All Blog Posts

12/10/12

In an 1869 speech in Boston, abolitionist Frederick Douglass challenged most social observers and politicians by advocating the acceptance of Chinese and Japanese immigrants into the United States. He said: There are such things in the world as human rights. They rest upon no conventional...

MomsRising Together

Benjamin Jealous

Immigration

12/10/12

I'm reading Junot Diaz's new book and my head is swimming with images of Ana Iris, a Dominican mother of three who hasn't seen her children in seven years. In order to feed them, she's come to New York and works two jobs, one laundering bloody hospital sheets and the other filleting fish. Even...

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Ellen Bravo

Immigration

12/10/12

Maria Bolaños, a Salvadoran woman in Hyattsville, Maryland, called the police out of fear that her partner was going to hurt her. But instead of being protected by the police, she got turned over to immigration. She said, “I feel like I made a mistake calling the police when I was afraid, and worry...

MomsRising Together

Linda Meric

Immigration

12/10/12

Since the election the headlines have been all about immigration reform and the urgency for Congress to finally get serious about it. As someone who works on immigration policy, I’ve been excited about the momentum that is building. But more importantly, as an advocate for children and as a...

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Wendy Cervantes

Immigration

12/10/12

I have lived in the United States for 30 years, but I have never forgotten my humble beginnings as an undocumented immigrant. My family and I lived our first years in the US with the fear of being sent back to El Salvador. “La Migra” was a consistent threat in our lives. My personal experience as...

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Rhina Ramos

Immigration

12/10/12

What would you do if you found out your daughter had a life-threatening illness -- and you had no way to pay for the treatment?   Would you pack up everything, cross a border, and move to a new country, if it meant the chance to work and earn enough to save her life?   I’m a mother and I would. In...

MomsRising Together

Shamasunder Reshma

Immigration

12/10/12

I wrote this piece for the Harvard Kennedy School newspaper , where I am a mid-career MPA student. Last year I took a break from community organizing after a heartbreaking loss of the DREAM Act in 2010. As I take this year to read and reflect, I can feel myself pulled back into the fight,...

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Marissa Graciosa

Immigration

12/10/12

As a lifelong human rights activist, I’ve never been afraid of controversy. But saying that immigrant women are good for our economy—good for our country —isn’t controversial. It’s common sense. Immigrant women are job creators. They are innovators and entrepreneurs who strengthen our national...

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Mallika Dutt

Immigration Health Care

12/10/12

The landmark health reform law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), is a tremendous starting point for improving the health of communities of color in California and across the country. But to truly achieve lasting progress in the fight against health disparities, we need...

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Ellen Wu

12/10/12

Gaby Pacheco’s story will be featured in a collection of stories for young people by Lily Eskelsen and Alberto Garcia called “Rabble Rousers” about people who organize communities to fight for social justice. Gaby was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador. She doesn’t remember much of her city, but her family...

MomsRising Together