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March
6, 2006
The San Francisco Youth Commission unanimously supports Xiao Fei ("Eddy")
Zheng application to remain lawfully in the United States, and strongly
urges the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security
to exercise full discretion for this allowance of extraordinary circumstance.
Deporting Zheng from the United States stands in direct opposition to
the Commission’s commitment in supporting the welfare of San Francisco’s
children and youth. Punishing Zheng is punishing youth.
Zheng illustrates full rehabilitation and self-actualized achievement
that is rarely, if never, seen from incarceration efforts. In serving
a nineteen year term for an unsuccessful kidnapping for the purpose of
robbery, a crime committed at 16 years old, one that he was wrongfully
tried as an adult, and in which he has expressed profound remorse for,
Zheng, a monolingual, teenage immigrant from China transformed himself
into a model prisoner and citizen. He not only learned English, obtained
various academic degrees, but also served as a leader and organizer for
San Quentin’s activities, such as the creation of anti-violence
workshops, ethnic studies curricula, and slam poetry classes, all of which
had won him the esteem and admiration of his peers, prison guards, and
San Quentin volunteers.
Most importantly, Zheng’s firm conviction of dedicating his life
and actions to encouraging and helping similarly at-risk young people
rest at the crux of the Youth Commission’s grounds to advocate for
his remaining in the country. While in prison, Zheng designed a seventy-paged
intervention curriculum to address Asian American youth and has been adopted
by leading Asian American community-based organizations as a successful
tool. Tellingly, outstanding community leaders have offered Zheng the
opportunity to work with at-risk youth because of such original insight,
experienced authenticity, and genuine change upon the completion of his
term.
Troublingly so, current government entities may not permit Zheng to stay
and therefore contribute to society because of court decisions to remove
non-citizens convicted of felonies before 1996 from the United States.
Such a decision is a double punishment for Zheng and many others who have
already served in prison, only to be deported upon their release. Moreover,
such a decision counters the original aims of rehabilitation, and acts
as a gross disservice to the approximate $500,000 spent on Zheng in time,
effort, and resources. Most compellingly, Zheng’s deportation will
punish the many youth who are in dire need of support, guidance, and intervention
from credible and effective role models.
As such, the Youth Commission shares in the similar commitment with other
community and political leaders in advocating for Zheng’s application
to remain in the United States. We believe that Zheng provides hope and
the necessary tools to empower today’s youth.
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