DeLauro to Trump: Do Not Destroy the American Dream

WASHINGTON, DC — Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) today spoke on the House Floor to read a letter from Sergio, an undocumented immigrant who left his internship in DeLauro's Washington, DC office last year following the election. Sergio returned home to his family in Connecticut as a result of the incoming Administration's announcement that it intends to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and deport millions of undocumented immigrants.

Click here to watch the full remarks.

Here are the remarks, as delivered:

I rise to share a story that has weighed heavy on my heart. The President speaks about keeping America safe. He speaks about building a wall. He speaks about deporting undocumented immigrants.

His rhetoric of hate and fear is causing millions of families unspeakable pain. And this is happening in every community across our country and it is happening in my community. And I want to share a letter I received from one of my office's most dedicated interns one week after the election.

This young man was such a positive force in my office—he took on tasks with a smile, he had an insatiable appetite for learning about our government, he was one of the finest interns our office has ever seen.

I was proud to have him to be one of the first people that our constituents interacted with when they contacted our office.

But a week after the election, this young man, Sergio, went home and he left me this letter, which I will read to you in its entirety, because Sergio tells his own story better than I ever could.

Dear Representative DeLauro:

I was honored to intern in your Washington office and learn more about the government of the United States, and more specifically responding to constituents' concerns. Walking through the long tunnels that connect the congressional buildings to the Capitol I began to envision myself working in the District of Columbia upon graduation. But like for many people, the election results have forced me to take a different path.

After the presidential election, all the stability that had allowed my family and me to become part of the American life was turn into fear and doubt about our future. Not only has the President-Elect vow to deport millions of undocumented immigrants, but he also promised to remove the DACA program. For this reason, I had to return to New Haven and assist my family as we figure out which decisions are the best to take moving forward. Thus, I am sorry to inform you that I will no longer be able to continue my internship in your Washington DC office.

I want to express that while I am in constant fear questioning whether I will be able to complete my undergraduate degree, or if my US-citizen sister will be separated from us, I am not giving in. My best memory working in your office was running into an old employer who came to the office for a Capitol Tour. Reflecting on the aspirations I had working as a busser to get myself through high school, I remember your persona always providing me with hope. That hope has grown exponentially as I reminisce on the times you walked into the office and greeted all your interns with such gratitude and enthusiasm.

With infinite gratitude,

Sergio

How does this promising young man's fear make us safer? How can we stand idly by while his family navigates unspeakable anxiety and pain? How can we live with ourselves if we let these hateful policies stand?

Sergio is a bright young man dedicated to public service and now he is a young man questioning his future—and the future of his family.

This story breaks my heart—it should break yours. President Trump's executive orders are not just anti-immigrant, they are anti-American. Most of our families—including my own—came to this country as immigrants.

My father came through Ellis Island in 1913 as an immigrant from Italy. He was in school; he had to leave school in the seventh grade as he was eleven years old, because his teachers and his classmates laughed at him.

But he went on to serve his country, got himself an education, served his country in the United States military for eight years, served on the City Council in New Haven, worked as hard as he could along with my mother, whose mother and father came from Italy before her.

They scrimped and they saved to give me the finest education. And as an immigrant family, they could only dare dream that I would sit in the United States House of Representatives and be here today.

It is the American dream. It is what this nation is all about as we stand under this dome in this building, the seat of our democracy. Do not let any individual, any political party, destroy that American dream.

Our country is made richer by immigrants—we have always welcomed men, women, and children to our shores so that they can build a better life and build a stronger nation.

The President's executive orders are an insult to our country's roots and our values. Instead of uniting us, he threatens to further divide us.

I stand with Sergio—and the millions of people like him whose futures are in flux because of this Administration's misguided immigration policies. Do not destroy the American dream. I yield back the balance of my time.