In response to last night’s release of the President and Senate’s compromise border deal, which proposes incredibly harmful and backwards policies such as streamlining deportations and shutting down the border, Elizabeth Sweet, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA) Coalition, issued the following statement:
“This bill is inhumane and un-American. Rather than prioritizing humane immigration reform, the Senate and President Biden want to gut it by making it easier to shut the border to individuals and families fleeing political violence. Immigration reform needs to include a functioning asylum system for those seeking protection, and a pathway to legal status for DREAMers and other long-term members of our communities.
“In the short-term, Congress and the President should ensure that cities and states hosting arrivals receive the resources they need, and that immigrants can more easily apply for the work authorization permits they need to make a living. In the long-term, Congress and the President must focus on finally reforming an immigration system that for too long has been broken. It’s time for the U.S. to live up to its values, remain a beacon of hope and reject efforts to slam the door on arrivals with no other place to go.”