Help us Please – twin boys beg for Mother’s rights

IMMIGRATION RIGHTS IN THE USA – Why should our Children Suffer? by Melanie Nathan – breaking news…
Shirley Tan will be deported on April 3^rd 2009.   The only way she can stay in the country is if a private bill is passed by congress or her case is adjudicated to be reopened, the latter which may not happen in time to prevent the deportation.

 Shirley is the mom of twin American boys, aged twelve, who were conceived invitro using her American partner’s eggs.   The Moms have been in a relationship in the USA for the past 23 years. This is the only home and family known to Shirley and her family.  If they had legal rights under Federal Immigration Law, this story would not be playing out in this horrific fashion. 

 Shirley has not been to the Philippines in over twenty years.  Now ICE is deporting her to a place, not only where she has no ability to support herself but also where as a teen, she suffered a brutal physical attack, witnessing the murder of her mother and sister.  in effect ICE wants to dump her in the middle of nowhere.   The person who attacked her went to prison and was released early due to political connections.  She is terrified. With her deportation imminent the offices of Congresswoman Jackie Speier and Senators Feinstein and Boxer have been notified with letters begging for their assistance.

The Department of Homeland Security, cannot grant an ‘emergency stay of deportation’ until Shirley is back in custody on 4/3, and within hours of being deported back to Philippines.  Only then can her attorney request an emergency stay. Apparently having a date a week ahead and a monitoring device is not enough to constitute an emergency – you have to be in custody…. typical of the rigidity of Immigration laws.

To stay in the US with her children and her partner, Tan needs her case re-opened because it was botched by an attorney, causing her to go out of her legal status.  She had no idea that this happened because the attorney tried to cover up the mistake. ( By the way – interesting fact – Proof of the fact that they had no idea there was a deportation order out is they were cleared by the White House for a visit which they did.  I can e-mail a picture of them with Sen. Boxer when they made the visit. They can give you these details directly.)

The way this has turned out Ms. Tan does not even have the option to go to find a country where she will be safe.  She is set to be dumped by ICE, in a place filled with terrifying memories, with no job, no source of income or place to stay. If she cannot stay in the US, the place of citizenship of her partner and children, then she would rather have the opportunity to leave on her own terms with enough time to arrange for the whole family unit to leave for exile to a country that would have them.   That means her partner giving up her career, losing their home, pensions, etc. But it is something they would rather do than split the family or have Tan sent to a place where her life is at stake.