For Immediate Release
For Immediate Release
Aug. 11, 2021
Contact: Bethelhem T. Negash, bethelhem@undocublack.org
WASHINGTON – ,The UndocuBlack Network welcomes the Senate passage of the congressional budget resolution including a pathway to citizenship for DACA and TPS holders, farmworkers, and essential workers and called on legislators to ensure the process is fair and equitable for Black immigrants.
“After years of organizing by Black- and people of color-led groups, we are encouraged that the lawmakers have been instructed to develop a pathway to citizenship for undocumented people including DACA recipients and TPS holders,” said Patrice Lawrence, Co-Director of UndocuBlack Network “But good intentions must be followed by intentional and precise action. Since people of African and Caribbean descent are often erased from the immigration narrative, their unique needs are often overlooked. This places them at heightened risk for criminalization, which makes citizenship unlikely and, in some cases, impossible. Black immigrants experience the double whammy of being Black in an anti-Black nation and being undocumented in a country generally hostile to immigrants. Any approach to creating a pathway to citizenship must take these factors into account.”
“Since lawmakers will have discretion in determining who is eligible for citizenship, they must ensure that people of African descent are not disqualified on the basis of race while taking into account the heightened risk of criminalization for Black people in the U.S.,” Patrice added.
“Given that the Senate Judiciary Committee has also been instructed to expand enforcement activity, we must note that the administration cannot be double-minded in its approach to immigration,” said Yoliswa Cele, director of narrative and media for the UndocuBlack Network. “The administration should not criminalize vulnerable people for seeking asylum in the U.S. or those attempting to escape harsh conditions in their home country. While we applaud the intention of the budget resolution, it is the execution that really matters.”
Patrice continued to say that it should not have taken a global pandemic to prove the value of immigrants and that it has been many years since a large immigration package has been passed causing many immigrants to fall through the cracks due to red tape and legal loopholes. . “Our worth is our humanity, not our work, but the pandemic illustrated that it is immigrant communities that keep our country afloat. We must work towards justice and dignity for all immigrants, and we will be there every step of the way to make sure a pathway to citizenship is achieved. If you are a man or a woman of dignity, you must keep your promises, and we will be there to ensure members of Congress keep theirs.”
The UndocuBlack Network works to build community with current and former Black immigrants. The group has racked up a series of recent victories including LRIF for Liberians, TPS for Haitians and TPS for Somalis. It also works to shine a light on the exclusion of Black immigrants within the immigration narrative. Its goal is to challenge the criminalization of immigrants, specifically Black immigrants, who would then be barred from benefiting from a pathway to citizenship.
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