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Undocumented immigrant rights activist loses her battle
don't let the door hit ya
https://i.imgur.com/T96NptA.jpg An immigration rights activist whose own undocumented status was exposed by a drunken-driving arrest has lost her six-month legal battle to remain in the country. Wendy Uruchi Contreras, a Virginia organizer for the immigrant rights group CASA, is scheduled to be deported to Spain this week after last-ditch appeals were denied by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, according to her husband, Giovani Jimenez. "We are devastated," said Jimenez, who lives in Fredericksburg, Va., with their American-born children, Alex, 13, and Lucia, 7. "My children are crying, but we know there's nothing more we can do." Jimenez said he learned of the decision last week, days before the inauguration of President Trump. ICE officials did not return a request for comment on the case. Uruchi, a 33-year-old Spanish citizen born in Bolivia, had been held in federal custody since July, when she pleaded guilty to drunken driving. In her appeal, Uruchi asked prosecutors to show discretion in her case, essentially weighing her community activism and otherwise clean record against the danger of her committing another offense. Under Obama administration guidelines, however, immigrants convicted of DUIs are a priority for deportation. Her appeal was denied. "They focused on one thing, that she got that DUI, and it was like they forgot about everything on the other side of the scale," said Enid Gonzalez, Uruchi's immigration attorney. Now that Trump is president, the outlook for successful deportation appeals is even bleaker, Gonzalez said. As a candidate, Trump promised to build a wall along the border with Mexico and deport far more of the country's estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants, especially those with criminal records. "Since 2013 alone, the Obama administration has allowed 300,000 criminal aliens to return back into United States communities," he said during an immigration speech in Phoenix. "These are individuals encountered or identified by ICE, but who were not detained or processed for deportation because it wouldn't have been politically correct." But Kim Propeack, communications director for CASA, saw it differently. "Wendy's situation illustrates our failure as a country in not creating an immigration system based on family unity and the best interests of children," said Propeack, who helped Uruchi with her appeal. "Wendy will contribute to society wherever she is," Propeack added. "Her deportation is a loss to us." Uruchi came to the United States from Spain in 2002 under the United States' visa waiver program, which allows visitors from 38 countries to stay for up to 90 days without a visa. She and Jimenez had chatted online, but only saw each other for the first time when he picked her up at Dulles International Airport. At the end of her three months, Uruchi decided to stay illegally in America with Jimenez rather than return to Madrid, where she feared an abusive stepfather. article... |
Bad move to be an undocumented organiser in VIRGINIA they are corrupt and trump up charges to get their way. Next...
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Also I immigrated to Australia with my son over 5 years. As an immigrant I followed the letter of the law to a T. It's stressful. But I was a legal immigrant working through the system. I have NO IDEA why she didn't file to become a legal citizen. Probably thought she was from Europe so an exception to the rule? When I say we "immigrated" I mean we went there on a 3 month tourist visa, renewed a few times, then got an education visa to attend masters degree university, then work visa, then applied for citizenship. |
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