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Author Archives: Veena Iyer

Veena Iyer is the executive director of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota. 
Posted inCOMMUNITY VOICES

Veena Iyer: The death of the Patel family on the frigid U.S.–Canada border demands a response. We must create a more humane immigration system.

by Veena Iyer

What led an Indian family of four to try to enter the United States in such a risky way? Was it the long wait to join relatives? A visa system that offered no options? Our narrow standards for seeking asylum? We’ll never know, because the Patels lost their lives trying to walk from Canada into Minnesota. For their sake, we must do better.