Thousands Try To Beat INS Deadline
No Need To Stand In Line, INS Advises
Hundreds of people lined up at the Immigration and Naturalization services office in the Montebello neighborhood Sunday and Monday, camping out and saving a place in line to get their applications in before time runs out.
INS Official Talks About The Deadline
The deadline to apply for visas for illegal immigrants who want to stay in the United States was Monday at midnight.
The new law would allow illegal immigrants to stay in the United States if they were able to prove they were married and that they were here when the law was passed last December.
Many passed the time singing playing cards and trying to catch a good night's sleep. Most say they don't have a good answer as to why they waited so long.
"I'm here 6 years without papers. Now it's better for me to get it," an undocumented worker named Julio said.
Julio was about to become a legal resident, and his wife Deanna will finally be able to stop worrying about him being nabbed by immigration authorities, 7NEWS reporter Lance Hernandez said.
"It's scary because I think, 'What would I do? What would my kids do?'" Deanna said.
That fear has kept many families apart.
"I know several people who haven't seen their families in years because they don't have papers. And they know that once they go back, they're going to struggle getting back here because border patrol is getting worse all the time," Renee, the wife of an undocumented worker, said.
Officials said that immigrants' contributions to the Colorado work force should not be overlooked, and many businesses would be crippled without them.
"Major industries that currently rely on their work would not be able to function," Rufina Hernandez, executive director of Larasa, said.
"I think it's important for many of use to understand how much of our economy is now based on the labor that these individuals are performing," Hernandez said.
Immigration officials caution that this is not a blanket amnesty program.
The only immigrants who may qualify are those who have an immediate relative willing to sponsor them.
It is not necessary to file these applications in person. In fact, mailing your petition or application to INS is easier for you. INS encourages you to mail petitions or applications to avoid waiting in long lines. Mailing your petition to INS with a postmark date on or before April 30, 2001, is all that is required to meet the filing date deadline.
For applications in Colorado, mail your form to:
USINS Denver District Office
4730 Paris Street
Denver, CO 80239
You can download the proper form here.
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INS Official Talks About The Deadline
Many passed the time singing playing cards and trying to catch a good night's sleep. Most say they don't have a good answer as to why they waited so long.
"I'm here 6 years without papers. Now it's better for me to get it," an undocumented worker named Julio said.
Julio was about to become a legal resident, and his wife Deanna will finally be able to stop worrying about him being nabbed by immigration authorities, 7NEWS reporter Lance Hernandez said.
"It's scary because I think, 'What would I do? What would my kids do?'" Deanna said.
That fear has kept many families apart.
"I know several people who haven't seen their families in years because they don't have papers. And they know that once they go back, they're going to struggle getting back here because border patrol is getting worse all the time," Renee, the wife of an undocumented worker, said.
Officials said that immigrants' contributions to the Colorado work force should not be overlooked, and many businesses would be crippled without them.
"Major industries that currently rely on their work would not be able to function," Rufina Hernandez, executive director of Larasa, said.
"I think it's important for many of use to understand how much of our economy is now based on the labor that these individuals are performing," Hernandez said.
Immigration officials caution that this is not a blanket amnesty program.
The only immigrants who may qualify are those who have an immediate relative willing to sponsor them.
It is not necessary to file these applications in person. In fact, mailing your petition or application to INS is easier for you. INS encourages you to mail petitions or applications to avoid waiting in long lines. Mailing your petition to INS with a postmark date on or before April 30, 2001, is all that is required to meet the filing date deadline.
For applications in Colorado, mail your form to:
USINS Denver District Office
4730 Paris Street
Denver, CO 80239
You can download the proper form here.
- April 19, 2001: New Immigration Act Brings Confusion
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