What to do if you are arrested by Immigration The record-setting deportation of illegal immigrants under President Barrack Obama has drawn scorn from Hispanic Americans, Caribbean Americans and members of the clergy, despite recent administration efforts to temper the policy. According to various studies, including a new Pew Hispanic Center study. Read More

Making Home Affordable The Making Home Affordable Program (MHA) ® is a critical part of the Obama Administration's broad strategy to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, stabilize the country's housing market, and improve the nation's economy. Click here

Ten Ways Immigrants Help Build and Strengthen Our Economy

America is a nation of immigrants. Our American journey and our success would simply not be possible without the generations of immigrants who have come to our shores from every corner of the globe. It is helpful to take a moment to reflect on the important contributions by the generations of immigrants who have helped us build our economy, and made America the economic engine of the world.

How do immigrants strengthen the U.S. economy? Below is our top 10 list for ways immigrants help to grow the American economy ... Click here to read more

Immigration Highlights from the Republican and Democratic Party Platforms

Cite as "AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 12090541 (posted Sep. 5, 2012)"

In the past two weeks the Republican and Democratic Parties have released their official 2012 Party Platforms. Here we’ve compiled the major points of each Party’s platform that relate to immigration.

The Republican Party Platform on Immigration

Supports the rule of law and opposes any form of amnesty.
Top priority is security at borders and ports of entry to prevent drug trafficking, illegal immigration, and terrorism. Calls for completion of the double-layered fencing on the southern border
Supports “humane procedures to encourage illegal immigrants” to leave the U.S. Supports increased enforcement against overstays.
Opposes the current administration’s 2012 policy of granting deferred action to certain individuals who came to the U.S. as children.
-Supports tougher penalties for ID theft, human trafficking and for those who deal in fraudulent documents.
-Supports long-term detention of those who cannot be deported to their country of nationality.
-Supports use of the 287(g) cooperation agreements with states and localities.
Opposes the Obama administration’s “assaults on state governments” on immigration. Opposes the ongoing Department of Justice litigation against state immigration laws.
Calls for denying federal funding to “sanctuary cities” and to universities that offer in-state tuition rates to illegal immigrants.
-Supports making E-verify mandatory nationwide. Supports state immigration enforcement efforts in the workplace.
-Supports making the SAVE program mandatory. SAVE verifies the lawful presence of applicants for State or federal government entitlements or IRS refunds.
Calls for English as the nation’s official language.
-Supports granting more visas to holders of advanced degrees in science technology, engineering and math fields.
Willing to consider a guest worker program to meet labor needs.

The Democratic Party Platform on Immigration
-Supports comprehensive immigration reform with the following components: bring undocumented immigrants out of the shadows and require them to get right with the law, learn English, and pay taxes in order to get on a path to earn citizenship; and create a system for allocating visas that meets the nation’s economic needs, keeps families together, and enforces the law.
-Supports the DREAM Act and continuing to provide deferred action to undocumented people who came to the U.S. as children.
Plans to hold employers accountable for whom they hire.
Prioritizes enforcement against criminals who endanger communities instead of immigrants who do not pose a safety threat.
-Supports family reunification as a priority. Supports the current administration’s streamlining of the process of legal immigration for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens and the enhanced opportunities for English-language learning and immigrant integration.
-Supports continued litigation to oppose state enforcement laws that interfere with federal immigration law.
-Supports inclusion of lesbian, gay bisexual, transgender relationships in the definition of family in immigration policy to protect bi-national families threatened with deportation.
Asserts that the southwest border is more secure than at any time in the past twenty years, unlawful crossings are at a 40-year low, and that the Border Patrol is better staffed than at any time in its history.

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Dream Act - Deferred Action

The Immigrant's Journal Legal & Educational Fund, Inc., (IJLEF) applauds the President's announcement offering Deferred Action to eligible younger immigrants. This action will change the lives of young people who call America home, but who have been unable to live free from the fear of deportation to a country they may not even remember.

"Both sides of the aisle in Congress are discussing solutions for this highly deserving group. By using its legal authority to provide temporary protection from the threat of deportation and enable these young people to actively and openly contribute to our society and economy, the Administration is addressing an issue that has broad bipartisan support," IJLEF Executive Director Diandra Archibald said, on Welcome to America, Diaspora Radio. 620am.

"This represents a triumph of reason over rhetoric and good moral judgment over immoral indifference," Ms. Archibald continued. "However, it does not offer a permanent fix for these young people. This announcement creates space for Congress to truly take on this issue and find the desperately needed solutions to our broken immigration system. It also gives Presidential candidate Romney an opportunity to change his approach to CIR, i.e., self deportation"

Weekly Tidbits:

Did you know that most people help Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) detain them by being uninformed? Often enough, when Immigration officers make an arrest at a person’s home, they are only able to do so as a result of questioning, which gives them the information needed to then make the arrest. The following are helpful tidbits to keep you out of, and away from, your “local” detention center.

1. If an immigration officer knocks on your door: DON’T ANSWER.

2. If an immigration officer knocks on your door: ASK FOR IDENTIFICATION. Officers tend to say that they are the police; ask them to be specific--“what agency are you with?” If they say INS, UCSIS, or ICE, you may deny entrance.

3. DON’T OPEN THE DOOR, NO MATTER WHAT.

4. Immigration may NOT enter your home unless they have a “warrant.” A warrant is a document issued by a court or government agency. Ask the official to show you an arrest or search warrant, but they must pass it under the closed door. If the warrant does not fit under the door, open the door only wide enough to pick up the warrant, explaining that you are not allowing Immigration to enter your house until you have read the warrant.

