1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

I’m writing with great concern about Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan. For months, economists and immigrants’ rights groups have been warning that Trump’s mass deportation plan would devastate our economy and harm all American families. The deportation of law-abiding residents and essential workers in agriculture, construction, and health care would cripple communities and spike inflation – raising prices for every American family. Mass deportation plans, too, will not result in a safer America. Instead, Trump is pledging to get rid of ICE enforcement priorities to shift the focus away from violent criminals and divert local law enforcement – and even the military – from their missions and turn them into immigration agents. The incoming administration’s goal is to maximize the number of immigrants deported, even if that means jeopardizing public safety. There will also be tremendous human suffering as American citizens are ripped from their families, as parents are separated from their children or as American citizens are deported by their own government. Trump and his allies have said it will be ‘bloody,’ that ‘nobody is off the table’ and that ‘you have to send them all back.’ This is horrific. We should all agree that public safety and an orderly border are top priorities. Trump’s mass deportation plan will not achieve either of these goals and will in fact set us back on both border control and public safety. America needs a serious immigration reform proposal – with pathways to legal status and controlled and orderly legal immigration– that recognizes immigrants are essential for America's future. Please work on such a plan right away, and work to stop this self-destructive, cruel, and costly mass deportation plan. Thanks.