Alliance of White Anti-Racists Everywhere – Los Angeles
News Flash
President Obama Affirms Desire to Reform Immigration Next Session
01 year ago
Disappointed by Congress’s failure to pass the DREAM Act during lame duck, President Obama made remarks today regarding the need to reform immigration in the next Congress. While the President acknowledged that border security is part of that conversation, he also acknowledged that “changing the politics” of how Congress and his administration engage the public on immigration is equally important—as is “doing right” by the many DREAM students who deserve a fair shot at the American dream.
The President remarked:
So my hope and expectation is that, first of all, everybody understands I am determined and this administration is determined to get immigration reform done. It is the right thing to do … we need to reform this immigration system so we are a nation of laws and we are a nation of immigrants. And at minimum, we should be able to get the DREAM Act done.
And so I’m going to go back at it and I’m going to engage in Republicans who, I think, some of them, in their heart of hearts, know it’s the right thing to do, but they think the politics is tough for them.
Well, that may mean that we’ve got to change the politics … one thing I hope people have seen during this lame duck—I am persistent. I am persistent. If I believe in something strongly, I stay on it. And I believe strongly in this.
And I am happy to engage with the Republicans about — if they’ve got ideas about more on border security, I’m happy to have that conversation … But I also think about those kids. And I want to do right by them, and I think the country is going to want to do right by them, as well.
DHS Releases Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 Enforcement Data
01 year ago
The Office of Immigration Statistics released data on immigration enforcement actions in FY 2009 (October 1 through September 30). The report finds that:
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) apprehended 613,003 foreign nationals, compared to 791,568 in FY2008 and 960,756 in FY2007.
- Mexican nationals made up the largest percentage of apprehensions (86%), followed by Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, China, Brazil, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Nicaragua.
Border Patrol:
- Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) was responsible for 91% of all apprehensions, and 97% of CBP apprehensions were along the Southwest border. The Tucson, AZ sector had 45% of all Southwest border apprehensions (241,667), followed by San Diego, CA (118,712); Rio Grande Valley, TX (60,992), Laredo, TX (40,571; El Centro, CA (33,520); and Del Rio, TX (17,082).
- Apprehensions by the Border Patrol decreased 23% between 2008 and 2009, which corresponds to lower immigration levels during the economic downturn.
Detention:
- ICE detained a record number of 383,524 foreign nationals in FY2009. Mexican nationals accounted for 63% of all detainees, but because they generally remain detained for short periods, they accounted for only 34% of detention bed days.
Removals:
- DHS removed a total of 393,289 persons in 2009, which is a 10% increase from the previous year and the 7th consecutive record high. 72% of removals were Mexicans (282,666). The next leading countries were Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic.
- 27% of all removals were “expedited removals,” meaning that the individuals were inadmissible because they didn’t have proper documents and were removed without a hearing before an immigration court.
- 580,000 persons were returned to their home countries without being placed in immigration proceedings. They are generally non-criminals who are apprehended at the border or port of entry and agree that their entry was illegal and waive their right to a hearing. 85% of returns were Mexican or Canadian immigrants.
- DHS removed 128,345 immigrants with criminal convictions, including traffic offenses. Those convicted of illegal drug activity, traffic offenses, and criminal immigration violations made up 61% of all criminal removals.
UPDATE: Utah Attorney General Condemns Immigration Knock List
01 year ago
Utah officials and community leaders reacted swiftly and with revulsion to the announcement this week that confidential state records had been breached to compile a list of more than 1,300 supposedly undocumented people living in Utah, including pregnant women and children. At a press conference this afternoon, State Attorney General Mark L. Shurtleff condemned the list, noting that “some call it a blacklist, but I call it a hit list.” Speaking for himself and on behalf of the governor of Utah, Gary R. Herbert Shurtleff made it clear that the release of confidential information was “not the way we do things in Utah” or in this country. He noted that the state government of Utah is trying to speak with one voice to condemn the release of information, will not be using the list to initiate actions against anyone on it, and roundly criticized those who would use lists, hate mongering and political rhetoric to stir up racism in Utah. Instead, he called on the federal government to continue to work for a truly comprehensive solution to immigration reform. He noted that the governor has called a meeting next week to produce Utah’s recommendations for immigration reform that will help to keep Utah from going down the road of S.B. 1070. Schurtleff is also awaiting results of an internal investigation before determining how many laws at the federal and state level may have been broken and who is subject to prosecution.
Other speakers included Paul Mero, head of the conservative think tank, the Sutherland Institute, who also condemned the list, calling it “reprehensible.” He noted that the “good people of Utah won’t stand for this” and predicted that the list itself may backfire, given the controversy it has created, and serve as a tipping point for a more rational discussion on immigration reform. Mero also noted that he believed support for comprehensive immigration reform represented a tenet of an “authentic conservative position” as fixing the immigration system went directly to what kind of people we are and what kind of world we want to live in.