Reasons to March, Reasons to Run

By Gardenia Casillas, Maria-Elena Young, and Daniel Madrigal

Joaquin Luna came to the US as an infant.  In high school he began applying to college with a dream of becoming an architect or civil engineer. In his application he is confronted with many questions: Are you a US citizen? No. A Resident? No. Social Security number? None. The pressure to support his family through an education and not being able to afford it are overwhelming. At 18 he takes his own life.

José Antonio Elena Rodríguez walks along the US-Mexico border in Nogales, Mexico. At the same time local US Border Patrol agents are chasing two drug dealers. In the chaos, the agents fire several shots towards the border. Six bullets tear through his body, leaving him dead.

Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez, a pregnant 17-year old pruned vineyards in Lodi, CA. One particularly hot day, the sun is too much. She loses consciousness into the arms of her fiancée who works with her. The job did not provide basic safety protections including drinking water, shade, or training on how to deal with heat. She dies of heat stroke.

As public health professionals our goal is to keep people healthy and we often believe that everyone has the right to be healthy – that neither a person’s race, gender, nor socioeconomic status should be a predisposition to good health. There are many factors that prevent this ideal from being attained. Sometimes, laws and policies are the factors that prevent good health. US immigration policy is one example of a factor that creates an underclass of people with fewer rights, fewer resources, and less safety. Joaquin, Jose and Maria are victims of US immigration policy.

On a daily basis, immigration policy shapes the social and political environments in which immigrants and their families live. Yet, as the public debate over immigration continues, rarely do we hear discussion of the enormous impact of immigration policy on the health of immigrants.  Policies influence the circumstances of immigrant’s lives, specifically their rights, resources, and safety.  Take a minute to answer the following questions for yourself:

> Can immigrants access appropriate and affordable health care services?
> Are there protections for the rights of immigrant workers to ensure fair wages and safe workplaces?
> Are immigrant children able to attend schools and universities?
> Do immigrants feel respected and safe in their communities?

All of these questions are decided by specific federal, state, and local policies that expand or limit the rights and resources that determine the opportunities for immigrants and their families, as well as their overall safety in this nation as they pursue those opportunities.  When protective factors – such as access to health and educational services – align, immigrants will experience greater health and well-being. The lack of any or all three of these, such as limited access to employment and educational opportunities, stress and fear due to discrimination and anti-immigrant legislation, or vulnerability to violence, result in significant health risks.

On April 17th, 2013, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 was officially introduced in the United States Senate.  This bill, if passed, would significantly change our current immigration policy context.  It has the potential to offer a pathway, albeit a long one, to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the US.  However, it also introduces harsh enforcement measures, such as increased militarization of the US-Mexico border and mandatory implementation of an electronic employment verification system.  The National Immigrant Law Center provides an excellent overview and analysis on their website.

Immigration policy is health policy, and those interested in working to create healthy and strong communities should pay attention. Given the potential positive and negative impacts of the proposed immigration bill, this is the time for public health professionals to be active in the policy process, making critical assessments of how existing and proposed policies may protect or harm the health of our nation’s immigrants!

Creating just policies that provide a pathway to citizenship will provide immigrants with rights, resources, and safety. It means that undocumented individuals and their family members will be able to live without being afraid that their immigration status will backfire and that they will be deported. It means that undocumented students no longer have to hide in the shadows, it means that farm workers will be able to bargain wages sitting as equals at the negotiation table, it means that youth and community members will be able to stand up against toxic hazards.

Fortunately, the Bay Area is a hub of activity with many passionate individuals fighting for a more equal system. We encourage you to stand in solidarity with immigrants is to finally address the systemic exclusion. First, on Wednesday May 1st, there will be a large parade winding through Oakland. It will start at Fruitvale BART Station at 3:30pm.. The second event will be a 5k Run/Walk for Migrant Justice put on by 67 Sueños, a youth led organization out of Oakland. The event will take place May 4th at 11AM at Lake Merritt’s at the Pergola. For more details check out run.67suenos.org.

If you think the system is unfair, unjust, and unhealthy, come out to support the movement for equity. Let your voice be heard!

Immigration Policy and Women’s Health

In honor of Women’s History Month, we will highlight the impact of state and national policies on immigrant women’s health. Immigrant women are often left out of conversations on a path to citizenship, deportation, and labor. When immigrant women are considered, it is often through negative stereotypes – from the portrayal of immigrant women a threat to national security because of “anchor babies” to raising the fear of immigrant women as taking advantage of social safety net programs. These harmful portrayals justify harmful laws, with real impacts on women’s health and safety.

