To our veterans and your families this Veterans Day and every day, thank you so much for your service. Consider taking a few minutes to read Elaine McArdle’s story of Jonathan Zhangxu, an alumnus of the since ended Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest program, in Harvard Law Today.
As expected, former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Tom Homan will be back "in charge of our nation’s borders" in the second Trump administration, a team at Reuters reports.
President-elect Donald Trump made the announcement yesterday on his Truth Social platform. "Public safety threats and national security threats will be the priority … they pose the most danger to this country," Homan said in a recent Fox News interview, adding: "Worksite operations have to happen."
Homan led ICE during the Trump administration’s early efforts at family separation, reports Rich Johnson of NewsNation. In The Wall Street Journal, Michelle Hackman and Andrew Restuccia delve into some of the details around what the Trump team is working on.
In the borderlands, elected officials, migrants and advocates on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border are anxious about the next four years, report Adam Powell and Kristian Jaime of the El Paso Times. At the northern border, Canadian police and advocates are preparing for a potential increase in asylum seekers, Anna Mehler Paperny of Reuters reports.
Immigration lawyers across the U.S. also are preparing for a second Trump administration, report Miriam Jordan and Jazmine Ulloa of The New York Times. "We have spent the last nine months planning for this, and are prepared to go to court as often as necessary, just like the first time," said Lee Gelernt of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Welcome to Monday’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, Soledad Gassó Parker, Camilla Luong, Ally Villarreal and Clara Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].
HOPE IN HOUSTON — Immigrants in Houston have been a buffer for severe labor shortages in manufacturing, health care, education and construction, Amegy Bank CEO Steve Stephens writes in the Houston Business Journal. "Houston offers an encouraging example of what’s possible if we create such pragmatic legal pathways to strengthen our workforce," he writes. In the past four years, the city has created more than 557,000 jobs, and in 2021 alone, immigrants were responsible for nearly a third of Houston’s $537 billion GDP, Stephens notes.
CHURCHES’ CONCERN — Church leaders worry for their immigrant congregants amid the specter of mass deportation, reports Emily Belz of Christianity Today. "Our sincere prayer is that there finally would be a bipartisan immigration solution that respects the rule of law and honors the dignity of all people," said Gabriel Salguero, president of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition. Meanwhile, at least one Oregon church already is vowing to protect undocumented immigrants, reports Katherine Cook of KGW8.
AGRICULTURE — Donald Trump’s plan to deport 1 million people his first year in office may have a serious impact on Idaho’s agriculture and dairy industries, reports Julie Luchetta of Boise State Public Radio. Undocumented immigrants in the state pay about $26 million in taxes each year and make up a significant portion of the service, construction and agricultural industries, Luchetta notes. The ag industry in Michigan has similar concerns, reports Keith Matheny of the Detroit Free Press.
SKILLS — A partnership in Colorado between Metropolitan State University Denver and the city’s WorkReady program is helping immigrants gain culinary knowledge, reports Shania Rea of Metro State’s Red. "This isn’t just about filling jobs. We aim to teach immigrant workers how to utilize the institutions available to support their integration into the community," said Mayra Juárez-Denis, executive director at Centro de los Trabajadores.
