We are at the beginning of a new era in the United States, and with the combined efforts of the Biden administration and congressional leadership, we must deliver on the promise that our nation has held for previous generations of immigrants. We must recognize once and for all that immigrants are essential. The Biden administration and Congress should know that including immigrants in building a better future is not only morally and economically sound, but also carries strong bipartisan support from voters across the political spectrum. When it comes to providing a path to U.S. citizenship, support for immigration is currently at the highest point it has ever been since Gallup started measuring this in 1965. Today’s hearing was focused on the need for bold legislative reforms, but I want to share a few stories of the people whose lives and humanity make them essential to our country. Dr. Abudu, from Ghana, works as an emergency room physician in California. He came to the U.S. as a teenager, and is saving lives every day. Dr. Abudu shared with us that working in health care during the pandemic is “hell, and it is heartbreaking.” Last month, one of his coworkers — also a physician — died of COVID. Yet Dr. Abudu shows up for work every day, risking his own life to save others. Catherine ‘Ofa Mann, from Tonga, is educating Pacific Islander communities about COVID and working to reduce transmission rates, while encouraging those who need it to seek care. In her words, “They take care of their own. Because they heard that people go to the hospital and they die.” And then there is Saul Sanchez, from Mexico, who lived in Colorado and proudly worked at a meat processing plant for years to provide for his family. Mr. Sanchez was hospitalized in the very hospital where his daughter works as a nurse, where he died from COVID. Tragically, his family was unable to tell him they loved him before he took his final breath. For each of these stories, there are millions more individuals who need our support and our action today. | 
