Comprehensive Immigration Reform Critical to the Fight for Women’s Equality
Washington, D.C. – Today the Congressional Hispanic Caucus marks a significant milestone in the long struggle for women’s equality at a time when its members are working hard to achieve another critical victory in this fight—the passage of comprehensive immigration reform.
On this date 165 years ago, the Seneca Falls Convention helped spark the push for women’s suffrage. Unfortunately, more than a century and a half later, women in America are still subject to discrimination at work and violence at home. These hardships are especially acute for undocumented women, who disproportionately toil in hazardous jobs for low pay and are often fearful of reporting abusive partners and employers. This one of the key reasons why the CHC is committed to passing comprehensive immigration reform and why its members believe this movement is crucial to achieving equal rights and equal pay for women.
As the debate on how best to fix our broken immigration system progresses in the House, we must ensure that any legislation we consider recognizes the unique challenges that undocumented women face and the vital roles they play in our families and in our communities. That begins with establishing a fair path to citizenship. A recent study by the Center for American Progress found that becoming a citizen helped boost women’s wages by an average of 17 percent. And with more than 5 million U.S. citizen children growing up in mixed-status families, many headed by women, these gains will make a meaningful difference in the lives of American kids across the country.
2nd Vice Chair Linda Sánchez (CA-38): "Fixing our broken immigration system, not only helps grow our economy, but also helps protect women from being exploited and being denied equal pay and the safe working conditions they deserve. We help achieve women's equality by bringing millions of undocumented women out of the shadows and giving them the chance at the American dream. This is just more evidence that the time to pass comprehensive immigration reform is now."
Whip Michelle Lujan Grisham (NM-01): “Comprehensive immigration reform that includes a tough but fair pathway to citizenship will allow undocumented women to pursue the American dream. As more women can come out of the shadows and legally enter the job market, fewer women will face exploitation and discrimination in the workplace. When more women can earn a decent living and provide for their families, our economy as a whole is better off."
Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40): “Undocumented women are uniquely vulnerable to the iniquities of our broken immigration system. We should recognize that when they are abused and exploited; when they are denied fair wages and working conditions, their children also suffer. That’s why we need comprehensive immigration reform that lifts women and families out of the shadows and empowers them to pursue the American dream.”
Grace Napolitano (CA-32): "We are a land of immigrants, and we must treat any immigrant woman the same as we treat any American woman. No one should be treated as a second-class individual. These women and their children deserve better. Only by passing true, comprehensive immigration reform can we ensure equality and respect for these women who contribute so much to our economy, society, and way of life.
Nydia Velázquez (NY-07): “Coming to the United States, working hard and pursuing a better life is the traditional American dream. As immigration reform moves forward, we must work to protect undocumented women immigrants who are often exploited by our broken immigration laws.”
Loretta Sánchez: (CA-46): “For undocumented women exploitation is the rule, not the exception. Our broken immigration system leaves undocumented women vulnerable to physical abuse, unacceptable working conditions and wage theft. Only comprehensive reform can correct these injustices, protect women and families and move our country forward.”
Gloria Negrete McLeod (CA-35): “There are 5.4 million undocumented women living in the shadows of our society. These women provide our nation with tireless labor that often goes unrecognized. It is time we afford these women with a way to provide for their families through equitable pay and job security. As we consider Comprehensive Immigration Reform, let us acknowledge that it is one step in delivering a fair opportunity for millions of women to provide a better life for their families.”
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