Comparing Immigration Reform Proposals

Infographic courtesy of the Urban Institute.

Both the President and the Senate’s “gang of eight” introduced proposals for comprehensive immigration reform this week. They agree on key principles revolving around enforcement, employment, a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants, and solutions for problems plaguing the system. But they also differ in several ways.

Immigrant advocacy groups have expressed their approval. The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund issued the following statement:

NALEO Educational Fund applauds the bipartisan efforts of U.S. Senators who today released their framework for moving comprehensive immigration reform forward. The principles acknowledge that our nation is struggling as a result of our broken immigration system, and aims to address this issue in a fair and humane manner that brings the more than 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the country today out of the shadows.

“The statements from President Obama and the bi-partisan group of Senators this week give us hope that immigration policy reform will soon become a reality. Our community members are deeply affected by every facet of our nation’s immigration laws and enforcement practices,” said Deepa Iyer, Chair of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA). “Our communities also have sent the message that changes in immigration policy are critical in uniting families, accessing employment, education and health care, and living without fear of detention and deportation.”

There are several differences between the president’s and senators’ frameworks however, as outlined by the Urban Institute. Surprisingly, a key sticking point is no longer the fate of the estimated 11 million plus undocumented immigrants, but that of lesbian and gay binational couples and their families, who number less than 30,000. Because of the Defense of Marriage Act, U.S. citizens and permanent residents are not able to sponsor their same-gender foreign-born partners and spouses, unlike their heterosexual counterparts. While the president’s plan has a provision for gay families, the senators’ plan does not.

Conservatives in Congress warn against insisting on an LGBT-inclusive provision in any comprehensive immigration legislation.

“I think it is a red herring,” said Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) when asked about this issue. “I think then, do we want to guarantee a tax payer free abortion? I’m telling you now, if you load this up with social issues and things that are controversial, then it will endanger the issue.”

The idea of throwing LGBT immigrant families under the bus has advocates displeased. Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), a network of community-based immigrant advocacy organizations in 30 states, released a statement saying they are “disappointed by the exclusion of the Uniting American Families Act to ensure fair treatment of LGBT families from the bill.” The Uniting American Families Act would guarantee the equal treatment of gay couples. Immigration Equality, a group that works on behalf of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) immigrants, shared this dissatisfaction.

“We were disappointed that the bipartisan framework did not specifically include lesbian and gay families,” said Steve Ralls, Immigration Equality’s Director of Communications. “Earlier this year, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus released their priorities for immigration reform and we were on their list that they wanted to see included.”

The administration and GOP leadership appear committed to passing immigration reform this year but there are no guarantees about what form it will take, whether it will be truly comprehensive and inclusive or not.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds.

Immigration Reform: The President’s Plan versus the Senate’s

The president and Senate “gang of eight” introduced their proposals for comprehensive immigration reform this week. Both agree on key principles revolving around enforcement, employment, a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants, and solutions for problems plaguing the system. Several differences remain, however, as shown in the table below.

Surprisingly, a key sticking point is no longer the fate of the estimated 11 million plus undocumented immigrants, but that of lesbian and gay binational couples and their families, who number less than 30,000. Because of the Defense of Marriage Act, U.S. citizens and permanent residents are not able to sponsor their same-gender foreign-born partners and spouses, unlike their heterosexual counterparts. Conservatives in Congress warn against including an LGBT-inclusive provision in any comprehensive immigration legislation.

While the administration and GOP leadership appear committed to passing a bill this year, there are no guarantees about what form it will take.

Originally posted on Urban Institute’s MetroTrends and the Huffington Post.

 

What’s With the Latest Immigration Reprieve?

On January 2, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano announced a new rule which was welcomed by immigrant communities and their advocates. Some unauthorized immigrants who are in the process of obtaining visas for permanent residency can now expect shorter separation from American family members. It is estimated that this latest immigration initiative from the Obama administration could impact as many as 1 million immigrants without proper papers.

