Galway West Deputy Noel Grealish has called on US presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain to recognise the plight of the undocumented Irish in the US.

Deputy Grealish has written to both Senators asking them to outline their plans and policies in relation to the matter, and how they intend to help the undocumented Irish if elected president in November.

Noel Grealish.

"The Irish people and the Irish Government are very concerned about the plight of the thousands of undocumented family and friends living in the USA. The fact that a new administration will be taking up office in January 2009, provides an opportunity for the Irish Government to progress this issue."

"I have asked the two Presidential hopefuls to work with the Irish Government to try to find some resolution to the problem, whether it be through a bilateral agreement, a joint visa programme or some other means. We all know someone who is affected by this issue."

In an effort to highlight the serious nature of the matter, Deputy Grealish recalled the recent death of a Galway man who died of pneumonia in the USA recently because he was afraid to seek medical help.

"Recently a young man from County Galway died of pneumonia in the USA because he was afraid to seek medical attention for fear of deportation. The death was entirely preventable and would not have happened if he had legal status in the US. Every day we witness cases of people who are afraid to return home to Ireland to visit loved ones who are dying or to attend funerals of close family for fear that they will not be able to return.

"All of these people are hard working, they pay their taxes and they make a valuable contribution, economically and socially, in the USA. They are not looking for an amnesty, they simply want a work-based system to have their position legalised and live without the daily fear of deportation. I have now written to Senators John McCain and Barack Obama and I have asked them to outline their policies in relation to this issue. I have asked that, if elected President, they work with the Irish Government to address this problem as soon as possible."

Undocumented people in America face a host of challenges as they cannot hold a driver's licence, get health insurance, visit their family in Ireland or buy a house. Speaking to the Galway Independent, Orla Kelleher, Executive Director with the Aisling Irish Community Centre in New York, said that her greatest hope was that Irish people would be able to emigrate legally to the United States and those already there be recognised as an integral part of American society.

"Since the proposed bill for comprehensive immigration reform was rejected by the Senate last year, I wonder has the number of illegal immigrants increased by the thousands or by the tens of thousands? It goes to show that no problem is resolved by ignoring it. I very much doubt that either candidate will want to jeopardize their chances of becoming the next President of the United States by stating their policy or plan to tackle immigration reform. It is a highly litigious issue to many US citizens, despite each of them being a progeny of immigrants themselves. Yet, I fear they do not know the extremely limited options that are out there to emigrate legally to the US, unless you have a career such as a rocket scientist or a neurosurgeon. It doesn't take a work visa to serve a frappucino, make a hero, build a luxury apartment building, mind a precious baby or care for an ailing, elderly person - it takes a dedicated, trustworthy, and hard working person, albeit an undocumented one," Ms Kelleher continued.

"Our greatest hope for Irish people to be able to emigrate legally to the US, is if both the Irish Government and the US Government earnestly work in unison on a bilateral visa agreement, just as the governments of Chile and Australia did with the US Government. While any hope for comprehensive immigration reform is at least three years away, depending on who is elected President, the US government cannot continue to put a bandage on the 'tumour' that is illegal immigration because we all know that isn't the cure. In the meantime, we can expect thousands, maybe even millions, of new illegal immigrants to arrive here in the US over the next few years to work hard and earn themselves a decent and deserving quality of life. What does it mean for the Irish who have stuck it out for the past 10 or even 20 years as undocumented people living in hope of being legalised one day?

"Despite all the sacrifices, life in America for up to 50,000 undocumented Irish is worth sticking it out for another few years, when hopefully we can come out of the shadows and hold our heads high," she added.

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