|
Maria Isabel Benitez,
Elvira Arellano and Disifredo Adan del Valle "came to Illinois
hoping to fulfill their American dream, worked hard, paid their
taxes and provided for their U.S.-born children," said Gov.
Blagojevich. "Yet, in spite of this, they face deportation or have
already been deported. We are a nation of laws, but these laws are
clearly not served when individuals whose only crime was their
strong desire to come to this country and provide a better future
for themselves and their children are separated from their
children." "I applaud the governor's continued commitment to these
families, and I look forward to working with him at the federal
level to do everything we can to protect them," said Gutierrez.
"These individuals have worked hard to pursue the American dream and
to build a better life for their children, but our convoluted
immigration laws are making life a nightmare for their families. The
president and the Congress have an opportunity to correct these
injustices. We need a comprehensive, family-driven immigration
policy in this country. We need a system that keeps husbands and
wives, parents and children together."
Gov. Blagojevich met with Latino community leaders who traveled
to Springfield on behalf of Ms. Benitez, Ms. Arellano and Mr. Del
Valle exactly one year after the governor had sent a similar letter
to President Bush, asking him to rescind the deportation of Ms.
Benitez. The leaders will travel next to Washington, D.C., to
support legislative efforts for a comprehensive immigration reform
and to attempt to meet with the president.
-
Ms. Benitez, who has four U.S.-born
children, was deported to Mexico on May 7, 2004, in spite of being
four months pregnant and after 16 years residing in this country.
She was deported even while she was in the process of applying for
legal permanent residency. Thanks to a humanitarian visa, Ms.
Benitez was reunited with her family last year, but her visa
expires soon and she will be facing deportation again in
September.
-
Ms. Arellano was employed at O'Hare
airport cleaning airplanes when she was arrested on Dec. 10, 2002,
and scheduled for a deportation. She won a stay of deportation,
thanks to a private bill introduced by Gutierrez and U.S. Sen.
Dick Durbin, but her stay expires in August. If deported, she
could be separated from her only child, a U.S.-born boy, for whom
she is the only breadwinner.
-
Mr. Del Valle was deported to Mexico
on March 25, leaving behind his wife, Ana, and their three
children, all of whom are U.S. citizens. Mr. Del Valle, who was in
the process of obtaining his permanent legal residency, was a
homeowner and the only source of support for his family in the
Humboldt Park community.
 "As the son of an immigrant, I firmly believe the interests of
our great nation are best served when we can act with compassion and
fairness towards those who, far from being a security risk, pay
their dues and contribute with work and dedication to their
communities, and in many cases are their children's sole support,"
the governor said. "In all these cases, you have a unique
opportunity to reunite families and correct an injustice."
Illinois' immigrant population has grown 70 percent since 1990,
according to U.S. Census figures, and is well over 1.5 million. Gov.
Blagojevich has reached out to the state's hardworking immigrants by
signing into law a bill that allows undocumented immigrants to pay
in-state tuition in Illinois' public universities. The governor also
directed the State Board of Education to implement a rule change so
that the children of undocumented immigrants are not denied access
to publicly funded preschools, and through his expansion of KidCare
and FamilyCare he has extended health care coverage for thousands of
uninsured immigrants across the state.
[to top of second column in this article] |
 Text of the governor's letter:
Office of the Governor
Rod R. Blagojevich
JRTC, 100 West Randolph, Suite 16-100
Chicago, Illinois 60601
May 11, 2005
The Honorable George W.
Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear President Bush,
I am writing on behalf
of Maria Isabel Benitez, Elvira Arellano, and Disifredo Adan del
Valle, who came to Illinois hoping to fulfill their American Dream;
who worked hard, paid their taxes, provided for their U.S. born
children and stayed on the right side of the law. Yet, in spite of
this, they face deportation or have already been deported.
As Governor of
Illinois, I am dismayed at the growing number of hard-working
immigrant families that are broken up when spouses are separated
from each other, or parents from their children, through
deportation. I am especially concerned about the impact of these
forced separations on their American children.
We are a nation of
laws, but these laws are clearly not served when individuals, whose
only crime was their strong desire to come to this country and
provide a better future for themselves and their children, are
separated from their families.
-
Ms. Benitez, who has
four U.S.-born children, was deported to Mexico May 7, 2004, in
spite of being four months pregnant and after 16 years residing in
this country. She was deported even while she was in the process
of applying for legal permanent residency. Thanks to a
humanitarian visa, Ms. Benitez was reunited with her family last
year, but her visa expires soon and she will be facing deportation
next September.
-
Ms. Arellano was
employed at O'Hare airport cleaning airplanes when she was
arrested on December 10th, 2002 and scheduled for a deportation.
She won a stay of deportation thanks to a private bill introduced
by Cong. Luis Gutierrez and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, but her stay
expires in August of 2005. If deported, she could be separated
from her only child, a U.S.-born boy, for whom she is the only
breadwinner.
-
Mr. Del Valle was
deported to Mexico in March 25, leaving behind his wife Ana and
their three children, all of whom are U.S. citizens. Mr. Del
Valle, who was in the process of obtaining his permanent legal
residency, was a homeowner and the only source of support for his
family in the Humboldt Park community.
As the son of an
immigrant, I firmly believe the interests of our great nation are
best served when we can act with compassion and fairness towards
those who, far from being a security risk, pay their dues and
contribute with work and dedication to their communities, and in
many cases are their children's sole support.
During your recent
State of the Union address you said that family unity does not stop
at the Rio Grande. You have also many times recognized the important
contributions that millions of immigrants make to our economy and
our culture. In all these cases, you have a unique opportunity to
reunite families and correct an injustice.
On behalf of the people
of Illinois, I respectfully request that the deportation orders be
rescinded for Ms. Benitez, Ms. Arellano, and Mr. Del Valle, so they
all can proceed with becoming legal residents in this, their adopted
home. By granting these you will not only be showing your compassion
for these cases, you will also allow for these families to be back
together and for their children to have a brighter future.
Thank you in advance
for your consideration to this matter.
Sincerely,
Rod Blagojevich
Governor of Illinois
[News release from the governor's
office] |
