Abusive comments scare Bridie Murphy, the 80-year-old Galway woman
Posted on Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 03:54 PM
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Bridie Murphy, at the center of a tragic immigration snafu in Boston, is anxious to stand back from the firestorm that has erupted around her but she is deeply worried how people are perceiving her case.
The 80-year-old was stopped when entering the U.S. at Logan Airport andhad her green card confiscated. She was interrogated for over three hours.
She had lived back in Ireland for ten months with her son. Two other sons are in the U.S. army , one in the Middle East.
The elderly grandmother, who wears a pace maker and takes pills for high blood pressure, is said to be in a state of considerable anxiety about her unexpected change of fortune.
It has not helped that Murphy, who has lived exclusively in the United States with her American husband since 1979, has received a torrent of abuse from anti-immigrant forces on the internet, who have challenged her right to remain in the U.S. without hearing the details of her case.
"A lot of attention has been drawn to this case and Bridie is worried that an immigration backlash against her," Chris Lavery, an attorney who gives pro bono advice at The Irish Pastoral Center in Boston, told Irish Central.
"Bridie's a private person and she's also a bit overwhelmed. The fact that this became a big story so fast worries her. I have read on the blogs that people are asking why she didn't apply for citizenship. What they don't know is that U.S. citizenship is not that easy to obtain. You have to go through a complicated process to get it. You have to take tests. It's not that she didn't want citizenship, she has been here for many years, her husband and sons are U.S. citizens, and she didn't feel that needed it to prove she was herself. Now that this has happened she's become aware that she should have applied for it years ago. But she never made a choice not to do it."
Murphy has always paid her taxes, Lavery says, she’s a functioning member of the community (Murphy worked for the local Catholic school until just last year, 2009). She has held a green card since 1979 but she had been coming to the U.S. since the 1950's. Never did she imagine that the conditions of legal immigration here had changed so dramatically, nor did she reckon with the hardening of attitudes in recent years.
It turns out that any green card holder who has been out of the country for more than six months can be challenged about their intentions.
"Bridie made sure she got her green card, she followed through on that process in 1979," said Lavery. "At the age of 80 she wasn't aware that if she visited family in Ireland for six months she could be questioned about her residency and intentions when she returned to the U.S. Immigration officials didn't take the time to find out that’s her home and family, even her bank accounts were in the U.S. It's unbelievable."
Reflecting on the torrent of abuse she has received - some from fellow Irish Americans - Lavery said: "It sometimes amazes me how short some people's memories are. Our community is wonderful in coming together to support the Irish when they think it’s important. But a generation down the line and we tend to forget."
The two things that the public should learn from Murphy's plight is that it is difficult to obtain legal status in the United States, and that it has become even more difficult for people without status to come to the U.S. to work. It's just not obtainable anymore, Lavery says.
Lavery is hopeful that Murphy's predicament will be successfully resolved. "I feel when we bring this case to court and demonstrate how long Bridie has been here that they will let this case go away."
34 Comments
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ireland17 | Sep 27, 2010, 08:36 AM EDT
I think these U.S. Immigration officials should be sent down to the Arizona border for a few years, where they will have a real job to do. I think it is absolutely disgraceful that they abused her like this without checking out her background first. Thanks to, Attorney Chris Lavery for stepping in and taking her side. We need more good people like you around to help out in situations like this. Well Done!!!
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krissangel | Sep 27, 2010, 08:25 AM EDT
An example of applying the law in a blanket manner without any THOUGHT. The law is to prevent people from coming to the US with negative motives. An 8- yr grandmother who's lived here in for 40 yrs is not a threat! I'm constantly amazed at the stupidity of the American public! I hope it all works out fine for Bridie Murphy and that she is granted fast-track citizenship!
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ginger1 | Sep 26, 2010, 01:57 PM EDT
Something really needs to be done to get these guys under control. We had a similar situation this summer when friends arrived at JFK and were separated, mistreated, manhandled and then returned the husband because of a minor snafu. We thought we had the situation straightened out and he returned to complete the 2 week vacation with his wife and four small children only to be turned around and sent home again. I cringe to think of all the bad guys who probably waltzed into our country while they were harassing a young man on vacation. I surely do hope they can find a better way to spend all those homeland security dollars they got.
