U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) together called the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency on Wednesday afternoon to urge a delay in the deportation of Nury Chavarria, 43,.
“I'm heartbroken for the Chavarria family,” said Murphy. “Nury is a hard-worker and the sole caretaker of her four U.S. citizen children. She’s not who we should be focusing our limited law enforcement time and effort on deporting. Trump's backward immigration policies make us less safe. We're better than this.”
Chavarria is a single mother of children — 21-year-old with cerebral palsy, an 18-year-old recent high school graduate and a 15-year-old and 9-year-old, who could become wards of the state. She works full-time as a housekeeper.
Related story: Time Running Out For Norwalk Mom Facing Deportation After 24 Years In U.S.
Blumenthal and Murphy spoke jointly to ICE Deputy Field Office Director Christopher Cronen seeking a stay of deportation. On July 11, Blumenthal wrote to ICE Acting Director Thomas D. Homan requesting a "full review and fair consideration of Chavarria’s stay of removal application."
“My heart breaks for Nury and her four U.S. citizen children — a family that will be torn apart due to a cold and callous decision by the Trump administration to remove all reason and rationality from its immigration enforcement priorities," Blumenthal said.
"I spoke directly to ICE leadership today presenting clear and compelling facts in this case and seeking a reasonable request for reconsideration, yet the Trump administration turned a blind eye."
Lawyers are fighting to help Chavarria, whose application for asylum was denied when she arrived in the U.S.
She remained in the country but has no criminal record, works as a housekeeper, pays taxes and has been checking in yearly with immigration officials since 2011.
But at her June check-in, Chavarria was told by ICE officials to pack up and leave the U.S. within five weeks.
With the help of attorneys, she is appealing the decision on humanitarian grounds so she can care for her children.
"Unfortunately, this tragedy is merely the tip of the iceberg. Every day my office is contacted by new families from across Connecticut—individuals who have committed no crime, parents of citizen children, hard-working neighbors who have reported dutifully to ICE year after year who are now being told to deport immediately under Trump’s new policies," Blumenthal said.
"America is better than this, and history will not judge these actions kindly. I commend the advocates and the Chavarria family for their bravery and tenacity in the face of injustice. We have lost this fight, but we must sustain our outrage and advocacy until reason is restored. And ultimately, we must achieve comprehensive immigration reform to provide lasting change to our broken immigration system."
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