We, the undersigned, write to humbly request that you take immediate action to stop the deportation of Ahmed Hossain (A# 070-654-688).
Ahmed arrived legally in the United States nineteen years ago and has been a positive presence in this country ever since. He has been an active member of the taxi drivers’ association, Shapla Welfare Associates, including serving a term as the General Secretary. He has acted and directed with the Bangladesh Theater of America. Ahmed is such a pillar of his community that his deportation case has been widely covered by the Bangla press in New York and by television stations in Bangladesh.
Ahmed made one mistake. When he arrived in this country in 1992 he took the bad advice of a lawyer and filed for asylum under a different name: Akter Hossain. He later admitted this mistake to a judge but was told that it was too late. That is why is faces deportation today.
In 2001 Ahmed won the lottery for the Diversity Visa but his final interview was postponed due to the 9/11 attacks. When he went for his rescheduled interview the following May, he was ruled to have come in too late due to a clerical error on the part of immigration officials.
This summer President Obama announced that immigration officials would suspend deportations against people who “pose no threat to national security or public safety.”
Ahmed Hossain should be the first person helped by this policy. He pays taxes and has no criminal record. His wife Salina is an American citizen, as are his two American-born children. His son Tanmoy is seven years old. His daughter Tamanna is seventeen months old. Ahmed’s family is completely dependent on his income as a taxi driver. If he is deported they will quickly fall behind on their mortgage payments and might end up on the street.
Ahmed has had open-heart surgery and now takes daily medications that are not widely available in Bangladesh. If he is deported, his health is in danger.
Tanmoy is a very bright boy who goes to a school for the gifted and talented. He keeps asking why his father and his family should punished for a mistake made by a lawyer. There is no good answer to his question.
We, the undersigned, urge you to take immediate action to stop the deportation of Ahmed Hossain.
