Friday, May 12, 2023

Asylum shouldn’t be the only door into the US


Yesterday, Title 42 ended. It was a false excuse to deny entry into the U.S. to apply for asylum. Now thousands of desperate people, camped out for months in northern Mexico under dangerous conditions, are hoping for a chance.
They would have plenty of company. At least 1.6 million asylum seekers were already living in the U.S. at the end of November 2022, reported TRAC (Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse) at Syracuse University. They were waiting for court dates, way in the future, before USCIS or courts in the Justice Department. 

Migrating people apply for asylum because they see it as the only door open to enter the U.S. legally. Fewer than half the applicants, often those with attorneys, can convince a judge that they meet the narrow criteria for asylum. Only about 7 percent of families whose cases were moved to the front of the line through the administration's Dedicated Docket program got asylum, according to TRAC.

Members of Congress have tried, but failed repeatedly, to pass a genuine immigration reform that would open other avenues for immigration. Applicants for visas to join family often wait years for action. Meanwhile, the U.S. lacks enough farm workers to maintain its highest level of food production. Many employers in retail and hospitality cannot fill their entry-level jobs. The H-2A and H-2B programs to import foreign workers are expensive for the employer and limited to certain types of work.

The border camps are full of people longing to work and contribute to the U.S. economy. Why can’t we find a way to grant work visas to those with the skills we need? 






 

Thursday, May 26, 2022

"Replacement theory" is simply a matter of birth rates

The “great replacement theory” circulating through our media stems from a fact: the white population is dwindling in the United States. In the 2020 Census, 204.3 million people identified as white alone, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This group now makes up about 61 percent of the total population, a decrease of 8.6% since 2010.

Do you know why? Most white couples want small families or no kids at all. There’s no conspiracy, only the result of many white people deciding to limit their number of offspring. And because they are older, more white people die each year and diminish this population.


Black, Latino and Asian families are younger and have higher birth rates. More immigrants are coming to this country because we need their labor and skills. We don’t have enough citizens in our workforce willing to perform essential jobs – harvest and process our food, staff our stores, restaurants, schools and health facilities, and build homes and infrastructure.


As an elder who receives a Social Security check each month, I am grateful for every younger worker who performs a vital job and pays a Social Security tax. I benefit now from this income, but today’s workers might not be able to reap these benefits when they retire. If the worker is an unauthorized immigrant, none of their contributions will go toward a Social Security income in the future.


So, my fellow white citizens, if you are worried about being replaced, stop blaming or making war on people of color who want children. Make love instead – and babies!

Monday, August 2, 2021

Life gets better for undocumented people in Oregon

A bill to legalize some 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States  (U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021) sits on the back burner in Congress. But in Oregon, lawmakers acted to protect the state’s undocumented workforce (about 13 percent of the total) in the early months of the pandemic.


The state opened a fund to compensate workers who were laid off and did not qualify for unemployment or stimulus payments because of their status. By June 30, 2021, community-based organizations had dispensed over $51 million in Oregon Worker Relief Fund dollars to thousands of people to pay for rent, utilities, food, and transportation. While the payments kept the wolf from the door, they amounted to only a fraction of what citizen workers could claim in COVID-19 relief.


During the session that ended in late June, the Oregon Legislature passed these bills that improved the lives of undocumented Oregonians:


Sanctuary Promise Act (HB 3265) bars law enforcement or a public agency from denying services or benefits to individuals on the basis of federal civil immigration actions, asking about an individual’s citizenship without a connection to a criminal investigation, or providing information about an individual in custody to federal immigration authorities. 


The act builds on Oregon’s 1987 sanctuary law that drew a clear line for state and local law enforcement: Enforce state laws and leave immigration enforcement to federal officers. This made immigrant communities less fearful of local police and more willing to cooperate in crime investigations. In 2018, Oregon voters defeated an initiative that would have repealed the original sanctuary law.


