A Day in Court

 For Antonio, long a friend of our son and our family, April 23, 2025, was not a normal day. He was scheduled to appear in federal court at the Dirksen building, 77 W. Jackson, downtown Chicago.

Antonio is 49.  He was born in Barquisimeto, one of Venezuela’s oldest cities, but spent most of his life in Maracaibo, center of the country’s oil industry. 

Hugo Chavez, who became president of Venezuela in 1999, reorganized that industry, boosted oil prices along with his OPEC partners, and used the profits to fund food subsidies, establish educational opportunities, and create health care programs for all Venezuelans. Under Chavez, unemployment and poverty were cut in half, and per capita income more than doubled between 2001 and 2013.

 That ended in 2013 with the global decline of oil prices and the early death of Chavez, of cancer, at age 58.  During the Chavez years, corruption, conflict between branches of government, monetary blunders, and poor policies across the board revealed the true face of the government in Venezuela, one of the most naturally rich nations on the American continent.

His successor, Nicholas Maduro, continued previously unrestrained spending levels despite huge drops in revenue.  That created a giant budget deficit that sent the country into a downward economic spiral.  In 2014, Venezuelans suffered food shortages and a scarcity of basic goods. 

In response to high inflation, a national electricity crisis, and an unprecedented increase in crime Maduro censored the media.  Corruption increased among government officials.  Added to those woes, rampant human rights violations became apparent to all throughout Venezuela.

Protests, led by university students, were supported by civil organizations and opposition political parties. Together they demanded changes to the political-economic model, the resignation of Maduro, and new elections. 

Thousands of Venezuelans joined the protests.  Over a three-month period of violent demonstrations, 43 people were killed.  Recession raged.  Inflation surpassed 63%.  Maduro’s government was forced to make huge cuts in public spending.  Average citizens struggled to access food and medicine.

Faced with the national crisis of 2015, Maduro’s government suffered an overwhelming defeat in the 2016 legislative elections.  The president’s opponents gained more than 75% of Venezuela’s national Congressional seats in 2016.  Such a majority would have allowed Venezuela’s National Congress to approve more sensible laws, enact constitutional reforms, and replace members of other public bodies such as the Supreme Court and the National Electoral Council. 

But before they were seated, rather than following the will of the voters, Maduro installed an alternative National Constituent Assembly in 2017 with the objective of usurping the functions of the National Congress.  A Supreme Court handpicked by Maduro legally validated his flagrant violation of the will of the Venezuelan people. 

Mass protests exploded all over Venezuela, lasted for months, and resulted in violent clashes with riot police.  Another 66 demonstrators were killed.

After the imposition of the sham National Constituent Assembly in 2017, neighboring Latin American countries as well as the U.S., Canada, and Spain refused to recognize Maduro’s newly installed assembly. In the presidential election held early in 2018, Maduro claimed victory despite readily apparent and widespread fraud. 

The U.S. decried his election as unfair and anti-democratic before voting even took place and applied crippling economic sanctions preventing Venezuela from trading with traditional partners.  Canada, the EU, Mexico, Panama, and Switzerland joined in.  Those sanctions remain in place today.

By November 8^th of 2017, the United Nations Relief Agency announced that over 3 million people had fled Venezuela due to massive shortages of food and medicine, along with political persecution of those perceived as the opposition.  Millions more Venezuelans have since left their homeland. 

Antonio was among the Venezuelans who sought haven early.  He came to the U.S. in 2018 and made his way to Chicago, where he applied for and was granted asylum. 

Antonio’s goals when arriving in Chicago were simple: find work, live cheaply, and help his family back in Venezuela.  He was no stranger to hard work, but his inability to speak English limited his opportunities.

Like many educated but non-English speaking immigrants, Antonino put his former career on hold and took whatever jobs were available.  I’m sure to miss some of the jobs he has held, but here goes:   Amazon warehouse, Uber driver, Door Dash, quality control at a suburban food plant, driving a truck route restocking spices at Mexican grocery stores (where his Spanish was an asset).  He worked constantly, often holding more than one job. Antonio put himself on a fast track to achieving legal status.  After gaining refugee status came a work permit, a driver’s license, and his green card (legal permanent residency). Green card holders must prove themselves worthy of keeping their status.  Antonio‘s approach was simple.  Work hard and stay out of trouble.

Antonio was helped by an affable personality and a network of good friends.  He settled in the Pilsen neighborhood where he met my son, who is fluent in Spanish. They have been close friends ever since.

Antonio networked with Venezuelans all over Chicago and beyond, sharing information and sharing strategies for success in a new country. 

As a legal resident, Antonio began helping family and friends in earnest.  President Biden created the Humanitarian Parole program for certain residents of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela in 2023.  It was a new path to legal immigration that required an American citizen sponsor and considerable scrutiny prior to arrival.  This as opposed to blind admittance after immigrants crossing our border. 

On the first day applications were to be accepted, Antonio and I were at a laptop on my daughter’s dining room table in Chicago, applying for his niece and nephew, both in their late teens, to be part of that process.  I sponsored them because I trusted Antonio to keep them safe and ensure they became assets, not liabilities, to the U.S..

Once their applications were received and accepted, they were vetted online by Department of Homeland Security officials.  Antonio’s niece passed the online screening and was approved for an individual interview.  She traveled to Colombia (the U.S. Embassy in Caracas is long closed) to sit for an interview with the U.S. State Department.  She was approved. 

