Cruz defends undocumented workers
Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz delivers a bag of food at her office located at 41-40 Junction Blvd. in Corona.
Photo courtesy of World Central Kitchen
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | APRIL 24-APRIL 30, 2020 3
BY KARMINA L. FONSECA
As a representative of the
neighborhoods most affected
by the coronavirus in the
country and world, Queens
Assemblywoman Catalina
Cruz knows it’s crucial to
cover the needs of undocumented
workers to fight the
negative effects of the pandemic.
“I think that as a community,
as a state, as a country,
we must recognize that without
many of those workers
we would be doing worse.
Those are the workers who
are in the supermarkets, in
the restaurants, and we are
not recognizing their value,”
said the assemblywoman for
the 39th district, which covers
Jackson Heights, Corona
and Elmhurst. “I think if we
are going to call ourselves a
sanctuary city, we have to
wear the pants and protect
immigrants the way they deserve.”
Cruz is convinced that
at the federal level, aid will
be unavailable, so her office
is advocating so certain resources
are not erased from
the budget, including legal
services for immigrants:
“Now that people are dying
they also want to deport
them,” she said.
According to a statement
from the NYC Mayor’s Office
of Immigrant Affairs, among
the 1 million essential workers
who are on the frontlines
of the COVID-19 pandemic —
delivery workers, EMS staff,
drivers, health care personnel
and more — half are immigrants.
New York City is home to
3.1 million immigrants, who
comprise about 37 percent
of the city’s population and
44 percent of its workforce
— including approximately
360,000 undocumented workers
and 48,000 undocumented
business owners. Also, over a
third of NYC’s undocumented
workforce is low-income,
is ineligible for most safety
net assistance, and has been
left behind by federal stimulus
packages because of their
documentation status.
“We have a president who
doesn’t even recognize a pandemic
until it’s too late. We
have a governor who has done
a lot for the state during the
emergency but who has put
certain limitations,” Cruz
stressed. “For example, we
could have raised $40 billion
in the budget if we had been
willing to put more taxes on
the wealthy in this state.”
Step up the help
Recently, Governor Andrew
Cuomo and Mayor Bill
de Blasio were called out by
Brooklyn Council Member
Carlos Menchaca, chair of the
Council’s Committee on Immigration,
to “step up” and provide
undocumented workers
immediate cash relief similar
to what the state of California
is doing. Sentiment echoed by
the pro-immigrant organization,
Make the Road NY.
“It is frankly outrageous
that Governor Cuomo refuses
to meet the urgent needs of
immigrant New Yorkers. As
our community members are
disproportionately affected by
this crisis and left out of the
government’s relief, the governor
continues to insist on
austerity economics, protecting
the billionaires from taxes
while leaving immigrants on
the front lines at grave risk
of hunger, illness and death,”
said in a statement Javier H.
Valdes, co-executive director
of the nonprofit organization.
To counter this, Mayor de
Blasio announced a partnership
with Open Society Foundations
to establish the New
York City COVID-19 Immigrant
Emergency Relief program,
to ensure all New Yorkers,
regardless of immigration
status, are included in citywide
COVID-19 response and relief
efforts. This $20 million donation
marks an essential step to
provide emergency monetary
relief to immigrant workers
and their families, who have
largely been excluded from
federal COVID-19 relief programs.
“Immigrants are the heart
of this city — they are our
friends, neighbors and colleagues,”
said Mayor Bill de
Blasio. “This crisis has shown
it is now more important than
ever for New Yorkers to look
out for each other. I want to
thank the Open Society Foundations
for partnering with us
to ensure that all New Yorkers,
regardless of their documentation
status, can get the support
they need.”
Needed services for
the community
Assemblywoman Cruz’s
office, meanwhile, is offering
various services to the community,
including doubling as
a community pantry.
“One of the things we did is
turned our office into a community
pantry,” Cruz said.
“We are trying to supply the
basic needs for many people
who do not qualify for other
types of aid. There has been so
much need that several days
we have run out of food and left
a line of people — it is a neighborhood
with many needs, and
very few resources for people
who do not have papers.”
Also, her office is helping
people determine what services
they qualify for. “You talk to
them by phone, you listen to
their needs, connect them and
often help apply for these services,”
she said.
As the first former
DREAMer elected to the New
York Assembly, the Colombian
legislator also keeps in mind
the young and undocumented
that are part of the Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) program, who are currently
awaiting the Supreme
Court’s decision to renew their
legal status in the country.
“In the midst of this pandemic,
the Supreme Court
should make a decision
that can give so many the
possibility to work. Many
are doctors, nurses, people
who are helping to save this
country. There is nervousness
and many expectations
to see what will happen with
this decision. Meanwhile we
are guiding many of them
to resources so they can renew
their DACA regardless
of what will happen with the
Supreme Court,” said the
assemblywoman.
/QNS.COM
