To: Janet Napolitano, Secretary of Department of Homeland Security and President Donald Trump
Mr. President, Stop Deporting People who Could be Included in Immigration Reform
Please suspend deportations as Congress works to pass immigration reform. Make sure those seeking a path to citizenship aren't deported before it even opens.
Why is this important?
We may soon achieve immigration reform that is long overdue. The bill Congress is seeking to pass would bring millions who call the US 'home' out of the shadows and fully into society. However, for 1,100 people who are continuing to be deported every day, the bill will come too late.
My husband Roger is one of those people. One day in February we were driving to the store when a state policeman pulled us over. He claimed he had a warrant related to the car we were driving, the car that I own. Instead of letting us go, they asked for our identification and told me that they'd be taking my husband to immigration. After three months in detention, my husband was deported back to Honduras, the country he escaped for his own safety.
Roger was a loving step-father for my son and a dedicated partner with me. Now we are separated because of a trip to the store for toothpaste and my family is torn apart. We had high hopes that immigration reform could help with his status and keep us together but now we don't know what to do.
I don't want what my family is going through to happen to anyone else. Why is the President still deporting people who even some Republicans in Congress say belong here, with us, with their families? It doesn't make sense and it should stop immediately so that those who qualify for reform are still here when and if it passes.
- Carmen Yvette Martinez
My husband Roger is one of those people. One day in February we were driving to the store when a state policeman pulled us over. He claimed he had a warrant related to the car we were driving, the car that I own. Instead of letting us go, they asked for our identification and told me that they'd be taking my husband to immigration. After three months in detention, my husband was deported back to Honduras, the country he escaped for his own safety.
Roger was a loving step-father for my son and a dedicated partner with me. Now we are separated because of a trip to the store for toothpaste and my family is torn apart. We had high hopes that immigration reform could help with his status and keep us together but now we don't know what to do.
I don't want what my family is going through to happen to anyone else. Why is the President still deporting people who even some Republicans in Congress say belong here, with us, with their families? It doesn't make sense and it should stop immediately so that those who qualify for reform are still here when and if it passes.
- Carmen Yvette Martinez