Secretary Napolitano said in a statement that this “facilitates the legal immigration process and reduces the amount of time that U.S. citizens are separated from their immediate relatives who are in the process of obtaining an immigrant visa.”

Under current law, undocumented spouses, children, and parents of American citizens applying for permanent residency must leave the U.S. to attend an interview for an immigrant visa in their native country. If they have been in the U.S. illegally for more than six months, they are barred from re-entry anywhere from three to ten years which could cause economic, emotional, and psychological distress and strain familial bonds. In order to return, these relatives have to obtain a waiver which they can only apply for after passing an interview. American citizens can thus be separated for many years from immediate family and some immigrants have chosen to remain in the U.S. unlawfully rather than risk a prolonged period apart from loved ones.

The new process, which begins March 4, will allow immigrants who can prove that isolation from their American spouse, child or parent would cause “extreme hardship” to start the application while in the U.S. If approved, applicants will still need to return to their country of origin to pick up their visa but separation is promised to be brief, a matter of weeks not years. The rule does not provide legal status or a shortcut to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants.

Alejandro Mayorkas, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director, said, “The law is designed to avoid extreme hardship to U.S. citizens, which is precisely what this rule achieves. The change will have a significant impact on American families by greatly reducing the time family members are separated from those they rely upon.”

Laura Lichter, president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, told The New York Times, “This rule is leaps and bounds better than what we have now. For families that were sitting on the fence, unwilling to subject their loved ones to the uncertainty, now they don’t have to wait.”

This is another “gift” from the Obama administration which, like the reprieve granted to DREAMers last August, will benefit many immigrants who call America home. This nonetheless does not fix our dilapidated immigration system or solve the matter of 11 million people living in the shadows. And with all the attention given to gun control and the looming deadline to deal with our debt ceiling and federal budget, I can’t help but wonder if this is but another palliative to keep immigrant communities and reform advocates at bay until the president gets to immigration reform.

Originally posted on the Huffington Post, January 12, 2013.

With Fiscal Cliff Averted, Is Congress Ready to Tackle Immigration Reform?

When will the new Congress take up immigration reform? (Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/katieharbath/)

During an interview with David Gregory last Sunday, President Obama reiterated his commitment to immigration reform. “That’s something we should get done,” the president told the NBC host.

But can our elected officials actually get it done? Somehow, they did manage to stop themselves from pushing all of us over the fiscal cliff. Does this mean that they will be able to prioritize immigration reform as promised by party leaders?

Elise Foley and Sam Stein of the Huffington Post report that the Obama administration will push for legislative action this month. But legislation is not crafted overnight. A substantive bill can take months to write, especially a bipartisan one. The Senate’s “Gang of Eight,” led by Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY), John McCain (R-AZ), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), have started work on a comprehensive immigration bill, but they are in the early stages. Even if they do manage to introduce one within the next few weeks, there are no guarantees that Congress will take up the bill. While a fiscal cliff deal was reached, sequestration and the debt ceiling will have to be dealt with two months from now. Then the federal budget within three months. Not to mention gun control.

In short, immigration legislation may very well stew for some time before being debated, voted, and eventually passed.

The president’s role in advancing immigration reform is therefore pivotal, his leadership imperative. Will he lead Congress or will he be led by Congress?

Muzaffar Chishti, director the Migration Policy Institute’s New York Office told ABC News that the president “has to make it clear that he’ll use his bully pulpit and his political muscle to make it happen, and he has to be open to using his veto power.”

David Gregory rightfully points out that the president’s political capital is limited. It will be interesting to see how Mr. Obama manages the upcoming battles over the competing legislative priorities.

Even if the president does put the full weight of his office behind immigration reform, it will be countered by inertia and intransigence in Congress. He chose his words well in only promising that legislation will be introduced this year. It will be up to our representatives to do their job and once and for all fix our immigration system.

