Tonight, Donald Trump made a series of comments about immigration on national broadcast, making the case for his border wall. Sayu Bhojwani, President and Founder of New American Leaders, issued the following statement in response:
“Families who have lost everything and are seeking safety for their children are not a threat. LGBTQ people fleeing violence and persecution are not a threat. Survivors of domestic violence are not a threat. Trump’s comments tonight are a desperate political move that flies in the face of our most basic American values. He is playing political games with the actual lives of asylees.
“Ever since Donald Trump started his campaign, he has exaggerated statistics and anecdotes to create a xenophobic bogeyman out of American immigrants. Since his taking office, at least two dozen detained immigrants have died in US custody. The hundreds of people detained in squalid conditions at our southern border – including young children – are not killers and terrorists. They are families who have traveled thousands of miles fleeing poverty and violence to seek asylum in the United States. As a global leader, we must do better, and so must our government, especially our president.”
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New American Leaders (NAL) is the only national, nonpartisan organization focused on bringing New Americans into the political process by preparing first and second generation Americans to use their power and potential in elected office.