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Presidential Debates: Brought to You by an Immigrant
Millions of Americans will tune into tonight’s vice-presidential debate, but few will know the origins of the presidential debate process. While we’ve come to think of these debates as a way to learn more about the candidates vying for our votes, the idea of holding public debates, like so many other great American ideas, can […]
Read MoreKansans Push for Kobach Recall
Activists in Kansas are mounting a campaign to recall the state’s Secretary of State and notorious immigration restrictionist Kris Kobach. According to the Associated Press, there is a movement to collect signatures to recall him. For months, several groups have held rallies and press conferences, accusing Kobach of spending too much time working on his […]
Read MoreSteve Case on Fixing the Visa System
Entrepreneur October 8, 2012 Last month, while having breakfast with a group of entrepreneurs in Chapel Hill, N.C., I met Deepak — a young, up-and-coming star in the Research Triangle’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Deepak hopes to grow his health-care startup, create good-paying jobs and enable people from around the world to live longer, healthier lives by […]
Read MoreUse of Segregation in Immigration Detention has Harmful Effects
The U.S. immigration system continues to detain more and more noncitizens in federally-operated detention facilities, in private prisons, and in state and local prisons and jails across the country. Currently, DHS detains approximately 34,000 persons every night, the majority of whom have no criminal history. Over the last several years there have been numerous reports […]
Read MoreSchumer to introduce own STEM visa bill
Computerworld September 17, 2012 U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who is chair of the Senate’s Immigration, Refugees and Border Security subcommittee, is introducing his own STEM visa bill to challenge a similar Republican bill in the House. Schumer’s bill, which is expected to be announced Tuesday, will provide 55,000 green cards for foreign students who […]
Read MoreCitizenship Day 2012: Realizing the Potential of the Immigrant Vote
For many aspiring immigrants, achieving citizenship means full participation in civic life—and that means the right to vote. Every year, thousands of immigrants become naturalized U.S. citizens and exercise their new right. In the 2010 national elections, naturalized citizens comprised 6.4% of all voters. The voter registration rate among immigrants as a whole has risen since 2000. Just as importantly, a growing number of U.S.-born children of immigrants are now coming of age and becoming voters.
However, the full potential of the immigrant vote has not been reached. There are more than eight million legal immigrants in the United States who are eligible to naturalize but have not yet done so. The latent electoral power of these voters-in-waiting is enormous. In many parts of the country their votes could potentially swing elections. As described in a series of Immigration Impact blog posts by Rob Paral, there are numerous counties across the country where the number of Legal Permanent Residents (LPRs) who have arrived since 1985 exceeds the margin of victory in the Obama-McCain election. Moreover, the voter rolls of many counties would grow dramatically if LPRs who are eligible to naturalize actually did so and registered to vote. Although this could not happen in time for the 2012 election cycle, it could make a difference in future elections. In many U.S. counties, the number of Legal Permanent Residents (LPRs) who have arrived since 1985 exceeds the Obama-McCain margin of victory.
Alabama’s Anti-Immigrant Law Fosters Anti-Latino Discrimination
According to a new report from the National Immigration Law Center, anti-Latino discrimination is alive and well in Alabama, and has gotten a seal of approval from the governor and the state legislature. HB 56, the state’s increasingly infamous anti-immigrant law, went into effect on June 9, 2011, and has since inspired all manner of […]
Read MoreHow Deportations Devastate Families and Communities
It goes without saying that unauthorized immigrants live in constant fear of deportation. After all, any chance encounter with U.S. immigration officials can leave an unauthorized immigrant behind bars and in removal proceedings. Less obvious, perhaps, is the impact that deportations have on families and communities. A mother can be left to provide for the […]
Read MoreReport: Immigrants Drive United States’ Small Business Creation
Hispanically Speaking News August 17, 2012 According to a report from a bipartisan group of more than 450 mayors and business leaders from around the country known as the Partnership for a New American Economy, immigrants are increasingly more likely to start small businesses and create jobs. The report, Open for Business: How Immigrants Are […]
Read MoreCourts Weigh Issuance of Law Licenses to Undocumented Attorneys
The highest courts of Florida and California are considering a legal question of great importance to many DREAMers: whether the lack of valid immigration status prevents states from issuing law licenses to applicants who are otherwise qualified to become attorneys. To some, the answer may seem obvious—that immigrants should not be permitted to practice law […]
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