Immigration Archives
Latest Developments Since the 2020 Election:
America’s Voice: A New “Border Crisis” or Another False Narrative?
Reuters: U.N., U.S. discussing Central American refugee situation
Politico: DACA case may force congressional action on path to citizenship
WaPo: New Biden rules for ICE point to fewer arrests and deportations, and a more restrained agency
Buzzfeed News: Asylum seekers will soon be allowed to enter at certain U.S. ports
Vice: The Trauma of Being Stuck at the US-Mexico Border
PRI: President Biden asked to end private immigration detention centers
San Diego Union-Tribune: Former Border patrol agent now a critic
Reuters: Overcrowding sparks release of Central Americans in custody
Border Report: President Biden reinstates 'catch and release'
NBC: Don't come to United States now, press secretary tells migrants
Reuters: President Biden suspends Central American asylum deals
Border Report: Protesters request help for asylum seekers forced to remain in Mexico
USA Today: Activists to push amnesty if Congress doesn't pass immigration reform bill
CNN: President Biden plans to increase the refugee cap to 62,500
AP: U.S. refugee programs start rebuilding
Washington Post: New ICE rules stress fewer arrests, deportations
The Daily Beast: End privately run immigration detention centers President Biden told
RNS: Religious groups praise family reunion task force
NCR: Border bishops request welcoming immigration policies
Root Causes of the Crisis:
Fox News: Mexican president says economic development and social welfare can abate immigration influx
Vox: Closing the border can’t stop people from seeking asylum in the US
Global Sisters Report: Deported migrants, nonprofit workers, and Catholic sisters in Honduras describe the conditions that lead people to flee
Quartz: Examining the links between coffee and migration
Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy fails to address the root causes of migration
Statesman: A central reason behind the Central American migration: ‘Fear of starvation’
NYT:_Many believe that cuts in aid to Central America will only increase the numbers of migrants.
Counterpunch: Roberta Caceres Act an attempt to address root causes of the Central American exodus
The Spokesman-Review: Asylum-seekers are fleeing gangs and cartels armed with U.S.-made weapons
Today's refugee crisis is 'blowback' from US dirty wars in Central America
How US policy in Honduras set the stage for today's migration
Bread for the World fact sheet: Why are families leaving Central America?
Amid Government Human Rights Abuses in Honduras, Jesuits Speak Out
Politico: “I can no longer continue to live here”: What’s driving so many Honduran women to the U.S. border?
The New York Times: ‘Economic antidote for a shrinking America: Immigrants’
How Stephen Miller Seized the Moment to Battle Immigration
Failed Policies:
NBC News: The underlying reasons for migrant children’s deaths in U.S. custody
CBS News: Number of immigrants avoiding medical and food benefits increases
CNN: Images of children ‘sleeping on rocks’ show conditions in a Texas CBP station
BuzzFeed News: The ‘tough’ immigration policies have not decreased family border crossings
Thousands of migrant children were sexually abused in U.S. custody, HHS docs say
NPR: Asylum seekers released into border cities due to detention overcrowding
Stanford Law School: Memorandum Reveals United States Government Planned to “Traumatize” Migrant Children
12 Ways to Make Sense of the Border Mess
CNN: American Bar Association says immigration courts are ‘irredeemably dysfunctional’
The Nation: How an outdated immigration system stunts growth
Vox: Horrifying conditions facing kids at the border, explained
U.S. Bishops’ President and Committee Chairman Say Horrific Death of Father and Daughter at Border and Appalling Conditions for Children are Cries that Reach Heaven Itself
‘I have never heard of this level of inhumanity.’ Lawyers speak out about border detention site
Texas Tribune: CBP is not accepting donations for migrant children’s shelters at the Southern border
ABC News: Physician who visited McAllen facility says conditions children experience resemble ‘torture’
The Associated Press: Children in immigration custody at risk of emotional trauma
Independent Catholic News: USCCB condemns the administration’s plan of mass deportations
Interfaith Immigration Coalition: Medical Deferred Action Policy Creates Devastating Choice: Death Sentence or Family Separation
PBS News: ‘How the Trump administration explains ongoing family separations at the border’
Dallas Morning News: Naturalization backlog may keep many from voting
