Mayor De Blasio
I am extremely concerned about the potential forced deportation tonight of hundreds of thousands of people from the Dominican Republic, including many children.
I call on the Dominican government to respect basic rights guaranteed to all people, including Dominicans of Haitian descent, under international law. I also call on the government to prevent the inevitable mistakes, dangers and humiliation of forcibly removing people from their homes.
Among the people most affected by this action will be Haitians born in the Dominican Republic who are being unjustly stripped of their nationality and legal status, just because of their heritage. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that nationality is a basic right of all individuals.
As the mayor of a proud city of immigrants, home of large Dominican and Haitian diasporas, we stand by international human rights, and hope to see a compassionate and humane resolution to this alarming situation.
