Fighting for Immigrant Rights
6
Today I attended the Annual Immigrants’ Advocacy Day Hosted by the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA) here at the State House. It was a great rally with a lot of good energy, and I was glad to be a part of it.
As you may know I represent a diverse section of Boston with immigrants from Vietnam, Ireland, the Caribbean, and so many places across the world. I’m also a first generation Haitian American so I appreciate all the work that MIRA does every year, but this year in particular.
MIRA and its allies have done so much for Haitian-Americans and Haitians living here in the US. From working with immigrants to process temporary protected status applications to helping them find counseling services, MIRA has been a consistent and supportive voice in the Haitian community. Today was a great opportunity for me, on behalf of the Haitian community, to say thank you to MIRA for all the work they have done and continue to do.
Even though so much progress has been made, we know that there is still so much more to do. Children who have gone through our public schools, who have grown up in our state and who will undoubtedly contribute to our state, deserve instate tuition rates for higher education. Rep. St. Fleur has filed a bill that will accomplish exactly this. I pledge to you now, as I did to everyone present at the rally, that I will work tirelessly with my colleagues to make this happen.
As you all know, we are also moving into a very difficult budget season. There will be serious cuts but I pledge to you again that I will do everything I can to maintain health care for immigrants who are on the path to citizenship. This is not only the right thing to do but it’s the smart thing to do. Although providing health care is expensive, in the long run, preventative care saves money and keeps our population healthy and our economy efficient. We can’t make short term decisions despite our immediate budget crisis.
I’m thankful to MIRA and to all others who have made a commitment to help the Haitian people through this difficult time. It is so greatly appreciated. I will continue to work to protect the rights of all immigrants who come into the Commonwealth and will do whatever I can to support them.