5. If the Warrant has your name but looks Invalid, return it under the door and say that it is incorrect and that you will not open the door or answer any questions.

6. If the Warrant is Valid with a signature from ICE and your name and address, do not allow Immigration into your home, but go outside. This is especially important if you live with other people who may have Immigration problems.

7. Don’t Answer Questions. Give your real name, but do not answer any other questions and do not sign any papers. Tell the officer you will not answer any questions until you speak to an attorney.

A Beacon of Hope for Immigrants
by Vandell Park

The future for undocumented immigrants living here in the United States continues to look bleak despite new measures and initiatives that have been announced over the last two years by the Obama administration. On June 17, 2011, the administration presented a ray of hope for those immigrants facing deportation by introducing the prosecutorial discretion measure; on May 11, 2011, the administration reintroduced the DREAM Act bill that would enable children of undocumented parents to have a path to legal status; nonetheless, the consequences of being undocumented or out of status remain a brutally painful experience. However, there is hope for many immigrants who are law abiding, but, who face issues that are problematic with the U.S. immigration system.

The good news is that there are immigrant advocacy groups providing services that are instrumental in helping to resolve many of the problems immigrants experience when seeking a change of status, or delays in cases already submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services office. One such organization is The Immigrant's Journal Legal & Educational Fund Inc. (IJLEF), whose modus operandus is to respond to the needs of the immigrant communities; this not- for- profit organization was established in 1998 by Brian Figeroux, Esq., and publishes The Immigrant's Journal which is distributed free of charge throughout the five boroughs. According to Senior Editor Collin Moore, "we offer advice to immigrants, especially in terms of processing their applications for permanent resident status and for citizenship; very often what we do is advocate on their behalf to elected officials to speed up the processing of their petitions."

According to Mr. Moore, a number of immigrants are being taken advantage of because they are out of status. "We have a good relationship with certain congressional people in our area, for example, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke. An individual may be married to an American citizen or a green card holder and they sent in a petition a year ago, and they haven't heard anything from the processing center, so they don't know whether their petition went astray or it was rejected. Very often they come to us and we would call the congressional office on their behalf. That congressional office would then get in contact with the processing center and in a couple of days the individual would be informed as to the precise reason for the delay, or to hear the status of their petition." He added: "If an individual comes to our office we evaluate their claims, they tell us exactly what the situation is, then we are able to call the congressional office and say 'look, we have a particular individual here who has a particular problem. There is a delay in their petition; could you deal with this matter?'"

The IJLEF serves as facilitator, advocate and educator to the immigrant community and so far has been instrumental in aiding in the passage of legislation for the temporary relief for the Haitian community after the devastating earthquake the country suffered in 2010, and in providing a path to gubernatorial pardon for immigrants irrespective of which country they are from. Elaborating on the success of IJLEF, Mr. Moore said that two years ago they approached then governor David Patterson regarding the use of his executive clemency powers. He noted: "we had proposed that they set up a pardon board that would grant pardons. The governor has what is called executive clemency each year and just around the end of the year he can name individuals who could be pardoned. We suggested to him that it would be a good idea if he could exercise his executive clemency to pardon immigrants who are facing deportation but who have manifested certain substantial signs of rehabilitation in their lives and he was able to pardon about 20 people; it was unprecedented. It was the first time in New York State history that executive clemency had been exercised on behalf of a particular class of immigrants."

IJLEF does outreach in various communities and sponsors seminars educating immigrants on the various procedures that can be followed when seeking to have their status either changed or updated. Mr. Moore also indicated that the organization holds meetings or goes directly into the communities to talk with the immigrants "to try to get their feedback as to the problems they are experiencing and what they would like to see incorporated in a new immigration bill and then we look at it and make suggestions to the congressional and sometimes state representatives."

The Immigrant Journal Legal & Educational Fund is actively working to build a stronger relationship with the immigrant community. The organization is appealing to both legal immigrants whether permanent residents or naturalized U.S. citizens, as well as to undocumented immigrants to take advantage of its free services. Those services include providing ID cards to be used here in the U.S., legal representation on divorce from abusive relationships, deportation hearings and all immigration matters, along with providing access to congressional assistance where needed. Currently, the organization is reaching out to ministers and leaders of our communities to become members.

While it might not be feasible to meet the needs of the more than eleven million illegal immigrants living in the United States, it can certainly do its best to help those who are willing to visit our office.

What the Bible Really Says about Immigration
by Bruce and Judy Hake

Comprehensive immigration reform is one of the most pressing problems for the United States. This is expected to be a key issue for Congress in 2010.

Many faith-based organizations are motivated by the Bible in advocating for reform. To counter this, the restrictionists have tried to preempt, issuing a report that purports to prove that the Bible justifies a harsh stance on immigration.

Building on an article we wrote in 1998, in a new article published on January 1, 2010 in Bender's Immigration Bulletin, we debunk the restrictionist argument and show that the Bible actually does support a generous attitude towards immigrants and immigration. Indeed, it mandates such a view.

There are both religious and non-religious people on both sides of the debate over comprehensive immigration reform. One does not need to be religious in order to advocate for the rights of immigrants. But religion is very important for many people involved in the debate. That being so, it is important to have an accurate view of what the Bible really says about immigration, and we have tried our best to show that... Click here to read more