Delia Ramirezis a freshman member of Congress who represents a swath of central and west Chicago.
Ramirez is also the wife of an undocumented immigrant.
Former PresidentDonald Trumphas made the deportation of millions of undocumented immigrants the centerpiece of hisdark domestic agenda.
(Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)Anadolu via Getty Images
The high court has swung wildly to the right since then, thanks to Trumps conservative appointees.
The transcript that follows has been edited for length and clarity.
you might harm them.
you’re able to criminalize them.
And you could deport them.
Youre talking about Haitian immigrants.
Youre talking about Black immigrants.
If this is not bigotry and racism, I dont know what is.
It is mind boggling for me.
It is the most disgusting act I could ever have imagined, in 2024, in this country.
When hes talking about taking us back, how far back are we going?
Love your neighbor as you love yourself.
But if theyre not human, if they are less than human, then that rule doesnt apply.
The deep level of hypocrisy infuriates me.
Trumps immigration threats could impact millions of families including your own.
Hes aDreamerwho is watching whats happening in Texas, and in courtrooms across the country.
But not everyone is married to Delia the congresswoman, right?
So thats certainly the reality of so many households.
Its also the reality of my uncle, who calls me every single week.
Why dehumanize people when your ancestors were immigrants?
Why dehumanize people when your wife is an immigrant?
Can I ask you about the specifics of your husbands story, how he came to the United States?
Boris had just turned 14, February of 2000.
I know that because we just went to our USCIS [United States Citizenship and Immigration Services] interview.
He came with his older brother, who was about to turn 16.
They both came to work because their parents were almost starving in their home village.
Today, he has a bachelors degree in psychology and has spent years doing early-child development.
And yet we vilify him.
Even married to a Congress member.
Even married to a congresswoman.
Its what so many others go through.
Yet in some ways its little compared to what others go through.
But so many people, like my uncle unless we do some form of reform are left in limbo.
Your husband qualified for DACA.
People who dont follow this issue closely might think, DACAs fine, the Supreme Court protected it.
But the high court is different now.
But here we are 12 years later.
DACA is not safe.
Imagine the impact that this would have on the nation.
Trump talks about rounding up and removing 20 million people from this country.
What does that threat feel like?
It keeps me up at night.
Its a fear and anger against people like him, who benefit and exploit immigrants and then discard them.
He thinks its an asylum institution.
I have to continue to say: Immigrants are part of the solution, not the problem.
Because we have to take control of this conversation.
And we have to do so through facts.
Theres a human side of it, and theres also the economic-impact side of it.
The reality is that $96.7 billion is what undocumented immigrants contribute in taxes every single year.
Its also telling of this precise moment the short memory that we have.
In the early 1900s, Italians were treated as less than human.
We would protect and fight for them.
Which is why, every chance I get, I remind them of their roots.
How would you shape a more constructive national discussion about immigration?
There is no question that we have issues at the border.
Theres no question that we have an immigration problem.
I would say that we also have an immigration opportunity, and I am committed to solutions.
I came to this place to get work done and to make life for my constituents better.
Its important for us to be clear that immigrants are, in fact, a solution.
Theyre addressing a historic labor shortage.
We have about 9 million jobs open at any given time.
Why are we criminalizing them when we should be saying, Thank you for coming.
Thank you for making this country great.
Theres real consequences to this moment.
I believe that the Democratic Party has the tools and ability to get this done.
And Im going to hold it accountable hopefully once we win on November 5.
