Friends,
Like me, Israel “Izzy” Rodriguez-Rubio grew up undocumented in the United States. We were both born in Mexico, but grew up in the U.S. after our families migrated here during our childhoods.
 Izzy and I met at Columbia University and quickly became friends. (Here we are celebrating on graduation day, in the photo at right!) We held a mutual passion for social justice, and I was impressed by his sharp intellect and generous heart.
Today, Izzy is in a U.S. prison facing deportation due to his undocumented status. Will you join me and call for his release?
Being undocumented means not having legal documentation or a social security number, which makes it difficult to access certain basic human rights, such as healthcare and employment. After graduating from Columbia, Israel returned to Mexico hoping for better job opportunities there. Unfortunately, the job situation in Mexico was not much better, and Israel missed his family, so he chose to return to the United States.
On September 30, Israel returned to the United States with the Dream 30, a group of 34 people with the Bring Them Home campaign. This campaign seeks to address issues of family reunification and shed light on the record 1.7 million deportations that have happened during President Obama's administration. These deportations have affected millions of families.
 The Dream 30 were arrested when they crossed the border. As of yesterday 25 people have been approved for release on humanitarian parole, but the remaining 9 have been in detention for over three weeks and could face imminent deportation.
Izzy's status is presently unknown, and his colleague Rocio Hernandez faces deportation as early as TONIGHT after a final hearing with an immigration judge. Rocio writes, "I would never have imagined I would have to deal with a lot of difficult things and situations, like fearing to leave the house after 8 pm because of the cartel shootings. Hearing horrific stories of how the girl next to your table at a club was found dead and raped at the beach the next morning. Dealing with the heavy traffic because thirty bodies had been dumped in the middle of the street."
Members of Congress, including FOR member Rep. John Lewis, as well as educators and community activists nationwide have stepped forward to voice their support and make thousands of calls to Congress. Yet the Obama administration continues to take a hard stance with these young people who are courageously reclaiming their home and seeking to be reunited with their families.
Please join me in calling on President Obama and Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) to release Izzy and the other Dream 30 members.
With deep appreciation for your help,
Rosario Quiroz
International FOR Fellow |
