[MULTI CITY PRESS CONFERENCES] South Carolina Small Business Owners Urge Senators Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott to Support Bipartisan Immigration Solutions to Address Worker Shortage
Together with business, agriculture, and faith leaders, small business and immigrant entrepreneurs from Greenville, Columbia and Charleston will host three press conferences in one day across the state urging Sens. Graham and Scott to support bipartisan immigration proposals
COLUMBIA, SC — Small business owners are struggling to find workers amid a pandemic labor shortage and long-term demographic stagnation. This Wednesday, June 30, the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce will join with the American Business Immigration Coalition – Carolinas Chapter to convene a series of three press conferences across the state urging Sens. Lindsey Graham (SC-R) and Tim Scott (SC-R) to support common sense immigration solutions such as the Durbin-Graham Dream Act, the Bennett-Crapo Senate companion bill to the House’s Farm Workforce Modernization Act, and the SECURE Act (see below for more information on these bills).
The press conferences will take place Wednesday, June 30 starting in Greenville (9 a.m.) then Columbia (noon) and finally in Charleston at 3:30 p.m.
Speakers include local owners of greenhouses, restaurants, and insurance agencies as well as immigrant entrepreneurs and faith leaders. They will advocate for immigration solutions that expand our workforce, bring certainty to families and help turbocharge the South Carolina economy. The South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce will announce that it has signed on as a member of ABIC to advocate for these solutions.
Partners include: American Business Immigration Coalition Carolinas Chapter, South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce, South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association, South Carolina Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, AmericanHort, Charleston Hispanic Association.
Immigrants in South Carolina have created more than 25,000 new businesses and generate more than $720 million dollars in business revenue, in addition to the billions of dollars they contribute to the South Carolina economy every year.
Press Conference Details
Greenville, South Carolina
Location: Papis Tacos, 300 River St, Unit 123, Greenville
Time: Wednesday, June 30 at 9 a.m. EST
Speakers include: Frank Knapp, President/CEO South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce; Evelyn Lugo, President, South Carolina Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; Jorge Barrales, Co-Owner, Papis Tacos and immigrant entrepreneur; Matt Foster, Board member of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce and the South Carolina Hispanic Chamber, Managing Partner of Carolina Moves Property Management; Mayra Gallo, Owner of Bonjour Crepes and immigrant entrepreneur; Art VanWingerden, Co-Owner, Metrolina Greenhouses and a member of AmericanHort; Matt Miller, Pastor, Greenville Multicultural Church; and Yahel Flores, Carolinas State Director, American Business Immigration Coalition.
Columbia, South Carolina.
Location: MEGA Insurance Agency, 720 Charleston Highway, West Columbia
Time: Wednesday, June 30 at 12 noon EST
Speakers include: Frank Knapp, President/CEO South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce; Raysa Sanchez, Owner, MEGA Insurance Agency; John Durst, President, South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association; Arianna Cabrera de Ona, Senior Vice President of Human Resources and General Counsel, Costa Farms and a member of AmericanHort; Patrick Taylor South Carolina Mobilizer, National immigration Forum, Minister, Church of Nazarene; Sam Flores, South Carolina District Superintendent of the Church of Nazarene; Ulises Chavez, immigrant entrepreneur and owner of Mota Enterprises, a business academy for entrepreneurs; and Yahel Flores, Carolinas State Director, American Business Immigration Coalition.
Charleston, South Carolina: Wednesday, June 30 at 3:30 pm EST
Location: La Hacienda, 6322 River Ave, North Charleston
Time: 3:30 p.m. EST
Speakers include: Frank Knapp, President/CEO South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce; Enrique (Henry) Grace, CFO, Charleston Hispanic Association, Owner, Xtreem Cleaners; Rosa Fonseca, Manager, La Hacienda; Iskra Perez-Salcedo, CEO, IPS Accounting Services; Founder, Hispanic Women Entrepreneurs of SC; Jonatan Guerrero-Ramirez, DACA Recipient, Entrepreneur, Closet Case Thrift Store Manager, We are Family; Yahel Flores, American Business Immigration Coalition.
BIPARTISAN IMMIGRATION SOLUTIONS:
- Crapo-Bennet Senate Companion Bill to Farm Workforce Modernization Act: A bipartisan effort led by Democratic Senators Michael Bennet (CO) and Republican Senator Mike Crapo (ID) that would stabilize the current and future agricultural workforce and provide undocumented farmworkers and immediate family members legal immigration status and a path to citizenship.
- Durbin-Graham Dream Act: Co-sponsored by Senators Dick Durbin and Lindsay Graham, this bipartisan bill provides a roadmap to citizenship for nearly 2 million undocumented people, including current DACA recipients, those eligible to apply for DACA, and other undocumented immigrant youth.
- SECURE Act: Under this bill, all those with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) who have been continuously present in the United States for at least three years would be eligible to apply for legal permanent residency.
ABOUT
The Carolinas Chapter of the American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC) promotes sensible immigration reform that supports the economy of The Carolinas by providing American companies with both the high-skilled and “low-skilled” talent they need, and allow the integration of immigrants into our economy as consumers, workers, entrepreneurs, and citizens.
The American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC) promotes commonsense immigration reform that advances economic competitiveness, provides companies with both the high-skilled and low-skilled talent they need, and allows the integration of immigrants into our economy as consumers, workers, entrepreneurs, and citizens.
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