Policies and laws shape the safety, rights and resources of all people. Immigrant women are no exception: fear of deportation and family separation causes stress and anxiety; unauthorized status diminishes women’s rights and may lead to a range of forms of exploitation, from labor to sexual exploitation; or poor wages and lack of access to care can create barriers to health-promoting resources. The safety of immigrant women is threatened when immigration enforcement policies such as Secure Communities prevent women from accessing services or calling police.

Other social policies also shape health. Health reform initiatives actively bar immigrant women from receiving safety net benefits. While the Affordable Care Act (ACA) opened many doors for women to receive reproductive health care, expanding coverage for preventive health care including family planning, STI screening, and screening for domestic violence, undocumented immigrants are excluded from the ACA. In addition, in the US we are currently experiencing broad attacks on women’s reproductive health; 43 new policies were passed in 2012 restricting access to abortion services (Guttmacher Institute). Low-income and undocumented women are disproportionately impacted by these laws as they rely more heavily on community clinics to receive reproductive health services. These policies, whether part of our immigration, social welfare, or health care systems, determine what services and supports immigrant women have a “right” to and shape access to health-promoting resources – from U-Visas for domestic abuse survivors to health insurance.

Women’s Health
One of the main narratives in research on immigrant health is the “Healthy Immigrant Paradox” (or the “Latino Paradox”) – in which immigrants have equal or better health outcomes despite lower wealth and education than US-born populations. This “paradox” hides many important issues and, despite some findings to support the theory, does not justify complacency about the health of immigrant women. Both gender and immigration status are important predictors of health. These multiple forms of discrimination overlap, or ”intersect,” to put immigrant women and particularly undocumented immigrants, at risk of a number of health challenges. Here is a brief overview of some of the many issues public health and immigrant rights activists might consider in their work. For more information, check out the research bibliography at the end of the post or feel free to contact The Curious Ostrich with any questions.

Health Care
• Due to public health insurance program policies and limited access to employer-based health insurance, immigrant women are less likely to have health insurance, and less likely to have a regular source of health care, than non-immigrants (CDC 2005).
• After the 1996 Welfare Reform that barred many immigrants from receiving public benefits, immigrant women were less likely to access pre-natal care and other services (Fuentes-Afflick et al 2006)
• When Massachusetts implemented their health care reform policy, immigrants were left out. And the increased fear of deportation created new barriers to care among women who had previously accessed services at community clinics (Dennis et al 2009).

Occupational Health
• Immigrant women often work in informal jobs such as domestic work and in jobs with high risks for injury (e.g. garment work). Undocumented workers face discrimination in the workplace, lack adequate protections due to insufficient regulation of informal labor markets, work in high-risk industries, and have higher rates of occupational injuries.
• Immigrant women are additionally affected by gender inequities, such as wage disparities (Browne and Misra 2003), and gender and sexual discrimination in the workplace.

Reproductive and Maternal Health
• Immigrant women have higher rates of mortality from cervical cancer
• Undocumented women have lower use of prenatal care services and higher rates of low birth weight, than documented immigrants (Korinek and Smith 2011).
• In border states with few abortion providers, such as Texas, Internal Border Patrol Checkpoints limit mobility, making it difficult for immigrant women to travel to abortion clinics.

Violence Against Women
• Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a risk factor for poor mental and physical health (Yick 2003, Barkho 2007). Although women of all national and ethnic backgrounds are victims of violence (Han 2010, Grzywacz 2009, Brabeck 2009, Bhuyan 2008, Barkho 2007), the immigration experience can exacerbate violence in relationships, putting immigrant women at particular risk (Han 2010, Grywacz 2009).
• Some women report that their partners use their vulnerable legal status as a way to control and threaten them – in a study of South Asian immigrant women in Boston, there was a strong association between having a partner who refused to help change their immigrant status and experiencing IPV (Raj et al 2005).
• A study of mother’s in New York City cited the fear of being “bad” mothers if they reported abusive family members (who would then face deportation) (Earner et al 2010).

Mental Health
• Immigrant women are at increased risk for poor mental health. Fear of deportation and family separation, as well as the challenges such as language and cultural barriers, are significant stressors for immigrant women (Arbona 2010, Norris 2011).

Promising Developments
Yet, there are also policies and social movements that are promising to create better protections and facilitating increased social and economic opportunities for immigrant women.

Protecting Women’s Rights: The Violence Against Women Act, renewed this year, continues to provide protections for immigrant women in abusive situations. The act includes the U-Visa, which allows women who have been abused who are here with temporary or unauthorized status to gain legal residence (Moynihan 2008, Conyers 2007).

