NEW YORK NEW YORK: Hope yet for Bajans on the deportee list?
By Tony Best | Fri, August 26, 2011 - 12:00 AM
Scores of Bajans facing deportation to their birthplace may be given a second chance to remain in the United States.
But the tough question is: what may happen with Barbadians who have already been sent back home?
The opportunity and the intriguing query are linked to a decision by the United States Department of Homeland Security to take a second look at 300 000 deportation cases now before American immigration courts.
The dramatic move has been hailed by immigration advocates in and outside the United States Congress and the courts who have been pressing the Obama White House for more than two-and-a-half years to change a dreaded policy which has resulted in more than a million people being kicked out of the country.
Tens of thousands of men and women from the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, many of whom have done nothing more than overstay their allotted time or committed misdemeanors, such as jumping a subway turnstile, possessing a joint of marijuana, shoplifting a $1 pack of salted nuts or sneaking onto a bus without paying the fare.
Almost 70 Barbadians in the northeastern United States are in the deportation pipeline and Andre Padmore, Barbados’ Consul in New York, described the move as “a step in the right direction”. He said they were “awaiting a detailed explanation of the administration’s plans”.
Immigration is going to be a sensitive campaign issue in 2012 for both President Obama and his Republican rival. That’s because the Hispanic vote is very influential and may hold the key to a second term for Obama. He was elected in 2008 with substantial Hispanic and Caribbean backing because of his pledge to fight for comprehensive immigration reform but was unable to deliver.
Responding to pressure from federal, state and local elected officials, attorneys, church and community leaders, Obama has decided on the review to determine who poses a threat to the public or should be given the green light to stay in the country.
“Law-enforcement agencies around the country make decisions every day about how to prioritize their efforts to maximize public safety,” said John Conyers, who until January this year was chairman of the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives in Washington.
“The decision to focus resources on people who pose a risk to the public rather than clogging the system with people who are simply trying to support their families and contribute to their communities will benefit immigrants and Americans alike.”
Joan Pinnock, a leading Caribbean immigration attorney in New York and New Jersey, said, “It is more than a commonsense move by the Obama administration.
“It can allow students to continue their education in the United States and enable parents to continue living under the same roof as their children without fear of being deported.”
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“...many of whom have done nothing more than overstay their allotted time or committed misdemeanors, such as jumping a subway turnstile, possessing a joint of marijuana, shoplifting a $1 pack of salted nuts or sneaking onto a bus without paying the fare.”
So…one is saying it okay to do the above things and just get a slap on the wrist??!! If you don’t have transport fair ask someone to pay the ride for you. Possession of marijuana is ILLEGAL! Stealing a pack of nuts is foolish!!! Y How do you “sneak” onto a bus without paying?!
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Comment LinkI guess what is stated at paragraph#5 is done so metaphorically. Surely whether you steal a $1 pack of anything or $100,000 fur coat, it is still a crime.
U S or anyone else does not have to accept necessity as an excuse for petty crime and who is to say if you are lucky one, you wouldn’t try it again. As the Mayor of New York has suggested, those persons (and there are many) whose only crime was not regularize their status, but who have worked and contributed significantly (pay taxes etc), should be treated differently.
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Comment LinkGrandiose Delusions can be quite common amongst individuals not willing to accept that sometimes situations occur and that people sometimes make mistakes. Reality and your picture perfect world differ greatly…..
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Comment LinkTo Tanya Forde: As an upright and law abiding citizen I would be very afraid of having you as a person who dispenses justice. We agree that crimes were committed, but we have to consider the type of crimes and to ensure that the punishment fits the crime. Deportation is reserved for individuals who commit serious crimes and deserve to lose their citizenship because they no longer are deemed to fit into the US society. IE: drug dealers, murderers, rapists, chronic thieves, etc. Does a person really deserve to be kicked out of a country for jumping a turnstile or sneaking onto a bus? Mere peccadillos!!We also have to consider that many of these people were taken to the US as very young children and are really products of the US environment, not that of Barbados. Why should the US dump their products and problems on Barbados?
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Comment LinkMr Best is not saying it is oky to do these things. But showing that DEPORTATION is not a measurable punishment for fare evasion. Fare evasion is a $75 ticket…and then deportation?! They might as well behead jaywalkers.
For people who committed such crimes in their mis guided youth, to be ripped from homes, familes, jobs etc. Many to return to a country where they have no such, is INSANE.
Please do not buy into the rhetoric that all deportees are hardened criminals, who all set out to establish syndicates and lead Barbados further down the path to hell. This is not so.
In recent years the deportation cells have been filled law abiding citizens, who stand to lose it all. Often for one foolish mistake. No one is perfect.
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Comment LinkI could not agree with Leonard Bee or Biilly Vibes more. Firstly I agree that the punishment must fit the crime. People can’t be beheaded for jaywalking, to use an extreme example. Secondly, many of the folk being deported know nothing about Barbados and learned nothing in Barbados. When an individual is taken to the USA at a very tender age and then becomes a criminal as an adult that person is an American who learned criminal activity in the US. Kindly ask the US not to send their rejects here. We have our own and we do not deport them.
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Comment LinkLaw abiding citizens do not “usually” end up in jail cells. Cat luck is not dog luck! If you cant do the time (or deportation) do not do the Crime!
Imagine, stealing a $1 pack of nuts! To feed whom? The birds? NONSENSE!
If not corrected that $1 of nuts will escalate to someones handbag or wallet!
Clearly the demise of our society comes from encouragement. From the same persons that if their relatives suffer at the hands of robbers or gun men, will be bawling out for the RBPF to “Do Something”!
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Comment LinkIt is news to me that if a US citizen (whether born there or through procedure) commits a crime he/she is “deported”. If you are a citizen of the said country in which you committed the crime, prey tell me, Where Are They Going To Deport You To? Mars? What NONSENSE!
Who says they were not given tickets for jumping turnstiles and “sneaking” onto buses? Maybe they didnt pay them, after all, if they had money in the first place they would have paid the fare!
Turnstile jumpers should compete in the olympics (hurdles would be a good choice) and persons that can “sneak” onto buses should sign up with the Secret Service!
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