FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 12, 2019
CONTACT: Jasmine Nazarett, [email protected], (954) 471-9080
 
 

 FIRM Network Mobilizes Nationwide with One Message: Home is Here

From coast to coast, immigration grassroots groups rally and march in support of DACA and citizenship for all

(Nationwide) Today, as the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral regarding the Trump administration’s unlawful termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the FIRM Network mobilized immigrants, their friends, families and allies in support of the program that granted millions of undocumented youth protections. From Washington, D.C. to California, the FIRM Network turned out with one message: Home is Here.
 “DACA is a vehicle that allows millions of undocumented youth to live full lives, go to school, work and continue to contribute to their communities without fear of deportation,” Lorella Praeli, vice president of Community Change. “This administration has attempted to strip the rights of immigrants and refugees at every level, leaving their futures on hold. We all deserve the right to live our lives with dignity and build better futures for our families. We must preserve DACA, and continue to fight for permanent protections for undocumented people. We won’t stop fighting until that is our reality.”
Delegations from California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Washington represented the FIRM network in D.C. Back home in Arizona, California, Colorado, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Wisconsin, among others, held rallies and prayer vigils, marched and walked carrying the same message. Since the unlawful termination of DACA, thousands of people have joined arm-in-arm with immigrants to fight for justice.
“All across the country FIRM members and allies are unified to bring the voice and urgency of our nation’s moral imperative to uphold DACA as the Supreme Court begins initial hearings this week,” said Nicole Melaku, executive director of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC) and a FIRM co-chair.  “Now is the time for the rest of the country to see the faces, hear the stories, and understand the contributions of the millions of individuals who need the program protected while we advocate for permanent relief through Congressional action so they can fulfil their dreams and continue contributing to our country. As FIRM, we won’t stop fighting for our DACA recipients, our TPS holders and all 11 million people who need just and permanent relief.”
The rally in D.C marked the culmination of the March to Defend DACA and TPS, where more than 200 people walked from New York City to the nation’s capital in fight for justice. After 230 miles and 18 days, the marchers were welcomed with a celebratory rally at the foot of the steps of the Supreme Court. The march was organized by NAKASEC, Make the Road New York, CASA, CHIRLA, Community Change and FIRM.
 Watch the video here: http://bit.ly/HomeIsHereVideo
Steve Choi, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition, and a FIRM co-chair added, “For nearly two years, more than 40,000 New Yorkers have been held in limbo by the Trump Administration, who has cruelly used them as political pawns in the President’s sick game. As a result, New Yorkers who came to the United States as children, are at risk of being separated from their families, their communities, and the only place they have ever known as home. We rallied today at the Supreme Court to tell our Supreme Court Justices that America is our home and New York’s immigrants are here to stay. The fate of hundreds of thousands of children and families from across the country is in their hands.”

###

 Community Change is a national organization that builds the power of low-income people, especially people of color, to fight for a society where everyone can thrive.

Community Change powers the Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), the nation’s largest network of immigrant rights groups.