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A Minnesota State lawmaker revealed to her colleagues on Monday that she and her family are living in the U.S. illegally, having moved from Vietnam following the Vietnam War.
Rep. Kaohly Vang Her was present at a special session of the Minnesota Legislature called by Gov. Tim Walz on Monday to discuss changes to MinnesotaCare eligibility for undocumented adult immigrants.
During the discussions, Her took the chance to recount her journey to the U.S., informing her colleagues about her status as an illegal immigrant.
Her said she has been spending a lot of time with her father, who brought the family to the U.S. at the end of the Vietnam War. At one point, she asked her father how he brought the family to the U.S.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz convened a special session on Monday for lawmakers to consider allowing undocumented workers to have access to MinnesotaCare. (AP Photo/Meg Kinnard)
“What my father did was, one of our uncles worked for USAID, and because his mother had died, my father, as the one processing the paperwork, put my grandmother down as his mother,” Her said. “And so, I am illegal in this country. My parents are illegal here in this country. And when we were fleeing that situation, never one time did my family say, ‘Let’s look at which state has the greatest welfare and which state has the greatest benefits, because that’s the state we’re going to go to.’”
“Nobody leaves their country unless they have to leave that country,” she added.
Her told the room of lawmakers she shared the story because she wanted them to think about who they are calling illegal immigrants.
Her’s family was “smarter” in how they came to the U.S., she said, although they broke the laws to get into the country.
“I never knew that,” she said. “I just learned that now. So, when you’re thinking about voting no on this bill, you’re voting no against someone like me who paid more into this country than it has ever given to me, that the blood of my grandfather, who died for democracy, that he never received benefits being in this country, and yet he paid taxes his entire life into it.”
Her’s office did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the matter.
Still, Her asked her colleagues to give everyone the same opportunity her family had, however they got to the U.S.
“They didn’t want to leave where they were,” she said. “We are not looking to what state is going to give us the best benefits. We’re looking to just be alive.”
