Immigration at the Border
Top Five Immigration Stories of 2014
This year, the narrative on immigration swung from hope that the House of Representatives would follow the Senate’s lead and act on comprehensive immigration reform legislation to hopelessness when Republican leaders refused to act. Then attention turned to anticipation of the President’s announcement of temporary executive actions to… Read More
Do the President’s New Immigration Policies Really Mark the End of Secure Communities?
The misnamed Secure Communities program has been plagued with problems since its inception—most fundamentally, its failure to make communities more “secure.” Critics of the program have cited to its adverse impact on community policing, asserted that it encourages racial profiling, and highlighted the mounting evidence that many individuals encountered… Read More
Cities in States Suing Over Executive Action Are Welcoming Immigrants
Half of the states have joined a lawsuit challenging President Obama’s executive action on immigration, the latest being Tennessee. Yet leadership of cities across the nation support the administration’s actions—even those within states whose governors and attorneys general are suing to stop it. What explains the disconnect?… Read More
New Family Detention Facility Opens in Dilley, Texas, Despite Due Process Problems
The Department of Homeland Security opened the largest immigrant family detention center in Dilley, Texas this week. The privately owned facility is designed to house 2,400 people—mostly women and children—who are caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. The opening of this detention center reflects the administration’s continuing commitment to its flawed… Read More
Report Documents Evidence of Migrant Shakedowns by Border Enforcement
Imagine what it would be like to be in a foreign country, and law enforcement officials take your phone, identification and money. Then, what if you are moved through a series of short-term holding cells and then longer term detention facilities and eventually released by being deported to another country… Read More
President’s Plan for Border Security Could Make a Bad Situation Worse
The debate surrounding the Immigration Accountability Executive Actions that President Obama announced last month mostly has centered on the millions of unauthorized immigrants already living in the United States who are likely to receive a three-year reprieve from deportation. But there is another aspect of the president’s announcement that… Read More
Who and Where are the Beneficiaries of Obama’s Immigration Executive Action?
President Obama announced in a speech Thursday night his plan to use executive authority to improve parts of the U.S. immigration system, including providing temporary protection from deportation for nearly 5 million people. “Millions of immigrants in every state, of every race and nationality still live here illegally. And… Read More
DHS Announces the Transfer of Immigrant Families from Artesia to New Facility
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it plans to close the detention facility in Artesia, New Mexico, where immigrant mothers and children currently are jailed. The closure of Artesia comes with the opening of a permanent, drastically larger family detention center in Dilley, Texas. Rather than be… Read More
Department of Homeland Security Doubles Down on Family Detention
Washington D.C. – Today, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced plans to close the detention facility in Artesia, New Mexico, where it detains mothers and children. Unfortunately, the closure of this facility does not mark the end of a dark chapter in our country’s immigration history. Instead it signifies… Read More
Why Fewer Detainers Does Not Equal Fewer Deportations
Throughout the last two years, states and counties increasingly have stopped honoring ICE detainer requests. This huge shift is in response to local political opposition as well as legal and liability concerns spurred by federal court rulings. Recent data shows that ICE also may… Read More
Make a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
