Rep. Andrews to Speak at Dominican-American National Conference

I am honored to have been asked to address the 9th Annual National Conference of the Dominican American National Roundtable at their gala dinner on October 7.  Dominican Americans have made a significant impact on our community and our nation, and I am proud to have the opportunity to thank them for their all of their hard work and how we can build upon their success.

Dominicans came to the United States for the same reason as most immigrants – to build a better life for them and their children. In the process, we benefit not only from their work, but also from the addition of parts of their homeland’s culture to that of their new home in the United States.  This diversity makes us stronger economically, intellectually and culturally.  Throughout my Congressional career, I have embraced this idea, and have fought for smart policies that help new communities succeed in the United States.  This includes comprehensive immigration reform to fix our nation’s broken immigration laws, and bring our nation’s hardworking immigrants out of the shadows. I have introduced HR 1823, which will help unite spouses and children of legal immigrants with Legal Permanent Residents in the U.S. by making it easier for them to enter the United States to be with their husband, wife or parents. I also fought against a bill, the Voter ID Act, which passed the House that would disenfranchise many minority voters, including Dominican Americans by creating unreasonable restrictions on who can vote in federal elections. 

In addition to fighting for new residents and citizens’ legal rights, I have worked to create new opportunities for people working to get their piece of the American Dream.  I am also a cosponsor of the DREAM Act, which recognizes the importance of higher education in achieving the American dream by providing assistance for children of immigrants to attend college.  I also cosponsored HR 2742, which would increase the minimum amount of government procurement contracts awarded to small businesses and increased funding for the Small Business Development Centers network in this year’s appropriations process, which will help stimulate investment and growth in our nation’s small business sector.

I look forward to speaking before the Dominican American National Roundtable and, more importantly, continuing to work with it and the Dominican community at large to help create the opportunities they need to thrive and grow.

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