America’s Voice
“We Will Not Accept No As an Answer at the End of the Day”
Public Radio International The US farmworker shortage spurs farmers to lobby for immigration reform
By Daisy Contreras
October 20, 2021
Fox News Menendez outlines ‘Plan C’ amnesty push for millions of illegal immigrants in Democrat reconciliation bill
By Adam Shaw
October 20, 2021
Houston Chronicle Advocates call for immigration reform outside locked doors of Harris County Democratic Party headquarters
By Elizabeth Trovall
October 20, 2021
The Washington Times Citizenship or else: Activists warn Dems over amnesty for illegal immigrants
By Stephen Dinana
October 20, 2021
El Semanario (CO, NM) Murky immigration reform, at a crossroads
By Maribel Hastings and David Torres
October 21, 2021
New York Times ‘It Should Not Have Happened’: Asylum Officers Detail Migrants’ Accounts of Abuse
By By Eileen Sullivan
October 20, 2021
The Hill Trump Defense chief blocked idea to send 250,000 troops to border: report
By Maureen Breslin and Jordan Williams
October 20, 2021
The Hill Border Patrol arrests at highest level ever
By Sarakshi RAi
October 20, 2021
Al Jazeera US-Mexico border crossing arrests reach record highs
October 20, 2021
Wall Street Journal Almost Half of Afghan Evacuees at U.S. Bases Are Children, Pentagon Says
By Nancy A. Youssef
October 20, 2021
The Hill Pentagon says almost half of Afghan evacuees at US bases are children
By Rebecca Beistch
October 20, 2021
CBS News Afghan evacuees start to leave U.S. military sites as part of new resettlement phase
By Camilo Montonya-GAlvez
October 20, 2021
Common Dreams The U.S. has begun discharging thousands of Afghan evacuees from military facilities and placing them in communities across the country as part of the new phase of a massive, nationwide resettlement effort, the latest government figures show. In recent weeks, 6,000 Afghan evacuees have left temporary housing sites at U.S. military installations to start new lives in America with the help of nonprofit refugee resettlement agencies, according to Department of Homeland Security data. Another 3,000 U.S. citizens, green card holders and Afghans with close ties in America have left the facilities on their own. Nearly 4,000 Afghan evacuees were resettled in U.S. communities during the past week alone. More than 55,000 Afghans, half of them children, remain at eight U.S. military sites in Indiana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Virginia and Wisconsin. Another 5,000 evacuees housed at overseas military bases are waiting to be placed on U.S.-bound flights, according to the DHS statistics. The pace of relocations from the military sites has ramped up in recent days after the U.S. completed a campaign to vaccinate evacuees against COVID-19 and other diseases. The number of arrivals has also increased after the U.S. lifted a three-week pause on evacuation flights earlier this month. More than 10,000 evacuees have arrived in the U.S. since the flights resumed, bringing the total number of people relocated since mid-August to more than 75,000, DHS figures show. Roughly 89% of the evacuees are Afghans, while the rest are U.S. citizens or green card holders. USA flies Afghans out of Germany Afghan families walk through the waiting area for departure to the U.S. On the wall of the tent is written “Welcome to the USA.” Boris Roessler/picture alliance via Getty Images Before the mass evacuations started in August, the U.S. government relocated thousands of Afghans who were determined to be eligible for Special Immigrant Visas because of their assistance to American military forces. A senior Biden administration official, who requested anonymity to speak freely, said the government is working to process evacuees as quickly as possible, while making case-by-case decisions on which U.S. communities can receive them. “It’s not easy to move large groups. Our overall goal is to get the balance right here,” the official told CBS News. “We certainly could just move people to a big housing facility somewhere. But we’re really keen to move people to their final resettlement destination and a place that meets the needs of their family.” Resettlement officials said a major hurdle in getting Afghans out of the military bases more expeditiously is the limited housing in U.S. communities where many of evacuees have family ties, including northern California and the Dallas, Houston and Washington, D.C., suburbs. “The bottom line is that housing is and will remain a major stumbling block, especially in these preferred destinations,” Erol Kekic, a senior vice president at Church World Service, one of the nine national resettlement agencies, told CBS News. The administration official acknowledged the housing shortage, saying the government is encouraging evacuees to move to states like Oklahoma, which has offered to subsidize their housing for 18 months. The state is set to host the third-largest number of Afghan arrivals during the first resettlement phase. Afghan evacuees adjusting to life in U.S. 08:14 The administration has also allowed resettlement groups to place Afghans with family members living in the U.S. and outside the typical 100-mile radius limit from a local resettlement office, the official noted. It is also working to identify short-term housing options in popular destinations. “It’s not ideal to not put people in their final homes right from the very beginning. But in some of these areas where it’s busier, I think it’s probably better to get them at least off the bases, into some kind of housing. Their kids can be registered in their ultimate school, etcetera,” the official said. Before boarding flights to the U.S, Afghans have been subjected to biometric and biographic security screenings conducted by multiple law enforcement and intelligence agencies, including DHS and the FBI. Flights of Afghan evacuees were suspended in September after several cases of measles were identified among the new arrivals. Before lifting the suspension in early October, the U.S. vaccinated 49,000 Afghans at the military sites against measles, mumps, rubella and varicella. Under the terms of their entry into the U.S., Afghan evacuees are also legally required to receive vaccines against polio and COVID-19. As of October 15, approximately 98% of the evacuees had received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, according to DHS data. As part of a pilot program, personnel at the military sites have been asking evacuated Afghans about their skills and education and whether they speak English. Officials are then including their information in a database that prospective employers can use to hire them, the senior Biden administration official said. Afghan flights halted over measles 05:14 