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Jean Montrevil, a former U.S. permanent resident who was suddenly deported to Haiti in 2018, was granted three years of deferred action due to his First Amendment lawsuit against the U.S. government. The lawsuit alleged immigration officials targeted the longtime immigrant rights activist for deportation due to his advocacy and his criticism of the Trump administration’s policies towards Haiti. The settlement allows Montrevil to remain in the U.S. with his family while he pursues a pathway the U.S. citizenship. “I cannot describe the relief I feel, knowing that I will be back with my kids. I will forever be grateful to everyone for making this happen,” said Montrevil. Deanna Garcia for Documented.
New York Author Describes Xenophobia After Book Promotion
Qian Julie Wang attended a luncheon in Larchmont, New York, on Dec. 10 to promote her best-selling memoir, “Beautiful Country,” which depicts her experience growing up as an undocumented Chinese immigrant. But after, Wang shared in social media posts that the event made her feel targeted by racism and xenophobia. “I just felt like I was that little girl again,” she said. “Like that little girl who was called illegal, who was treated like (expletive).” Wang said other authors of color warned her about this experience when speaking to a primarily white audience, where her name was mispronounced and her speech was interrupted by dessert service, and where she faced questions about her education. There were no issues with the other authors at the event who were white. lohud
NY Attorney General Continues Fighting for Caribbean Dreamers
New York Attorney General Letitia James led a group of state attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in an ongoing court case in support of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients. James’ brief highlighted what it called the “critical contributions of hundreds of thousands of DACA recipients to public health efforts, the economy and communities across the country,” as it fought Texas’ attempt to end the program. The briefing said that as of November 2021, roughly 34,000 health care workers and support staff depend on DACA for work authorization in the U.S. James added that allowing new DACA requests would create an increase of $2.5 billion in state and local tax revenue over the next 20 years. Jamaica Observer
Listen to this! Documented’s Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio went on FAQ NYC to explain the passing of the historic Intro 1867 bill, which will allow over 800,000 noncitizen voters in New York to vote in municipal elections. Read her article here at Documented.