Chicago City Wire

Chicago, IL – Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (IL-03) issued the following statement upon returning from a Homeland Security Democrats delegation trip to the Southwest Border: 

“On Friday, I joined my Democratic colleagues on a delegation trip to the Southwest Border in Brownsville, Texas,” said Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (D-IL-03). “This was my second time at the border, with my first time being in my mother’s womb when she nearly drowned crossing the Rio Grande while pregnant with me 40 years ago. Going to the same border my mom crossed now as the Vice Ranking Member of the Homeland Security Committee and as the Congresswoman for IL-03 reaffirmed for me with unshakeable clarity: the only reason anyone would risk everything to cross the border between ports of entry is because the stakes are life or death, period. We need to fully uphold the right to seek asylum. In the same week, migrant tents in Mexico were set on fire as people languished unable to get one of the limited daily slots for entry through the CBPOne app. More reporting of the horrific conditions migrant children are sent to with no protections or support. And in Chicago, we are quickly exhausting available resources for providing food and shelter to migrants and are in dire need of increased support at every level of government. 

We need emergency resources dedicated to supporting the cities and states providing shelter to migrants. We need parole granted for all undocumented immigrants to keep families and communities together. We need flexible, expedited work permits issued. All three of these actions can be taken by the White House.” 

Original source can be found here.