family unification in those cases," added Lucero.
"Our members are ready to start tomorrow,
bringing together information and services with
community organizing to enable those who may
benefit from the relief measures, as well as those
who may not, to struggle together for the changes
in U.S. immigration law that immigrant
communities deserve, and the nation needs," she
concluded.
"We know that the road ahead is a long one, but
as an immigrant-led network, we will walk that
road with our communities," said Oscar Chacón,
NALACC's Executive Director. "We will identify
short, medium, and long-term steps toward
migration policies that integrate immigrants as
partners, rather than treating them like criminals.
We will push back on misguided militarization of
our southern border in the name of security. As a
transnational organization, we will continue to
press for policies that address the root causes of
migration, and protect human rights along the full
migration pathway," added Chacón
NALACC is a network of community-based; Latino
and Caribbean immigrant-led organizations in the
US that seeks to raise the quality of life for
immigrant communities in the United States, as
well as communities in migrant-sending countries
in Latin America. Over the years, NALACC has
built close working relationships with key civil
society organizations throughout Latin America.
For more information go to website www.nalacc.org.
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DISCUSSION
Question(s) related to this article:
Should illegal immigrants be protected?,
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LATEST READER COMMENT:
The news report of a merger between HERE, the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union and UNITE, the clothing, textiles and laundry union, is important news for all workers including illegal immigrants, because these unions are in the forefront of organizing immigrant workers and assuring their rights.
By bringing immigrant workers into the trade union movement, these unions promote worker unity and deny unscrupulous employers the option of pitting one group of workers against another.
This is a great step forward for the American labor movement which did not support union rights for illegal immigrants during the 19th and 20th Centuries.
And, of course, it is a great step forward for immigrant workers at the same time.
The new union will represent 440,000 active members and more than 400,000 retirees throughout North America. The tentative agreement is expected to be ratified with a vote by rank-and-file members at a special joint convention in Chicago in July. . .
UNITE and HERE have collaborated most recently in the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride, the successful struggle for a fair contract for Yale workers, and in the current effort to unionize H&M retail and distribution workers. . .
UNITE historically represents workers in the apparel and textile industries, and more recently has organized industrial laundries, distribution centers and workers in light manufacturing. HERE members are in the hospitality industries, working in hotels, airports, casinos, food service, and restaurants. Though there are places where the industries overlap, particularly in hospitality and laundry, the merger is primarily a reflection of the two unions' shared values and priorities: social justice economic opportunity, civil rights, the rights of immigrant workers and a commitment to organizing unrepresented workers. . ...more.
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