There are two types of migrants, especially families, that have been affected by IIRIRA, legal migrants and illegal migrants. It is the different treatment of these two migrants under the law for family reunification benefits that create a hierarchy of mixed status families, which prioritizes wealthier, fairer and better educated migrants over those who are low-income, non-white and less educated. The profiles legal migrant spouses, such visa-overstaying and legal permanent residents, are vastly different than the profiles of undocumented spouses entering the border illegally. Migrants seeking any type of temporary visa for the US is required to prove sufficient funds to cover all costs of the trip and intent to depart after the completion of one’s trip (Bureau of Consular Affairs). …show more content…
Section 245(a) enacted prior to IIRIRA allows eligible immigrants, those who entered legally and fell out of status, to adjust their immigration status from within the US, this often reduces the time and costs needed to change one’s status without having to be separated from one’s family. However, undocumented spouses, who did not enter the US legally, must adjust their status through Consular Processing. Upon leaving the country, the undocumented spouse triggers the 3 or 10-year (sometimes permanent) bars. Given that these migrants are from a lower socioeconomic background, the time away from their families and partaking in the immigration process results in loss earnings and debt, this is a reason why most undocumented migrants are hesitant to start the immigration process unless they are forced to, by providing their information they risk being separated from their families forever. Thus, the 3 year and 10 years bars disproportionately affect the undocumented spouses of US citizens than it does visa-overstaying spouses of US
Every person, or group of persons, has an identity and a culture tied to them from the country in which they grew up. An identity is the image someone present to the rest of the world, and culture is the image which one has of his/herself. Countries are similar to a person; over its history of being influenced by other countries, it has formed an identity and culture for itself. It has been stated that the worst act performed by others on another is to take away their identity, and deny them of their culture. Immigrants in America experience the loss of cultural norms/ values, cultural practices/ traits, adjustment to a new culture and changes in identity and concept of self. It is important to note that most immigrants are from minority groups.
Because of the United States’ policy of granting birthright citizenship to those who are born on the United States soil, mixed families can suffer from the effects of deportation. Most commonly, the parents (who also tend to be primary caretakers and breadwinners) are the ones who risk deportation, while the children are allowed to stay due to birthright citizenship. According to an Urban Institute report, 93% of Mexican national men who were deported lived in the United States for over a year (Enchautegui 2013). Of the 93%, 76% were head of households. Thus, the report concluded that deportations increased economic hardships (Enchautegui 2013). Furthermore, there is a concern that deportation, because the parent is undocumented, could result in children being placed in foster care – resulting in a change in family structure (Dreby 2012). This not only has negative financial implications but harmful emotional implications for those families who have to suffer through this experience. Therefore, the policy of disbanding sanctuary cities could not only have financial ramifications but emotionally traumatic ramifications for those children that remain
So what is immigration? The definition stands as the action of coming to live permanently in a foreign country. However, outside of a narrow definition we can see that it is actually so much more. It is the action of someone uprooting everything they have ever known in hopes of finding something better. Many times as we have seen through Enrique’s Journey means that children and entire families are left behind in hopes that one day they will once again be reunited (Nazario). Though many hope to see their families once again, their hopes slowly turn into dreams. Between 2010 and 2012 nearly 205,00 parents of U.S. citizen born children were deported in a staggering 26 months (Lincroft). Given that this is a statistic based upon families that are already in the US it leaves us to wonder how many families are torn
The IIRAIRA is a federal law designed to reduce illegal immigration and to apprehend undocumented aliens (Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996). It vastly changed the immigration laws within the U.S. Immigration and Nationalization Act, the current policy up to that point (Department of Homeland Security, 2013).
Many believe immigrating to the US through a marriage visa is an easy process. However, that is not always the case. The road to permanent residency can be a long and frustrating process, sometimes even involving years of separation, extreme hardships suffered by families, administrative delays and struggles as they go through the system.
In terms of accessibility, elderly Latinos forgo doctor visits even though they are Medicare insured because they cannot cover out-of-pocket costs. Similarly, low finances make impose difficulties in paying for transportation. Like other minority groups, elderly Latinos have to rely solely on Social Security, with only 20% of them having private pension and 27% having income from assets, compared to a higher 43% and 67%, respectively, in non-Latino groups (Wallace). The low finance elderly Latinos experience results from overrepresentation in low-wage jobs that don’t offer retirement benefits (Wallace)..
According to Lina Newton, “Immigration laws is to bring some order and sense to our immigration policy by regaining control of our borders and dealing with the hard reality that many of the finest, most law-abiding residents of the united states are in an undocumented status” (90). Immigration laws have been in placed to regulate the population and interaction of non-citizens residing in the U.S, in addition to maintaining control on the border system. These are areas impacting Undocumented Immigrant families in the modern day.
