Immigration Reform: Mixed Reviews in Sunset Park

Home Brooklyn Life Immigration Reform: Mixed Reviews in Sunset Park
Immigration Reform: Mixed Reviews in Sunset Park

IMG_1708

 While high-powered immigration rhetoric radiated from Washington, residents of Sunset Park, Brooklyn were braced to see how reform would impact their lives.

More than thirty immigrants arrived at the meeting room of the Mixteca organization, a group that assists Mexican and Latin American immigrants in Sunset Park, last Thursday evening. At 8 p.m. sharp, after a lively Q and A discussion with an immigration lawyer, the lights dimmed and the small, wooden whiteboard converted into a makeshift projector broadcast to President Barack Obama’s long-awaited speech.

As Obama’s announcement, translated into Spanish, informed viewers that new legislation would protect up to four million immigrants from deportation, the scenes of flag-waving, jubilant immigrants, seen elsewhere on the media, were not to be seen in Sunset Park. Instead residents crowded around the lawyer after the speech, inundating him with questions.

Reactions to the president’s list of reforms that night, and since, often depended on whether or not the changes would affect people personally.

“Well it’s definitely not what everyone wanted from it,” said Saira, who did not want to give her full name for legal reasons. “I’m not happy because as an undocumented student myself and as someone who is under deferred action this does not benefit my parents and does not benefit me.”

Yet for Maricela Guzman, who arrived from Mexico at six years old, Obama’s announcement will have more positive repercussions. As the parent of a five-year old U.S. citizen, who she raises alone, the announcement means she can apply for working status. “I feel very excited,” she said after the broadcast. “I know for some people it might be a disappointment and they might have been expecting more than they should have, but I think we should all be happy with what’s going on.”

The reforms are of particular significance to residents of Sunset Park as almost half of the population (48.1 percent) is foreign-born, according to New York City census statistics. Nearly 67.6 percent of this population do not have citizenship. The New York Immigration Coalition estimates that 250,000 immigrants will be affected by the legislation across New York City.

Mexican immigrants are the group that will be most impacted according to the Pew Research Center, with up to 44 percent of Mexican unauthorized immigrants nationwide becoming newly eligible. With more than 22.6 percent of the residents in in Sunset Park West alone identifying as Mexican, the impact for Mexican residents could be significant.

Obama’s announcement has brought some noteworthy changes.

* Undocumented parents of U.S .citizens who have been in the country for more than five years and pass a background check will be able to apply for work permits and avoid deportation.

* The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) has been expanded. The age limit has been removed, allowing access to the program for children who came to the United States before January 1, 2010.

* Border security will be enhanced and the Secure Communities program has been eradicated, to ensure that only serious criminals are targeted for deportation.

However these changes will only provide immigrants with temporary legal status, not a permanent path to residency. Those affected will also not be eligible for some federal benefits, such as health insurance under the Affordable Care Act or student financial aid.

For Damian Vargas, a lawyer who conducted a 90-minute immigration workshop earlier on Thursday evening, the news was bittersweet. “It’s great because four or five million people could potentially benefit from this,” he said, “but we still have another six to seven million people who will not.”

Vargas and other advocates had hoped that Obama’s reform would expand to include the parents of DACA recipients. However, the president refrained from taking this step. “I can see the legal reasons why he decided not to, but I wish he had put them in there,” Vargas said. “I did not anticipate any kind of citizenship or any kind of residency talk for legalization, but I at least wanted the parents of DACA to at least get the same benefits. It’s unfortunate.”

Steven Choi, the executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition, echoed this sentiment in a press release from the organization. “As historic as this announcement is, we cannot forget the millions of immigrants who remain without protection despite this executive action.”

One such Sunset Park resident is Chay Vidal, a 25-year old who came to the United States from Mexico at 16 with his cousin. He recalled his cousin handing him a $100 bill and leaving him to look for work alone. He barely spoke a word of English. Vidal, an aspiring photographer, works 16-hour days as a construction worker, sending money back to his family continuously to pay for both of his sisters’ education.

For Vidal, the announcement, though a step in the right direction, was disappointing. “I have friends who are really happy about the act. Me personally, I feel like, ‘OK, how many years do I have to wait? I have been in this country for almost nine years’.”

For Community Board 7 member Cesar Zuniga, the president’s speech will have a huge impact on the community and should be celebrated. “Obviously there are a whole bunch of folks left out and there is still a whole bunch more to do, but this is a really positive start,” he said.

At the monthly Community Board 7 meeting on Wednesday evening, Zuniga, who also works as a director for the Parent-Child Home Program, suggested the creation of an ad hoc committee to respond to immigrants’ needs. Chair Dan Murphy has suggested turning this into a permanent standing committee on the board, according to Seyzar.

Zuniga said that the purpose of the committee would be to assure that people are getting the right information and are not susceptible to fraud. “Scams do come out of the woodwork when something like this happens and we have to stay vigilant over that,” he said.

Despite concerns about future implementation of this reform, Javier Nieves, the former state assemblyman for Sunset Park, who refers to himself as an activist in the community, argued that this is an encouraging move in the right direction.

“Although late, this reform is better late than never,” he said. “It’s a first step.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.