Leave No Worker Behind (HB 2819)

Allows qualified individuals to claim the earned income tax credit on their Oregon tax form under an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN). This is what undocumented taxpayers use to file their returns, in lieu of a Social Security number. It applies to tax years beginning January 1, 2022.


Cover All People (HB 3352) 

Renames Health Care for All Oregon Children (Cover All Kids) as Health Care for All Oregon. It expands Medicaid eligibility to adults who would otherwise qualify for state medical assistance or federal premium tax credits, but for their immigration status. 


In 2019, Oregon legislators passed a law (HB 2015 - Drivers Licenses for All) that removed the requirement for people to prove legal presence when applying for a standard Oregon driver license or ID card. Applicants must provide proof of name, identity, date of birth, and Oregon residency, and cannot obtain a Real ID or commercial license.


The law took effect in January 2020. COVID-19 closed DMV offices in March, but they gradually reopened by appointment. Undocumented vehicle owners, who were driving to their jobs and school unlicensed, jumped at the opportunity to get a real license. 

Monday, August 31, 2020

Feds dispatch troops to the homeland


Twice in the past month, the U.S. government unleashed its military might against unarmed Latino immigrants, and their advocates, in places I know.


First, on July 31, Border Patrol agents in an armored vehicle, three ATVS, two helicopters, and two dozen vehicles, descended on a desert camp near Arivaca, Arizona. Here, volunteers with the Tucson organization No More Deaths provide water, food, and medical treatment to dehydrated, and sometimes injured, people migrating from Mexico. In more peaceful times, I visited the camp with a photographer when I was editing NMD’s newsletter. On this day, agents ripped tents open and arrested some 30 migrants receiving care, destroyed medical supplies, disconnected power to the well, and seized cell phones from volunteers.


Then, on Aug. 12, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents entered a workplace in Bend, Oregon, south of where I now live, and took two immigrant men into custody. Citizens blocked the path of the ICE buses, and when witnesses began streaming video of the incident, more people arrived and stayed into the night, demanding the men’s release. Finally, Border Patrol agents in helmets, armed with pepper spray, cleared a path to the buses and carried out the two immigrants and driver. 


Oregon is a sanctuary state, where local law officers are barred from aiding federal agents in immigration arrests. But now some Central Oregonians are pressing the Bend City Council to declare Bend a sanctuary city to stop ICE from enforcing immigration laws within its limits.


Why are people who come to the U.S. to work at jobs few citizens want, such a threat to our country that we call out the troops? Shouldn’t the Department of Homeland Security and its ICE division use their resources to uncover terror plots, intercept drug trafficking, and track down and arrest those who enslave and traffic human beings?


This is the mission of DHS: “With honor and integrity, we will safeguard the American people, our homeland, and our values.” If you think these recent actions contradict this mission, please write to your members of Congress and let them know how you feel.

 

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Immigrants may bear the brunt of the pandemic

The coronavirus did not arrive in the United States in the bodies of migrants and asylum seekers. Airline passengers, traveling for business, family visits or vacations, most likely transported COVID-19 to our shores. This was unintentional. But many countries, including our own, were slow to awaken to the danger.

Now, ironically, desperate people who trudged through Mexico to ask for asylum may be at greatest risk in this pandemic. The Trump administration now requires most asylum seekers to wait for their court dates in northern Mexico. In those makeshift camps, thousands survive on a poor diet in unsanitary conditions, an environment ripe for the rapid spread of disease.

Asking for asylum in another country is a legal right and applicants are not illegal border crossers. If we faced a threat of death or harm to our children, wouldn’t we go to any lengths to protect our families?

In this country, other asylum seekers languish in crowded detention centers to wait for a distant court date. It is impossible to maintain social distance or even wash hands frequently. If a guard or detainee brings the virus to the center, the sickness could spread like wildfire.

States are releasing some nonviolent prisoners to reduce crowding. Why is our government still holding thousands of people who have never been accused or convicted of a crime against other persons? In late March, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) held 49,447 people in detention, reported the Washington Post. Many have family or potential sponsors who would house them while they wait.