CBS News: ‘Children still in custody and infants held for months: Report details scope of family separation policy’
NPR: Honduran family faced separation at the border. Their 3-year-old was asked to choose which parent she wanted
Al Jazeera: UN human rights head ‘shocked’ by treatment of migrant children at U.S.-Mexico border
NBC News: U.S. representative describes horror at witnessing detention center conditions
CNN: Enhanced immigration enforcement across key U.S. cities has started
Newsweek: ICE deportations for the current fiscal year expected to surpass last year’s total
Associated Press: Administration seeks to require asylum-seekers to apply first in a country they pass through before reaching the United States
NPR: ‘Remain in Mexico’ creates fear, confusion among asylum seekers
NBC 4: Asylum seekers experience lack of due process in immigration courts
Politico: Asylum seekers’ mental health deteriorates in detention centers
NBC News: Caged: Asylum-seeking children draw self-portraits
WaPo: Trump administration to expand its power to deport undocumented immigrants
The Hill: The ongoing threat of deportation is keeping immigrants and community members on edge
Atlanta Journal Constitution: ‘Immigrants skipped church, shopping Sunday amid deportation raid fears’
Miami Herald: ‘U.S. consulates ‘abusing their discretion’ to stop legal immigration, lawyers say’
WBUR News: ‘ACLU says forcing immigrants to prove they are not a danger is unconstitutional’
Lawfare: ‘Metering’ at the U.S.-Mexico border
Politico: The Border Patrol’s breaking point
ProPublica: What it's really like to guard immigrant children
National Catholic Reporter: New analysis shows how federal enforcement has changed the immigrant advocacy efforts of Catholic organizations
Reuters: New research finds more than 8 million children at risk of losing health care benefits over proposed ‘public charge’ changes
Thanks to White House orders, Immigration Courts more jammed up than ever
Reuters: The administration drafted a regulation that would facilitate removal of immigrants using public benefits
NBC News: Federal immigration authorities are putting thousands of detained immigrants in solitary confinement
Quartz: Immigration authorities’ 5-year plan to transport more than 200,000 children to immigrant shelters
Boston Review: Federal government targeting immigration lawyers, activists and journalists at the southern border
ICE's Rapid Expansion Has Led to Chickenpox, Quarantines, and Desperation
The Atlantic: President Moves to Deport Vietnam War Refugees
Deportations after deal: The new reality for migrants in Mexico
Mexican bishops: Our migrant brothers are not a bargaining chip.
WHQR: Can Mexico stop the migrant surge?
PBS News: Mexican authorities increasing enforcement at Mexico-Guatemala border
The Washington Post: Detrimental conditions documented at Mexican detention center
KVIA News: Texas bishop accompanies asylum seekers across U.S.-Mexico border bridge
Immigrants' sponsors to be on hook for 'every dollar' if new arrivals end up on dole, new Trump appointee warns
CNBC: ‘States push courts to block Trump ‘public charge’ immigrant rule as groups warn it could harm the US economy’
Trump admin announces rule that could limit legal immigration
CBS News: Civil rights organization sues the administration over ‘fast track’ removal policies
Miami Herald: ‘Undocumented immigrants with serious illnesses had a lifeline. Now it may be gone.’
NPR: ‘DOJ increases power of agency running immigration court system’
Chair of USCCB’s Committee on Migration Denounces New Rule Undermining Existing Protections for Immigrant Children
Crux / CNS: CLINIC and other Catholic leaders, organizations oppose new ‘public charge’ rule
Migrant children will suffer most under new detention rule, says bishop
NBC Chicago: CLINIC, partners sue USCIS over changes making it harder to get legal help in detention
The Flores Agreement has provided a standard for the care of children in immigrant detention since it was enacted in 1997—including guidelines about their safety, humane treatment, and a 20-day limit on their detention. Since the beginning of 2018, seven children have died in U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody, ranging in age from one year old to sixteen—showing that even with the Flores Agreement in place, there is still work to be done to ensure the safety of immigrant children. TIME: ‘Body cavity searches, indefinite detention and no visitations allowed: What conditions were like for migrant kids before the Flores agreement’
The Neighbor/Los Angeles Times: Stripping protection from children or closing loopholes?
