Filter
Advocates File Suit Against DHS for Refusal to Disclose Records on Enforcement Program
Washington D.C. – Last week, an alliance of national immigration advocacy organizations filed suit against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), seeking to compel the release of documents concerning the agency’s Criminal Alien Program (CAP). Seeking greater transparency, the American Immigration Council (AIC) and the Connecticut chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) brought […]
Read MoreAlways in Demand: The Economic Contributions of Immigrant Scientists and Engineers
With the U.S. economy in the midst of a prolonged slump, it’s hard to believe that any industry would actually benefit from having more workers. But that is precisely the case when it comes to those industries which depend upon highly skilled scientists and engineers. The United States has long faced a dilemma in this respect: the U.S. economy is capable of absorbing more high-tech professionals than the U.S. educational system produces. That is one reason so many U.S. scientists and engineers are immigrants. In “STEM” occupations (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), the foreign-born account for 26.1 percent of workers with PhDs and 17.7 percent of those with master’s degrees. Even more U.S. scientists and engineers would be immigrants if not for the arbitrary limits imposed by the U.S. immigration system, particularly the inadequate supply of green cards and H-1B visas. Given that STEM professionals tend to create jobs through their innovative work, such limits are economically self-defeating.
Immigrant scientists and engineers create new jobs.
ICE Distorts Facts in Debate over Immigration Detainers
February was an important month in the debate over immigration “detainers,” the controversial tool used to strong-arm local jails into holding immigrants on the federal government’s behalf. In Connecticut, a class-action lawsuit was filed attacking detainers’ many legal vulnerabilities, and the Governor announced that state jails will not honor them in all cases. In Illinois, […]
Read MoreCourts, State Legislators Pull Back on Restrictive Immigration Legislation
Although several states were eager to introduce their own restrictive immigration bills following Arizona and Alabama’s harsh laws, some legislators and federal judges are now pulling back on these costly bills. A federal judge in Utah this week refused to issue a ruling on the state’s immigration law in anticipation of a Supreme Court ruling […]
Read MoreKris Kobach, a Romney Immigration Advisor, Puts Number on Self-Deportation Plan
A recent Salon.com article quotes long-time immigration restrictionist Kris Kobach putting a figure on his self-deportation policy for the first time. “If we had a true nationwide policy of self-deportation,” Kobach said, “I believe we would see our illegal alien population cut in half at a minimum very quickly.” Salon.com did the math, finding that “with […]
Read MoreKris Kobach, a Romney Immigration Advisor, Puts Number on Self-Deportation Plan
A recent Salon.com article quotes long-time immigration restrictionist Kris Kobach putting a figure on his self-deportation policy for the first time. “If we had a true nationwide policy of self-deportation,” Kobach said, “I believe we would see our illegal alien population cut in half at a minimum very quickly.” Salon.com did the math, finding that “with […]
Read MoreHow Congress Can Better Protect Immigrant Victims of Crime
BY ANDREA RAMOS, SOUTHWESTERN LAW SCHOOL This week the Washington Post reported on two laws that protect victims of domestic abuse who are also immigrants. The story profiles women who were literally saved from abusive relationships by law enforcement who then guided them to programs that offer a special form of immigration relief for victims.
Read MoreMissouri State Legislature Pursing Budget Busting Solutions to Immigration
Washington D.C. – As Missouri faces a $704 million shortfall in fiscal year 2012, state legislators are currently pursuing a costly and short-sighted anti-immigrant law. Senate Bill 590 is similar to the immigration law passed in Alabama and is currently working its way through the state legislature. The costs associated with the bill are unknown […]
Read MoreFollowing State of the Union, President Obama Needs to Follow Through on Immigration Reforms
The President’s State of the Union address this week re-iterated some of his key themes on immigration—support for comprehensive reform, dismay that DREAM Act students and foreign students educated in this country have no way to legalize their status, and a belief that he’s done enough to the secure the border. More importantly, he framed […]
Read MoreThe Real Meaning of “Self-Deportation”
Washington D.C. – The term “self-deportation” has found its way into the GOP presidential primary race, with candidate Mitt Romney outlining a vague immigration platform which includes “self-deportation,” or the idea that unauthorized immigrants will voluntarily choose to leave the U.S. if life here is made unbearable enough. While “self-deportation” may be a new idea […]
Read MoreMake a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
