Filter
The U.S. Has Been Implementing an “Enforcement-First” Immigration Policy for More Than a Decade
Anti-immigrant activists often say that we must first enforce current U.S. immigration laws before even considering any reforms that might grant legal status to unauthorized immigrants already living in the country. However, as the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) documents in a comprehensive new report (and a more condensed Report in Brief), that is what we […]
Read MoreNew ICE Detainer Guidance Too Little, Too Late
On the Friday before Christmas, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) released new guidance on immigration “detainers,” the lynchpin of agency enforcement programs involving cooperation with local police. In the new guidance, ICE Director John Morton instructed agency employees to only file detainers against immigrants who represent agency “priorities.” Unfortunately, as with prior agency memos […]
Read MoreCountdown of the Top Five Immigration Stories of 2012
In the beginning of 2012, the landscape of the immigration world looked much different. Pro-immigrant groups were coming off of a rough few years that saw the failure of the DREAM Act, a spike in deportations under President Obama, and the passage of several state-level restrictionist bills like Arizona’s infamous SB 1070 and Alabama’s HB […]
Read MoreBorder Patrol Tightens Up Its Policy on Providing Interpretation Services
By Lisa Graybill, Visiting Lecturer in Law at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. In a welcome if overdue move last Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued new guidance to Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) personnel, directing them not to respond to requests for translation assistance from other law enforcement organizations. The […]
Read MoreFalling Through the Cracks
The Impact of Immigration Enforcement on Children Caught Up in the Child Welfare System
One of the many consequences of an aggressive immigration enforcement system is the separation of children, often U.S. citizens, from their unauthorized immigrant parents. Take the case of Felipe Montes, a father who has spent the past two years fighting to reunite with his three young children, who were placed in foster care in North Carolina following Montes’ deportation to Mexico in late 2010. Such cases only scratch at the surface of a growing problem. Our immigration policies often fail to address the needs of millions of children whom they directly impact.
According to the Pew Hispanic Center, approximately 5.5 million children in the United States, including 4.5 million U.S.-born citizens, live in mixed-legal status families with at least one parent who is an unauthorized immigrant. These children are at risk of being separated from a parent at any time. Parents facing removal must frequently make the decision whether to take their children with them or leave their children in the U.S. in the care of another parent, relative, or friend. In many cases, a parent may determine that it is in their child’s best interest to remain in the U.S. However, in some cases, a parent’s ability to make such decisions is compromised when their child enters the child welfare system, which can prompt a series of events leading to the termination of parental rights. The lack of consistent protocols across the different public systems that encounter separated families further exacerbates the problem.
Immigration Critical to the Creation of Jobs in Minnesota
Rochester Post-Bulletin December 10, 2012 … Minnesota is getting older and is losing far too many of its young people to other parts of the country, so we’re fortunate that immigrants from around the world see our state as a good place to raise their families, start businesses and pursue their version of the American […]
Read MoreThe U.S. Economy Still Needs High-Skilled Immigrant Workers
With the U.S. economy in the midst of a prolonged slump, it’s hard to believe that a labor shortage exists anywhere in the country. But that is precisely the case when it comes to the high-tech industries which depend upon highly skilled scientists and engineers. The United States has long faced a dilemma in this […]
Read MoreBibles, Badges, Business and Bush + DREAMers Make Immigration Reform Demands Known
While some thought the immigration reform talk immediately after the election was just chatter, a series of convenings and speeches this week demonstrate that the topic of broad immigration reform is on plenty of tables. From DREAMers to President Bush, the call for reform goes on.
Read MoreBecoming a Land of Missed Opportunities
The Roanoke Times December 2, 2012 … It hardly seems controversial to suggest that the U.S. needs to do more to retain potential job creators, rather than educating them and sending them back to their home countries to compete against us. But there has been a reluctance in Congress to pick off easier reforms rather […]
Read MorePress Release: New Report by the Information Technology Council, Partnership for a New American Economy, and U.S. Chamber of Commerce Confirms Labor Needs in Fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Low Unemployment Rates in STEM Occupations Reaffirm that Foreign Born Workers with Advanced Degrees Complement United States STEM Workers The Information Technology Industry Council, The Partnership for a New American Economy, and The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today released a new report, “Help Wanted: The Role of Foreign Workers in the Innovation Economy.” The report analyzes […]
Read MoreMake a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