NPR: Asylum seekers targeted by criminals in Mexican cities
Buzzfeed News: Ninth Circuit allows administration to terminate TPS for 300,000 immigrants
AP: More detained immigrant women say they didn't approve gynecological surgeries
Newsweek: CLINIC Executive Director calls expansion of biometric collection ‘Orwellian’
Brownsville Herald: COVID-19 complicates problems for asylum seekers waiting in Mexico
Migrant Stories:
Pastor Wanted to Know the Truth About the Migrant Caravan. So He Joined It
Washington Post: What happens when you’re deported into a dangerous area?
NPR: The ‘migrant trail’ provides a path for vulnerable Central American immigrants
Fact Checks:
America: Do We Need a Wall?
AP: Fact checking the supposed costs of undocumented immigration
AP FACT CHECK: Did Obama have family separation policy?
PBS News Hour / AP News: Fact-checking the administration’s latest immigration claims
CNN: Fact-checking misconceptions on US-Mexico border and immigration
Axios: Newly released report shows the current administration ‘has yet to reach Obama’s deportation levels’
Pew Research Center Fact Tank: Illegal immigration in the United States: New data
Scripture/Catholic Social Teaching:
America: The migrant caravan seen through the eyes of Catholic Social Teaching
Bishop Warns of "Dumbed-Down" Gospel Behind Anti-Immigrant Stance
Karen Gonzalez: Abraham broke the law, crossing borders and trafficking his wife. Why do we forgive him so much more easily than migrants today?
Mark W. Hamilton: Immigration and the biblical law of the stranger
Reports/Studies:
NY Times: Cleaning Toilets, Following Rules: A Migrant Child’s Days in Detention
The Texas Tribune: ‘What do migrants experience when they request asylum at the Texas-Mexico border?’
Counterpunch: A Brief History of U.S. Concentration Camps
The Intercept: For asylum-seekers waiting in Mexico for their cases, the threat of violence and crime is real
CBS News: ‘The untold stories behind the headlines of America’s immigration debate’
History.com: An overview of illegal immigration in U.S. history
The Criminalization of Immigrants: Four ways Section 1325 has wreaked havoc on migrants’ lives
Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric is meant to instill fear, not for enforcement, advocates say
The New York Times / The Upshot: No connection between illegal immigration and crime, study finds
UrbanMilwaukee.com: Why refugees don’t go to college
Vox: By the numbers: how 2 years of Trump’s policies have affected immigrants
The faithful deported: Study details impact of Trump’s immigration policies
New York Times: The price tag of migrant family separation: $80 million and rising
Splinter: Number of arrests targeting immigrants without criminal history triple under Trump administration
NPR: Studies confirm immigration does not increase violent crime
VOX: Study shows DACA was overwhelming beneficial to Dreamers and their surrounding communities
Dallas News: Mexican immigrants no longer the majority of undocumented immigrants
ABC News: New estimates show a decrease in number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
Associated Press: What does the data show about U.S.-Mexico border migration?
TIME: New report details mental health crisis among migrant children separated from their families
The San Diego Tribune / Heraldmailmedia.com: ‘Report highlights unsanitary conditions, potential abuses at immigration detention centers’
CNBC: ‘Nearly 900 migrants contracted mumps in holding centers in past year'
The Appeal: DACA program still in legal limbo
Axios: Cities face immigration shortage
Biden Pledges To Dismantle Trump's Sweeping Immigration Changes — But Can He Do That?
The Border Patrol Calls Itself a Humanitarian Organization. A New Report Says That’s a Lie.
