Garfield, NJ City Council Passes Resolution Urging Congress to Provide Pathway to Citizenship for Immigrant Essential Workers

Garfield, NJ May 4, 2021:  The Garfield City Council recently passed a resolution urging Congress to pass a pathway to citizenship for essential immigrant workers. Resolution 21-145 received unanimous support from the council. In it, the Council calls on U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell, U.S. Senators Cory Booker and Bob Menendez to “pass a pathway to citizenship for all 11 million undocumented immigrants in New Jersey and to use the reconciliation process in the budget to legalize immigrant essential workers, Dreamers, TPS holders and farmworkers and provide a pathway to citizenship.” Garfield’s growing immigrant population mirrors the immigrant populous Bergen County. In New Jersey, there are nearly a half million undocumented immigrants. According to the Center for American Progress, about 209,000 of these undocumented immigrants worked in frontline jobs during the pandemic. As Congress struggles to overhaul our immigration system, the council urged New Jersey’s congressional representatives to use every avenue possible, including reconciliation in the budget process.

City Councilman Romi Herrera said, “Immigrant essential workers should not have to live in fear of deportation as the do the lifesaving work to keep us all safe during the pandemic. I am proud to sponsor this resolution to urge Congress to pass a pathway to citizenship for essential workers — and all undocumented immigrants. It is a critical part of building back a stronger country.”

Immigrant rights organization Make the Road New Jersey praised the measure: “We are grateful for the support of the Garfield City Council – it is not enough to praise essential workers, lawmakers must support a pathway to citizenship to ensure families stay together and immigrant workers are supported. We thank Councilmember Herrera, Maslag, Delaney, Delaney and Rigoglioso for their support.”