Name: Chicago immigrants say they’re ready to mobilize to push Biden immigration bill: ‘We will not stop until we get it’
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Chicago immigrants say they’re ready to mobilize to push Biden immigration bill: ‘We will not stop until we get it’

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AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneJan 21, 2021 at 5:24 pmWhen Joe Biden won the presidency, Nury Ortega vowed to work to hold him accountable for his campaign promises, including changes in immigration law she and her family have been waiting for.Though she couldn’t vote, Ortega mobilized to make sure those in her community who could vote would cast their ballot for Biden. So the immigration bill his administration sent to Congress on his first day in office “is the least he could do,” she said.AdvertisementThe bill, which would provide an eight-year path to citizenship to millions without legal status. raised the hopes of immigrants who had lived the last four years trying to survive a Donald Trump presidency centered on anti-immigrant rhetoric. In Chicago, although there’s some optimism about the legislation’s prospects, community leaders and immigration advocates are urging people to remain skeptical and continue mobilizing to ensure Biden’s keeps his promise of sweeping immigration change.“It makes me excited and hopeful, but we must be realistic, this is going to take some time and it is not going to be easy,” said Ortega, a mother of three who lives in Chicago’s Little Village.AdvertisementWednesday morning, she watched the inauguration with her three sons in their small living room. One of her sons wants to be a lawyer so she wanted to make sure that he carefully listened to Biden’s speech, she said.Under the legislation presented to Congress, immigrants living in the U.S. as of Jan. 1, 2021, without legal status would have a five-year path to temporary legal status, or a permanent residency green card if they pass background checks, pay taxes and fulfill other requirements. If they decide to pursue citizenship, there would a three-year path to naturalization.The bill, known as the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, would also allow beneficiaries of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program — an Obama-era initiative that gave protection from deportation to youth brought to this country as children — and those under the temporary protected status program to apply for permanent residency cards immediately.Ortega, who qualified for deferred action but refused to apply because of fear of former President Trump’s administration, said she called an attorney Wednesday to apply for the first time.“Regardless of everything, it’s relieving to know that Trump is gone,” she said.Gabriela Barajas, 36, a mother of four, got emotional while watching the inauguration.On Wednesday, the Logan Square resident also submitted an application for the deferred action program. If she receives a permit she would qualify to apply for legal residency immediately under the proposed legislation.“I’ve prayed for this my whole life,” she said.AdvertisementBarajas was brought to the U.S. by her single mother 28 years ago from Guadalajara, Mexico.“I want to make sure that my mother’s sacrifice is worth it,” she said. “And this would help me make sure that that happens.”Despite the struggle and “many broken promises by former presidents,” Barajas said that she’s kept her hope of an immigration system overhaul alive thanks to her faith in God. Her mother taught her never to give up, she said.Despite living in poverty as a child, she’s pushed herself to learn English and get involved in her children’s school, she said. Most recently, she became a member of the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, where she helps immigrants who, like her mother, don’t speak English, connect to resources.There was a time she felt invisible and as if her voice didn’t matter in the U.S., so seeing the new administration has listened to the demands of immigrants without legal status “after so many of us raised our voice,” gives her strength.“For now, I will keep praying,” she added.AdvertisementEven thinking it’s possible the bill will pass feels “overwhelming” to Daniel Nwoke, 28, who eventually was granted asylum in the U.S. after being detained for six months when he came here in 2017 on a student visa at the start of the Trump administration’s travel ban.If the bill passes, he would be able become a permanent resident, making it easier for him to travel to see his parents in Nigeria and stay in the U.S. to practice medicine.“I couldn’t stop crying,” Nwoke said about watching the inauguration. “But I know that there’s a lot of work ahead of us; we’ve been through so much, I know we can do it.”Ahead of the inauguration, immigration advocates held an online news conference to discuss their priorities for the new administration. Lawrence Benito, executive director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, highlighted the role that community organizers and mobilizers such as Ortega had in electing Democratic and diverse political leaders.