2020 was deadliest year for migrants crossing unlawfully into US via Arizona
High Country News: Migrants left to die by Border Patrol
The Guardian: Newborn U.S. citizens expelled to Mexico under Trump-era policy
Washington Post: Many migrant families separated twice
Courts:
Complaint Urges Immediate Release of Infants from Detention
As immigration denial rates increase, asylum seekers face setback at U.S. border
New York Times: How the government turns a child from an asylum seeker into a ‘criminal’ in a day
Vox: Justices in minority aired concerns about decision on the indefinite detention of immigrants
Miami New Times: Newly released federal data shows immigration courts in key cities are becoming ‘well-oiled deportation machines’
The Intercept: The administration’s new plan: ‘Mass video proceedings for immigrants in tents on the border’
More toddlers appear alone in court for deportation under family separation
The Intercept: Bad information in Border Patrol reports makes immigrants’ legal cases tougher
CBS News: Vulnerable asylum seekers in El Paso courtroom find little sympathy for their fears about returning to Mexico
Background:
NY Times: Undoing anti-immigrant policies requires detailed look at ‘little-noticed’ revisions
Vox: What Biden can learn from Obama’s immigration mistakes
USA Today: Ten important immigration issues for 2020
Angelus: An interview with Sister Norma Pimentel, immigrant advocate and leader in Texas
HuffPost: Non-profit helps farm owners visit the home countries of migrant workers
America Magazine: Sister Norma Pimentel encourages people of faith to volunteer at the border
JSonline: Immigrants lobby WI lawmakers for drivers licenses
NY Times: Mexico is carrying out Trump’s agenda along much of the border
The Conversation: Québec's Trump-like immigration policies contradict Canada's welcoming image
The Atlantic: What an efficient immigration system would look like, according to experts
What lies in the heart of an ICE officer?
The Birth of ‘Illegal’ Immigration
The Washington Post: The expansion of enforcement makes it risky to save lives
Catholic Philly: ‘Parishioners, community members learn how to accompany migrants’
Catholic Philly / Catholic News Service: Sister Norma Pimentel awarded for humanitarian work at the U.S.-Mexico border
Ken Cuccinelli: Statue Of Liberty Poem About ‘People Coming From Europe’
KVUE: Latest immigration executive orders explained
Catholic Sentinel/CNS: Uncertain future looms for immigration reform
Law360: Court allows expulsion of unaccompanied migrant children
USA Today: Mayorkas has track record of fighting for refugees, Dreamers
The Hill: President Biden has far-reaching immigration plans
Opinion
Sr. Norma Pimentel: It Might Be Time to Break Something
NCR: Time for the US Bishops to Break the Law?
Trump must back up his tough talk against Maduro with TPS for Venezuelans in the U.S.
Fox News: Tucker Carlson: Immigration is not always good for our economy.
CBS News: Former President Bush tells new citizens it’s time for a ‘just’ and ‘fair’ overhaul of immigration system
America: Trump’s national emergency declaration is dangerous for democracy
Fr. James Martin, America: Were Jesus, Mary and Joseph refugees? Yes.
NY Times: None of Us Deserve Citizenship
The Hill: Democrats need to provide an alternative border security strategy if they want to win
Houston Chronicle: We owe it to Central America to address the root causes of migration
Why Shouldn't People Be Deported If They're Here Illegally? by Sean Carroll, S.J., Executive Director of the Kino Border Initiative in Nogales, Mexico
Forbes: The best way to help the world’s poor is to let them migrate
Time: I Love America. That’s Why I Have to Tell the Truth About It
The Roanoke Times: Republicans could benefit from more immigration
The Washington Post: Don’t blame immigrants or food stamps for the millions of missing jobs
The New York Time: History shows us, tighter borders fuels undocumented immigration
Los Angeles Times: Detention centers resemble concentration camps
BuzzFeed.news: Curtailing the rights of immigrant advocates is part of the administration’s hardline immigration plan
As a rabbi, I agree: Trump is running concentration camps on our southern border
The Hill: Trump administration makes a mockery of asylum system
The Leap: Did you ever notice that the same leaders denying climate change are the ones drumming up fear and hatred against migrants?
National Catholic Reporter: New job at the border brings perspective on immigrants’ struggles
The myth of the self-sufficient immigrant that’s fueling the White House’s draconian policy
In 1920, Jews, Italians, Irish And Greeks Were The People From ‘Shithole’ Countries