“ICE’s unnecessary detention of tens of thousands of people poses a massive threat to public health. Detaining anyone solely for migration-related reasons during a global pandemic is cruel, reckless and deadly,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director for Amnesty International.

Homeland Security had a family case management program to release immigrants while they waited for court dates. In 2017, DHS’s Inspector General reported a high rate of compliance for 954 participants. Only 2 percent failed to report to ICE or immigration court. Unfortunately, the Trump administration suspended the program.

Please write to your representatives in Congress, or the Department of Homeland Security. Ask them to release asylum seekers before COVID-19 takes a deadly toll in our detention enters.










Monday, December 16, 2019


USCIS ramps up fees for legal immigrants

Here is the public comment I submitted to the Department of Homeland Security today about the new fees the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) proposes for fiscal year 2020.

You can still make a comment at https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=USCIS-2019-0010-0001 by midnight Dec. 30.

I oppose the higher fees that United States Citizenship and Immigration Services proposes to charge immigrants who aspire to improve their legal status. I realize that USCIS must raise most of its budget by charging user fees to applicants. But these increases will make it difficult, or impossible, for low-income working immigrants to adjust their status in their adopted country. Even the proposal to not allow payment by money order or cashier’s check creates hardship for immigrants who do not have a bank account or credit card.
One reason behind these fee hikes is the administration’s plan to transfer $207.6 million in applicant fees to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for FY 2020. This is unfair to applicants who struggle financially to pay USCIS fees. ICE already receives far more generous funding than USCIS.
I ask USCIS to not eliminate fee waivers that make it possible for low-income immigrants to petition for work authorization, legal residency and citizenship. This year, a congressional committee reportedly urged USCIS to continue its traditional waivers.
I urge USCIS to not impose a $50 fee on people seeking asylum in the U.S. Many of these people were in imminent danger and left their countries overnight without possessions or assets. Even a modest fee would bar many people from beginning the asylum process and such a fee would violate the intent of the 1980 Refugee Act.
Finally, I ask USCIS to lower, not raise, the renewal fee for immigrants under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Many DACA recipients are working their way through college (they can’t get most student aid) or have graduated and have to pay off college loans. Many of these young people are professionals working in our classrooms and health facilities, contributing to the well-being of all Americans.




Saturday, November 2, 2019



Poverty becomes a crime in 21st century America

On a train trip from Seattle in October, we passed by homeless camps located near the railroad tracks. One was nestled in trees and protected from sight. But along the Willamette River in Portland, I spotted a few tents out in the open at the end of an overpass. Why don’t they camp under the shelter? I wondered, until I saw the reason.


Apparently, the city, or the state department of transportation, had evicted campers from the sheltered space below the overpass and filled it with large sharp rocks. Is this how we solve our “homeless problem” in the 21st century?

This sad scene took me back to the early 1990s in Sonoma County, California. Dozens of Mexican farmworkers, mostly from Oaxaca, had arrived to harvest the famed Alexander Valley wine grapes. With no inexpensive places to rent, the workers camped under a bridge approach to eat, sleep, and bathe in the river. News media came to report from the scene and local organizations offered help to the families. The following year, the area was fenced off.

It’s uncomfortable for those with a roof over our heads to gaze upon our brothers and sisters who lack this basic necessity. Many are working or surviving on some kind of government check, but lack enough income or savings to rent a house or apartment. When local officials order these campers to move, they are depriving people of even the most humble shelter. Why can’t a town bring out trash cans, portable toilets, and social workers to help the campers with their most pressing needs?

I call it the “criminalization of poverty” and it happens on a larger scale on our border with Mexico. People escaping violence or near-starvation in their home countries, who come to work in the United States, are branded as “illegals.” Most are too poor to obtain the right documents to cross legally.

Our country needs people willing to work at entry-level jobs and perform the hard labor of agriculture and construction, jobs even our teenagers don’t want. So why is our government so eager to deport or lock up these migrating people?

In Matthew 25:40, Jesus says to his disciples, “Whatever you did to the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did also unto me.”