As reported in CQ Roll Call, 33 House republicans have requested that President Obama end the executive order staying the deportation of DREAMERs (the program known as DACA). DACA is inapplicable to anyone who arrived here after June 15, 2012, including the thousands of children from Central America. DACA critics claim the program has fueled the children’s migration, believing… Read More »
Immigration Status and Access To Driver’s License
IT IS BAD PUBLIC POLICY TO DENY DRIVERS LICENSES BASED ON IMMIGRATION STATUS. It increases uninsurance rates and the number of unlicensed drivers. In the states which already allow undocumented immigrants to get drivers licenses, auto insurance rates have dropped, because more people are buying car insurance. Denying undocumented immigrants licenses also undermines effective law enforcement. States… Read More »
ICE’s Anti-DACA Lawsuit Dismissed
A federal judge in Dallas, Texas dismissed a lawsuit by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers who favored deporting DREAMERS. The officers opposed the Department of Homeland Security’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The court held that the Civil Service Reform Act, a law governing federal employment disputes, barred it from hearing the… Read More »
Victory for Aliens! Local Texas Anti-Immigrant Housing Law (Still) Unconstitutional
Still unconstitutional: Trying to oust immigrants from Farmers Branch, Texas through discriminatory, anti-immigrant housing laws. Farmers Branch’s Latino population is over 45%. The Dallas suburb’s ordinance criminalized housing rentals to those immigrants it considered unlawfully present. The law never took effect; it was blocked from the outset by two previous court decisions. The Fifth Circuit Court of… Read More »
Interfaith Support For Immigration Reform
Americans of all faiths support a comprehensive immigration reform that includes a path to citizenship. At 63%, this is three times those who favor deportation. 4500 Americans were surveyed. Religious leaders, including Catholics, Evangelical Protestants, Jews, and Muslims, likewise back this comprehensive approach.
Texas Leads Record Year For immigration Prosecutions
50,000 immigration prosecutions in the first half of FY 2013 make this a record year for bringing criminal charges against aliens who illegally enter – or try to – and get caught. Texas leads the way. The Southern District (Houston) and the Western District (San Antonio) rank #1 and #2, followed by Arizona, New… Read More »
Texas Driver’s License For Undocumented Immigrants
It’s not a law…yet. You can help make it one. Under proposed HB3206, undocumented immigrants living in Texas could be issued a special “Texas resident driver’s permit.” And why not? The Texas legislature’s bipartisan bill promotes public safety and fiscal responsibility. It requires a driver’s test, background check, and fingerprints. “It will absolutely enhance safety.… Read More »
“My Consuela”
Perspective matters. It changes viewpoints, often by rendering the abstract concrete. The immigration perspective-shift also happens this way.
In our business we hear a version like this: A U.S. citizen comes in for a consultation and says, “I’m not in favor of illegal immigration, but…. I want to know what I can do to help my Consuela.” Then we hear about the trusted nanny / housekeeper / ranch-worker, etc. who’s “like a member of the family. We want to get her legal. What do we do to help?”