Immigrants Founded This Country

Dear Senator Feinstein, Senator Harris and Representative Carbajal:

My father Raymond Acevedo, his two brothers, and his sister were brought to the United States by their parents, Carlos and Mercedes, in the 1920s. All three brothers served in World War II. One gave his life for this country, fighting tyranny, bigotry, hatred, and injustice, in that war.

My father was an educator who inspired his students and his children to strive to be the best people they could be. Many of them are immigrants and children of immigrants, as were he and his siblings.

Immigrants and their children have served and enriched this country in enumerable ways. They founded this country. They have fought, sacrificed, been enslaved, toiled in our fields, our factories, and our homes, and have died for this country. They have are what make our country vibrant, rich, and beautiful.

It is time for us as a nation, and you as a representative of the American people, to do the right thing for our immigrants and our children. Please resurrect the DACA program immediately and pass immigration laws that will allow these hard-working, loving, and loyal people, who are looking for a better life for themselves and their families, to feel valued, appreciated, and safe. As Americans, we cannot and will not wait any longer.