For Immediate Release: December 11, 2024
Contact: media@hispanicfederation.org
Senate Hearing Highlights How Bipartisan Consensus Supports Protection of Immigrant Communities in Face of Proposed Mass Deportation Plan
Washington D.C. – On Tuesday, December 10, the Senate Judiciary Committee hosted a hearing titled “How Mass Deportations Will Separate American Families, Harm Our Armed Forces, and Devastate Our Economy.” Coming in the wake of electoral rhetoric that threatened expansive, draconian deportation measures, this hearing yielded at times competing and at times intersecting visions of immigration policy in America. Jessica Orozco Guttlein, Senior Vice President of Policy and Communications at Hispanic Federation had the following to say:
Yesterday, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the potential consequences of mass deportation. Committee members and witnesses both highlighted the ongoing costs of our nation’s broken immigration system. For decades, Hispanic Federation has done vital work on the ground providing immigrants with legal and social services to ensure they have the tools they need to continue being vital members of our communities, while Congress has allowed both trust and material conditions to deteriorate. We were at one point heartened by the bipartisan consensus that emerged from yesterday’s hearing on the need to generate sensible pathways for permanent documentation for people such as DREAMERs. Later in the hearing we were horrified to hear about the elevation of harmful, vitriolic rhetoric that simply serves to divide Americans of all stripes. Immigration is, has been, and will continue to be at the core of the American story, and it is time for Congress to take the steps necessary to ensure a stable, safe, and humane immigration system for the sake of all Americans.
There are currently an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants present in the United States, spread across 5.8 million households – 4.7 million of those households – over 80% – of which are mixed-status households. Households headed by undocumented immigrants pay billions in taxes each year while also contributing tens of billions more to economic output. Senators and witnesses alike underscored the economic hardships that mass deportation could trigger if deployed as advocated for by some. Meanwhile, indiscriminate deportation from mixed-status households would represent an obscene repudiation of humane policy, to say nothing of human decency. The vast majority of families that would be impacted by mass deportation have been here for over a decade. Mass deportation, as described in extremist rhetoric, would disrupt workplaces, terrorize communities, and tear American lives asunder. This cruelty would come with a price tag in the tens of billions of dollars annually, channeling away money that could go toward schools, hospitals, and businesses, all for the sake of pursuing a draconian vision of immigration. Reasonable minds cannot entertain the idea that proposals that would see elementary school children unscrupulously separated from one or even both parents would be anything but unnecessarily hostile and harmful.
Effective immigration policy must recognize that there exists not one, but many immigrant communities and migration pathways, each with distinct profiles, and therefore challenges. It is an issue with implicit costs, challenges, and opportunities. Today’s committee meeting highlighted that immigration reform is approachable from myriad vantage points, with participants discussing the staggering economic benefits of robust immigration policies, the complexities of humane enforcement, and the personal stakes of getting this issue right. Doing so will be hard work, requiring expertise, patience, compassion, and determination. Immigration is crucial to America’s growth, success, and identity, and resolving it will be well worth the effort. Hispanic Federation is confident that there exists a pathway to an American immigration system that is predictable, credible, and inclusive, which is why we need leaders who can effectively guide Americans both old and new to reach the American Dream. We stand ready to work with any partners prepared to roll up their sleeves to enact that vision.
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Hispanic Federation (HF) is a nonprofit membership and advocacy organization, founded in 1990, committed to empowering and advancing the Hispanic community, with a focus on low-income, marginalized, and immigrant Latinos. With programs in 40 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia, HF’s focus areas include immigration, economic empowerment, civic engagement, disaster relief, philanthropy, education, health, and the environment. HF also maintains ongoing public education campaigns and meets the organizational development needs of its member agencies through grant-making and capacity-building assistance.
