The Forum Daily | Friday, July 11, 2025https://immigrationforum.org/

THE FORUM DAILYAs more workplace immigration raids take place across the country, farmers and those in the agricultural industry are increasingly interested in hiring seasonal workers through the H-2A visa program, reports Andrew Kreighbaum of Bloomberg Law [link removed].  

While the H-2A visa program has seen a lot of growth over the past few years, many within agriculture see it as an outdated system, Kreighbaum notes.  

There is concern over the program “as to whether it can meet the demands and the needs of growers,” says John Hollay, director of workforce and labor policy at the International Fresh Produce Association. 

Additionally, The Wall Street Journal [link removed]’ Editorial Board comments on an economic analysis [link removed] published Tuesday by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.  

The Board’s commentary focuses on the economic impact of the sudden loss of people working under temporary protection: “It’s reasonable to ask what’s so “temporary” about this protection. On the other hand, if people have lived and worked in the U.S. under TPS for 30 years, what’s to be gained by kicking them out?” 

Meanwhile, the Economic Policy Institute released a report [link removed] yesterday that analyzes how the current immigration policies could lead to the elimination of millions of jobs held by both, immigrant and U.S.-born workers. 

In South Texas, some local businesses are taking a stand against the immigration raids by hanging signs in their windows disallowing Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) officers from entering, reports Fernie Ortiz of Border Report [link removed]. 

Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Clara Villatoro, the Forum’s assistant VP of strategic communications, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Callie Jacobson, Broc Murphy and Marcela Aguirre. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected] mailto:[email protected]. 

**BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP** — A federal judge blocked President Trump’s executive order to limit birthright citizenship nationwide, reports Nate Raymond of Reuters [link removed]. The judge circumvented the recent U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that restricted the use of nationwide injunctions by granting class action status to the lawsuit. In his ruling, the judge emphasized the irreparable harm that the executive order would do, calling citizenship “the greatest privilege that exists in the world.” 

**CHURCH LEADERS SUPPORT** — In a rare lifting of the Catholic obligation, the Diocese of San Bernardino said that parishioners who fear immigration raids do not have to attend Mass, stressing that safety must be prioritized, reports Claire Moses of The New York Times [link removed]. “Please continue to pray for our immigrant brothers and sisters,” the Diocese said in an online post. Meanwhile, William Kristol of The xxxxxx [link removed] reports on a growing concern among religious leaders regarding the administration’s policies on immigration enforcement. 

**REUNITED** — In 2021, a family was separated in the Kabul International Airport during the sudden departure from Afghanistan. Now, they are reunited in Massachusetts despite many setbacks, reports Nirvani Williams of New England Public Media [link removed]. While the family remains anxious about the future, they are happy to be together. “It was really clear that we were living an uncompleted life before the boys came home, but now? Now, I feel complete,” the father said. 

More on refugees in the United States: 

* Fatima Saidi explores the meaning of the American flag through the lens of her refugee experience. (Fatima Saidi, Maine Morning Star [link removed]) 

* Refugees from Myanmar gather at several markets in Arizona, sharing their culture with the community. (Reia Li, Arizona Central [link removed]) 

**BACKLOGS** — United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reached a record 11.3 million pending applications, report Billal Rahman and Dan Gooding of Newsweek [link removed]. Immigration attorneys have attributed the slowdown to the Trump administration’s effort to find fraud in applications. Separately, asylum seekers can wait almost five years for their court hearings. Despite the long waiting, many are too afraid to show up for their hearings given the recent arrests at the court houses, reports Ko Lyn Cheang of the San Francisco Chronicle [link removed].  

Thanks for reading,  

Clara 

[link removed]

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

[link removed]

Unsubscribe from this email list [link removed] or opt out from all Forum emails [link removed]

National Immigration Forum<br>10 G St NE<br>Suite 500<br>Washington, D.C. 20002<br>United States
www.immigrationforum.org [link removed]