“And now, they must work with Congress to deliver on their promises to protect immigrants and create the road to citizenship for the 11 million,” Benito said.Unlike previous proposals, Biden’s legislation tries to address root causes of migration from Central America and would bolster border security with new screening technologies instead of a heavy increase in border patrols or something like Trump’s border wall, advocates said.AdvertisementBecause it’s not as focused as previous legislation on security, he said, “we think that there are many opportunities and paths to take to get our people legalized and on a path to citizenship without the trade-off” in earlier proposals, Benito said.Immigrant rights leaders saw “a very intentional effort to reduce and eliminate legal-based immigration pathways for family members to be reunited” during Trump’s presidency, said Andy Kang, board president of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.In the same conference hosted by the pro-immigrant organization American Voice, advocates called on the Biden-Harris administration to put a moratorium on enforcement and dismantle the detention and deportation machinery “turbocharged” by previous administrations.According to Benito, pro-immigrant organizations across the country are organizing to pressure federal elected officials for their demands, including the proposed bill. Advocates also want the Biden administration to provide services for people working in essential roles during the pandemic who lack benefits or protection because of their immigration status.Biden’s bill also includes a provision prohibiting religion-based travel restrictions and limiting future presidents’ ability to issue such bans, a win for Muslim immigrant communities after the Trump administration’s travel ban targeting Muslim-majority countries, said Suzanne Akhras Sahloul, founder of the Edgewater-based Syrian Community Network.“People like me have been rejected from coming to the United States, when we are a country that’s made up of so many ethnicities and religions,” said Sahloul. “We’ve lost opportunities to bring in bright people who can help us grow our country, help us serve, people who will give back, who pay taxes, who are supportive, people who are inspired by the American Dream.”AdvertisementDespite the proposal’s wide-ranging list of initiatives, immigrants’ rights leaders still view the bill’s many initiatives as a starting point.“These are not the end of the conversation,” said Kang.In Illinois, there have been a number of changes that extend the protection of immigrants thanks to the constant work of activists, and pro-immigrant advocates and politicians, said Erendira Rendon, vice president for immigrant advocacy of Chicago’s Resurrection Project, an organization that advocates for immigrants.Rendon, a beneficiary of the deferred action program, said that she and her parents have been “undocumented” and have lived through “massive defeats” after failed proposed changes such as the DREAM Act during Barack Obama’s administration, when Biden was the vice president.But Rendon said that her mother, now 65, has dreamed of fixing her immigration status since she arrived in this country, and hopes she will soon be able to try again.“It’s a sincere hope but a cautious hope that there will be significant changes at the federal level,” Rendon said.AdvertisementNext week, Rendon will help Esther Morales and other immigrant mothers study the bill to be able explain it others.Morales, 47, is a mother of five living in the country without legal status. She has a daughter who is a “Dreamer,” she said. And it was she who inspired Morales to step out of her comfort zone and speak up about her “undocumented status.”“We shouldn’t be ashamed of who we are because we came here, like any other immigrant, for a better life; just our luck has been different, but God is with us,” Morales said.The proposed legislation is “a light after living through so much darkness,” she said.Chicago Tribune’s Leslie Bonilla contributed.Larodriguez@Chicagotribune.com Advertisement

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneJan 21, 2021 at 5:24 pmWhen Joe Biden won the presidency, Nury Ortega vowed to work to hold him accountable for his campaign promises, including changes in immigration law she and her family have been waiting for.Though she couldn’t vote, Ortega mobilized to make sure those in her community who could vote would cast their ballot for Biden. So the immigration bill his administration sent to Congress on his first day in office “is the least he could do,” she said.AdvertisementThe bill, which would provide an eight-year path to citizenship to millions without...

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The Chicago Tribune is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television are named), it remains the most-read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region. It had the 6th highest circulation for American newspapers in 2017.

Chicago immigrants say they’re ready to mobilize to push Biden immigration bill: ‘We will not stop until we get it’

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