California is shaping up to be a key battleground state for immigration reform. So I’m excited to see The Immigrant Magazine publish a powerful op-ed by Lt. Cmdr. Chris Phan, the recipient of our Walk of Courage Award.
In his July 5 piece, “Immigration Reform Holds Out Hope for Refugees,” Lt. Cmdr. Phan writes:
Given that an estimated 50,000 refugees resettled in Orange County between 1983 and 2004, it’s small wonder that the spirited debate over immigration reform has reached our dinner tables and local headlines.
I hear those debates, and for me, they go to the heart of what it means to be an American. My father arrived here in 1975 as a political refugee from Vietnam, and I was born in Vietnam and only reunited with him here in 1982. Since my family comes from these refugee roots, I feel it’s important for me to speak up for comprehensive immigration reform that includes a robust U.S. refugee resettlement program.
He goes on to make a compelling call to action:
Orange County is arguably one of our country’s proudest achievements: a bustling economic and social success story that weaves together the strands of several refugee, immigrant, and native-born American communities. We owe it to ourselves to never forget that a good part of our present prosperity rests on a vision of America as a global beacon of hope for refugees.
S.744 helps that beacon burn brighter. Now that the Senate has acted, it’s up to the House of Representatives to show similar bipartisan leadership on this critical issue. I hope you’ll join me in calling on our U.S. representatives to create and pass a bill that mirrors S.744.
Please read the entire op-ed by clicking the link above, and show your support by leaving a positive comment, promoting the piece through Facebook and other social media, and sending the link to your friends, colleagues, and family. You can also read quotes from a version of the op-ed that ran earlier, in the key Vietnamese-language newspaper Viet Bao, that urged the Senate to pass S.744.
With states like California so important in the House debate, it’s critically important that more leaders speak out strongly. We’re grateful to Lt. Cmdr. Phan and to The Immigrant Magazine for helping him reach their national readership with the reasons why immigration reform will benefit America.