Migration News

U.S. Refugee Program 'On Life Support,' Facing Big Challenges
Tom Gjelten, NPR
Among the more daunting challenges President Biden faces in the coming year will be to make good on his goal of admitting 10 times as many refugees — 125,000 — as former President Donald Trump allowed to enter the United States last year. During his presidency, Trump ordered drastic cutbacks in the U.S. refugee program. "It's going to take time to rebuild what has been so badly damaged," Biden said in a speech last month at the State Department, "but that's precisely what we're going to do." Among those who doubt Biden can meet his goal are the very agencies responsible for the mission.

Finally a breakthrough: Senate actually talking immigration
Sabrina Rodriguez, Burgess Everett and Marianne Levine, Politico
As Senate Republicans continued to torch the Biden administration over its handling of the border situation this week, a funny thing happened: A bipartisan group of senators met to discuss immigration reform. The meeting, convened Wednesday by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, was the first time this Congress that Democrats and Republicans have actually sat in the same room to discuss the issue, which has long befuddled lawmakers.

Bill passed by House could expand Minnesota’s ag workforce — and protect undocumented workers
Ashley Hackett, MinnPost
The U.S. House voted last week to forge a pathway to lawful permanent residence for migrant farm workers, pushing forward legislation that will likely face an uphill battle in the closely divided Senate. Lawmakers voted 247-174 for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, originally introduced in 2019, which creates protections for farm workers who have worked in the U.S. illegally. All but one Democrat supported the measure, and 30 Republicans also voted in favor. Minnesota Democratic Reps. Angie Craig, Ilhan Omar, Betty McCollum and Dean Phillips voted “yes,” while their Republican counterparts Reps. Jim Hagedorn, Tom Emmer, Michelle Fischbach, and Pete Stauber voted against the bill.

Biden administration to open second facility for migrant children in Texas
Celine Castronuovo, The Hill
The Biden administration plans to open a second facility to house migrant children in Texas amid a surge in accompanied minors traveling across the U.S.-Mexico border, officials said Tuesday. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services’s (HHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) said in a statement that the second facility in Carrizo Springs, Texas, will have the capacity to house 500 children, with the possibility of additional semi-permanent housing in the future.

Girl's solo journey to US border shows risks parents take
Adriana Gomez Licon, AP
The Honduran girl, 7 years old and surrounded by strangers in the pre-dawn darkness, was determined to keep pace with the other migrants headed for the U.S. border. Her father, she told an Associated Press journalist, had traveled with her by bus for 22 days across Mexico. Then, he went back to their homeland -- but not before he placed her in the hands of a young man who was to help her cross the river into Texas.

Denver’s immigrant legal defense fund got a big boost this week
Esteban L. Hernandez, Denverite
A legal fund providing aid for immigrants got a big boost this week that organizers believe will significantly increase the number of people it can help. Denver City Council on Monday approved adding $300,000 for the Denver Immigrant Legal Services Fund, which was established to give money to local nonprofits helping low-income undocumented immigrants facing deportations. Money it gives out can also be used to pay for naturalization proceedings and DACA applications. The fund has helped 417 Denver residents between September 2018 to August 2020, according to information provided by the city. The new money will help an additional 540 people get direct immigration representation by 2022, according to the city.

Activists hold car rally for immigration reform in front of Rep. Young Kim’s office
Ben Brazil, Los Angeles Times
Immigration-rights activists held a car rally outside of Rep. Young Kim’s (R-Fullerton) office on Wednesday as part of a national effort to advocate for legal status for 11 million immigrants. The event was part of Relay Across America, which was launched by immigrant-rights groups CHIRLA and FIRM Action Network. The effort was aimed at drawing attention and support for the U.S. Citizenship Act, an immigration reform bill that President Joe Biden sent to Congress in late January. The bill would provide a pathway to citizenship for an estimated 11 million immigrants who lack legal status in the country, including people who are temporarily protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Further Reading

Why is Biden stalling refugee resettlement?
The Hill

Immigration reform: Long overdue
Martha's Vinyard Times

Asylum Expert: Respecting Human Rights Also Controls The Border
Forbes

Opinion: The border crisis is about human pain and desperation. Why can’t the media grasp this?
The Washington Post

The Humanitarian Challenge of Unaccompanied Children at the Border
The New Yorker

Opinion: It is time to pass the Dream Act. Local woman's story demonstrates why
The Columbus Dispatch

Special Episode: Stopping AAPI Hate with John C. Yang
National Immigration Forum