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Celtica43 | Sep 25, 2010, 11:11 PM EDT
Addendum: Also, if her husband is American born, why isn't she just granted USA citizenship by that relationship.
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Celtica43 | Sep 25, 2010, 11:08 PM EDT
Wonder what would have happened if she spoke Spanish?
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sonshine1949 | Sep 24, 2010, 10:50 PM EDT
I'm an American-born citizen and I think the person(s) who didn't do their job correctly should be disciplined with suspension WITHOUT pay to prove the point. At the very least they should be made to stand in the airport wearing pointy dunce hats, and shirts that say "I'm the idiot who detained Bridie Murphy!" Mrs. Murphy deserves much better treatment than she has received and I pray the Lord will correct this situation for her soon. Homeland Security people who would detain a harmless, 80-year-old woman with sons fighting for OUR FREEDOM AND LIBERTY are simply cowards who are too afraid to detain REAL terrorists. I hope they don't sleep a single wink until Mrs. Murphy gets her green card back WITH A WRITTEN APOLOGY FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA.
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BLRNYCHK | Sep 24, 2010, 08:48 PM EDT
God Bless Mrs. Murphy & may He kick some sense into those who are giving her such a hard time! She has OBVIOUSLY demonstrated her LOVE for the USA by raising self -sacrificing MILITARY sons ,paying her taxes working at a Catholic school 'til age 79! Would that others learn from her!
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IrishDorothy7 | Sep 24, 2010, 06:53 PM EDT
Please tell Mrs Murphy how very sorry I am that this humiliating predicament happened to her. I pray that Immigration comes to their senses NOW and returns that green card to a woman who so clearly deserves it. I am saddened by this whole episode and wish Mrs Murphy well from now on. Warmly, Christine H. Coughlan
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Nelsonbarry | Sep 24, 2010, 06:40 PM EDT
Shouldn't US Immmigration be looking for more serious things then a 80 year old Irish grandmother. If her nephew was president of the US, she would not be paying taxes and would be on state aid living free in state housing.
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elektros | Sep 24, 2010, 06:20 PM EDT
Citizenship is a red herring, because it isn't required. I have my green card right here. It is marked as a PERMANENT resident card and it says that "the person identified by this card has the right to work and reside in the US". All the ignorant fools should shut up and leave the poor woman alone.
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jamieLM | Sep 24, 2010, 06:13 PM EDT
Some of these homeland security people don't have any common sense - none. If Mrs. Murphy doesn't want to become a citizen, that's her right. I'm sorry to hear that this nice lady has been hassled by some incompetent people. I've also been interrogated and held up by a security (twit) guy who could barely speak English. Hopefully in the near future, immigration & homeland security can focus their efforts on identifying legitmate threats to the U.S. and resolve this ridiculous case against Mrs. Murphy, ASAP. What a senseless hassle for Mrs. Murphy and a waste of our tax-payer money this has been!
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jamthecat | Sep 24, 2010, 05:45 PM EDT
I'm sorry about the horrors being visited upon Mrs.Murphy, but how can you expect stupid people to stop making stupid comments? It seems that's part of being an American, these days -- revealing just how stupid and hateful you are via the internet, all with complete anonymity. Brings out the true nature of the scum.
I hope Mrs. Murphy is allowed to return to her home in the US, but the truth is she's riled up the animals and now her life will be anything but tranquil...until the little devils find some other person to trash. It's diseased, but it's reality. Dammit.
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Schenck2 | Sep 24, 2010, 04:44 PM EDT
Were the people that interagated her born in the US? Did they speak without an accent so that anyone could understand them? My naturalized friend got her citizenship after she was interagated by a person from a middle eastern country that she, with a MA in Engish, could barely understand. She vowed, never again would such hold her fortunes in their hands. Imagine how frightened Mrs. Murphy must have felt.
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feliciamaisey | Sep 24, 2010, 03:41 PM EDT
This makes Americans look as stupid as the world often perceives us; I hope she finds the peaceful resolution she deserves and anyone who attacks her....well, I won't go there.
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