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Hispanic Federation Statement Condemning the RAISE Act

August 3, 2017 (New York, NY) – Hispanic Federation issued the following statement in response to President Trump's endorsement of the RAISE Act, a bill which would move the United States away from a family-based system toward a "merit-based immigration system," and cut legal immigration by 50 percent.

“President Trump has, once again, embraced a targeted, callous and foolish plan to curtail immigration to the United States. The RAISE Act is nothing more than a return to the failed and cruel quota system of the early twentieth century when anti-immigrant leaders in Congress closed our country off to immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe. Then, as now, the sponsors of this shameless piece of nationalist legislation framed their plan as an attempt to stabilize the American economy and promote assimilation.

“The RAISE Act is an extremist proposal that will keep families apart, punish the poor, and hurt the American economy by denying businesses access to essential workers. The United States must reform its immigration system, not destroy it.

“We look forward to working with advocacy groups across the country and our partners in Congress to stop the RAISE Act and pass progressive immigration reforms that strengthen our nation by honoring our best traditions of openness, family unity and inclusion."