A 67-year-old Illinois grandmother of 10 who was told by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to prepare for deportation by the end of October will be able to stay with her family. From the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board:
Grassroots resistance and a federal lawsuit made all the difference in getting Genoveva Ramirez, 67, “deferred action” by immigration authorities, meaning she no longer is a priority to be expelled from the U.S. She should be safe until she receives a visa that will allow her to remain in the U.S. permanently, though that could take 10 years because of a long waiting list.
Ramirez never should have been on a deportation list in the first place. She is a great-grandmother who works as a janitor after dark and babysits her grandchildren during the day. She got caught up in deportation proceedings in 2013 after police in DuPage County detained her after a routine traffic stop for driving without a license. It was Ramirez’s only crime in nearly two decades in the U.S.
Immigration authorities kept an eye on Ramirez but made no effort to expel her from the U.S. until President Donald Trump ramped up deportations soon after taking office. In the spring, she was told to get out.
“Is the United States of America, or the city of Chicago, better off for deporting this woman, who has been here for 16 years?” Rep. Jan Schakowsky asked at the time. “It makes no sense whatsoever.”
Since Trump’s poorly-attended inauguration, undocumented immigrants with no criminal record have been swept up by the thousands, with many ICE raids intentionally targeting so-called “sanctuary cities” for their pro-immigrant policies. In fact, internal documents later revealed that when he was head of Homeland Security, mass deportation accomplice and current White House chief of staff John Kelly personally ordered a smear campaign to portray the immigrants he was sweeping up as “bad hombres,” and not grandmas like Ramirez.
As the Sun-Times notes, “grassroots resistance and a federal lawsuit made all the difference” in Ramirez’s case, allowing her to be placed on a waiting list for a U visa, which she initially applied for last year after she and her young grandson Mariano were assaulted in their home. Advocates, including State Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez, now hope to push for legislation that will make it easier for other undocumented immigrants eligible for U visas to apply:
“Is this a dream? Is this really happening?” Ramirez asked her daughter, Fernanda Castellanos, upon reading the letter.
Ramirez immediately hugged her grandson, Mariano Castellanos, who didn’t quite understand what was going on.
“Does this mean grandma gets to stay here?” Mariano asked his mother, who responded, “Yes.”
Ramirez officially announced the news at a press conference on Thursday in front of roughly two dozen supporters.
“We’re going to continue fighting, particular for [others fighting deportation] so they can be celebrating like we are today,” Ramirez said through a translator.
One of those undocumented parents currently fighting to stay here is Melecio Andazola Marquez, who is a priority for deportation despite having no criminal record. “This is criminal to be separating a family … because she didn’t have the correct papers,” said Rep. Hernandez.