Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) on July 14 sent a letter to Rep. John Hostettler (R-IN), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and Claims, asking him to schedule a meeting and favorable mark-up of H.R. 867, a private bill that would grant green cards to the wife and four daughters of 9/11 victim Waqar Hasan. The letter was signed by 42 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including all seven Democrats from the New Jersey delegation, all the Democrats on the Immigration Subcommittee, and six Republicans. H.R. 867, which Rep. Holt introduced in February, has yet to be acted upon by the Immigration Subcommittee, a press release said.
The release said: “Mark Anthony Stroman walked into Waqar Hasan’s convenience store in Dallas, Texas, on the night of Sept. 15, 2001, four days after 9/11, and shot the 46-year-old father of four in the face. When asked by the police why he shot Waqar, Stroman expressed no remorse. “I did it to retaliate on local Arab Americans, or whatever you want to call them,” he said. “I did what every American wanted to do, but didn’t.” Stroman is now on death row. When Waqar was brutally killed the visas and green card applications of his wife and four daughters died with him. Holt’s bill is the family’s last hope of avoiding eventual deportation.”
The letter said: “Like Rush, we believe it would be a stain on America for us to allow this family to be deported,” and added: “Together, we believe Congress can help the Hassan family stay in the United States and, in doing so, can uphold the values of tolerance, freedom and justice at home that we are fighting so hard to promote overseas.”