Supporting Integration: Policies that offer pathways to citizenship, or increase access to the rights that of citizenship, improve the health of immigrant women. In Western Europe, researchers found that in countries with more progressive immigration – or “integration” – policies including pathways to citizenship, anti-discrimination and affirmative action legislation, and policies protecting against economic and social exclusion, the health inequalities between immigrant and non-immigrant women were reduced and in some cases eliminated (Bollini et al 2009). In the US, state laws supporting immigrants rights also reduce health inequity. In 1999, Utah passed a law allowing undocumented immigrants to get driver licenses. While in general, undocumented women had poorer health outcomes than documented immigrants, those women who participated in the driver license program had higher rates of pre-natal care, demonstrating that policies supporting access to rights and resources among undocumented immigrants can significantly improve the health outcomes of women and children (Korinek and Smith 2011).

Organizing: Immigrant women around the nation are actively involved in promoting policies and opportunities for themselves and their communities. There are many immigrant women’s groups working to empower immigrant women. Mujeres Unidas y Activas in Oakland, California provides immigrant women with support, from crisis intervention services to job training, as well as leads statewide advocacy campaigns. The National Domestic Workers Bill of Rights is a nationwide campaign to protect domestic workers, who are predominantly immigrants, in their workplaces. This movement is quickly spreading throughout the nation. There are also many immigrant women entrepreneurs – 13% of all woman-owned businesses – working to create job opportunities for themselves and others.

There is a growing movement to protect the health of immigrants by expanding access to care and by pushing for a more humane immigration system. Women have distinct health needs (e.g. reproductive health services), and face distinct health challenges (e.g. the overlapping discrimination of gender and immigration status); and policies can unwittingly create new health risks for women when these specific issues aren’t taken into consideration. As these policy efforts move forward, we hope to see the rights of women explicitly considered and included in policy conversations.

The Curious Ostrich Immigration Policy-to-Health Framework

At the Curious Ostrich we provide updates and analysis on immigration news – providing health professionals and immigrant rights activists a “heads up” on immigration, xenophobia, and health. Looking at current events and national policy through a health perspective, we see that our immigration laws are powerful determinants of health for immigrants in the United States.  In the past, few public health researchers have focused on the ways immigration policies affect the rights, opportunities, and health of immigrants. But the public health field is increasingly taking notice that immigration policy is health policy. We believe that we will be more likely to achieve justice for immigrants and healthier communities when public health professionals understand (and address) the social and policy contexts that impact immigrant communities.

Last year, the American Public Health Association issued a policy statement supporting an end to the Secure Communities enforcement program.  The American Journal of Public Health published a recent study calling for more research on how state-level immigration policies, specifically, SB 1070, affect public health.  A growing number of researchers are trying to document and understand how policies and the experience of being undocumented affects health, such as immigrants’ access to health care (Stevens et al., 2010; Vargas Bustamante et al., 2011) and the impact of family separation, legal vulnerability, and stress in undocumented families (Arbona et al., 2010; Brabeck and Xu, 2010).

This is an important starting point!  Yet, the immediate experiences of immigrants and their families are the result of the full context of their lives in the United States, as well as our nation’s often anti-immigrant history, culture, politics, and laws.  Public health research and action must reflect this full picture.  

We have created a framework to illustrate the web of factors related to laws and policies that have an impact on the health of immigrants.

1) Our laws and policies are rooted in historical, political and cultural contexts.  The US has implemented immigration policies since it founding, including deportation and exclusionary policies such as the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882. Each wave of anti-immigrant policy has been driven by racist and xenophobic narratives – immigrants viewed as a threat or as undeserving. The legacies of these cultural narratives and harmful policies continue to impact how immigrants are treated both in our political and popular debates and narratives.

2) These laws and policies influence the circumstances of immigrant’s lives, specifically their rights, resources, and safety.  Can immigrants access appropriate and affordable health care services? Do immigrant workers receive fair wages and are they safe in their workplaces? Are immigrant children able to attend schools and universities?  Do immigrants feel respected and safe in their communities? All of these questions are decided by specific federal, state, and local policies that expand or limit the rights and resources that determine the opportunities for immigrants and their families, as well as their overall safety in this nation as they pursue those opportunities.  These three factors are interconnected, as rights can create safety and access to resources or safety and resources can support individuals to exercise their rights.

3) These three factors are also inseparable, because the positive presence of all three are needed to promote positive physical, mental and community health outcomes.
When protective factors – such as access to health and educational services – align, immigrants will experience greater health and well-being. The lack of any or all three of these, such as limited access to employment and educational opportunities, stress and fear due to discrimination and anti-immigrant legislation, or vulnerability to violence, result in significant health risks.

