Resolution 100086
Calling on President Barack Obama to Extend for Eighteen Months Beyond March 31, 2010 the Deferred Enforced Departure Status of Liberian Immigrants Currently Residing in the United States.
Introduced by
From the floor
Passages in the official transcripts that cite this file number. Every quote links to its exact place in the record.
“Thank you, Madam President. I rise today for two reasons. First is a reminder that our Partnership for Prescription Assistance table is in the hallway for those needing help with prescriptions. And the second reason is to deal with another issue, Liberia. On February 12, 2010, City Council adopted Resolution 100086 introduced by Councilmembers Kenney, Jones, Sanchez, and myself, calling on President Obama to extend f…”
Councilwoman Blackwell · Stated Meeting, March 25, 2010 · Mar 25, 2010 · official transcript, this passage
Status timeline
- Feb 12, 2010ADOPTED · CITY COUNCIL
- Feb 12, 2010Introduced · CITY COUNCIL
Official documents
Documents open on the City of Philadelphia’s legislative site.
Full text
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..Title Calling on President Barack Obama to Extend for Eighteen Months Beyond March 31, 2010 the Deferred Enforced Departure Status of Liberian Immigrants Currently Residing in the United States. ..Body WHEREAS, Many Liberian immigrants came to the U.S. to escape human rights abuses and the brutal armed conflict in their homeland; and WHEREAS, Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) Status currently protects certain Liberians from deportation; and WHEREAS, There are an estimated three-thousand six-hundred Liberians currently residing legally in the United States who will have to leave by March 31, 2010, if DED status is not extended; and WHEREAS, The United States has a special historical relationship with the Liberian Nation established in 1822 by former slaves of the United States. The first eight presidents of Liberia were born in the U.S. and the national language of Liberia is English; and WHEREAS, Liberia has been a strategic and military ally, particularly during the second world war when Liberia provided access to rubber and served as a transit point for U.S. troops; and WHEREAS, Political unrest in Liberia between 1979 and 2003 forced hundreds of thousands of Liberians to flee to the United States because of violence and oppression; and WHEREAS, Some two-hundred and seventy-thousand Liberians reside here legally with large Liberian communities located in Pennsylvania, California, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Oklahoma; and WHEREAS, Liberian immigrants have painstakingly rebuilt their lives here, establishing families and businesses, and sending money back to family members in Liberia. Expiration of DED status threatens to tear apart families and possibly entire communities; and WHEREAS, While the political situation in Liberia has improved, it is not yet capable of absorbing the 3600 Liberians who would be forced to leave the U.S. if the extension of DED status is not granted; now therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the Philadelphia City Council Calls on President Barack Obama to Extend by Eighteen Months Beyond March 31, 2010 the DED Status of the 3600 Liberians legally residing in the U.S. protected by that status; and FURTHER RESOLVED, That a Copy of this Resolution be Sent to the President of the United States, the President and Secretary of the U.S. Senate and the Speaker and Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. ..End