[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9284]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      RECENT ICE RAIDS IN MICHIGAN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence) for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address the ICE raids 
that have happened in Michigan.
  I was alarmed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids 
that have resulted in the detention and possible removal of Iraqi 
nationals, as well as other members of the Detroit community.
  Why am I alarmed?
  Mr. Speaker, what we saw happen on Sunday, June 11, was an all out 
push to just remove Iraqi nationals who have been in this country, some 
for up to 40 years, who have lived in this country, raised families, 
have worked, and were subject to raids. Over 100 Iraqi nationals, 
including Chaldeans and Muslims, were removed from their families and 
transported to a correctional facility in Youngstown, Ohio.
  I have been in touch with community leaders, who are not only 
distressed by the ongoing situation, but also expressed concern 
regarding the dangers that await these individuals if they return to an 
active war zone in Iraq.
  Many of the communities characterize these raids as having a 
deliberate and calculated motive. Understand that these deportations 
are part of an agreement made between Prime Minister Abadi and 
President Trump as part of a deal to remove Iraq from the travel ban, 
an agreement that is not in writing, Mr. Speaker, an agreement that 
Congress nor the public has access to.
  When ISIS reared its ugly head in 2014 in northern Iraq, its main 
targets for genocide, sexual slavery, and other gross human rights 
violations included these same people: Iraqi Christians, Muslims, and 
other ethnic and religious minorities.
  In 2014, Congress passed a resolution, unanimously, recognizing 
Iraq's ethnic and religious minorities as victims of genocide in Iraq 
and Syria. Since then, both the Obama administration and Trump 
administration have referred to these acts of violence against Iraqi 
Chaldeans and others as genocide; yet still we are going to deport 
these same people back to a country where there will be, surely, a 
confrontation of death or slavery. Removing these individuals 
represents what many have described as a ``death sentence'' should they 
be deported into an active war zone.
  The final orders, we are told, of people who were convicted of 
offenses are based on criminal activities; but we know for a fact, some 
were for driving without a license and some were for having possession 
of marijuana 25 years ago.
  Furthermore, the removal orders are considered legal, and I support 
the legal process. They could be decades old. The problem is, Mr. 
Speaker, they don't reflect the current challenging conditions in the 
country of origin. Some of those being deported can't even speak Arabic 
because their entire life has been spent here in the United States.
  These raids have really started confusion and fear in the community. 
It is not in line with the compassion and humanity that we, as the 
United States, have expressed over the years.
  Mr. Speaker, I will also say that now is the time, more than ever, 
that we in this Congress should have the political courage to establish 
an immigration plan for America. This jumping up and saying we are 
going to go over here and we are going to do this is not reflective of 
a legislative process.
  We must have an immigration plan in America so that we can address 
the correct and humanitarian deportation of those who should not be in 
our country, but also have a demonstrated and supported pathway to 
citizenship in these United States of America. It is amazing to me that 
in these United States of America, which was built from immigrants, we 
now have this unofficial immigration process in America.
  I close, Mr. Speaker, by saying that, as a Member of Congress and 
representing Michigan with a significant Middle Eastern population, I 
stand here ready to do the job that I was sent here to do and to get an 
immigration plan for these United States of America.

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