With the mid-term congressional elections already on the horizon, it only makes sense for lawmakers to do all they can to pass comprehensive immigration reform. After all, they will need the votes of ascendant Latinos, Asians, and other immigrant groups for whom immigration is a very, very important issue.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds, January 4, 2013.

Will the “New” Consensus on Immigration Work with the Old?

Will the “new” consensus lay the groundwork for reform? (Photo:Jack Gordon)

A group of leaders that carry bibles, badges, and business plans gathered in the nation’s capital last week. Forging a New Consensus, a group of conservative faith, law enforcement, and business leaders convened to “tell the administration and the Congress that there is a new consensus on immigrants and America.” The coalition also released Voices of the New Consensus: Bibles, Badges and Business, a report that spells out a framework for comprehensive immigration reform.

The document hits the right notes. It stresses that the need for reform is “urgent and critical,” and that bipartisanship, along with a “willingness to compromise on short-term agendas to reach longer-term solutions that uphold America’s commitment to fairness and humane values” is necessary.

The report lists four points of consensus based on a series of interviews with faith, law enforcement, and business leaders. First, aspiring citizens and temporary workers should be afforded a path to lawful status and citizenship. Second, our immigration laws should be modernized to ensure that future immigration is legal, fair, and orderly. Third, our borders should be safe and secure. Finally, President Obama “must lead members of Congress from both parties through an honest, transparent legislative process” that results in comprehensive immigration reform. Conservative leaders acknowledge that “Congress will not be able to succeed without strong leadership.”

But there’s the rub. While the president has been calling for immigration reform from day one, and a framework that embodies the spirit of this “new” consensus has existed for some time now, obstructionist lawmakers, spurred by the anti-immigrant fringe, have stymied the process.

The report points out that “broad and non-traditional coalitions are powerful vehicles to help legislators see common interests. Faith, law enforcement and business leadership working together at the local level can provide unique support and pressure on a member of congress supporting practical immigration reforms.”

Will this legion of bibles, badges, and business be able to mobilize their constituencies to pressure representatives into action and compromise with a duly-elected president these lawmakers unabashedly abhor and long to fail? Moreover, will these conservative players, new to the immigration reform arena, play along with the progressive consensus which has already laid the groundwork for a truly comprehensive and inclusive immigration reform?

Stephan Bauman, President and CEO of World Relief, is quoted as saying “We call for a bipartisan solution for immigration that respects the God-given dignity of every person, that protects the unity of the immediate family, that respects the rule of law.” Does that include the dignity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender immigrants and the protection of LGBT immigrant families? Will Jim Daly, president of Focus on the Family, a rabidly homophobic organization, persuade its members to support immigration legislation that covers lesbian and gay binational couples?

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds, December 10, 2012. Re-posted on the Huffington Post, December 11.

Will Immigration Reform Be Comprehensive and Inclusive?

Pelosi and Boehner. (Photo: Flickr/talkradionews)

Republican leadership in Congress now appears to be on board with immigration reform, shocked into action by the potency of the Latino vote and awakened to a new political order that includes people of color. But will reform be truly comprehensive, offering a path to citizenship for some 11 million unauthorized immigrants? Will it be inclusive, embracing lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) immigrant families?

Speaker Boehner, supported by talking heads who dramatically “evolved” on the issue a day after Gov. Romney’s drubbing, seems determined to fix our immigration system and address the plight of our undocumented neighbors. There are those in the GOP however, who bristle at the idea of a compromise that goes beyond tighter border enforcement and visas for much needed scientists and farm workers.

While I remain skeptical about any major legislation breaking Washington’s congressional impasse, comprehensive immigration reform is conceivable if both parties harken back to the day, not too long ago, when they actually agreed on a comprehensive immigration framework. I am concerned however that along the way, gay binational couples will be thrown under the bus as lawmakers “compromise.”

