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Sentenced Home Underscores the Need for Immigration Reform to Restore Due Process to Immigrants
Washington, D.C. — On Monday, April 30, 2007, the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC) and the Immigrant Justice Network (IJN) in coordination with Hate Free Zone (HFZ), will host a Capitol Hill Briefing (U.S. Capitol, Room HC- 5) focused on the U.S.'s broken system of justice that eliminates due process for many immigrants and the need for immigration reform raised in an award-winning documentary, SENTENCED HOME, which follows the tragic deportation process of three young Cambodian refugees who are fighting to regain their lives in the United States. Family members will be available to speak about the impact of deportation laws on their families. This briefing coincides with the first-ever national mobilization and rally of Asian Pacific Americans (APA) for just and humane immigration reform, which will take place on May 1, 2007 at noon. The rally will unite 500 APAs in the nation's capital to speak out on the impact of immigration reform on APAs in this country. Many Uch, one of the Cambodian refugees featured in SENTENCED HOME and awaiting deportation to Cambodia, will speak at the Capitol Hill Briefing. A tireless advocate for immigration reform, Uch states, "The deportation experience has helped me become an agent of change in my own life and the community. Tearing immigrants like me from our families is not immigration reform." "The documentary accurately portrays the devastation that deportation exacts upon families and communities. It is a natural complement to the historic APA mobilization rally that is happening. Our organizations are excited to be part of a national effort of APAs making their voices heard on immigration policy," states Doua Thor, Executive Director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center. "This film exposes the lack of basic due process in our current deportation laws. For example, our laws do not give immigrants a fair day in court and strip judges of their power to hear cases and make individual determinations. Laws like this are profoundly un-American and dangerous," said Paromita Shah, member of the Immigrant Justice Network, a collaborative that works to build an organized effort to eliminate unjust immigration penalties for immigrants entangled in the criminal justice system and to end the criminalization of immigrant communities in the U.S. "This has been an incredible month for comprehensive immigration reform. The film helps us to put a human face on the tragic consequences of our country's immigration policies and reveals the injustice and lack of due process that individuals caught in the system face," explains Pramila Jayapal, Executive Director of Hate Free Zone. "Comprehensive immigration reform must restore due process." SENTENCED HOME follows the stories of three young Cambodian American refugees who were raised in Seattle's inner- city projects, caught between a tragic past and an uncertain future by an immigration system that doesn't offer any second chances. The film emphasizes the injustices incurred by families and individuals as a result of the sweeping immigration laws enacted in 1996, thus highlighting the need for reform that upholds America's laws and traditions by restoring due process to immigrants. The film also speaks to the plight of many immigrants of various nationalities who have been deported since 1996. The film will broadcast on May 15, 2007 on PBS.
April 30, 2007 — 10am SENTENCED HOME Capitol Hill Briefing
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