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Thousands of migrants are stranded in Tapachula, Mexico, near the border with Guatemala, and UNICEF says that about a third are younger than 18, reports Athena Ankrah of Cronkite Borderlands Project. The city is a focal point for migrants awaiting documentation to stay and work in Mexico, or journey north. Shelters such as the nonprofit Hospitalidad y Solidaridad have given some families and unaccompanied minors — but not all — a sense of refuge in the meantime. "My case has been difficult, it was sudden, but with God’s help I’ve kept going," said 16-year-old Carlos, who fled Honduras due to gang threats. But for Nati, 28 and originally from Haiti, the process has been much more challenging. In December, Nati and her family were denied humanitarian visas and had to restart the process. "We have passed through ten countries and had the most difficulty here in Mexico. They (children) don’t understand that to get here we have come far, we have been in the jungle, in the rain, risked our lives — they don’t understand this," she said. Separately on Monday, more than 450 faith leaders and organizations sent a letter to congressional leaders urging Congress to do more to support families who were separated during Trump’s "zero tolerance" policy. Church World Service and Interfaith Immigration Coalition have more details. Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. ‘THEY WANT TO STAY HERE’ — An amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act would help prevent "Documented Dreamers" from aging out of their ability to stay legally in the U.S., thanks to their parents’ visas, reports Michael Perchick of ABC11 in North Carolina. "We’ve invested in these kids for decades. We’ve paid for their education in the public schools. Their parents pay taxes. They want to stay here," said Rep. Deborah Ross (D-North Carolina), who is spearheading the bill. "And we have a shortage of skilled workers right now. So why would we want to make them deport to a country that they don’t know to compete with the United States?" A reminder that the Council on National Security and Immigration supports this amendment. TESTING LIMITS — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) initiative to bus migrants back to the U.S.-Mexico border as part of Operation Lone Star is in a legal gray area, report James Barragán and Uriel J. García of The Texas Tribune. At issue is whether Abbott is "intruding on a federal responsibility and stretching the legal limits of the state’s efforts on the border." (We’ve wondered that ourselves.) "There are ongoing questions about what authority they have to bus people from one location to another," said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy director at the American Immigration Council. "Legally speaking, is that immigration enforcement? I still don’t know." Elsewhere in border news, the Supreme Court certified its ruling that permits the Biden administration to officially end the "Remain in Mexico" policy, with advocates on the lookout for what comes next, per Alisa Reznick of KJZZ’s Fronteras Desk. CHILD LABOR — This story should be getting more attention: A metal stamping plant near Montgomery, Alabama, that is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company, allegedly used child labor including immigrants, reports a team for Reuters. The plant allegedly employed workers as young as 12, including a Guatemalan teen girl and her two brothers. "Consumers should be outraged," said David Michaels, the former U.S. assistant secretary of labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "They should know that these cars are being built, at least in part, by workers who are children and need to be in school rather than risking life and limb because their families are desperate for income." AFGHANISTAN A YEAR LATER — As we approach the Aug. 15 anniversary of the fall of Kabul, conditions in Afghanistan have worsened, especially for women. The Taliban’s ban on girls attending high school, now in place for almost a year, would leave women unable to attend universities, Emma Graham-Harrison reports in The Guardian. Some women have turned to online classes or secret underground schools to continue studying, but financial and technological barriers severely limit access. In The Conversation, Ferdouse Asefi also assesses Afghanistan under a year of Taliban rule, citing an ongoing war and human rights violations, particularly surrounding women. Meanwhile, on stateside welcome:
Thanks for reading, Dan |
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