Karla Gonzales García
Yet again immigrants are under attack because of a new Trump administration policy being considered that would impact access to public programs for people seeking legal residency and could result in denying people the ability to enter the United States or even change people’s immigration status.
The public charge is a determination test used by United States immigration officials. The idea is to assess if someone will use and to what extent they might need to utilize support from the government through a public program. The proposal would expand the definition used in the test in order to try to limit the ability of immigrants to use public programs and to penalize those who do.
They are counting on people not understanding what this change means. They are trying to sneak through a change that would cause dramatic and devastating impacts. We can’t let them do that.
While the official language is still being finalized, we have already seen an increase in the number of immigrant families unenrolling from social programs and cancelling medical appointments. This is the result of the culture of fear that this administration seeks to instill in immigrant communities. It will only get worse if the changes go through.
They are counting on people not understanding what this change means. They are trying to sneak through a change that would cause dramatic and devastating impacts. We can’t let them do that. This administration is determined to destroy the health and economic stability of immigrant families. We will continue to speak out and to mobilize our community to halt this dangerous proposal.
Karla Gonzales García, Policy and Program Director of Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR) www.colorlatina.org.
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