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On Wednesday, September 21st, National Domestic Workers Alliance members Casa de Maryland rallied outside the Department of Homeland Security offices in Washington, DC, with four mothers who are facing deportation — and separation from their families. Read more about these courageous mothers below »

NDWA is calling on all women and mothers to join us in standing up against the human rights abuses suffered by mothers, women, children and families because of our nation's unjust immigration laws.

Next week, NDWA leaders will join the We Belong Together delegation to Georgia of women leaders from over two dozen national human rights organizations. The delegation will hear the real stories of the women and children affected by Georgia’s anti-immigrant bill (HB 87), a copycat legislation of Arizona’s controversial and costly SB1070.

These four women – CASA activists, mothers, and Marylanders all – face removal:

Roxana Orellana Santos – Roxana, mother of Cesar Jr., has sued the Frederick County Sheriff’s Department for race discrimination after officers took her into custody while she sat peacefully outside her job eating her lunch. Frederick County turned her over to ICE under its notorious 287(g) agreement. Roxana’s lawsuit is pending yet she’ll never challenge race discrimination if ICE proceeds forward with her removal. ICE denied a deferral of her removal on September 14, weeks after the Obama announcement. Deportation Date: September 30, 2011 (report date September 22, 2011).

Ruth Diaz – when Ruth’s roommate physically attacked her, Ruth called the Prince George’s County police for protection. Instead, they arrested Ruth and her attacker. Although the judge threw out the charges against her, under Prince George’s County’s notorious Secure Communities program, she was transferred to ICE custody, leaving her 2-year old son behind. Deportation Date: September 30, 2011

Maria Bolaños – Maria, mother of Melisa, called the police after being threatened by Melisa’s father the day before Christmas 2010. The responding Prince George’s County police refused to arrest her partner but instead charged Maria with selling telephone cards, trumped up charges that were later dropped by the court. Maria has fought tirelessly to expose the impact of Secure Communities on domestic violence victims. Deportation Date: to be determined October 28, 2011.

Florinda Faviola Lorenzo Desemilian – Florinda, mother of three, was arrested by Prince George’s County police for selling telephone cards, purportedly a crime of “operating a business without a license.” The judge declined to proceed with the charges, however that did not stop the Prince George’s County Correctional Center from transferring her into ICE custody. Released three days later to her breastfeeding infant, she has participated in a civil rights investigation of the misuse of the Secure Communities program by Prince George’s County. Deportation Date: Temporary one-year relief granted, new deportation date August 4, 2012.