Sophie Cruz

'Sophie Cruz is a young American activist born in 2010. Her parents, are undocumented immigrants from the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Sophie is fighting to ensure the continuance of the DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans) program which would allow her parents to remain in the United States legally. Currently, she is one of the youngest voices in the American immigration reform movement.

Background

In 2015, when Sophie Cruz was five years old, Pope Francis visited Washington out for undocumented immigrants. That day, she wore a shirt printed with the words "Papa Rescate DAPA," urging the Pope to support the Deferred n D.C. Sophie was born in the United States, but her parents are undocumented and could face deportation. She hoped to meet the Pope to deliver a note asking him to speaAction for Parents of Americans Act.[1] When the Pope's car passed by, Sophie ran out into the street to see him but was turned away by security. However, the Pope had seen her run out from the crowd and requested to meet her. He hugged her, and she left her note with his attendants.[2] Pope Francis addressed the issue at a joint meeting of the United States Congress the next day, encouraging greater openness for immigrants and refugees.[3]

Cruz's trip to see the Pope was sponsored by La Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional, a Los Angeles-based immigration advocacy organization. In an interview, Cruz said: "I believe I have the right to live with my parents. I have the right to be happy. My dad works very hard in a factory galvanizing pieces of metal. All immigrants just like my dad feed this country. They deserve to live with dignity. They deserve to live with respect."[4]

Meeting with President Obama

In May 2016, Cruz was invited to visit President Barack O•bama at the White House for a Cinco de Mayo celebration. Because her parents were undocumented, they were not able to enter the White House, and instead, Sophie was accompanied by Alida Garcia from FWD.us and filmmaker Paola Mendoza.[5] Mendoza had previously directed a short video, "Free Like the Birds," starring Sophie and her family that debuted in the Tribeca Film Festival.[6][7] She appeared in the video "11 Million Stories" in partnership with FWD.us, which discussed the potential implications of national mass-deportation and how children like her, with undocumented parents, faced certain obstacles.[8]

Woman's March on Washington

On January 21, 2017, Cruz was a featured speaker at the Women's March in Washington, D.C., in protest against the inauguration of Donald Trump. She said in her memorized speech, given in both English and Spanish, "We are here together making a chain of love to protect our families. Let us fight with love, faith, and courage so that our families will not be destroyed."[9] Cruz's widely seen speech was called "powerful"[9] and "inspiring,"[10] with one commentator saying that she had "captured hearts"[11] with her performance.[12]

In November 2016, Cruz had posted a question on PresidentialOpenQuestions.com, a forum allowing users to propose questions for the next presidential debate, asking candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton what would happen to her if her parents were deported, and she received over 37,000 votes.[13] Her question ranked 20th the night before the second debate, high enough to be posed by debate moderators Martha Raddatz or Anderson Cooper, but ultimately was not asked.[14]

References

  1. ↑ Ortiz, Gabe. "Why We've Never Forgotten Little Sophie Cruz". America's Voice. America's Voice. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  2. ↑ Gambino, Lauren (September 23, 2015). "Francis and Sophie's secret: girl who hugged pope delivers immigration plea". The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  3. ↑ Hing, Julianne (September 24, 2015). "Pope Francis Delivers Sophie Cruz's Message to Congress". The Nation. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
  4. ↑ Witte, Brian (September 23, 2015). "Little Girl Is Star of Papal Parade". U.S. News & World Report LP. UW News. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  5. ↑ Hernández, Arelis (May 5, 2016). "The girl who hugged the pope is at the White House. Her parents, who are undocumented, can't join her". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  6. ↑ Ortiz, Gabe. "Sophie Cruz Makes Her Tribeca Film Festival Debut In 'Free Like The Birds'". America's Voice. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
  7. ↑ Mendoza, Paola. "FREE LIKE THE BIRDS". Vimeo. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
  8. ↑ Hernández, Arelis R. (December 14, 2015). "The little girl who gave a letter to the pope is featured in a new video by Zuckerberg's pro-immigration group".
  9. 1 2 McAfee, Tierney (January 21, 2017). "6-Year-Old Girl Who Handed Letter to Pope Francis: 'Let Us Fight with Love, Faith and Courage'". People Politics. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
  10. ↑ Khan, Shehab (January 22, 2017). "Six-year-old girl gives inspiring speech at Women's March". Independent (UK). Retrieved January 23, 2017.
  11. ↑ Bowerman, Mary (January 21, 2017). "Watch: 6-year-old Sophie Cruz capture hearts at massive Women's March". USA Today. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
  12. ↑ Blay, Zeba (January 21, 2017). "Watch 6-Year-Old Sophie Cruz Give One Of The Best Speeches Of The Women's March". Huffington Post. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
  13. ↑ Cruz, Sophie. "If you deport my parents, what happens to me?". Open Debate Coalition. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  14. ↑ Greenwood, Max (October 8, 2016). "This 6-Year-Old's Question Could Be Donald Trump's Toughest Yet". The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
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