Freshman Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) brought a much-needed injection of hope for progressive change at today's Judiciary Committee on comprehensive immigration reform.
Based on the accounts I've seen, she offered some insightful questions and comments on issues such as family reunification, LGBT equality, fairness for Filipino veterans of World War II, and border enforcement.
As reported by 18 Million Rising, she offered this perspective:
... as we're focused on employment-based immigration, we should not get tunnel vision and foget the the human element of immigration. Of course I am talking about the need to expand the opportunities for families to be reunited and kept together, and this should include LGBT families. Family-based immigration is essential to ensure the continued vitality of the American economy. In fact, the success of immigrants in this country is often the story of the success of immigrants with their families.
I speak from personal experience being an immigrant myself.
Please follow below for some additional notes on what seems to have been an exciting day.
Sen. Hirono had a dialogue with witness Juan Antonio Vargas. She said she was touched by his Feb. 12 op-ed in the New York Times entitled "My Family’s Papers." Here's an excerpt from the pience:
According to the Pew Hispanic Center, there are an estimated 17 million people in the United States living in households where at least one person is an undocumented immigrant. ... [A]bout 4.5 million children who were born in this country have at least one undocumented parent.
Exactly how these “mixed-status” families will be included in any type of immigration reform is still up for debate. ...
My grandparents emigrated legally from the Philippines ... [R]esidents cannot petition for their married children, so ... my married mother remained at home.
... Grandparents cannot petition for their grandchildren, either, but my family didn’t see a future for me in the Philippines. They made a decision to send me, alone and without papers, to live with my grandparents. They assumed I would find a woman and get my legal residence through marriage. But I came out as gay in high school, which considerably complicated matters. ...
Sen. Hirono
told Vargas: "You are living the broken immigration system." She made it clear the
Uniting American Families Act is a necessary element of immigration reform:
Sen. Hirono went on to get business executive Steve Case to acknowledge, in the immigration debate, the need for STEM visas (an economic imperative) should be balanced with the need for reunification (family values).
Sen. Hirono documented some of the specific cases of immigration injustice:
Lack of respect for families
An overemphasis on enforcement-only solutions
Many who watch the immigration debate closely left the hearing energized and ready for change:
Was this a one-day burst of enthusiasm? Or will this immigrant Senator help lead the way to long-overdue reform?