FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 3, 2020
PRESS CONTACTS: Hiram Soto | (858) 349-7940 | hsoto@americanbic.biz
Elected and Business Leaders Joined Advocates In Calling for Urgent and Commonsense Immigration Solutions at ABIC Summit
Dallas, TX — Looking to turn the page on decades of gridlock and inaction on immigration, elected leaders from both parties — including Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and John Cornyn (R-TX) — joined business leaders and advocates from across the country in calling for urgent immigration solutions in 2021 at the Reigniting the Economic Engine: Immigration Solutions for 2021 summit organized by the American Business Immigration Coalition.
In a show of bipartisanship, speakers talked about the importance of moving the conversation forward on immigration solutions like protecting Dreamers, stabilizing our agricultural workforce and providing permanent legal status for the undocumented population, which will be vital to our economic recovery from the Covid 19 Pandemic.
Alejandro Mayorkas, the former Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and President-Elect Joe Biden’s nominee to lead DHS, expressed a commitment from the incoming administration to “fix what is broken on day one to keep families together and build an immigration system that works for all of us.”
Rebecca Shi, Executive Director of the American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC):
The time is now to move forward to do what’s right for families and our economy. Immigrants are essential workers and key to our recovery, but they also are family, friends and neighbors. They should not be scapegoated, but rather embraced because when they thrive, we all thrive. Now it is time for grown ups to put on long pants and get it done. ABIC will be an active partner to make this happen, but this is not something that the business community alone can solve, we will work with immigrant communities who are affected. Urgent and powerful political imperative to show American people that both parties are interested in solving problems.
Mike Fernandez, MBF Healthcare Partners Chairman and ABIC Co-Chair said:
This summit was the beginning of a campaign to challenge both political parties to come to the table and solve the immigration challenges of our nation. Immigrants like myself are not a break to the American engine, we are a piston to speed up that motor that we call the American enterprise and have been critical in keeping this safe and healthy during this pandemic. We are sick and tired of both sides not having the guts to solve this problem. John Boehner, Paul Ryan, George W Bush, Barack Obama all regretted that they weren’t able to pass immigration reform. As a result of their failures, we just finished 4 years of the politics of extreme hatred and division. It is now time to come together and do the right thing for families and our economy. As Winston Churchill said: ‘Americans can always be counted on to do the right thing…after they have tried everything else.’ It’s time to do the right thing.
John Rowe, Exelon Chairman Emeritus and ABIC Co-Chair, said:
Getting something done will require courage and conviction from both sides. Putting forward immigration solutions like protecting Dreamers, supporting our agricultural workforce and providing security and opportunity for the undocumented population is economically important, morally right and politically smart. It will make our country a stronger economic engine, a safer society and overall a more decent place. We hope this summit can help kickstart negotiations to build a more modern, humane, and orderly immigration system for the 21st century.
To schedule follow-up interviews with panelists, including business leaders, please contact Hiram Soto at hsoto@americanbic.biz or call (858) 349-7940.
About
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.