PRESS RELEASE
May 6, 2014

Latino Leaders Release Report Condemning Unprecedented Deportation Rate, Highlighting Devastating Impact on Latino Families and Communities
NHLA Also Announced New Campaign to Target 30 Members of Congress on Immigration Reform

Washington, D.C. -- The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), a coalition of 37 of the nation’s preeminent Latino organizations, today released a report, "Detention, Deportation, and Devastation: The Disproportionate Effect of Deportations on the Latino Community," in conjunction with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON).

The report -- now available online at latinosunited.org/immigrationreform -- assesses the record-breaking deportation rate of the last six years, its particular devastating impact on vulnerable Latino families and upon the larger national Latino community, and the path forward to a fair and just immigration policy. Among the striking statistics released:
• In 2013, 96.7 percent of all deportations (356,303 people) were of Latino descent.When the Administration reaches 2 million deportations mark -- likely later this year -- the number of Latino deportees will equal the populations of Wyoming, Vermont and North Dakota combined.
• Over 5.5 million children have a parent who is undocumented, and 4.5 million of those children are U.S. citizens.
• Between 2010 and 2012, the Administration deported more than 200,000 individuals with U.S. citizen children. NHLA also announced the next phase of its “Latinos United for Immigration Reform” campaign, which will target 30 members of the U.S. House of Representatives and House leadership. Through in-district events, like town halls and district visits; op-eds; social media and other efforts, NHLA will be urging members representing significant Latino populations to support passage of a fair and just immigration reform bill in the U.S. House of Representatives this year.

Following today’s press conference, NHLA leaders issued the following statements:

“This Administration’s obsession with deportations has had a devastating impact on Latino families and children. Enough is enough,” said Hector Sanchez, NHLA Chair and Executive Director of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement. “We’re here to call on the President to halt deportations using various forms of prosecutorial discretion. He has the authority to expand affirmative relief. We will also continue strong national mobilizations on the ground to press congressional leaders and remind them that the time has come to bring forward a vote on immigration reform.”

"Each day, our nation's political leaders compound the damage from failing to enact immigration reform legislation by permitting the devastation of broad-based deportations that differentially target and affect the Latino community," stated Thomas A. Saenz, President and General Counsel of MALDEF. "This is an extraordinary demonstration of political non-responsiveness on the part of all of our nation's political leaders."

“Immigration reform is a critical need and must include access to healthcare to have productive students and workers, the backbone of the US economy,” said Elena Rios, MD, MSPH, President & CEO of the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA).

Ignacio Salazar, President and CEO of SER—Jobs for Progress National, Inc., stated that “the devastating impact on vulnerable Latino families is an affront and injustice to all Latinos and other Americans who favor a fair immigration system.”

The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) President and CEO, Antonio R. Flores said, “HACU continues to work with the NHLA to pursue comprehensive immigration reform and to stop the devastating number of deportations the White House has allowed. Especially important to HACU member colleges and universities is a DREAM Act on a national level which will allow the U.S. to benefit from the talents of so many young people brought here as children.”

“President Obama’s record on deportations has become a disgraceful disregard for the well-being of hundreds of thousands of decent., hardworking immigrants,” said Angelo Falcón, President, National Institute for Latino Policy (NiLP). “It is clear that, as President, he has the power to do something significant about it through executive action. It is not the ultimate solution to the problem of an unfair immigration system, but it would be an important first step and an indication to the Latino community that he is, after all, a man of his word.”

"Latino families are increasingly multigenerational and it is common for at least one family member to be undocumented. When individuals are deported, families and communities, especially the elder Hispanic community, are deeply affected. Whether the deportee is a grandparent or grandchild, the emotional and financial toll has a devastating impact on the family. NHCOA stands by the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda in urging the White House and Congress to work together to achieve a fair, commonsense, and bipartisan immigration bill that can pass the House of Representatives this year," said Dr. Yanira Cruz, President and CEO of the National Hispanic Council on Aging (NHCOA).

“As our broken immigration system tears apart families across the country, the nation’s farmworkers continue to suffer from these unjust policies. More than one million farmworkers on U.S. farms and ranches lack authorized immigration status. These workers, fearing deportation and family separation, are unable to ensure fair wages and safe working conditions. For the health and safety of farmworkers and their families, Congress must pass immigration reform that ensures a path to citizenship,” said Bruce Goldstein, President of Farmworker Justice.

“The Obama Administration’s deportation policy is irrational and inhumane,” said Juan Cartagena, President and General Counsel, LatinoJustice PRLDEF. “The policy has detrimentally impacted on countless Latino families, many of whom are of mixed status. Depriving many U.S. born citizen children of their parents in unconscionable. This systematic attack on vulnerable Latino families must stop.”

“Families are the bedrock of America, but for far too long our broken immigration system has torn apart loved ones. Latino families especially bear the brunt of an inhuman system that keeps husband from wife and mother from child,” said Jose Calderon, President of the Hispanic Federation. “ Our immigration laws are not in keeping with our nation’s values. Every day of inaction 1,100 people are deported from our country. It’s time for the House to stop making excuses and lead on immigration reform. It’s also time for this administration to better align its deportation policy and honor the family unit. It’s time to stop the deportations, it’s time to pass immigration reform."

“Inaction on immigration is untenable for our communities and our country. Policy change is needed urgently, and is coming, either legislatively or administratively. House Republicans must decide if they will be part of the solution, or if they will remain part of the problem and at odds with the American people,” said Janet Murguía, President and CEO of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR).

Patti Tototzintle, CEO of Casa de Esperanza said, “Current deportation policies are having a devastating impact on families and communities and also drive victims of abuse and exploitation further into the shadows. It is critical for the Administration to adopt more humane policies and for Congress to fix a broken immigration system that undermines the values of this country.”

"We join the chorus of activists, mothers, DREAMers, and leaders across the nation in calling for an end to detention and deportation policies that tear families apart, endanger the health of women and children, and deny our basic human rights," said Jessica González-Rojas, Executive Director at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. "We call on the President and Congress to end these harmful policies and practices and pass humane immigration reform that recognizes the contributions of immigrant women, includes an accessible roadmap to citizenship, and lifts the restrictions on immigrant access to health care. The time is now."

"More than most people, President Obama knows what it is like to be raised in a family that has been split up. He was fortunate that he could still be with loving family members which surely had an impact on his ability to reach the pinnacle of success,” said Alma Morales Riojas, President and CEO, MANA, A National Latina Organization. “We know that there are legal imperatives on immigration reform that need to be addressed but there is a higher humane imperative that demands that families not be separated largely due to the disappointingly high number of deportations. Our country stands for much more than the growing image of us being a heartless society. Yes, we have a lot of work to do but let us not leave the collateral damage of broken families and broken hearts while we come up with solutions Mr. President, stop the deportations now!"

“While the number of deportations under the current administration is higher than under past administrations, at this juncture it behooves us to look forward and focus on fixing the broken immigration system,” said Miguel Alexander Pozo, National President of the Hispanic National Bar Association. “If our great nation is going to remain the land of opportunity, we need to devote substantial resources to passing comprehensive immigration reform instead of using a bandage or piecemeal approach to this critical societal and civil rights issue.”

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Established in 1991, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA) brings together Hispanic leaders to establish policy priorities that address, and raise public awareness of, the major issues affecting the Latino community and the nation as a whole. For more information about NHLA's Latinos United for Immigration Reform campaign visit http://latinosunited.org/immigrationreform/.

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