NOORANI'S NOTES

 

 

"Come Jan. 20, Republicans should focus on practical immigration
solutions that will benefit all Americans."

That's the message from Mario H. Lopez, president of the Hispanic
Leadership Fund, in an op-ed for Morning Consult
.
Noting that the nation's support for immigrants and immigration is at
historic highs and cuts across party lines, he points to bipartisan
reform as a win-win: "While Republicans should not automatically accept
all of Biden's immigration proposals, GOP lawmakers who care about
having a voice in forging solutions for the good of the country have
many reasons to engage in good-faith efforts to work toward legislative
solutions, especially to help fight COVID-19."

Meanwhile, our friends at Rational Middle
are out with a broader policy solution to consider: The ID & Tax
Proposal ,
part of their immigration documentary series
. It's a different vibe than
my current binge, Netflix's Kim's Convenience
, but still well worth your
time.

Welcome to Tuesday's edition of Noorani's Notes. If you have a story
to share from your own community, please send it to me
at [email protected]
.

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**"TO SERVE EVERYBODY"**-

****The political conversation around immigration is leaving local law
enforcement officials in the lurch, reports Ed Crump of ABC11
in
North Carolina. Chapel Hill Police Chief Chris Blue, a member of the Law
Enforcement Immigration Task Force , is concerned
not just with an increase in hate crimes toward immigrants in his
community, but with the challenge that immigrants may not report crimes
because they fear deportation - which ultimately weakens community
safety for everyone. "Larger conversations about policy shouldn't affect
how people are protected in their communities," he told ABC11. "We're
here to serve everybody."

**MORALITY, CIVILITY, ECONOMY**-

****Immigrants are essential to the Texas economy and the fight against
the COVID-19 pandemic, writes FWD.us Texas State Director Zaira Garcia
in an op-ed for the Austin American-Statesman
.
As just one example, more than 30,000 recipients of Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals (DACA) are working on the frontlines of the pandemic
in Texas alone. "It's time for a renewed focus on immigration reform
that prioritizes morality and civility while expanding opportunities to
strengthen our economy," Garcia writes.

**MEXICO'S APPEAL**-

****For immigrants who work on the frontlines of the pandemic, the
effects of COVID-19 have hit especially hard. As Maanvi Singh reports in
The Guardian
,
the addition of these new challenges on top of years of anti-immigrant
policies has led many immigrants in California to return to Mexico.
"Things aren't perfect in Mexico," said Javier Lua Figureo, who moved
back to Michoacán three years ago after 12 years in California. But he
said that with better access to social services like health care and
unemployment benefits amid the financial strain of the pandemic, "in
comparison to what it was in the U.S., the situation for us in Mexico
right now is much better."

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**LONG WAIT FOR CITIZENSHIP**- The long wait continues for immigrants
who are eligible to become American citizens, Daniel Shoer Roth reports
in the Miami Herald
.
Security protocols require a biometric services appointment, hundreds of
thousands of which have yet to be rescheduled following cancellation
during the pandemic. Overall, about 1.3 million applicants were waiting
for these appointments as of mid-December, according to the Department
of Homeland Security. On the bright side, some immigrants will be able
to bypass these appointments: "[W]hen authorized by law, [U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services] will be reusing previously
collected biometric data to conduct background and security checks -
therefore some immigrants will be able to skip the biometrics
appointment."

**REMAIN IN MEXICO**-

****Tens of thousands of asylum seekers have been forced to wait on the
Mexican side of the border under the Trump administration's "Remain in
Mexico
"
policy - some for more than a year. Monica Campbell reports for
PRI's The World

that tensions are rising: In recent days, asylum seekers who are tired
of waiting, including many from Cuba, protested at the border.
President-elect Joe Biden faces challenges as he looks to change the
policy, walking back a promise to change it on "day one." The balance
his administration needs to strike: Returning humanity to asylum policy
while finding other ways to address Central American migration. We say
it's possible.

Thanks for reading,

Ali

 

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