Speech #890186144

This has created a great hardship for many Latin Americans. Mr. Speaker. the New York newspaper El DiarioLa Prensa stated recently in an editorial as follows: Europeans are hailing the new immigration law of the United States as nondiscriminatory. But Latin Americans are mourning it as a low blow to the goodneighbor policy. Mr. Speaker. I have today introduced legislation which would help to put Latin Americans on an equal footing with immigrants from the rest of the world. Two of the major sources of inequity appear in section 245 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Under that section certain individuals who come to the United States with tourist or student visas are enabled to change their status to that of permanent resident. without first obtaining an immigrant visa. Were it not for this section. those who come to the United States on a visa other than an immigrant visa. and then decide that they want to stay. would have to return to their native country in order to get an immigration visa. In effect. section 245 allows them to change their status without going home. However. this section. section 245. specifically excludes persons from the Western Hemisphere. Mr. Speaker. section 245 is not a windfall. It does not allow people to bypass the immigration requirements. It requires that an applicant be "eligible to receive an immigrant visa". and that an immigrant visa be "immediately available to him." Its purpose is simply to allow eligible immigrants to become permanent residents without first having to return to their native country. Mr. Speaker. under section 245 of the former act Latin Americans who were in the United States on visitor or student visas could change their status without any difficulty. Since Latin American states were "nonquota countries" under the former law. Latin Americans could become American citizens without difficulty.