Latinos Demand Nancy Pelosi Help All Immigrants Not Just DREAMers
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi did not expected protestors to shut down her event, especially not on the liberal grounds of San Francisco
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi did not expected protestors to shut down her event, especially not on the liberal grounds of San Francisco. Yesterday Pelosi, along with Reps. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Jared Huffman (D-CA), held the event in her hometown to discuss the DREAM Act but was clearly blindsided when a group of protesters chanted in anger in regards to her recent conversations with President Donald Trump regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
They chanted: “We undocumented youth demand a clean bill…We undocumented youth demand that you do not sell out our community and our values…We undocumented youth will not be a bargaining chip for Trump.”
Protesters overtake Nancy Pelosi press conference on DREAMers: "We are the resistance to Trump. Not the Democrats." https://t.co/quXFzzSnzG pic.twitter.com/bWTFOnByZw
— ABC News (@ABC) September 19, 2017
The protestors say that Pelosi is using DREAMers in order to discuss immigration reform with Trump without considering the lives of the millions of others undocumented people in the United States.
Pelosi and Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer discussed DACA with Trump last week and tried to negotiate a permanent solution for DREAMers in exchange for border security. However, the protestors yesterday made it clear: they are not a bargaining tool so that democrats can get their way especially if millions of other undocumented people are affected because of their legislation.
First time in my life I've felt bad for Nancy Pelosi, and then I realized this is all her own fault anyway. pic.twitter.com/B3dBgM1nt2
— The Columbia Bugle 🇺🇸 (@ColumbiaBugle) September 19, 2017
The protest at Pelosi’s event lasted about 30 minutes, and also included her telling them to “stop it.” The frustrated majority leader eventually left the stage.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Pelosi later said: “This group today is saying don’t do the DREAM Act unless you do comprehensive immigration reform. Well we all want to do comprehensive immigration reform…I understand their frustration — I’m excited by it as a matter of fact — but the fact is, they’re completely wrong.”
Luis Serrano, one of the group’s organizers, also spoke with the San Francisco Chronicle, saying: “I know some people think this hurts the cause of undocumented folks, but undocumented people will always be scapegoated. We believe in pushing people who say they’re on our side, not those who are not.”