Members of Congress joined with immigrant rights advocates on Tuesday to call on the Biden administration to offer unjustly deported people a chance to return to their families and communities in the United States.
In two separate letters, 64 U.S. senators and House representatives, and 105 nongovernmental organizations asked Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to create a centralized process to review requests from people seeking to return to the United States following unjust deportations. The letters echoed the demands of the Chance to Come Home campaign, which the National Immigrant Justice Center and partner organizations launched earlier this month in conjunction with 10 deported advocates.
“Establishing a centralized unit to review requests to return to the U.S. from people who have been wrongfully or unjustly deported is wholly within DHS’s broad legal authority and would bring fairness and credibility to the U.S. immigration system,” states the congressional letter, led by Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Rep. Adriano Espaillat of New York, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II of Missouri, and Rep. David Trone of Maryland. “Bringing home unjustly deported fathers, mothers, community leaders, and workers is also a critical step toward shifting the current U.S. immigration system towards a system that supports family and community unity.”
The Hill reported on the congressional letter, highlighting the cases of Leonel Pinilla and Vanessa Vaquiz Mendoza, two unjustly deported advocates who supported the launch of the Chance to Come Home campaign.
The letter from advocates calls on the Biden administration to uphold its early commitments to uphold family unity and racial justice: “You have referred to family unity as a foundational principle underpinning the work of the Department of Homeland Security. Ensuring a meaningful process for deported individuals to apply to return to their loved ones would mark a long-lasting reflection of that commitment. It would also further this administration’s efforts to promote racial equity throughout government programs and policies.”