Migration News

Without federal assistance, undocumented families face limited options during COVID-19
Angie DiMichele, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
While Latino and Black communities have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, undocumented families have limited options for financial assistance because of the eligibility requirements in federal programs. Without U.S. citizenship or qualified status, individuals are not eligible for CARES Act dollars or to receive stimulus checks, unemployment assistance or Emergency Rental Assistance Program funds, according to eligibility requirements for the programs in Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties.

Scoop: Kids' border surge expected to last 7+ months
Stef W. Kight, Axios
The Biden administration projects the number of unaccompanied children crossing the border could spiral from more than 16,000 this month to as many as 26,000 in September, according to documents leaked to Axios. Why it matters: Until this month, the record was 11,475 in May 2019. The minimum projections for each of the next six months are thousands higher than that.

Biden receives high marks on COVID-19, lags on immigration, guns: POLL
ABC News, Kendall Karson
As he confronts a set of concurrent challenges, President Joe Biden receives high marks on his top priorities -- the coronavirus pandemic and the economic recovery. Still, there are warning signs for other areas of his agenda where external events have imposed new urgency, a new ABC News/Ipsos poll finds. The president's approval lands at 72% for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, numerically higher than the 68% of Americans who said the same earlier this month just before Congress passed his $1.9 trillion relief package, his first major legislative achievement. Only 28% disapprove of his response in the poll, which was conducted by Ipsos in partnership with ABC News using Ipsos' KnowledgePanel.

Immigrant farmworkers who died of COVID-19 remembered
Josh Navarro, WPTV
Latino activists and community leaders held a public prayer Saturday afternoon in front of the Florida Department of Health in Palm Beach County to remember and honor the lives of immigrant farmworkers who died because of COVID-19. Many in attendance were Guatemalan indigenous immigrants, Mayans, who wore their traditional hand-woven skirts.

White House says it's working on access to migrant centers
Kevin Freking, nbc16.com/Associated Press
White House press secretary Jen Psaki declined to provide a specific date for when the media will get access to Border Patrol facilities temporarily holding thousands of migrant children seeking to live in the United States, but said Sunday the Biden administration was committed to transparency and "we're working to get that done as soon as we can."

Expelled from US at night, migrant families weigh next steps
Elliot Spagat, fox5sandiego.com/Associated Press
In one of Mexico's most notorious cities for organized crime, migrants are expelled from the United States throughout the night, exhausted from the journey, disillusioned about not getting a chance to seek asylum and at a crossroads about where to go next.

LUPE hosts Cesar Chavez caravan focusing on immigration, healthcare, democracy
Rocio Villalobos, KGBT-TV
Shifted from a march to a caravan this year for safety, La Union de Pueblo Entero’s (LUPE) annual Cesar Chavez rally focused on immigrant legalization, healthcare, and democracy. “We’re really pushing for fair comprehensive immigration reform for legalization and to fix our asylum process,” LUPE’s Organizing Director Danny Diaz said. “To also fight for healthcare for all and to make sure everybody is included in our democratic process.” Díaz, says there’s power in people uniting to make a difference. “This is the one event where people from the cities or the colonias, undocumented immigrant or citizens alike, we’re all together here in this one,” he said.

Migrant girls seeking asylum arrive at San Diego's Convention Center for temporary shelter
Cassie Carlisle, 10News
Mayor Todd Gloria said 500 migrant teen girls are arriving at the Convention Center in Downtown San Diego Saturday night. They arrived around 9:40 p.m. The girls are ages 13-17 and arrived by plane from Texas. "Even without the commitment of this facility plenty of folks were coming. There were parents making impossible decisions, ones you and I couldn't even imagine," Mayor Todd Gloria said in a press conference in front of the Convention Center.

Groups collect donations for asylum seekers arriving in Maricopa County
Jamie Warren, ABC15 Arizona
Over the past month, border officials say they've seen an overwhelming surge of families seeking asylum, stopping about 5,000 people a day. Many are being taken to Phoenix, where different organizations work to get them resources. One Hundred Angels is a non-profit collecting items for families. Since 2018, they've assisted about 18,000 asylum seekers transitioning to Maricopa County, according to the group's founder Cecilia Garcia.

Further Reading

Opinion: Colorado needs an immigrant legal defense fund so no one has to go to court alone
The Colorado Sun

The Real Border Crisis
The Atlantic

Immigrants are crossing the U.S. Mexico border in large numbers
The Washington Post