By Louis Chan
AsAmNews National Correspondent
Vox. Rather the Trump White House would grant them legal status.
In exchange for that sub citizen legal status, the Washington Post reports the administration wants funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, a crackdown on asylum seekers from Central America, and restrictions on federal grants to sanctuary cities.
This is all happening as 30 organizations serving the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities are coordinating #AAPIAction Week to protest what they consider racist threats to the AAPI communities.
“This is an effort that was incubated by a few professors, in collaboration with AAPI-serving organizations and student groups around the country,” said Karthick Ramakrishnan, a political science professor at University of California Riverside and founder of AAPI Data, said to AsAmNews.
Rallies, teach-ins and news conferences are planned across the country through the 14th. Organizers have announced two main goals.
“The first is to raise our voices collectively against xenophobia and attacks on immigrant communities, including Asian Americans,” said Janelle Wong, Professor of American Studies and Asian American Studies at the University of Maryland. “The second is to educate the larger public about how these policies represent an assault on Asian Americans. We know that immigrants from China, India, and Korea make-up the fastest growing groups of undocumented people in the U.S. today.”
One out of 7 Asian immigrants in this country are undocumented. The proposed RAISE Act has the stated goal of reducing legal immigration by 50 percent over the next 10 years and eliminate green cards for adult parents, brothers and sisters of US Citizens.
Wong told AsAmNews that the RAISE Act would have a devastating impact on family reunification. “About 50 percent of Chinese immigrants come to the U.S. through family-sponsorship, which the proposed legislation seeks to eliminate.”
“We suffer the impact of a broken system that prevents family reunification,” said Hong Chhuor of Asian Counseling and Referral Service in Seattle, in an interview with AsAmNews. “With regard to Affirmative Action, we object to being continually used as a wedge to sow divisions within communities of color – and the perpetuation of the model minority stereotype.”
The group held a rally this morning in Seattle with Asian Pacific Islander Coalition of Washington, Asian Pacific Directors Coalition, International Community Health Services and Interim Community Development Coalition.
As a predom immigrant/settler pop AsianAms must work toward and in solidarity for justice w Indigenous ppl #AAPIaction #IndigenousPeopleDay https://t.co/liKpf3lC16
— OiYan Poon (@spamfriedrice) October 9, 2017
The RAISE Act which will slash family unification is coming up again in relation to DACA #AAPIaction #CleanDreamAct https://t.co/dD8HRroV1o
— Jason Fong (@jasonfongwrites) October 9, 2017
We are against #RAISEAct and & Trump’s Executive Order on public charge and lawful permanent residents #AAPIAction https://t.co/apw7TgJfmj https://t.co/d9fXk2vaH9
— PIVOT ?? (@PIVOTorg) October 7, 2017
President Trump has made it clear he supports these proposed changes.
“Without these reforms, illegal immigration and chain migration, which severely and unfairly burden American workers and taxpayers, will continue without end, ” Trump wrote in a letter to Congress.
Democratic leaders are not happy.
“The administration can’t be serious about compromise or helping the Dreamers if they begin with a list that is anathema to the Dreamers, to the immigrant community and to the vast majority of Americans,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-SF)said in response in a written statement. “We told the President at our meeting that we were open to reasonable border security measures … but this list goes so far beyond what is reasonable. This proposal fails to represent any attempt at compromise.”
Just three weeks ago, Schumer and Pelosi said the President had agreed to strike a deal on DACA, something the White House immediately denied.
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