"I believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and lived here, even though sometime back they may have entered illegally." - Ronald Reagan
Beginning in 2013, I began a series of stories on the issue of immigration. It began initially when I met Ralph Isenberg, the founder of The Isenberg Center for Immigration Empowerment (ICIE) in Oak Cliff. Ralph is a prominent businessman in south Dallas, but has made it his mission in life to help foreign nationals caught in the web of our broken immigration system.
My stories are often those of the immigrants he helps, foreign nationals whose only crime is wanting a better life in America. They face not only a government bureaucracy that makes legal entry extremely difficult (unless you are wealthy enough to hire an attorney to help you), but agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) who have detention and deportation quotas to fill. Stories of abuse and misconduct at the hands of ICE agents are common.
Immigration reform is not an issue bound by political party. Ralph Isenberg is a self-proclaimed proud Jewish liberal, and I am a Hispanic conservative Republican, and yet we see eye to eye on this issue, because we do not deal with rhetoric. We deal in human lives, and see the toll our current system takes. These stories are meant to enlighten, and have no agenda other than the truth.
In addition to the links provided here, these stories are published at The Isenberg Center for Immigration Empowerment website, The Cafe con Leche Republicans website, Examiner.com, and Yahoo Voices.
Legal trickery by ICE denies Dallas mother due process - April 2014
Grandmother deported after ICE, judge ignore the facts - April 2014
Judge rules shackling of immigrant detainees unconstitutional - March 2014
Dallas immigration judge had "no concern" for children - March 2014
English classes fill a vital need for immigrants - February 2014
Dallas ICE refuses to help abandoned child in El Salvador - January 2014
Dallas mother's release from ICE custody called a New Year's miracle - January 2014
Activists call deportation of father a miscarriage of justice - December 2013
Violence in El Salvador awaits father facing deportation by Dallas ICE - December 2013
Pro-immigration Republicans find their voice - November 2013
United We Dream criticizes Obama for calling immigrants illegal - August 2013
Scams, legal errors victimize immigrants - August 2013
Immigration group accuses Dallas ICE of deportation misconduct - July 2013
90,000 Mexican lives lost to hunger, starvation since 2001 - July 2013
Steve King "suicide watch" donation appeal is full of inaccuracies - July 2013
Sarah Palin supported a path to citizenship before opposing it - July 2013
Conservative bloggers find profit in opposing immigration reform - July 2013
Freedom remains elusive for wrongly imprisoned Dallas mother - July 2013
What did Ronald Reagan say about immigration amnesty? - June 2013
The facts about the immigration bill's border security amendment - June 2013
Immigrants held back by language, lack of knowledge of American law - June 2013
Advocate begs federal judge for mercy for jailed Dallas mother - June 2013
Baseball legend Chipper Jones jokes about alligators eating immigrants - June 2013
Aggressive deportation tactics continue to separate American families - June 2013
Activist asks judge to intervene in jailed Dallas mother's case - May 2013
Immigration law failures keep Dallas mother jailed without bond - May 2013
Dallas activist helps immigrants facing government abuse - May 2013
Associated Press drops use of term "illegal immigrant" - April 2013
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