Steve Ralls, Director of Communications at Immigration Equality assures me that this is unlikely to happen. Immigration Equality has been at the forefront of pushing immigration reform that is both comprehensive and inclusive.

“All signs are pointing to an immigration reform effort early in the new Congress,” Ralls said. “Immigration Equality is confident we can ensure that effort will include LGBT binational families. The combination of steadfast allies on the Hill; a president who has vowed to end the separation of our families; and a vigorous grassroots mobilization makes us more optimistic than ever that we can win this within the next year.”

His confidence stems from having key lawmakers such as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on the side of LGBT immigrant families.

“Leaders on immigration and LGBT issues – such as Congressman (Jerrold) Nadler (D-NY), Congressman (Mike) Honda (D-CA), Congresswoman (Zoe) Lofgren (D-CA) and Congressman (Luis) Gutierrez (D-IL) – have committed that they will work for an inclusive bill,” he added. “And in the Senate, any immigration reform measure will first have to be approved by the Judiciary Committee before moving to the full Senate for a vote.”

The Judiciary Committee is chaired by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt), a lead sponsor of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA)which brings equality to gay couples under immigration law. Senator Leahy has promised that only an inclusive bill will leave his committee, and that he will work hand-in-hand with other lawmakers – including Republicans – to make that a reality.

One of these Republicans is Senator Susan Collins. When asked whether Senator Collins would support an inclusive immigration reform bill, her office sent a statement reiterating her commitment to UAFA.

“This legislation would simply update our nation’s immigration laws to treat bi-national couples equally,” Collins said. “More than two dozen countries recognize same-sex couples for immigration purposes. This important civil rights legislation would help prevent committed, loving families from being forced to choose between leaving their family or leaving their country.”

Another key player is the president himself who received overwhelming support from LGBT and immigrant communities in his bid for reelection.  Mr. Obama has signaled action on immigration in 2013.

“Immigration Equality’s team has already started reaching out to our key allies – on the Hill, in the Administration and among LGBT and immigration advocacy organizations – to ensure we have the public support, Congressional votes and allied support we need to get an inclusive bill introduced and passed,” Ralls said. “The seismic shift on LGBT and immigrants’ rights issues that has taken place in Washington and across the country makes us believe that passage of an inclusive bill isn’t just possible, but indeed is likely.”

Let’s hope so.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds, November 19, 2012 and the Huffington Post, November 20, 2012.

What to Expect In Obama’s 2nd Term – Small Steps at Immigration Reform

President Obama at his Chicago victory rally. (Photo: Flickr/wchinews)

President Obama won another four years in the White House despite the economic head winds, thanks to tenacious campaign staff members, tireless volunteers, long-viewed voters, and a solid coalition of immigrants, communities of color, women, LGBTs, young people, and working class whites.

These various constituencies will no doubt hold the president accountable but they will also work closely with him at achieving the changes that remain to be accomplished.

Comprehensive immigration reform is a promise made twice over that will have to be kept if the Democrats want to keep the Latino vote in 2016. The Obama administration will also have to address the situation of 11 million unauthorized immigrants beyond indiscriminate deportation, prosecutorial discretion, and deferred action.

Republicans can no longer be obstructionists or pawns of fringe elements in their party. They need to learn that whileLatinos and other immigrants share the same bread and butter concerns of most Americans, they also care about friends and family who have been demonized by GOP candidates and talking heads. The Republican Party has to find a way other than tokenism to make communities of color believe that they have a place in the starkly White tent.

But can and will comprehensive immigration reform be achieved? While I believe in the president’s and Democratic party’s commitment to immigrants, the realities of our country’s fiscal and economic problems, foreign policy quagmire, and ossified partisanship make me think that major reform is a pipe dream.

What will pass during the next Obama term are smaller legislation that deal with the demand for high-skilled workers and agricultural labor. The DREAM Act also has a strong chance of finally passing both houses of Congress. These are bites our elected officials can take and the general public can stomach.

