Sensible Discussion on US Stateless is Imperative

To Whom it May Concern at US Department of State, Immigration Customs & Enforcement, US Centre for Immigration Services, US Congress and Senate

I am writting this letter on behalf of Mikhail Sebastian who is  a US Stateless man waiting for humanitarian aid in American Samoa. I, too share similar problems regarding US statelessness.

I was born and raised in Southern Africa in the Kingdom of Lesotho and fled that country for peace, education and economic advancement in the US or in another country. Almost my entire life in that part of the world there was a struggle for existence, for freedom. It was in Lesotho that I joined YCS (Young Christian Students) which was a grassroots movement that mobilized youth into proactive democracy against apartheid and its brother doctrines.

To varying degrees, I have always been involved in human rights activism. Even in the US, I speak for equality in immigration reform. It was while engaged in human rights activism on Twitter that Mikhail Sebastian  asked me to speak on his behalf.The details pertaining to Mikhail's case well too familiar to your department have sadly not earned him a seat next to Chen Guang Chen from China. Put in Mikhail’s words, here is what he has to say:

 "citizenship or nationality is the essential link between an individual and the      State. Stateless people have an equal right to protection before the law, not to be arbitrary arrested, subjected to inhumane treatment or torture (physical or mental), denied due process. Nationality is a fundamental human right that millions of people in the world don't enjoy. It is a foundation of identity, dignity, justice and security." 

Mikhail cites UN Declaration of Human Rights’ Articles 1, 2, and 7 to justify his demand for peace and equality for stateless people regardless of where they live on the globe.

In alignment with his statement, I speak from one perspective that in my view is the core of the US justice system for inhabitants of the US to have a voice and to be heard.

Mikhail has been waiting in American Samoa for the US to assist him get back into the country.

Chen Guang Chen did not have to wait this long to receive help.

          Why?

Mikhail stated that one of his attorneys apologized for having forgotten to timely file his motion to reopen. While this motion to reopen is in my view of little if any significance to the fact that Mikhail is seeking humanitarian parole, it appeals to a much more critical and devastating state of affairs. A certain portion of the US stateless people, the US undefined people and others in suspense for US immigration to respond are forgotten by lawyers and by the US government in a country that promises that everyone has a voice.

The US immigration departments are currently absorbed with the "undocument" and the "illegal" but people like me, like Mikhail and others who play by the rules and work things through the government to legitimize stay in the US have fallen into trash bins from clearing path for the "undocumented"and the "illegal". As a result, Statelessness and other forms of undefined status remain a serious problem in the United States and a country that promises that we all have voices.

What is a voice if it is not or cannot be heard?