Imagine putting yourself in the shoes of an illegal immigrant. You have to feed your family, get money to pay the rent, and prevent getting caught from immigration authorities. The consequences for getting caught could include deportation or serving time in jail. 11 million undocumented immigrants currently live in the United States and have a family to take care of. Families caught under pressure in their own country might not have a choice but to enter a country illegally. Others would say that immigration laws should not let illegal immigrants into the US regardless of the circumstances, but these Immigration laws are unorganized and broken because millions of undocumented
Anyways, during the war I saw the increase of many African-Americans moving to north. It was due to the plethora of jobs opening in the north. They called this move “The Great Migration.” After the war about twenty-five percent of African-Americans from the South moved to the North. I also noticed that more women were employed during and after the war. Many American women made a huge impact during the war. That was when finally, Americans believed that a woman around the country were fit to work. During the war I saw many of teachers and classmates leaving school. Some of my teachers left to go overseas to fight in the war. So, some of the schools were shut down due to lack of funding and teachers. Not only some of the teachers gone, but some of my classmates. There were forced to not attend school because they're needed there to support their family. Some left to watch their siblings, cook, and work on their family farms. Unfortunately, I was one of the thousands of students who had to leave school just to support my family.
For that reason, an in-depth analysis of Immigration Laws and Policies will be conducted in order to investigate the root cause of the problem with the immigration system in the United States. Past and current immigration laws in the U.S. have led to more than 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the United States, the majority of which are from Latin American countries, with almost half of the 11 million unauthorized migrants coming from Mexico. This investigation will examine the current state of the immigration system in the U.S.; The lack of enforcement mechanisms, backlogs, and the number of available visas among other
Immigration is important for the growth of the economy because it’s a major contributions towards the economy. The United States has often been referred to as a global melting pot due to its assimilation of diverse cultures, nationalities, and ethnicities. Today, this metaphor may be an understatement. Edstam and Carlson an immigration activists reports that, without the extra work and consumption provided by immigrants, the economy of the United States would collapse. They include in the article saying that, despite the common notion that immigrants steal jobs from Americans, the 2005 Economic Report shows that The Federal Reserve in fact recently raised its benchmark interest rate because it observed a strengthening U.S. economy with reduced unemployment, rising wages and some labor shortages Immigrants continue to strengthen local economies through their higher productivity and increased consumption (Edstam and Carlson). An article by Savajlenka added, Studies show that competition with American workers among immigrants is very minimal and limited to the unskilled labor. Therefore, Savajlenka immigration analyst states that, “Numerous studies have documented that immigrants are needed to replace the large number of retiring Baby Boomers and that the future growth of the U.S. workforce will come from immigrants and their children” (Savajlenka). This is an additional like a shot in occupations that presently use several older employees, like janitorial and truck driving
Every year people from all over the world, leaving their homes and moving to the United States. These people are willing to sacrifice themselves in the hope to start a new life, to find an opportunity for financial support for their families, to give a chance for their children have a better future in the safe country. Some of them immigrate in order to find freedom or relief from political and religious persecution. Each of these brave persons has a big reason to leave a Homeland, family, friends, work and all elements of a human’s life without even a possibility to come back home one day. According to recent changes in the immigration law of the U.S., not everyone, who is
The mold for an undocumented family typically consists of at least one if not both parents being undocumented and children who are natural born citizens. Families with mixed legal status have many hardships to face and overcome one of the most prominent and most fear inducing of all: deportation. The risk of one of their loved ones being deported and the chance of never seeing them again in the country is one that haunts millions of not only undocumented immigrants but their children as well. In a recent study conducted on multigenerational punishment Laura Enriquez stated the following, “In particular, scholars have shown how deportation policies impinge on the economic, social, and emotional well-being of family and community members in the United States and the country of origin” (Enriquez 941). Stating that immigration laws and illegal immigration status along with the risk of deportation tear families apart is an understatement; “…deportation threatens immigrant family stability. For fiscal years 2013 and 2014 (“ICE”) removed nearly 368,000 and 441,000 persons, respectively; making the total removed over the course of Obama’s presidency approximately two million” (Enriquez 940). A current web article by Derrick Rubenstein found most opponents argue that “…mass deportation would pay for itself in about four years. Plus, of course,
We all come from different places and ethnicities, and because of having a dream, people fled away from their home to seek for something to make their life better. Going to a country like United States, is not only a dream but also, an opportunity because many people think that America is the best place to settle in, where work, and education are an easy access. Though this statement is partly true, it is not that easy. Everyone envied because America is a great nation because it's a country of opportunity, but a part of it also is a mixture of feelings that are hard to explain especially if you are immigrant. Every day in your life, you are fighting for something in order to fit in and survive. However, in the process of fitting in or blending to a certain place, people, and culture, it requires a lot of personal choices and a lot of effort as an immigrant. It does not only affect you as a human, but also it draws a lot of attention, conflicts and tension between the government and community. Most immigrants have a harder time to adjust or assimilate even though they speak fluent English and eat American foods. Whenever you see a person of white complexion, people assumed that blue eyes and blonde hair are the characteristics of an American, though these are how we perceived American long time ago, this are still the standards of a few now and doesn’t make a big change at all. The judgement of how a person look physically and how they
Currently both the United States and Turkey government have suspended all non-immigrant visa services for travel between the two countries, after the arrest of a US consulate employee in Istanbul. This affected many citizens, including travelers, since it blocks Turks from travel to the United States, and vice versa, for the foreseeable future. So, here are some scenarios about travel to Turkey