***SUNDAY: Community Mass and Media Availability**
Sunday, June 15th at 11:30am-12:30pm. Rosary to Follow.
St. Casimir’s Church–8223 Sowinski Ave., Cleveland, Ohio, 44103
UPDATE: One Year Stay Just Granted to NE Ohio Father and Husband
Family and Community Pleased with ICE Change of Heart, Decision to Grant Temporary Relief to Painesville Family
CLEVELAND, OH–In the wake of an inspiring community rally which drew hundreds of supporters from across northeast Ohio, many have come to the defense of Luis Nicasio Padilla, one of countless parents in NE Ohio’s vibrant Hispanic community who are being targeted for deportation despite clearly qualifying for discretion under the Department of Homeland Security guidelines.
Today, despite several previous denials of stay requests, Rebecca Adducci, Director of the Detroit Field Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, granted Luis a stay of removal, effectively stopping his deportation and allowing him to stay with his family for one more year as he continues to work towards becoming a legal permanent resident.
This Sunday, a rosary had been planned at St. Casimir’s Church. Now, that rosary will be turned into a celebration at the good news for Luis and his family, as well as a reminder of all the other fathers, mothers and children facing separation from their loved ones.
The reversal in the Padilla case came after Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) questioned Department of Homeland Secretary Johnson about inconsistent applications of prosecutorial discretion at a June 11th Senate Judiciary hearing where she cited Detroit ICE as a problem area (see here at the 2:30 mark).
According to Veronica Dahlberg, Executive Director of HOLA Ohio and the leader of this community effort, “We couldn’t be more thrilled for Luis and his family. We are deeply appreciative for Ms. Adducci’s change of heart and for making the appropriate decision. Luis is exactly the type of person we should be embracing with open arms, not kicking out of the U.S. Father’s Day will take on a very special importance for the Nicasio-Padilla family this Sunday, and we will all celebrate with them. We will rejoice that we could achieve justice for this wonderful family, in the greatest country in the world.”
This Sunday, June 15th at 11:30am parishioners at Cleveland’s ethnic Polish St. Casimir’s church will hold a special mass and rosary to celebrate Luis’s news and pray for all the other northeast Ohio families ripped apart as a result of our broken immigration system.
WHO: 100-150 Hispanic families from all over northeast Ohio join the Polish community and their friends
WHAT: Sunday Mass and Media Availability
WHEN: Sunday, June 15th. Mass will be held between 11:30 am-12:30 pm and the Rosary will follow.
WHERE: St. Casimir’s Church–8223 Sowinski Ave., Cleveland, Ohio, 44103
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