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July 27, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to the Associated Press: “Reps. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., Albio Sires, D-N.J., and Joe Baca, D-Calif., members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, heard three hours of often emotional testimony. Women whose husbands are being detained talked about their longing to be reunited, underage workers detailed deplorable working conditions and city and religious officials lamented the impact on the community.”
Based on recent occurrences it seems that the country will be ready for an overhaul of our immigration system when the subject resurfaces before Congress.
Prior to the enforcement-only kick that the US has been on for the past year, the immigration laws clearly needed changing. However, rather than change the laws, the policy was geared toward lax enforcement. Now, rather than fixing the problem, the outdated laws that serve noone, the environment has become one in which the policy is mass enforcement to the point where immigrants are allegedly being denied basic due process such as in the Postville raids and a young undocumented woman was allegedly beaten to death while her attackers used racial slurs. Our lawmakers must do better than they have in 2009 and pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform that balances: enforcement with improving avenues for legal immigration to keep America competitive and an earned legalization program for the undocumented.
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July 26, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to an article on cnn.com: “Three white teens were charged Friday in what officials said was an epithet-filled fatal beating of an illegal Mexican immigrant in a small northeast Pennsylvania coal town.”
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July 26, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
I received a kind e-mail from someone at bigthink.com who informed me that there is an interview with Dr. Q on that site. The interview puts a face to the story of the man who started in the U.S. as a migrant farm worker and became a John Hopkins brain surgeon and is worth checking out.
In our practice we come across people who are living the American Dream because our immigration laws gave them that opportunity. They benefit as does the country as a whole.
When Comprehensive Immigration Reform comes up again in Congress, I hope the cool-headed, compassionate majority will be motivated to call their congressional representatives to drown out the loud, yet passionate minority who oppose changing our laws so that they make sense.
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July 25, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to an article on reuters.com: “Immigration has turned many business into activists across the country and it has stirred strong passions in the United States in this election year.”
Given aggressive Federal enforcement and a hodgepodge of new state laws, employers are feeling the crunch and are trying to lobby for changes to the laws, both at the state level and nationally.
Hopefully Congress and the new President will have the courage to enact comprehensive immigration reform in 2009 so that the country can be on the same page regarding this issue. It is a shame for states and municipalities to have to pass laws or ordinances that are either pro or anti-immigrant because the federal governement has failed to act.
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July 25, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to the Associated Press: “Lawmakers on Thursday questioned the legality and effectiveness of the government’s tactics in a May raid that led to the arrest of nearly 400 immigrants.”
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July 25, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to an entry on latimesblogs.latimes.com: “We have received some responses to our post this morning about illegal immigration numbers that quote different figures — figures that allegedly come from the Los Angeles Times. . .Those figures are a hoax, which you can read about here on Snopes.com.”
Statistics are often deceiving and as we see day in and day out, can be used to manipulate information to suit one’s purposes. Moreover, “studies”, especially when conducted by an interested party or organization should be taken with a cup of salt.
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July 25, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to a USCIS Press Release: “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today a revised list of vaccines required for applicants seeking to adjust status to become legal permanent residents. This revision follows guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).”
We also link to USCIS Questions and Answers regarding these changes.
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July 23, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to an article on msnbc.com: “The lab at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore we’re all gathered in belongs to Dr. Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa — “Dr. Q.” He is one of the best brain surgeons in the world, but two decades ago, his hands were picking vegetables for $22 a day. Quinones was a migrant worker, living under an old camper top in the middle of a California field.”
Dr. Q clearly legalized his immigration status based on a program that allowed him to do so. This is why we now need comprehensive immigration reform that offers a pathway to legalization for certain undocumented aliens who meet the requirements. All undocumented aliens are not the same. A well-written piece of legislation would distinguish between undocumented aliens who are here to work hard and make a better life for themselves and their families, and gang members who have committed serious crimes.
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July 23, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
According to a USCIS Press Release: “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reminds its customers that the fee for an Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility (Form I-601) is always required. USCIS has received numerous applications filed without the appropriate fee due to an incorrect interpretation of the regulations.”
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July 18, 2008 by Bradley Maged.
As a timely follow-up to my blog entry yesterday regarding the possible wage issues that could arise in the RI raid case, according to an article I found on chicagotribune.com: “Ten immigrant workers filed a lawsuit Thursday claiming they are owed thousands of hours of back wages from a temporary employment agency that hired them to work at several airlines at O’Hare International Airport and other companies.”
I believe that as these ICE raids continue, workers who have not been paid for work performed, including some of those detained, will be filing lawsuits against the companies that employed them. In certain instances, under the doctrine of “joint employers” some of the entities that hired the subcontractors to perform the work could be held liable as well.
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