Top 10 Victories for Immigrant Rights in 2013

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Friday January 03, 2014 · 4:39 PM PST

2014/01/03 · 16:39

While Congress struggled in 2013 to enact just and meaningful reform, and the President is close to surpassing 2 million deportations, immigrants won victories in many states and many levels.

In no particular order:

1. The Supreme Court Strikes Down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act

Undoubtedly, the fall of DOMA’s Section 3 has brought much-needed relief among members of the LGBT community. While there is much more left to do in terms of winning rights for all members of the LGBT community, over 36,000 bi-national same-sex couples can finally live together without worrying about imminent family separation due to archaic U.S. immigration policies. With same-sex couples now scoring green cards throughout the country, and non-immigrants gaining the ability to finally bring their partners to the U.S., this is one giant step forward for immigrant rights.

Honorable mentions: The Supreme Court also struck down Arizona’s law requiring proof of citizenship to vote, and also provided relief from removal for many individuals who were charged for drug trafficking for mere possession of marijuana under state laws.

prernalal

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Friday December 13, 2013 · 7:10 AM PST

2013/12/13 · 07:10

"There's really no such thing as the 'voiceless'. There are only the deliberately silenced, or the preferably unheard."
-Arundhati Roy

Ju Hong's "yelling" to issue an executive order to stop deportations echoed across the country, and has sparked a series of actions mostly calling on the President to use his executive authority to stop deportations. Over 500 national organizations (and growing), including the Mexican American Legal and Education Defense Fund, United We DREAM, the National Day Labor Organizing Network and AFL-CIO, have signed on to a letter asking the President to exercise discretion in stopping his deportations. Even House Democrats joined the chorus, with 29 House Democrats signing a letter to the President to suspend deportations and expand DACA:

If your child has received DACA, you should not be deported. If you qualify for legalization under the Senate bill -- a bill the President and the rest of the country supports -- you should not be deported. We cannot continue to witness potential citizens in our districts go through the anguish of deportation when legalization could be just around the corner for them. We look to you to firmly contribute to advancing inclusion for immigrants by suspending deportations and expanding DACA.

President Barack Obama said during a trip to New Orleans, “We should be fighting to make sure everybody who works hard in America, and hard right here in New Orleans, that they have a chance to get ahead.” However, instead of trying to reduce deportations, the Obama Administration is piloting a new, unprecedented and extraordinarily harsh effort to hunt down and deport thousands of hardworking undocumented immigrants in New Orleans. Read More

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