Michigan, District 2
Portland Press Herald Maine Voices: Reform bill would allow DACA recipients to give back to U.S.
Last month, when Democrats introduced legislation to protect young immigrants like me who were brought to the United States as children, I felt a huge wave of relief. Ever since President Trump announced the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program more than a year and a half… Read More
Dallas News Commentary: It’s the workforce, stupid. Why Texas business is gearing up to fight for immigrants
It’s the workforce, stupid. That’s one way to sum up the rationale behind a new push by Texas businesses to rally support for immigrants and immigration reform. At a time of low unemployment and strong demand for workers, the group wants to stop scaring off potential newcomers to Texas. Some… Read More
Richmond Times Dispatch Opinion: Dreamers deserve the opportunity to live without fear of deportation
A year ago today, I was shaken to my core. March 5 was the day when Congress failed to meet the deadline to save the program that gave young immigrants like me, who were brought to this country as children, the right to work and live without fear of deportation. Read More
Foreign-Born Residents Contributed $3.3 Billion to Kent County GDP in 2016
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Immigrants in Kent County contributed $3.3 billion to the county’s GDP in 2016 and paid $214 million in federal taxes and $102 million in state and local taxes, according to a new report by New American Economy (NAE), in partnership with Samaritas, the City of… Read More
New Americans in Kent County
A new report from NAE shows that immigrants in Kent County contributed $3.3 billion to the county’s GDP in 2016 and paid $214 million in federal taxes and $102 million in state and local taxes. The report, New Americans in Kent County, was prepared in partnership with Samaritas, the… Read More
Filipino Immigrant Brings High Fashion to Grand Rapids
When pressed, Romel “RC” Caylan, a rising design star, may describe himself as a kind of fashion ambassador for Grand Rapids. Truth be told, he simply loves the city, and honors the journey that brought him to this corner of Michigan. Caylan was born in Iligan City and raised in… Read More
Entrepreneur from Argentina Helps Keep Jobs in Michigan
Natalia Kovicak was 22 when she met her future husband on a beach in Mexico. She had a bachelor’s degree in human resources and public relations from the University of Palermo and a good job with the Coca-Cola company in Buenos Aires. She had also launched her own event-planning business. Read More
Entrepreneurs Raised in Mexico Give Back through Business Training
Although Ruben Ramos was born in the United States, his family returned to their village in the Sierra Madre Mountains, in Mexico, when he was a baby. When they moved back to the States—to Chicago then Grand Rapids—Ramos was 10 years old and didn’t know a word of English. “I… Read More
Grocery Business Started by Indian Immigrants Thrives in Grand Rapids
When Sonal and Ramesh Patel built a house in Cascade, in southeast Grand Rapids, in 2011, they quickly noticed something missing: an Asian grocer on that side of town. The couple, from a small town in Gujarat, in western India, had been in West Michigan since 2004, when Ramesh was… Read More
One of Western Michigan’s Most Respected Lawyers Says Deporting Undocumented Immigrants Will Hurt American Workers
Raquel Salas has come a long way from her humble roots in the Dominican Republic, where her family lived in a cement-walled home with patchy electricity and no running water. Today, she’s a successful Grand Rapids lawyer with her own full-service firm, Avanti Law, that boasts 18 employees and $1.1… Read More
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