It is painfully apparent that our immigration system needs to be fixed and that the immigrant vote can no longer be ignored. Will Republicans loosen the grip of fringe elements in their party and collaborate with Democrats and the president?

Immigrant communities and their allies are watching with 2016 in mind.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds, November 7, 2012.

Evangelicals Are Polarizing the Immigrant Rights Movement

Latinos are a rapidly growing population in Evangelical churches and have led Christian groups to embrace immigration reform. (Photo: Kent Kanouse/flickr)

Latinos are a rapidly growing population in evangelical churches and have led many Christian groups to embrace immigration reform. The groups mean well, but they pose a danger of fracturing the immigrant rights alliance.

The Evangelical Immigration Table, which counts more than 150 influential evangelical leaders among its ranks, is openly making immigration reform a priority. The group came to Washington on Tuesday to release a set of principles for reform meant to spur Congress into action. They had strong words:

Our national immigration laws have created a moral, economic and political crisis in America. Initiatives to remedy this crisis have led to polarization and name calling in which opponents have misrepresented each other’s positions as open borders and amnesty versus deportations of millions. This false choice has led to an unacceptable political stalemate at the federal level at a tragic human cost.

The group calls for a bipartisan immigration solution which treats immigrants with dignity while upholding the rule of law and ensuring national security.

“There are not many things that a group of evangelical leaders this diverse can agree on when it comes to public policy,” Jim Wallis, President and CEO of Sojourners said. “The unity we have found around these principles for comprehensive immigration reform is unprecedented. Many Christians are weary of the political polarization in Washington D.C. these days, and are ready to come together around biblically based and common sense solutions that cut across traditional political boundaries.”

One would think that long-time advocates of immigration reform would welcome the evangelicals—who have powerful allies in Congress—into the movement’s fold. The National Immigration Forum, which has sought “practical solutions for immigrants and for America,” for three decades certainly has.

But the evangelicals are getting push-back from others in immigrant rights movement. Immigration Equality, a national organization fighting for equality under U.S. immigration law for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and HIV-positive individuals has expressed disappointment with National Immigration Forum’s embrace of the Evangelical Immigration Table. In particular, Immigration Equality is alarmed by one fundamentalist organization among the evangelical coalition, Focus on the Family.

“As an organization dedicated to building a coalition for immigration reform that includes all families, we are dismayed by the decision [of National Immigration Forum] to embrace an out-of-step organization like Focus on the Family,” said Rachel B. Tiven, Immigration Equality’s executive director.

“Many religious denominations and people of faith support fully inclusive immigration reform. Focus on the Family, however, is neither a church nor a denomination. It is a divisive political organization with a disturbing history of advocating exclusion – including the exclusion of women and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people – from the progress of our country. Those exclusionary principles are exactly the opposite of what our immigration movement should be embracing,” Tiven said.

Immigration Equality is concerned that this development will jeopardize LGBT immigrant families whose inclusion in any comprehensive immigration reform effort has long been considered as non-negotiable by leading immigrant advocates and lawmakers. It is a concern I share as a gay foreign-born spouse.

Although the Evangelical Immigration Table has as one of its principles the protection of “the unity of the immediate family,” I expect some, if not most, of these new “allies” not to fight for the dignity and worth of LGBT immigrant families like mine. I expect Focus on the Family and others to insist that LGBT families be thrown under the bus.

As Steve Ralls, Immigration Equality’s communications director points out, Focus on the Family “has been almost singularly focused in attacking LGBT families and women.” He adds that groups such as the Southern Poverty Law Center have been critical of Focus on the Family’s anti-gay advocacy and have branded the fundamentalist organization as a hate group.

At a time when unity among immigrant advocates is crucial, Focus on the Family and other fringe groups can easily sow discord.

