Organizing for Comprehensive Immigration Reform under the Biden/Harris Ticket
(Milwaukee, Wisconsin) — Voces de la Frontera Action issued the following statement after the President-elect announced his intention to nominate Alejandro Mayorkas, who served as Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security under President Obama, to lead the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Christine Neumann-Ortiz, Executive Director of Voces de la Frontera Action, said the following:
“The appointment of Alejandro Mayorkas to head the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is a historic accomplishment being the first immigrant and the first Latino to head the DHS. He has ample experience in immigration policy, having been one of the architects of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) under the Obama administration. He likewise has vocally called out Trump’s anti-immigrant executive orders and attempts to dismantle DACA over the past four years. His knowledge and experience will be useful in implementing President Elect Biden’s immigration platform, which includes immediately dismantling Trump’s harmful executive orders and expanding protections in the first 100 days. Mayorkas’ nomination also signals that comprehensive immigration reform will be an early and top priority of the DHS under the Biden/Harris administration.
That being said, while Mayorkas has been an important top-level architect of programs for Dreamers and undocumented parents, these programs were fundamentally the result of grassroots organizing demands and pressure from the bottom-up. The immigrant rights movement is firm in our commitment to escalate pressure on both the Biden administration and members of the US Congress to meet our core demands in the first 100 days in office: inclusive COVID-19 relief and healthcare access for all during the pandemic; ending the moratorium on deportations, rolling back Trump’s executive orders on immigration and expanding protections, and creating a permanent pathway to citizenship for all.
Latinx and immigrant voters that turned out in historic numbers in Wisconsin and nationally were inspired by President Elect Biden’s platform on immigration and pandemic relief. It will take strong leadership in the White House, Congress and DHS working with the Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM) and others to fulfill the promise of the American Dream for the 11 million undocumented immigrants who call the U.S. home.”
For more information, please reach out to Communications Director Jacquelyn Kovarik: 414-436-9822 and [email protected].
