A Brighter Era Starts Tomorrow

Dear Allies,

By this time tomorrow, President-elect Biden will officially be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, with Kamala Harris by his side as the first ever woman and woman of color as Vice President. This moment wouldn’t be possible if it weren’t for the countless advocates and organizers who fought for a better America. A brighter era starts tomorrow, but the next phase of our work starts now. It won’t be easy, but with a network as strong and diverse as the PIF coalition, we know we can push forward together. 

We also want to acknowledge Martin Luther King, Jr. Day which was yesterday, honoring the life and legacy of the radical and visionary leader of the Civil Rights Movement. His words ring true as we continue to view the fight for racial justice then and now as ongoing and interconnected: "Violence is immoral because it thrives on hatred rather than love…violence ends up defeating itself. It creates bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers".

This week, we are sharing key information from the recently announced Biden-Harris American Rescue Plan. You can also find information on an upcoming webinar from NILC & FRAC, and two new research briefs related to COVID. 

As you know, last week, the Biden-Harris transition team released the framework of an ambitious new pandemic relief proposal, the American Rescue Plan (ARP). The ARP includes several policies that are the foundation of an immigrant-inclusive agenda:

• Would make everyone eligible for free-of-charge COVID-19 vaccination regardless of immigration status
• Proposes stronger workplace protections for industries that employ immigrant essential workers
• Would make millions more people in mixed-status families eligible for pandemic relief checks

We know that there is a lot more that needs to be done to support immigrants and their families and we will work with Congress to make it even more inclusive and effective, by making stimulus payments and the child tax credit available to all families in need and and funding comprehensive outreach to immigrant families.

As there is no specific legislative language, PIF is not planning to do a detailed analysis of the ARP at this time. CLASP’s statement on Biden’s economic relief plan includes a summary of the overall provisions included in the proposal and is a good starting point. 

Join the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), and state anti-hunger partners for a webinar focused on the work that will be necessary to meet the food and nutrition needs of immigrant families in 2021 and beyond. During this webinar, panelists will highlight research on why eligible immigrant families are forgoing programs and opportunities to help address hunger among immigrant communities; provide updates on COVID-19 relief provisions that can help support immigration family nutrition; and ensure that all families have access to programs for which they are eligible. Register here.

As COVID-19 vaccine distribution continues and expands to larger segments of the population, it is important to consider how to prevent disparities and ensure equitable access to the vaccine. Immigrant Access to COVID-19 Vaccines: Key Issues to Consider from the Kaiser Family Foundation provides an overview of key issues to consider for reaching noncitizen immigrants as part of COVID-19 vaccination efforts.

The $900 billion pandemic-recovery stimulus package that passed Congress in December rectified what many had viewed as a significant oversight in the earlier CARES Act: Its exclusion of U.S. citizens and legal immigrants in mixed-status families. In the new report from the Migration Policy Institute, Nearly 3 Million U.S. Citizens and Legal Immigrants Initially Excluded under the CARES Act Are Covered under the December 2020 COVID-19 Stimulus, examines the March stimulus exclusions, which populations qualify for the December stimulus package, and what gaps in inclusion still remain.

• Health Affairs – Medical school students and faculty from Hopkins, UNC Chapel Hill, and Georgetown say undocumented essential workers should be next in line for COVID-19 vaccination.

• Washington Post – Quoting from the PIF letter and name-checking AAPD, NILC, and UnidosUS.

• Bloomberg – On the Biden American Rescue Plan proposal and its provisions on immigrant eligibility for federally-funded COVID-19 vaccinations.

• US News & World Report – Public health experts argue for immigrant-inclusive COVID-19 vaccination strategy.

In Solidarity,

Eddie Carmona & Renato Rocha, on behalf of the PIF Team

Visit us at https://protectingimmigrantfamilies.org/