A reminder to media that we’re unveiling a solutions-focused border and asylum framework in a virtual press conference later today. Send an email for more info.
Immigrants are a driving force behind economic success — also in Spain, Belén Carreño of Reuters reports. Hundreds of thousands of newcomers, mainly from Latin America, are helping fill labor gaps after the pandemic.
The infusion has set off "a virtuous circle" wherein Spain's labor supply and economic growth both have increased — a competitive advantage over many other European countries. A similar trend has occurred in the U.S., Carreño notes.
In 2023 nearly two-thirds of new jobs in Spain, and half of the nation’s economic growth, stemmed from immigration, said Raymond Torres, chief economist at Madrid-based think tank Funcas.
But in the U.S., an absence of streamlined policies is slowing the road to economic stability for migrants, as Jeff Arnold’s piece in NewsNation reflects. Many still do not have work permits when state assistance end dates arrive.
"We’re doing our job by (having to say) that this is not going to be easy for you for a very long time and making sure they are aware of what’s in front of them," said Peter Zigterman, director of Immigrant Family Services Chicago for World Relief.
On a different economic note, border cities’ unique economic relationships are the subject of the new book by economist James Gerber, reports Sandra Dibble for Voice of San Diego. In "Border Economies: Cities Bridging the U.S.-Mexico Divide," Gerber analyzes factors that impact the connection between 14 pairs of border cities, such as tourism, immigration and economic policies, law enforcement, and shared water resources.
Welcome to Wednesday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Darika Verdugo and Clara Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
ASYLUM — Many Haitian migrants’ futures depend on the complex and lengthy asylum process, reports Danny McDonald of The Boston Globe. Being returned to Haiti, where violence has resulted in chaos, would put their lives in danger — but in 2023 only 4% of Haitians’ asylum cases in the U.S. were successful. "Without any legal status, you always feel scared," said Carl Pierre, who received asylum after 11 years of legal
battles.
TO RWANDA — The British parliament passed a law enabling the government to deport, to Rwanda, asylum seekers who come to Britain without authorization, report Mark Landler and Stephen Castle of The New York Times. The plan "effectively overrides a ruling by Britain’s Supreme Court," but "any deportation attempts are likely to encounter a flurry of further legal challenges, making it unlikely that large numbers of asylum seekers will ever be sent to Rwanda."
DIED WAITING — A Vietnam War veteran, Jesus "Chuy" Juarez, died in Tijuana, Mexico, earlier this year after waiting almost 30 years to come back to the United States, reports Salvador Rivera of Border Report. Raised near San Diego, Juarez was deported for having undocumented migrants in his car. "He died waiting to come home," said Robert Vivar of the Unified U.S. Deported Veterans Resource Center.
SETTLING — More than 187,000 Ukrainians have resettled in the United States in the two years of the "Uniting for Ukraine" program, with more cases pending, reports Camilo Montoya-Galvez of CBS News. The program allows an unlimited number of Ukrainians to come to the U.S. under Americans’ sponsorship to live and work legally. The U.S. is "very, very, very nice," said Yana, age 10, whose aunt in New Jersey sponsored her family’s resettlement.
