Immigration 101
The U.S. immigration system is complex and can be difficult to understand. These resources provide key data points, historical information, and background on hot topics in immigration. Learn the basics about immigration. Immigration in the United States is complex and ever-evolving. Start here to understand the fundamental aspects of immigration policy, its history, and its impact on both individuals and the country at large. Learn commonly used terms about immigration law and how the U.S. immigration system is designed. Explore layered topics like how and whether immigrants can become citizens, as well as what individual protections look like under the law.
How the United States Immigration System Works
- How the Immigration System Works
- June 24, 2024
U.S. immigration law is very complex, and there is much confusion as to how it works. This fact sheet provides basic information…
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Birthright Citizenship in the United States
- Birthright Citizenship
- October 16, 2024
This fact sheet explains birthright citizenship, the Fourteenth Amendment, and its interpretations. Who is…
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Asylum in the United States
- Asylum
- August 27, 2014
Asylum seekers must navigate a difficult and complex process that can involve multiple government…
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Separating Fact From Fiction About Immigrants and Crime
The perennially hot, and inflammatory, question of whether or not immigration is related to crime has yielded front-page stories in both the Washington Post and New York Times over the past two days. In different ways, each of these stories highlights the extent to which the myth of a supposed link between crime and immigration has long been based on emotion rather than fact. Although study upon study over the past century has demonstrated that immigration is not associated with more crime, the "myth of immigrant criminality" persists. Read More
FAIR Gets It Wrong Again
This week FAIR-an anti-immigration hate group-- issued another new report based on dubious facts and assertions. "Immigration Lobbying: A Window Into the World of Special Interests" ultimately shows that the vast majority of groups lobbying on immigration legislation are not "pro-enforcement-only," but rather support a comprehensive approach to immigration reform-including enforcement. Of course, this was not FAIR's intention - they wanted to show that these groups only support immigration reform because it is in their own self-interest and are not looking out for the majority of the "American people." Apparently the American people are only represented by FAIR and the rest of the 2.1% of lobbying groups that are "pro-enforcement-only." Read More
Bush Regrets Not Pushing for Immigration Reform
This week, in an interview with Cal Thomas of the Washington Times, George W. Bush admitted that he regretted concentrating so much on Social Security and not pushing for immigration reform after his '04 reelection: Q: And biggest do-over? Knowing everything you know now, what would you have done over again? THE PRESIDENT: I probably, in retrospect, should have pushed immigration reform right after the ´04 election and not Social Security reform. Read More
The GOP’s New Year Resolution on Immigration
By any measurement the GOP lost more than an election this year. Many Republican candidates who incorporated immigrant-bashing and nativism into their platforms lost sight of the kind of country the U.S. has become and, in doing so, caused the GOP to experience a defeat the likes of which they have not seen in years. The Arizona Republic laid out the GOP's challenge ahead: For only the second time since 1979, they control neither the White House nor a chamber of Congress...More troubling for the GOP: They have been pushed back to a regional base in the South and in the depopulating plains. Congressional losses in 2008 all but wiped out Republican House representation in the Northeast. Republican presidential candidates have not been competitive in the Pacific Rim of California, Oregon and Washington for two decades. Once-staunchly GOP Virginia and Indiana went to Obama. Read More
Task Force Calls for Federal Immigrant Integration Effort
While some fear that demographic shifts threaten American identity, yet another piece of research has come out showing that today's immigrants want to and are integrating into American society just like generations of immigrants before them. After more than two years of collaboration and initiatives among 20 federal agencies and a variety of stakeholders, the Task Force on New Americans delivered a report this past Monday. The Task Force was assembled in 2006 with a call to "strengthen the efforts of the Department of Homeland Security and federal, state, and local agencies to help legal immigrants embrace the common core of American civic culture, learn our common language, and fully become Americans." The Task Force's recommendations are based in the belief that immigrants can and do integrate into U.S. society and that integration is also a federal responsibility. Read More
Immigration May Make or Break NY Senate Seat Contenders
Caroline Kennedy's interest in taking over Hillary Clinton's U.S. Senate seat for the state of New York is no secret. Her policy positions have been less obvious. However, this past weekend she began revealing "hints" of a platform-including immigration. On Saturday, Ms. Kennedy's spokesman provided written answers to 15 questions posed by The New York Times. On the topic of immigration, Ms. Kennedy shares the views of her uncle, Senator Edward Kennedy-supporting a path to citizenship for the undocumented. In fact, Kennedy's positions on immigration also line up pretty well with those of her potential predecessor, Hillary Clinton herself. According to Ms. Kennedy's aide: Read More
2,000 Approved Naturalization Applicants Blocked from Voting
Red tape and a tightfisted judge blocked nearly 2,000 people who should've been able to vote this past Election Day from receiving their naturalization oath in time to register for November's general election. Lawful permanent residents with approved naturalization applications must take the oath of allegiance to become a U.S. citizen. According to a new government report and immigration analysts, federal judges in some parts of the U.S. may be refusing USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) requests for oath ceremonies and delaying the swearing-in of new citizens. Some USCIS district offices administer naturalization oaths themselves. But in a few districts-including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit-only federal district courts have power to so and are then reimbursed by USCIS for all oath ceremonies they perform. Los Angeles itself received $2.4 million for the 169,799 oaths it administered in 2008. According to the Washington Post, the ombudsman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Michael Dougherty, stated: Read More
Scrounging for Facts in FAIR’s Reporting Yet Again
Video by America's Voice. The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) released another report claiming that undocumented immigrants cost states much more than they pay in taxes. This time the target was Colorado. As is the case for many restrictionist reports, FAIR's conclusions are based on dubious "evidence" and assumptions, and often relies upon national level data to estimate Colorado-specific numbers. FAIR claims to look at the costs of providing education, health care, and incarceration to undocumented immigrants. But are they really looking at the undocumented population? Read More
Big Brother DOJ Rule Expands DNA Collection to Immigrants
For immigrants helplessly entangled in our country's broken immigration system, Big Brother is watching. Last week, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a shocking new rule requiring federal agencies to collect DNA samples from non-U.S. persons who are detained under the authority of the U.S in a vague attempt to catch criminals. Immigration and civil liberties groups are decrying the new rule, saying that it poses a direct threat to basic constitutional and privacy rights. Even the European Court of Human Rights unanimously ruled that a similar British DNA policy violated privacy rights. Previously, the federal government was authorized to collect DNA samples only from persons convicted of felonies, violent crimes, aggravated sexual abuse, or serious military offenses. Now, considering the likelihood of legal U.S. residents and citizens getting caught up in immigration raids, it's even possible that individuals who are legally in the U.S. with no criminal history will be subjected under this new rule to DNA testing without their consent. According to the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the rule: Read More
Immigration Remains Top-Tier Issue for New Administration
Gebe Martinez wrote in this week's Politico that "in presidential transition offices, immigration is cited as a top-tier issue that Obama will have to tackle early in his administration." While everyone knows the economy is the first order of business, even Michael Chertoff would agree that something needs to be done about immigration especially after it was revealed that undocumented workers were tidying up his suburban Maryland home. Chertoff would find himself in Conservative company. Leading Republicans have begun to publicly criticize the GOP's handling of the immigration issue following the Party's historic losses in November and the Republicans are rethinking their Hispanic strategy. Read More
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