“The organization is polarizing on Capitol Hill and is better known for burning bridges than building them,” Ralls said.  “It is simply, in our view, a strategic blunder on the part of the National Immigration Forum to embrace a group that is so polarizing among lawmakers and families at a time when building consensus and inclusion is so important if we are going to secure reform legislation that helps as many families as possible.”

I am all for coalition-building, especially at a time when so many voices are stifled by money and influence. But fundamentalist groups like Focus on the Family are insidious and dangerous. Rather than help advance comprehensive immigration reform, they will derail the cause.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds and the Huffington Post.

Net Zero Migration Still Leaves 11 Million Unauthorized Immigrants

A storefront in Jackson Heights, NY advertises a remittance service for Mexican immigrants. (Photo: John Rudolph)

It appears that a million Mexicans have left the United States and have not been replaced, resulting in what immigration expert Douglas Massey calls “net zero” migration, a first in half a century.

Massey and his team at the Mexican Migration Project, report that the number of unauthorized immigrants fell from 12 to 11 million during the Great Recession and that people crossing the border without papers have not replaced those who left. These findings are corroborated by a study of Mexican census data that shows a million Mexicans returned from the U.S. between 2005 and 2010.

Migrants have left the United States due to shrinking demand for their labor, tighter border security, and the stress of living in states that have criminalized their very existence. Mexicans have also been lured home by opportunities and a better quality of life in Mexico.

While this might be good news for those who desire fewer foreigners in their midst and ammo for those who oppose the administration’s strident border enforcement and deportation policies, the fact remains that there are still 11 million immigrants without legal status – what do our lawmakers propose we do with those who have chosen to remain in the country in spite of the economy and anti-immigrant sentiment?

Both sides of the aisle have suggested measures that address one aspect of immigration reform: varied incarnations of the DREAM Act, more visas for high skilled and agricultural workers, and special dispensation for wealthy foreigners and the Irish. None of these will address the question of 11 million unauthorized immigrants.

The only solution is comprehensive immigration reform which includes a rational and fair path to citizenship for immigrants who are here unlawfully. No one from either party will touch this right now but perhaps after November, the president – whoever that might be – and Congress will finally address our immigration problem, once they’re done pandering for votes.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds, April 12, 2012.

The Important Work Low-Skilled Immigrants Do

Migrant workers from Mexico picking cucumbers in Virginia. (Photo: Bread for the World/Flickr)

It’s far easier to argue for immigration policies that favor high-skilled immigrants over those that prioritize low-skilled immigrants. After all, who wouldn’t want the best and the brightest? In a rapidly changing world, we are anxious about our country’s economic viability so we nod in agreement when politicians call for more scientists and engineers from overseas—lest we are left in the dust by China and India.

The reality is that we need both high and low-skilled workers. The rotting crops in states that scared off immigrant farmworkers with their draconian immigration laws highlights the fact that most Americans could not survive back-breaking agricultural labor. Others won’t deign to perform what they consider menial work.

The Brookings Institution recently released a report that articulates the need for immigrant workers of varied skill sets.

“The U.S. population is aging rapidly as the baby boom cohort enters old age and retirement. As a result, the labor force will increasingly depend upon immigrants and their children to replace current workers and fill new jobs.”

The place of low-skilled immigrants in our economic system is laid out plain and simple in the report.

As Americans become more educated, immigrants meet the subsequent demand for lower-skilled workers. These newcomers tend to work in certain industries, namely, private households, the accommodation sector, agriculture, food services, and construction. They are also over-represented in the fastest growing occupations, which include specialized construction workers and home health and personal care aides.

As politicians and other policy makers weigh whatever little action they could make to address the country’s dilapidated, sputtering, and patched-up immigration system, they should acknowledge that we need immigrants both in our research labs and in our fields. Legislation that solely addresses our desire for high-skilled foreign workers will not meet the needs of the American economy.

Of course it would be great if they could enact comprehensive immigration reform, but we all know that’s not going to happen.

Originally posted on Feet in 2 Worlds, March 22, 2012.