Paying It Forward
May 16, 2019
Dear Governor Newsom,
I would like to express my sincerest gratitude for granting me a pardon. You have given me a new lease on life and a chance to prove myself. I will be able to file for citizenship and remain in this great nation and the only country I call home.
My detention by ICE was one of the most agonizing and embarrassing experiences I’ve ever been through. The way ICE treated me and the fifty other Cambodian refugees was inhumane. In Florence, Arizona, we were held for over twenty-four hours in an overcrowded cell. We were all tired and weak but had no choice but to sleep side-by-side, almost on top of each other on the cold hard floor.
Now that you have blessed me with this second chance in life, I plan on paying it forward to help others. Within a week of my release from immigration detention, I was at a Sacramento rally to support the other Cambodians who are still facing imminent deportation. I am already actively engaged in my Oakland community, working closely with the Center for Empowering Refugees in their youth leadership program. I will be helping to provide a safe place for the youth of Oakland to develop community organizing skills, explore mental health issues, and promote personal wellness and self-esteem. We are currently working on a plan I had suggested to buy food and supplies and distribute them to people struggling with homelessness in Oakland. I also plan to continue my deep involvement with my local Buddhist temple.
Governor Newsom, you have given me the opportunity to remain with my family. It is something I do not and will not take for granted. I will forever be grateful and indebted to you.
I promise you will not regret this decision. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Sincerely yours,
