An absurd proposal came up from some Democratic members of New York congressional delegation, spearheaded by Rep. Joseph Crowley of Queens, to give permanent residency to illegal immigrants who had helped in the rescue, clean-up and recovery efforts in the New York City after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
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An illegal immigrant from Colombia, Carlos Cardona, who was convicted in a drug pushing case and helped out in the aftermath of 9/11, was recently pardoned by Gov. Chris Cuomo for that effort. Cardona will benefit from Crowley’s proposal if passed by Congress.
“Cardona sifted through and cleared rubble for four days at ground zero after the Sept. 11 attacks. Little did he know that his decision to volunteer in 2001 would ripple into the future.”
“They served our country when we needed a hand, and now we are only showing them, unfortunately, the back of ours. Instead of gratitude, they are being shown the door,”Crowley said.
The legislation is likely to face an uphill battle with a Republican-controlled Congress, and with the Trump administration, which has vowed to crack down on illegal immigration.
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Crowley’s bill could affect 1,000 to 2,000 unauthorized immigrants who aided in the cleanup efforts after the attacks.
Representative Nydia M. Velázquez, a co-sponsor of the bill, said: “During the darkness of that day, we saw New Yorkers rally together to care for one another and respond to the attack. Immigrants, documented and undocumented, were among those that worked on ‘the pile,’ searching for survivors and helping our city recover.”
By Premji
