FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JANUARY 6, 2018
CONTACT: WILLIAM SCHLITZ
817-335-8683
TARRANT COUNTY DEMOCRATIC PARTY
DENOUNCES THREAT BY TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
TO DEPORT VIETNAM WAR REFUGEES
FORT WORTH, TX – The Tarrant County Democratic Party unanimously adopted the following statement yesterday at their quarterly CEC meeting.
The Tarrant County Democratic Party stands in solidarity with its Vietnamese neighbors who face revived deportation threats by the Trump administration.
A memorandum of understanding between the United States and Hanoi reached in 2008 determined that the U.S. would not serve final removal orders to people who arrived before diplomatic relations were restored between our nations in 1995. The agreement is set to renew in January.
With Trump’s reinterpretation of the agreement, countless Vietnam War refugees and family members are burdened with uncertainties. Much like our neighbors who are still disappointed in lack of local leadership against SB4, our Vietnamese families now feel many of the same threats under this administration’s atrocious policies.
The DFW metroplex has the fourth largest Vietnamese population in the United States. Arlington is the tenth most populated city in the U.S. by Vietnamese people.
For those still living in poverty, the financial barriers to begin a path to citizenship is steep. With no life to return to in Vietnam, our nation of immigrants thumbs its collective nose to the plight of yet another group of human beings who knock on our door.
ICE has identified approximately 9,000 residents, about 1,500 of whom live in Texas, as being eligible for deportation for criminal activity. Described by the current administration as “violent criminals,” most have been adjudicated and/or served time.
The TCDP urges everyone to love and care for all our neighbors who make up the fabric of our community. We want to see all of our county’s cities join our neighbors in Dallas and Houston in programs like Cities for Citizenship to invest in citizenship programs.
Finally, we encourage all naturalized residents who are eligible to apply for citizenship to do so now.
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