The Forum Daily | Friday July 28, 2023
 ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌


 

THE FORUM DAILY

Deportations have ramped up since the end of Title 42. According to the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), about 85,000 migrants have been
"repatriated" since May 12, up 65% from the same period last year,
reports Gabe Gutierrez of NBC News
<[link removed]>. 

The increase comes as the Biden administration has been touting a 42%
drop in illegal border crossings since its new policies took hold in
May. 

And border-related efforts are affecting DHS finances, with billions of
dollars in shortfalls across the department, Stef W. Kight writes in
Axios
<[link removed]>. DHS
is planning to ask Congress for an extra $2 billion to ensure it can
maintain those efforts through the end of September, Kight reports. 

 "Managing a broken immigration system operating under decades-old laws
takes significant resources and funding," a DHS spokesperson told
Axios.  

Welcome to Friday's edition of The Forum Daily. I'm Dan Gordon, the
Forum's strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team
also includes Karime Puga, Clara Villatoro, Christian Blair and Ashling
Lee. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send
it to me at [email protected]
<mailto:[email protected]>.  

**DESPERATION** - Despite a new parole program combined with
border-enforcement measures, millions of displaced Venezuelans still
present a challenge for the U.S., report Michelle Hackman, Juan Forero
and Santiago Pérez of The Wall Street Journal
<[link removed]>.
Venezuela's economic crisis and a lack of jobs, and sometimes
hostility in other countries, are among the factors pushing people to
migrate or continue traveling north. "The journey hasn't been easy,"
said migrant Nolbert Coy. "If I don't make it, at least I made the
attempt."  

**TEXAS PERSPECTIVE** - In Texas Monthly
<[link removed]>,
Christopher Hooks offers an eye-opening inside look at the dynamics of
the border and immigration conversations in his state. Reports of
sanctioned cruelty toward migrants "hearken back to some of the darkest
days in Texas history," Hooks writes, then parses out the context around
the state's Operation Lone Star. The full piece is well worth a
read. 

ALONE - Afghan evacuee "BH" was 17 in August 2021 when he and his
family tried to escape Kabul as the Taliban took control. But he was the
only one to make it out, Tom Bowman and Lauren Hodges of NPR
<[link removed]>
report. Christ Church in Alexandria has helped support BH and other
resettled Afghans. As for people such as BH's family members still
stuck in Afghanistan, the Pentagon is looking to speed visa processing,
J.P. Lawrence reported recently in Stars and Stripes
<[link removed]>. 

Meanwhile, stories of local welcome continue to inspire: 

* Across the country, scholarships have provided displaced Afghan
students, such as Fahima Sultani, an opportunity to pursue their
education and to build a better future. (Jamie Stengle, Associated Press
<[link removed]>) 

* In Iowa, Shir Agha Safi, an Afghan refugee who experienced the horrors
of war, relates his own story of finding hope and purpose in the U.S.
Now, through his nonprofit, Safi helps fellow Afghans to adjust to their
new lives. (As told to Lee Rood, Des Moines Register
<[link removed]>) 

* In Washington County, Maryland, six Afghan families are rebuilding
their lives with the support of the Refugee Welcome Network. (Katharine
Wilson, The Herald-Mail
<[link removed]>) 

H-1B LOTTERY - Good news for certain U.S. employers who need workers:
A second visa lottery will be held to reach the annual H-1B limit for
fiscal year 2024, Andrew Kreighbaum reports in Bloomberg Law
<[link removed]>.
Registrations for the first lottery, in March, suggested that some
employers might be trying "to game the lottery system.
<[link removed]>"


Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

 

 

DONATE
<[link removed]>

 

**Follow Us**

 

[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]

National Immigration Forum

10 G Street NE, Suite 500

Washington, DC 20002

www.immigrationforum.org <[link removed]>

 

Unsubscribe from The Forum Daily
<[link removed]>

or opt-out from all Forum emails.
<[link removed]>

 

 
_________________

Sent to [email protected]

Unsubscribe:
[link removed]

National Immigration Forum, 10 G St NE, Suite 500, Washington, D.C. 20002, United States