White House Protest Highlights the Need for Immigration Reform

Washington, DC, June 25, 2015 —The protest by an undocumented transgender Latina woman at the White House and the President’s reaction continues to receive much media coverage. The National LGBTQ Task Force is calling for more of that coverage to focus on the core problem — the need for fair and comprehensive immigration reform.

“People have very strong feelings about the urgent need for immigration reform — and the detention of transgender women is one of the most appalling and totally avoidable examples of what is wrong with that system. Whether you are completely in favor of the action the protester used to make this point or against the tactic, whether you agree with the president’s response or not, the important point is that we need fair and comprehensive immigration reform now. And while the President is the most LGBTQ-friendly president in history, the most vulnerable cannot be kept safe in these detention centers. At these profit-driven detention facilities, LGBTQ people are fifteen times more likely than others to experience physical assault and rape. It’s time to stop detentions and deportations, and for Congress to fix our broken immigration system,” said Rea Carey, Executive Director, National LGBTQ Task Force.

There are currently over 267,000 undocumented LGBTQ immigrants living in the U.S. without a path to citizenship, denied access to the promise of America—the pursuit of happiness and the opportunity to provide for their families. Far worse is the treatment of undocumented immigrant women, children, and LGBTQ people in detention centers–which are required to detain 34,000 immigrants every night.

CONTACT:

Jorge Amaro
Media and Public Relations Director
213-842-7564
jamaro@thetaskforce.org