At the military facilities, adult evacuees have access to English classes and children are receiving ad hoc educational services, the administration official said. Evacuated Afghans are also getting help filing immigration paperwork, including applications for asylum and Special Immigrant Visas, the official added. The Biden administration has determined that at least 50% of the at-risk Afghans relocated to the U.S. are eligible for Special Immigrant Visas because they aided American forces during the 20-year war in Afghanistan, according to the DHS. Special visa holders become permanent U.S. residents. Those who do not qualify for the special visas — like journalists, activists and humanitarian aid workers — don’t have a pathway to secure permanent U.S. legal status. Unless Congress legalizes them, they will likely have to seek U.S. status though the backlogged asylum system. Many Afghans evacuated to the U.S. have family members in Afghanistan or in neighboring countries like Pakistan whom they believe could be harmed by the Taliban. Refugee advocates have urged the administration to set up a process for these individuals to request U.S. resettlement. The senior Biden administration official said the government will try to make parole — a humanitarian process that authorizes the entry of immigrants without visas — available to certain Afghans overseas, particularly immediate family members of evacuees in the U.S. “Family reunification for children with parents is always going to be an immediate priority,” the official said. “That is one thing we’re looking at parole for.” According to internal notices sent this month, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services employees have been asked to volunteer to help process “an increasing number of requests for parole for Afghan nationals outside the United States.”
By Jessica Corbett
October 20, 2021
CNN Justice Department eliminates Trump-era case quotas for immigration judges
By Priscilla Alvarez
October 20, 2021
The Hill The 10-point Republican immigration plan is punitive and harmful to our country
By Susan Cohen
October 20, 2021
The Hill Ending worksite raids is a show; focus should be on employer compliance
By Nolan Rappaort
October 20, 2021
LA Times Column: Who will be the champion for immigrants in the post-Trump era?
By Jean Guerrero
October 20, 2021
Denver Post The U.S. is skirting its legal and moral duties by denying asylum
By Karen Musalo
October 20, 2021
Orlando Sentinel We’re living in limbo. Senators, help Venezuelans with path to citizenship
By Father Jose de Jesus Palmar Morales
October 21, 2021
Denver Post US authorities reportedly detained 1.7 million migrants trying to cross the US-Mexico border this fiscal year – marking an all-time high and highlighting the deepening political and humanitarian challenges the Biden administration is facing on immigration. The figures apply for the 2021 fiscal year, which began last October, and were first reported by the Washington Post, and later confirmed by the Reuters news agency. KEEP READING Panama FM: ‘Migration is the phenomenon of our time’ US immigration advocates urge swift evacuation of Afghans US: Nevada court ruling could reshape US immigration policy The numbers emerged amid increasing pressure on the administration of President Joe Biden over his handling of the growing number of migrants fleeing political instability, poverty and climate change making their way to the US’s southern border with Mexico. Earlier in his administration, which began in January, Biden reversed many of the hardline anti-immigration policies of his predecessor, Donald Trump. He promised to put in place a more “humane” approach to immigration policy. Biden’s Republican rivals have claimed Biden’s more welcoming tone has encouraged increasing numbers of migrants to make the trek to the US-Mexico border. They often refer to the situation at the border as “chaos” and a “crisis”. Immigration advocates have sharply criticised the Biden administration for its swift expulsions of Haitian asylum seekers [Jose Torres/Reuters] In a stark example of the developments at the border, last month, nearly 15,000 mostly Haitian asylum seekers crossed the Rio Grande River from Mexico and set up a makeshift camp under an international bridge in Del Rio, Texas hoping to claim asylum. The Biden administration responded by emptying out the camp and expelling nearly 8,000 – according to a count by rights groups – to Haiti, a nation devastated by political crises and natural disasters. Thousands were released into the US immigration system to await hearings. Thousands of others, fearing deportation, returned to Mexico. But Mexico has also been conducting deportation flights. Immigration advocates, as well as Democratic leaders, have slammed Biden for the swift expulsions of many of those migrants back to Haiti, a country they said is rife with dangers and is not equipped to handle deportees. The administration also launched an investigation into the tactics at the border, after videos and pictures circulated showing patrol agents on horseback using whip-like reins in Del Rio to push back Haitians along the river bank. Most of the Haitians were returned under “Title 42,” a healthcare restriction used by Trump that Biden has kept in place. The policy was implemented in March 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in an effort to curb COVID infections and allows most migrants to be quickly expelled without a chance to seek asylum. Title 42 was invoked by the administration of President Donald Trump, citing the need to protect the US from the further spread of the COVID-19 pandemic [File: Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters] Rights groups have said the measure is not based on science and denies migrants the right to seek protection, in violation of US and international laws. Title 42 involves quick expulsions and not deportations, meaning US officials do not retain records of those sent back. Many of the arrests this fiscal year are believed to be repeat crossings, with some people expelled to Mexico turning around and trying again. Meanwhile, a federal court has ordered the Biden administration to reinstate another Trump-era policy known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, or Remain in Mexico, a programme that forced thousands of asylum seekers to wait in Mexico for US immigration court hearings. The administration said it is taking steps to restart the programme in November, pending agreement from Mexico. The policy was highly problematic as it forced asylum seekers including children to wait for months and even years in dangerous border towns in Mexico where many were subjected to violent assaults, rape and other crimes.
