Border Enforcement
Migration at the border is a multifaceted issue, challenging the U.S. to secure our borders while upholding the human rights of individuals seeking safety and better opportunities. Balancing national security with compassion and our legal obligations to asylum seekers presents intricate dilemmas, and we collaborate with policymakers to advance bipartisan, action-oriented solutions.
Beyond A Border Solution
- Asylum
- May 3, 2023
America needs durable solutions. These concrete measures can bring orderliness to our border and modernize our overwhelmed asylum system. Read…
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Prince William County Mothers Against Immigrant Bashing
Cliché or not, the anthropologist Margaret Mead knew what she was talking about when she said "Never doubt that a few concerned citizens can change the world for indeed that is all that ever has." A group of stay-at-home moms in Prince William County who decided they've had enough of the anti-immigrant fervor boiling over in their community have begun to do just that as they organize around the issue of immigration. Today's Washington Post features Alanna Alameda, Elena Schlossberg, and Katherine M. Gotthard--describing some of what motivated them to get involved: Read More
A Man Who Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is
Robert Hildreth is an unlikely hero to immigrants. He is a multimillionaire who made his money trading Latin American Bonds. However, this year he started another kind of "bond fund" -one that helps undocumented workers who are swept up in immigration raids, post bail. His perspective as a relative immigration outsider has allowed him to see the holes in our approach to immigration enforcement and his prescription for incoming DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano is laid out in the Houston Chronicle this week. Also newsworthy is the nomination of Hildreth by the Boston Globe as "Bostonian of the Year." The public can log on and vote for him among many other Bostonians who accomplished great things in 2008. Read More
2,000 Approved Naturalization Applicants Blocked from Voting
Red tape and a tightfisted judge blocked nearly 2,000 people who should've been able to vote this past Election Day from receiving their naturalization oath in time to register for November's general election. Lawful permanent residents with approved naturalization applications must take the oath of allegiance to become a U.S. citizen. According to a new government report and immigration analysts, federal judges in some parts of the U.S. may be refusing USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) requests for oath ceremonies and delaying the swearing-in of new citizens. Some USCIS district offices administer naturalization oaths themselves. But in a few districts-including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit-only federal district courts have power to so and are then reimbursed by USCIS for all oath ceremonies they perform. Los Angeles itself received $2.4 million for the 169,799 oaths it administered in 2008. According to the Washington Post, the ombudsman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Michael Dougherty, stated: Read More
Arpaio Only One Smiling in Maricopa County
Video by America's Voice. NOTE: This story first appeared in the Huffington Post. Smile, You're Under Arrest"--that's the name of a new reality TV show starring none other than Sheriff Joe Arpaio of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO). Yet Maricopa County citizens aren't smiling as Arpaio's tactics have wreaked a lot of havoc, and fought little crime. Arpaio has transformed his police department into an immigration-enforcement agency, gaining international notoriety in the process. Armed with a 287(g) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and a mandate to enforce immigration law, Arpaio has taken the pursuit of undocumented immigrants to "unconstitutional extremes." Read More
Big Brother DOJ Rule Expands DNA Collection to Immigrants
For immigrants helplessly entangled in our country's broken immigration system, Big Brother is watching. Last week, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a shocking new rule requiring federal agencies to collect DNA samples from non-U.S. persons who are detained under the authority of the U.S in a vague attempt to catch criminals. Immigration and civil liberties groups are decrying the new rule, saying that it poses a direct threat to basic constitutional and privacy rights. Even the European Court of Human Rights unanimously ruled that a similar British DNA policy violated privacy rights. Previously, the federal government was authorized to collect DNA samples only from persons convicted of felonies, violent crimes, aggravated sexual abuse, or serious military offenses. Now, considering the likelihood of legal U.S. residents and citizens getting caught up in immigration raids, it's even possible that individuals who are legally in the U.S. with no criminal history will be subjected under this new rule to DNA testing without their consent. According to the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the rule: Read More
Chertoff and Immigration: Clean House, Dirty Record
The irony of all ironies in the current Administration's fight against undocumented immigration came today when news broke that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) head, and immigration hard-liner, Michael Chertoff, was himself paying undocumented immigrants to clean his house. In fact, according to the cleaning company's owner, James D. Reid, "workers sailed through the checks." Tom Barry of the TransBorder Project of the Center for International Policy says: Despite a wave of lawsuits, investigative reports criticizing DHS detention practices, and protests by immigrant advocates, Chertoff has forged ahead with the controversial border fence, the large-scale jailing of illegal immigrants, and programs to enforce immigration law at the workplace. Read More
Napolitano’s DHS Move: Lucky Country, Poor Arizona
Janet Napolitano of Arizona, Obama's pick for head of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is a border governor who's been in the eye of the immigration storm. Time and time again, she's proved that she understands that it is in our nation's interest to not only secure our borders, but also to provide for a realistic and practical immigration system that is in tune with our country's economic needs. Yet what does the Napolitano pick mean for Arizona? --"Lucky country. Poor Arizona," says a New York Times editorial. Read More
Texas Driver’s License Policy Ill Substitute for Immigration Reform
Texas recently tightened its driver's license policy, making it more difficult for immigrants to get an original, renewal, or duplicate driver's license or state ID card. All applicants must now not only prove they are lawfully in the U.S., noncitizens will also receive a driver's license that is distinct from that of U.S. citizens. This has already resulted in discrimination and the denial of licenses to people who should have qualified. Texas already had strict identity requirements and prohibited undocumented immigrants from obtaining licenses. The new rules mean that noncitizens will get specially designed vertical licenses and anyone who has a visa scheduled to expire in less than six months will not be able to get a license. The special licenses expire with the expiration date of the person's visa. Read More
Fewer Immigrants Coming In, More Going Underground
The impact of the current recession on immigrants and immigration is complex and far from common sense. On the one had, fewer immigrants come and more go home since there are fewer jobs to be had. On the other hand, the absurdities of current enforcement policies drive many immigrants underground, to the long-term detriment of the economy. Two recent articles illustrate these complexities. The Miami Herald announced "Illegal Immigrants Going Home, and Local Labor Market at Risk," and explained how the faltering U.S. economy has meant immigrants are less likely to find regular work, causing some immigrants -legal as well as unauthorized -- to return to their home countries or move to other states because they are unable to find work here. Experts warn that when the economy improves, there will be labor shortages in immigrant-worker industries. Read More
DHS Messages on NPR Cause a Stir
Listeners have lit up the phone lines at National Public Radio (NPR) in response to a message the station is currently running on behalf of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) promoting the E-Verify employment verification system, a controversial and error-ridden program designed to give employers a way to check a person's immigration status. NPR's ombudsman recently responded at great length noting: Whenever NPR's Talk of the Nation dips into the topic of immigration, the national call-in show's telephone board lights up like a Christmas tree. Immigration is an especially hot-button topic. So it's not surprising that when NPR began running a funding credit on Nov. 10 for the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify program, my office heard from listeners and a few concerned public radio station managers. They all questioned NPR's judgment in running the credit about the federal computer program that employers use voluntarily to check the legal status of new hires. At the least, some said, it is not a good fit for NPR. Read More
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