Being approved for Humanitarian Parole meant she could enter the U.S. legally and avoid the danger and expense of an overland trek to the border, putting herself at the mercy of coyotes, essentially human traffickers.  Instead, she flew directly to O’Hare, passed through immigration, and was waiting when Antonio and I arrived at O’Hare to pick her up.  Her uncle had a job lined up for her immediately.  It was the kind of legal immigration many Americans demand.  Why don’t we do that for more immigrants?

His nephew was not so fortunate. He was screened out of the process.  No reason was given.  He remains in Venezuela.

Besides helping his family, Antonio helped others. I often tell Antonio he should become a social worker.  In Chicago, he ran into a recently arrived friend from his community in Venezuela and became a mentor and guide for him.  Antonio provided him housing at the beginning and helped him find his first job, where he remains, now promoted to a management position.

Like Antonio, he worked constantly and lived cheaply, saving his money to finance the journey of his wife and two children to the U.S..  Humanitarian Parole was not yet available to them.  They were forced to make the difficult overland trek.  Having arrived three years ago, they gained Temporary Protective Status (TPS) and await asylum hearings.  Our new President revoked their TPS status, along with 350,000 other Venezuelans. That question is now tied up in our courts. 

They seem unlikely targets of deportation. Both parents work, they rent their own apartment, and their children are flourishing in school. Yet they are at risk deportation every hour of every day.

Early on I asked Antonnio why it was so important for him to help others immigrate, to leave Venezuela for a new life.  To him it is simple.

“They have no future there.  Venezuela is such a different place now than when I grew up.  I had access to schools, my parents had a stable income, I was able to get an education and a good job.  That’s all gone.  It will be years, decades more than likely, before Venezuela can provide their citizens with any kind of a future.  Or even the promise of a future.  They can’t wait that long.  Here they have a chance.”

Antonio was determined to become a green card holder, a permanent legal resident, and he succeeded.  With that in hand, he was able to sponsor his 19-year-old daughter to join him in America.  She lives with him now, working and seeking to further her education. 

Legal permanent residents must wait five years and a day from the date of asylum or refugee approval, to apply for citizenship.  Antonio applied for citizenship on that day.  His biggest worry was the citizenship exam, given completely in English.  He passed.  That is why he was scheduled to appear in federal court.  He asked that my wife and I be present with him.  We agreed right away.

The courtroom on the 25^th floor of the Dirksen Center was crowded.  A Bailiff entered and told us to rise.  Magistrate Judge Jeffrery Gilbert, appointed to the Federal Bench on May 7, 2010, representing the Northern District of Illinois, walked into the room.

We were told to be seated.  The Clerk of the Court presented the judge with a petition containing a list of applicants who had been approved for naturalization along with all necessary forms and documents.  She asked for approval of the petition and Judge Gilbert granted it, subject to each applicant taking the oath of allegiance. 

But before administering the oath, Judge Gilbert gave remarks to the candidates awaiting citizenship.   Here are some highlights.

“As a group you are 101 individuals from 39 separate countries.  Alphabetically you range from Albanians to Yemenis, no Z countries today.

You will become known as naturalized citizens, with all the rights and responsibilities of American born citizens, but I prefer another term.  I consider you ‘citizens by choice.’  I was born an American and remain so.  But you chose to be Americans.  You could have chosen to be a citizen of another country, but you chose America.  It’s a subtle but distinct difference.

All of you have a story of seeking arrival, as does almost every American family, unless they are Native American or were brought to this country against their will.  I want to share my family arrival story with you.

My grandfather was a tailor in a small village in Eastern Europe.  One day he walked some distance to a larger town to buy supplies for his shop.  As he returned, he saw smoke and as he got closer realized his village was engulfed by fire.

His house was destroyed but his wife and their son were spared.  They knew the fire in their village had been set by neighbors of a different religion, and that they had to flee.  They left with nothing.  It took them two years of hiding and travel across Europe, stopping to earn money, but finally they reached Europe’s western shore where they boarded a ship for New York.  They passed through Ellis Island in New York Harbor.  And now that man’s grandson, me, is a Federal Judge.

It is not an uncommon story.  Americans by choice are credited with extraordinary achievements.  I consider them to be the rocket fuel which powers America’s success.
Are you aware that some years ago 150 of the leaders of the Fortune 500 companies in United States were citizens by choice?  By your presence here you have proved your persistence, your independence, and your tenacity.  May you go on to do great things.  I have no doubt many of you will.  I want to be the first to thank you for choosing our country.  Please participate fully as a citizen, make your voice heard, and vote.  You can register today. 

Well, you’ve listened long enough to me.  Let’s get down to business.  Please repeat after me, inserting your own name at the beginning after the word I.”     

"I, _______________, hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

And with that, 101 people from 39 countries become Americans.

When you think of immigrants, perhaps Venezuelans in particular, you may think of them as opportunists who come to our country to take advantage of our benefits.  You may even think of them as a threat to your safety, as they are now depicted, as gang members, criminals who endanger our country’s safety well-being. 

You have no doubt viewed video of Venezuelans shackled, their heads shaved, pushed down and doubled over between two prison guards, being forced into an El Salvadoran prison.  It’s an image we have all seen repeatedly and can’t forget.  I see it as a politically concocted caricature of the Venezuelans I’ve come to know.

I have another image. I think of Antonio. I think of his niece, his daughter, and his acquaintances. I wish you could know them. You would feel fortunate, as we do, to have them as neighbors and friends.

Because of my interaction with them I know they will add to, not take away from, the well-being of our country. Just as the U.S.A. was changed for the better by that first immigrant in Judge Gilbert’s family, and by your immigrant ancestors and mine, the future of our country now belongs to our children, and the new immigrants that join them.  It’s the story of our country.  Rather than fear the future, let’s ensure that story continues.