By Karen Musalo
October 20, 2021
El Semanario (CO, NM) Encrucijada ante una reforma migratoria poco clara
By Maribel Hastings y David Torres
October 21, 2021
La Opinión Qué proceso rechazó la Corte de Apelaciones sobre DACA mientras miles de ‘dreamers’ siguen sin protección
By Jesús García
October 20, 2021
La Opinión Seguidores de Trump apoyan proteger a inmigrantes indocumentados, según encuesta
By Jesús García
October 20, 2021
Al Día Dallas Clínica de inmigración gratuita ofrecerá ayuda con varios trámites
By María Ramos Pacheco
October 20, 2021
Noticiero Univision Colombia anuncia que reforzará sus medidas de seguridad para los migrantes (Video)
By Yezid Daniel Baquero
October 20, 2021
Noticias Telemundo Traficantes de personas abandonan a 49 migrantes haitianos en Guatemala (Video)
October 20, 2021
Yahoo Noticias Blinken visita Ecuador y Colombia: los 3 puntos calientes en el primer viaje del secretario de Estado de Estados Unidos a América Latina
By BBC News Mundo
October 20, 2021
Queens Latino Más arrestos que nunca en frontera
October 20, 2021
El Tiempo Latino Arrestos de migrantes en la frontera se disparan a un máximo histórico
By The Washington Post
October 20, 2021
Qué Pasa Media La suspensión de las redadas cambia las prioridades de deportación
October 20, 2021
Qué Pasa Media El consulado de Honduras cumplió un año de existencia
By Rafael Prieto Zartha
October 20, 2021
El Tiempo Latino Cifras de la CBP muestran que arrestos en la frontera se elevan a los niveles más altos desde 1986
By Nick Miroff- The Washington Post
October 20, 2021
La Opinión Michoacanos llegan a Tijuana en busca de asilo; muchos hacen lo inimaginable por cruzar
By Por Manuel Ocaño / Especial para La Opinión
October 20, 2021
La Opinión Corte rechaza proteger con DACA a casi 60,000 ‘dreamers’ que enfrentan peligro de deportación
By Jesús García
October 20, 2021
Noticias Telemundo El Gobierno de Trump planteó el despliegue sin precedentes de 250,000 militares en la frontera para cortar el paso a inmigrantes
October 20, 2021
Univision Noticias Corte de apelaciones rechaza nuevas inscripciones de DACA mientras continúa juicio
By Jorge Cancino
October 20, 2021
LatinoCalifornia Urge la reforma migratoria
By Maribel Hastings y David Torres
October 20, 2021
CNN en Español Es necesario hacer todo lo posible para detener la transmisión del covid-19, dice Chris Magnus (Video)
By Ione Molinares
October 20, 2021
El Nuevo Herald 20 migrantes cubanos desembarcan en los Cayos de la Florida, pero probablemente no se quedarán
By Gwen Filosa
October 20, 2021
Noticias Telemundo Demócratas alistan nueva propuesta para proteger inmigrantes de la deportación (Video)
October 20, 2021
Noticias Telemundo Inmigrantes exigen en la capital que la ayuda que EE.UU. envía a sus países sea bien administrada (Video)
October 20, 2021
Noticias Telemundo Esta dreamer se quedó atrapada en México y así logró volver a EE.UU. para abrazar a sus hijos (Video)
October 20, 2021
Univision Noticias Preocupación en miles de hondureños en EEUU por los obstáculos al tramitar la nueva identificación que exige ese país (Video)
October 20, 2021
Univision Noticias Trump quería sellar la frontera con México con 250,000 soldados, según reporte del New York Times
October 20, 2021
Univision Noticias Arrestos fronterizos en año fiscal 2021 rompen récord de más de tres décadas
October 20, 2021
