Filter
Heads Up, Virginia, Anti-Immigrant Agenda Could Be 2012 Legislative Focal Point
BY CLAIRE GUTHRIE GASTAÑAGA The Virginia General Assembly that convenes in January 2012 will be much changed from the one that it replaces. Effective control of Virginia’s government—a Governor, House of Delegates and Senate— is now in the hands of legislators who have consistently sought to lead Virginia in the direction of states like Arizona […]
Read MoreDHS Begins Review of Deportation Cases, Issues Awaited Prosecutorial Discretion Guidelines
Today, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) directed ICE attorneys to begin a review process of current immigration cases pending before immigration courts in order to close or dismiss those cases warranting prosecutorial discretion. The attorneys also received additional guidance on how to apply discretion in certain low priority cases. At the same time, DHS announced […]
Read MoreDHS Issues Awaited Guidance on Prioritizing Deportations, Law Enforcement Letter Praises Approach
Washington D.C. – Today, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Principal Legal Advisor directed all ICE attorneys to begin a systematic review of immigration cases to determine whether pursuing deportation in each case is consistent with the Administration’s enforcement priorities. This directive follows last summer’s announcement that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to review […]
Read MorePolicing the Enforcers: Criminalizing Alabama Employees Encourages Discrimination
Alabama lawmakers want undocumented immigrants to be so afraid of the consequences of the state’s new anti-immigrant law (HB 56) that they leave the state. However, that’s not the only fear factor built into the law. Under section 6(f), state and local government employees must report violations of HB 56—which includes unlawfully present immigrants even […]
Read MoreEven Facebook Feels Brunt of Broken U.S. Immigration Policy
You know things are bad when a company as popular as Facebook has problems finding qualified talent. In a recent interview, Facebook’s chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, remarked that our outdated immigration policy is a big reason Silicon Valley tech companies are fighting each other for highly skilled workers. Current immigration policy limits high-skilled worker […]
Read MoreAILA-AIC Survey Reveals ICE Officials’ Sporadic Exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion
Washington, DC – The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the American Immigration Council (AIC) released a new survey today finding that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and attorneys across the country are applying different standards on prosecutorial discretion despite the issuance of national policy memoranda this summer. The report, which includes inform ation […]
Read MoreDOJ Responds Forcefully to Civil Rights Disaster in Alabama, What Will DHS Do?
Washington D.C. – This week, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it was filing suit in South Carolina to block Act No. 69 (formerly SB 20), South Carolina’s new anti-immigrant law—modeled on Arizona’s SB1070. DOJ argues—like it did in Utah and Alabama—that the law is unconstitutional and interferes with the federal government’s ability to […]
Read MoreAlabama Law Enforcement, Courts Implementing New Law in Different Ways Across State
As if things weren’t chaotic enough in Alabama, reports now find that law enforcement and courts vary widely on how they apply the state’s new immigration law, creating different rules and consequences for individuals depending on a judge or officer’s understanding of the law. As the controversial law (HB 56) itself continues to change as […]
Read MoreRestrictionist Lawyer Reveals Long-Term Assault on Immigrant Children
Today, the head of the legal arm of one of the most notorious restrictionist groups in the nation boldly admitted his work on Alabama’s new anti-immigrant law aims to end public education for the children of immigrants. Michael Hethmon of the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI), an offshoot of the Federation for American Immigration Reform […]
Read MoreACLU Brings Cases of Immigration Detention Abuse to Light
Reports of abuse from immigration detention facilities are nothing new. In fact, due to private contractors’ lax attitude and lack of federal oversight, many experts are finding that cases of abuse are vastly underreported. Last week, the ACLU reported on 185 allegations of sexual abuse of undocumented female detainees held in federal detention facilities. While […]
Read MoreMake a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
