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Insider Speaks Out Alongside Formerly Detained Mothers Seeking Protection in the U.S.
At a congressional briefing held earlier this week, Dr. Olivia López spoke out about her experiences as a former social worker at the Karnes family detention center alongside formerly detained mothers, advocates and members of Congress. Dr. López felt compelled to resign from her position in April after her employer, GEO Group, Inc. (GEO), a private […]
Read MoreCourt Finds Federal Officers Can be Sued for Mistreatment of Immigrants in Detention
The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled last month that eight immigrant men who were detained under extremely punitive conditions in maximum security facilities following 9/11, could proceed with their lawsuit against the individual federal officials responsible for their mistreatment. All of the plaintiffs in Turkmen v. Ashcroft were caught up in the […]
Read MoreStory of Unaccompanied Child Underscores Importance of Legal Representation Needed for All Refugee Children
Elvis Garcia is a migration counselor at the Catholic Charities Community Services of New York. He is also a former unaccompanied child who fled from his native Honduras in 2005 when he was 15 years old. Last week, Garcia and several others participated in a roundtable discussion sponsored by Lutheran Immigrant and Refugee Services to […]
Read MoreStaying Covered: Immigrant Contributions to the United States Healthcare System
Sign up to join the movement for U.S. immigration reform: Email Address First Name Last Name Zip Code Did you know that immigrants in the U.S. have contributed a near $200-billion surplus to Medicare? In addition, they help fill increasingly needed positions caring for America’s seniors. As Washington grapples with how to ensure the future […]
Read MoreJudge’s Order in Flores Should Signal the End of Family Detention
A federal judge issued an order in the Flores case that should go a long way to ending the government’s practice of detaining children and their mothers in unlicensed, secure facilities in Dilley and Karnes, Texas. Since the summer of 2014, the government has detained thousands of women and children fleeing violence in Central America. […]
Read MoreStudy Estimates the Impact of New Priority Enforcement Policies on Deportation Numbers
The Migration Policy Institute released a new report that examines the potential impact of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) new policy guidance for immigration enforcement, which attempts to focus immigration enforcement more specifically on certain categories of individuals while, according to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, “deprioritizing those undocumented who have been here for […]
Read MoreWhite House Report on Improving Our Legal Immigration System: Too Little Too Late?
As part of November 2014’s Executive Action announcement, the President issued a memorandum directing the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security to recommend improvements to the immigration system. After seeking public input and receiving roughly 1,650 responses, the agencies submitted their recommendations to the White House and on July 15, the White House released its […]
Read MoreFrom an ‘Undocumented’ Boyhood to a Doctorate
As Dan-el Padilla Peralta toggled fluidly between worlds for much of his life — ancient and modern, poor and privileged, Dominican and American — there were times when he managed to forget he was a child without a country. He found refuge in New York’s libraries, the Greek and Latin texts speaking to him even […]
Read MoreEvidence Shows Asylum Seekers Appear for Court with Alternatives to Detention and Legal Assistance
When thousands of Central American families fled violence to the United States last year, the Administration responded by opening family detention centers, which are detaining mothers and children as their asylum-based claims work through the court system. Family detention has since led to complaints of psychological harm, suicide attempts, protests and hunger strikes by detainees, […]
Read MoreA Humane Approach Can Work: The Effectiveness of Alternatives to Detention for Asylum Seekers
For decades, the U.S. refugee protection system has been a symbol of the nation’s generosity and openness to the world’s persecuted. Yet since Congress’ enactment of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), asylum seekers arriving at the United States-Mexico border have been subject to mandatory detention and summary deportation processes, resulting […]
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