Addressing the 2021 National Immigrant Integration Conference (NIIC), Las Vegas Indian Center Executive Director Rulon Pete discussed changing demographics. Pete stated that after all, almost all other people’s ancestors were immigrants at some point. He also highlighted the importance for immigrants to help one another out and grow together with US natives. Hundreds of people attended the conference held at Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino.
Pete said that people like him are going to support and fight for Native Americans whose voices should be heard. The conference discusses immigration policy, which is a timely debate when Congress pushes for reform through US President Joe Biden’s reconciliation bill worth $3.50 trillion. The plan demands a new pathway to US citizenship statuses for millions of people, including the following.
- Young immigrants who live in the US illegally after they were brought here as kids
- Essential workers such as farmers
- People with a temporary immigration status
Through the budget reconciliation tool, it would have been protected from the so-called GOP filibuster. Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough blocked the immigration reform move, but Representative Linda Sanchez told the audience that there is still a fight for it.
Earlier in 2021, Sanchez proposed the pathway that is the US Citizenship Act. Considered a progressive immigration reform attempt, the US Citizenship Act of 2021 would offer millions of immigrants a way of achieving the status of being citizens. Sanchez said that the immigration system of the US has even kept immigrants from using their divine talents to the utmost level.
However, Sanchez stated that there is hope that immigration reform would be pushed through reconciliation. Democratic Party members cum legislators are researching new ways of pushing through the reform thus; as for Sanchez, they would use all tools and procedures at their disposal for it.
Sanchez also noted that multiple plans are in place for finding a mechanism to offer immigrants relief. That said, it is going to be a tricky push.
She stated that legislators are discontent with the existing state of affairs in DC and cannot let the Republican Party presence in the US Senate determine what is impossible and is possible. When making that statement, she was referring to Republican Party members who are not in favor of the latest proposals.
Governor Steve Sisolak talked about the diversity of Nevada. As for Sisolak, one out of five people live in Nevada as refugees or immigrants, and they constitute around 30% of its workforce and around one-third of state business owners. He also stated that the coronavirus pandemic has badly affected most of those workers.
The Department of State plans on resettling 150 Afghanistan citizens to Nevada. Around 50 Afghan refugees are expected to move to Las Vegas as well as about 100 of them may relocate to northern locations, including Sparks and Reno.
As for Sisolak, Nevada is home for over 600,000 refugees and immigrants. Sisolak implied that he could relate to the immigrant issue as he is married to Kathy, who has Chinese immigrants as her parents.
Sisolak also supports a citizenship pathway for DACA, essential workers, and immigrants who have the aforesaid temporary status. He said that the conference should help encourage the following.
- Continuous work for just and equitable economic recovery for people in all communities
- Congress to offer undocumented immigrants in Nevada a way of achieving citizenship
The Biden government aims to take in as many as 125,000 people as refugees, alongside their family members, to the United States of America next year.
Under the Trump government, the refugee count was capped at just 15,000, which was the lowest after the Refugee Act of 1980 took effect. Biden faced flak as he raised it to only 62,500 in his presidential period.
Notwithstanding recent evacuations of people from Afghanistan, under the Taliban, the United States of America will fail to achieve the target by the year’s end. Biden discussed the dreams, sacrifices and contributions of immigrants from families with members having different immigration statuses while touting a cash infusion proposal to expedite backlogs for the USCIS and asylum seekers.
The campaign for immigrants may be an opportunity for them to grow, but as for Pete, it is also an opportunity to carefully think about his ancestors. As Pete stated that he is the offspring of those people, he paused to cry in front of the audience. For your information, Pete is among the members of the Paiute tribe in the City of Las Vegas.
