An open letter from more than 1,000 business owners throughout the country was published as a full-page advertisement in The Hill today, calling on the president not to delay executive action on immigration.
For Immediate Release
Sept. 9, 2014
Contact: Kathy Mulady
Kathy@allianceforajustsociety.org
(206) 992-8787
Rep. Gutierrez Joins Small Business Owners in Calling for Executive Action on Immigration
Small business owners nationwide sign open letter to the president
An open letter from more than 1,000 business owners throughout the country was published as a full-page advertisement in The Hill today, calling on the president not to delay executive action on immigration.
The ad was sponsored by Main Street Alliance, a national organization of small businesses.
Businesses, communities and families suffer when politics takes precedence over people.
“We are asking for the president’s leadership because we don’t believe immigrant families should be used as a political football during election season,” said Amanda Ballantyne, national director of Main Street Alliance.
“It’s clear that elected leaders in D.C. don’t feel the urgency that our communities and small business owners are feeling. We can’t afford to have families living and working in the shadows – they must have an opportunity to contribute and prosper,” she said.
Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Illinois), spoke this morning on a conference call with reporters and small business owners from throughout the country.
“I am happy to join small business owners in calling on Washington to act on immigration reform and calling for the President to take executive action as soon as possible. Such action would unleash a torrent of economic activity in Chicago and across the country,” he said.
“Immigrants who are in constant fear of deportation or losing their family are less likely to spend on big purchases, less likely to buy a house over renting, or start a small business that employs others because it could all be taken away so quickly if they are deported,” said Gutierrez.
“While we fight for broader immigration reform, one thing the President can do is take immigrants who are the driving engines of small business corridors like 26th Street in Chicago, out of the deportation line. They are assets to our community, but we treat them like fugitives and that hurts all the rest of us in our wallets,” he said.
Small businesses on the call this morning included:
Makini Howell – Plum Restaurants; Seattle, Washington
Catherine Matthias – Stewart Jones Jewelry Design Studio and Art Gallery; Joseph, Oregon.
Martin Heroux – Armando y Jorges’ Orlandoan Hot Sauce; Orlando, Florida
Dan Shannon – Gary’s Auto Service; Denver, Colorado
Fausto Rodriguez – Woodside Medical Clinics; New York City
Joaquin Molina – Arcanum Electric Tattoo, Pueblo, Colorado
The open letter to the president, and a full list of all 1,000 signers can be seen here: http://mainstreetalliance.org/open-letter-relief/
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Main Street Alliance, a program of the Alliance for a Just Society, is a national network of small business coalitions working to build a new voice for small businesses on important public policy issues. Alliance small business owners share a vision of public policies that work for business owners, employees, and the communities we serve.