Immigration
Still in Mexico: New concerns in the wake of asylum restrictions
CIUDAD JUÁREZ – The sun beats down on the houses of Pan De Vida, a shelter for migrants in Rancho Anapra, a barrio of Ciudad Juárez. In between white houses trimmed with blue, kids whizz by on bikes, shouts ringing out over the dust settling across the courtyard. Dogs recline in the shade, tongues lolling. […]
New bipartisan immigration legislation proposed in U.S. House
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of six U.S. House lawmakers on Tuesday described details of proposed legislation that would create a legal pathway for citizenship for undocumented people through work requirements, and would also fund border security measures. The two Latinas who spearheaded the bill, Reps. Veronica Escobar, a Texas Democrat, and María Elvira Salazar, […]
Sinema says Arizona ‘bears the brunt of the crisis’ as Title 42 immigration policy ends
WASHINGTON — In a rare sit-down with reporters, U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona said Thursday that border states are not prepared for the end of a pandemic-era measure called Title 42 used to expel millions of migrants at the border. Sinema, an independent, was joined at the press event at the U.S. Capitol by […]
Title 42 nears an end, marking a shift in U.S. immigration policy at the border
WASHINGTON — A pandemic-era measure that allowed for the swift expulsion of millions of migrants at the Southwest border is set to end Thursday, and the Biden administration and state officials across the U.S. are bracing for a potential increase in asylum seekers. At the same time, House Republicans this week are pushing through a […]
Arizona readies for influx of migrants at the border with expiration of Title 42
With Title 42 set to expire this week, eliminating a pandemic-era policy that fast tracked migrant expulsions, Gov. Katie Hobbs vowed to partner with local officials to ease the expected strain on border communities. “The state of Arizona stands ready to assist our border communities…in any way that we can,” she said, during a Monday […]
Advocates rally to allow undocumented immigrants to get driver’s licenses
Miah Gomez grew up dreading car rides. The 18-year-old’s parents, who have lived in Arizona for decades, are undocumented and getting behind the wheel without a license is an ever present risk. “It’s always scary just stepping out of the house, let alone driving on the roads,” she said. Arizona is home to more than […]
Labor exploitation of unaccompanied migrant children probed at U.S. House hearing
WASHINGTON — U.S. House members in a hearing on Tuesday questioned the head of a federal agency in charge of unaccompanied migrant children about multiple reports of their exploitation as workers in U.S. meatpacking plants and elsewhere. Republicans and Democrats on the House Oversight & Accountability Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs […]
Kris Mayes and 22 other attorneys general defend DACA
More than 30,000 Arizonans are DACA recipients, and Attorney General Kris Mayes joined nearly two dozen other states last week in defending the program on their behalf. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, commonly referred to as DACA, is a federal policy that shields eligible recipients from deportation and affords them a work permit. The policy […]
I am one of the original Dreamers. Congress Needs to Finally Pass the Dream Act.
When I received DACA protections a decade ago, at age 24, I immediately burst into tears. I’d recently graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in mechanical engineering, but I wasn’t allowed to hold a legal job or even live legally in the United States. Now I could get a social security number. That […]
Biden administration proposes major new limits on asylum at the border
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is rolling out a proposed rule that for two years would bar migrants from applying for asylum at the Southern border if they have not first asked for protection in a country they traveled through. The administration is seeking to limit asylum requests at the U.S.-Mexico border as a pandemic-era […]
U.S. House speaker visit to Arizona border labeled publicity stunt by White House
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and a handful of Republican freshman lawmakers traveled to the U.S. – Mexico border Thursday, where they continued to blame the Biden administration for the fentanyl drug crisis. Leading up to the visit, the White House called it a “publicity stunt.” McCarthy said that there needs to be […]
White nationalism gets a hearing in the Republican House
Xenophobia is the original offense of the Trump era. The former president launched his campaign in 2015 by saying of Mexican migrants, “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” It was a gross mischaracterization of facts, but the nativist message resonated with a Republican base primed by far-right media figures to despise non-white immigrants. […]