Filter
Report: CBP Must Implement Body-Worn Cameras
Since the incidents in Ferguson, Missouri in August 2014, the use of body-worn cameras has been steadily on the rise. It was a major focus of the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, which was established to “provide meaningful solutions to help law enforcement agencies and communities strengthen trust and collaboration.” Yet, there has […]
Read MoreSetting the Record Straight on the Leaked Government Memo on Work Authorization
Recently, a leaked memo related to the Department of Homeland Security’s ongoing deliberations about reforming the employment-based immigrant visa system was published online. An “investigative associate” with the restrictionist organization Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) wrote an op-ed in The Hill making grossly inaccurate statements about the contents of the leaked memo—indicating that it applied […]
Read MoreCan State Agencies License The Detention of Immigrant Families?
In the discussion around family detention, little attention has been paid to the fact that states play an important role in licensing any facilities where children are cared for. That role has come under heightened scrutiny since federal judge Dolly M. Gee ruled in August that, under the long-standing Flores v. Reno settlement agreement, children […]
Read MoreMore Evidence That Immigrants Don’t Steal American Jobs
Economists tend to agree that immigration is good for the economy: immigrants create jobs and make U.S-born workers more prosperous. Opponents of this idea often cite the work of Harvard labor economist George Borjas to argue that, at the very least, low-skilled immigrants steal jobs that low-skilled Americans would normally do. Here’s The Atlantic’s David Frum fleshing out this critique: “If you assume that all low-education […]
Read MoreThe Battle Over Birth Certificates in Texas
In May, a group of undocumented parents, represented by South Texas Civil Rights Project and Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid, filed a lawsuit against the State of Texas for denying their children, born in the state, birth certificates. The legal team also asked the judge to issue a preliminary injunction—a temporary order that would force […]
Read MoreReport Highlights Uncertain Futures of Unaccompanied Child Migrants
Although their numbers have declined this year, unaccompanied children (UACs) from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico continue to arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border by the thousands. Many—particularly those from Central America—are refugees fleeing horrific levels of violence in their home countries. Others might more properly be termed “economic migrants” trying to escape severe poverty. […]
Read MoreWill the Guidance on Extreme Hardship Waivers Allow More Individuals to Become Permanent Residents?
This week, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued draft guidance on what constitutes “extreme hardship” for purposes of an immigration waiver. The much anticipated guidance is a component of the Administration’s executive actions on immigration announced in November 2014. Many had hoped that the guidance, and its potential to make waivers available to more […]
Read MoreCBP Releases Long Awaited Standards, Still a Long Way to Go
This week, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released its long-awaited, new National Standards on Transport, Escort, Detention and Search (TEDS), which govern the transfer of individuals in CBP custody, procedures for handling such individuals’ belongings, conditions in CBP detention facilities, and personal searches. These standards create minimum requirements which the United States Border Patrol or […]
Read MoreNew Deportation Numbers May Signal More Targeted Enforcement
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may finally be devoting more of its immigration enforcement resources to deporting people who represent a real threat to public safety. According to a recent media report, DHS deported 231,000 people over the past 12 months, which is the lowest number since 2006. Moreover, the share of individuals deported […]
Read MoreFifty Years Later, the Immigration Act That Transformed America
Fifty years ago this past Saturday, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) into law. This Act is best known for having dismantled an earlier immigrant admission system that was based on national origin quotas. Instead, the INA established a new immigration system that prioritized reunifying U.S. citizens and residents with […]
Read MoreMake a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
