Your weekly summary from the Council

John,

One in six U.S. workers is an immigrant, making up a vital part of the country’s labor force in a range of industries. 

On Labor Day weekend, learn more about the extensive contribution’s immigrants make that benefit all Americans. Download your state’s fact sheet on immigrants.

Sincerely,
Beth Werlin, Executive Director 

 LATEST ANALYSIS 

• Hurricane Laura Devastated ICE Facilities, Leaving People Detained in Horrific Conditions
  
  Days after Hurricane Laura tore through Louisiana, the situation for people held in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities remains critical. Read More »
   
• Institutional Racism Is Rampant in Immigration Enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico Border
  
  At a Border Patrol checkpoint in Arizona, cars driven by Latinos were more than 26 times more likely to be stopped and required to show identification. Read More »
   
• Judge Says “Poppycock!” to Trump Program That Let Border Patrol Screen Asylum Applicants
  
  A federal court halted a secretive program that allowed Border Patrol agents to interview asylum seekers. The judge found the Trump administration's defense of the program so ridiculous that he labeled it “poppycock.” Read More »
   
• Immigrant Workers are Essential to the United States Postal Service
  
  USPS will play an outsized role in the 2020 presidential election, as more states focus on mail-in voting to help curb the spread of the coronavirus at polling places. And many of those working for the postal service—over 12% of all USPS employees—are immigrants. Read More »

 FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW

• H-1B workers—alongside native-born workers—will help rebuild the American economy in the months and years to come. But H-1B denial rates continue to increase according to Forbes. The American Immigration Council continues to uphold the law and ensure USCIS isn’t unlawfully denying H-1B petitions. 
  
  Read more: The H-1B Visa Program: A Primer on the Program and Its Impact on Jobs, Wages, and the Economy
   
• Temporary Protected Status for South Sudan has been extended for 18 months. Here's what you need to know about how TPS designations are determined, the benefits of TPS, and how TPS beneficiaries apply for and regularly renew their status. 
  
  Read more: Temporary Protected Status: An Overview
   
• Professional and occupational licenses can now be issued to immigrants regardless of their status in New Jersey. The state is home to over 475,000 undocumented immigrants.
  
  Read more: Immigrants in New Jersey

 QUOTE OF THE WEEK 

“CBP officials, including Border Patrol agents, must not be permitted to be gatekeepers to the asylum process. Adversarial by the nature of their enforcement role, such officials cannot substitute the neutral, expert role that professionally trained asylum officers have long filled. It is immoral and illegal to place the fate of survivors and other people seeking asylum in the hands of a law enforcement agency tasked with capturing and detaining immigrants.” 

– Emma Winger, staff attorney with the American Immigration Council and Mitra Ebadolahi, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Foundation of San Diego & Imperial Counties. 

 FURTHER READING 

• CBS News: ICE arrests 2,000 immigrants in largest sweep of the pandemic
   
• Laredo Morning Times: Immigrant in ICE custody in Conroe dies from COVID
   
• Law and Crime: ‘Disturbing’ New Proposal Would Vastly Expand DHS’s Ability to Obtain Immigrants’ Biometric Data, Lawyers Say

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