Filter
New Report Predicts Continuing Integration of Immigrants into U.S. Society
Anti-immigrant activists like to pretend that immigrants are destined to be poor and to never successfully integrate into U.S. society. However, a new report from the Center for American Progress (CAP) concludes that, in reality, “immigrants are integrating into American life, learning English, and becoming homeowners.” When socioeconomic advancement is tracked over time, it becomes […]
Read MoreThousands of Children Stuck in Foster Care after Parents Deported, Report Finds
A report released this week reveals yet another devastating consequence of the enforcement-only approach to immigration—a startling number of children whose parents have been detained and deported are placed in foster care and face enormous barriers reuniting with their families. According to the Applied Research Center, 1 in 4 people deported in FY 2011 (nearly […]
Read MoreDOJ’s Lawsuit Against South Carolina Latest Legal Challenge to State Immigration Laws
BY KAREN TUMLIN, MANAGING ATTORNEY, NATIONAL IMMIGRATION LAW CENTER Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed suit against South Carolina, challenging the state’s extreme anti-immigration law (SB 20). With this action, the Department of Justice charges that South Carolina, like Arizona and Alabama, have passed unconstitutional immigration laws. Civil rights groups (including the National […]
Read MoreHow Will DHS Continue to Partner on Existing State Enforcement Programs Given Legal Challenge to Alabama’s Law?
Today, several newspapers reported on DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano’s statement that the federal government is not going to help Alabama implement its new immigration law, leaving many to wonder how the federal government will continue running existing state and local immigration enforcement programs like Secure Communities. On one hand, the federal government has sued Alabama […]
Read MoreA Small Step Toward Reform: Bipartisan Bill Seeks to Raise Per Country Immigration Caps
An immigration bill introduced by Congressmen Lamar Smith and Jason Chaffetz and supported by Democrats may actually have a chance at passing in Congress. Scheduled for a mark up this week, the bill (H.R. 3012) would make small but significant changes to the way green cards are distributed by eliminating per country numerical limits on […]
Read MoreRedefining Criminality: Untangling DHS’s Record High Deportation Numbers
It was another record breaking year for deportations, with DHS logging 396,906 removals during Fiscal Year 2011. While the raw number is not in doubt, its meaning is far from clear. According to DHS, 55% of those removed (approximately 218,000) were “criminal aliens,” but the definition of “criminal” is overly broad. While DHS may tout […]
Read MoreSecretary Napolitano Acknowledges “Messaging Problem,” Dismisses Criticism of Key Enforcement Programs
In a speech at American University yesterday, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano complained that she was tired of criticism from the left and the right that accuse DHS of both blindly deporting undocumented immigrants and participating in attempts at amnesty through the use of prosecutorial discretion. Secretary Napolitano argued that both cannot be true, […]
Read MoreCan Alabama Afford to Enforce their New Restrictive Immigration Law?
This week, U.S. District Judge Sharon Blackburn failed to enjoin major provisions of Alabama’s extreme immigration law, HB 56, a law designed to drive unauthorized immigrants from the state. Under the law, police officers are now required to demand proof of legal status from anyone who seems foreign. School administrators are required to ask children […]
Read MoreGOP Candidates Distort Truth on In-State Tuition for Unauthorized Students
Texas Governor Rick Perry, a candidate in the Republican presidential primaries, has been taking a lot of conservative heat lately over his support for the “Texas DREAM Act.” That bill, which Perry signed into law in 2001, allows young unauthorized Texans who came to this country as children to qualify for in-state tuition in state […]
Read MoreNext Stop, Napolitano: DHS Committee Approves Task Force Recommendations on Secure Communities
Last week, a task force created to study DHS’ controversial “Secure Communities” initiative issued a report listing a series of recommendations to improve the program. Among other proposals, the task force recommended that federal authorities standardize the use of prosecutorial discretion around the country, make the program more transparent, and decline to initiate deportation proceedings […]
Read MoreMake a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