Public health professionals and immigrants rights activists will have to make critical assessments of how existing and proposed policies may protect or harm the health of our nation’s immigrants. Our hope is that this diagram provides a framework for considering how various immigration policies may actually impact immigrant communities.  For example, the debate on “comprehensive immigration reform” is just heating up. It is heartening that there is growing support for a path to citizenship, but the proposals currently being developed would make the process lengthy and burdensome and continue existing bans on receiving public benefits. The proposals would also further codify border militarization and enforcement programs. Public health has an important role to play in these debates – ensuring that the true community costs are considered as immigration policy decisions move forward.

When we look at this diagram, we also see many opportunities for action! People working in all areas of public health can incorporate an immigrants rights perspective into their work. In the coming months, we will provide information and discussion on some of the main health issue areas in this diagram. And we will share ideas and opportunities for health and immigration activists alike to participate in this work.

Stay tuned to the Curious Ostrich for up-to-date health research and analysis.

2013: New opportunities for healthy immigration reform?

The Curious Ostrich has big plans for 2013! We are now moving to a monthly format, providing readers with in-depth analysis and commentary on the public health impact of immigration policies and national conversations around immigration. As always, our mission is to bring attention to the ways immigration policies affect health and to provide information and resources for health and immigration advocates alike. Want regular updates on immigration issues? Like our Facebook page!

Over the course of 2012, a number of policies and events across the country significantly, and often negatively, affected the health of immigrants and their communities. Deportations continued at an all time high, separating families and at great cost to our economy. Due to programs such as Secure Communities 1.6 million people were deported during President Obama’s first term. Our nation’s growing immigration enforcement system now receives more funding than all other federal enforcement agencies combined. This focus on enforcement and a militarized border increased border violence and resulted in many deaths, some perpetrated  by the US Border Patrol itself.

Immigrants also continue to be denied many basic rights. For example, while the Affordable Care Act (ACA) goes a long way in expanding access to health insurance, undocumented immigrants and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals-approved individuals are barred from new health insurance programs. At the state level, although the Supreme Court knocked down many of the provisions in Arizona’s immigration bill SB 1070,  the “paper’s please” provision will move forward.  Other states continue to follow Arizona’s lead in anti-immigrant legislation.

The impact of xenophobia and anti-immigrant politicking is not limited to immigrant communities. For example, in 2012 the Violence Against Women Act, a traditionally non-controversial, bi-partisan bill, failed to be reauthorized for the first time in its history. This was in part due to Republican supposed opposition to protections for immigrant women.

In 2012, we also saw promising policies and inspiring activism by undocumented immigrants, particularly youth. Influenced by ongoing activism by DREAMers, President Obama granted deferred action to “childhood arrivals” (DACA), creating the largest opening in many years for undocumented individuals to gain work permission and protection from deportation. While not a long-term solution, DACA created opportunities for many young immigrants.

Exciting grassroots mobilizations also helped raise the profile of immigrant issues and pushed forward a more progressive policy agenda. The Caravan for Peace turned attention to the human impact of border violence and the United State’s role in drug war violence; undocumented youth are using art and creativity to assert their rights; DREAMers sat-in at Obama campaign offices; the Undocubus shared stories at the Democratic National Convention; and the Campaign for the American Dream team walked from San Francisco to Washington, D.C. to raise awareness about immigration policy.

Moving into 2013

Building on this momentum, 2013 brings new opportunities for making immigration policy more just and protecting immigrant communities. President Obama’s re-election turned new attention to the power of communities of color in our political system and we now have the most diverse Congress in US history. Polling suggests that the public and elected officials are ready to consider immigration reform. President Obama has repeatedly stated that comprehensive immigration reform will be a priority early on in his second administration. However, for too long, political debates about immigration have focused on controlling immigration through the criminalization and stereotyping of immigrants.  Therefore, we hope to see these policy discussions and decisions acknowledge the importance of immigrants to our society and economy and affirm that all people, including immigrants and regardless of their immigration status, have rights as residents of this nation.  Specific policies that we would like to see from the 113th congress include:

• Create a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants currently in the US.  The increasing numbers of young immigrants applying for deferred action demonstrates that creating a process for undocumented immigrants to apply for papers is not only relatively politically non-controversial, but is feasible and has tremendous positive impacts. This is a start, but temporary status for a small portion of undocumented immigrants is not enough.  There are still roughly 11 million individuals who lack papers and a path to citizenship. This is an injustice, not only to these individuals, but to their families and communities and the nation as a whole.
• Reduce deportations and keep families together.  Enforcement programs and deportations needlessly tear people from their jobs, communities and families, with devastating emotional and economic impacts.  A simple fix would be to end programs such as Secure Communities.  In addition, policies are needed to end the fear that deportations have caused by creating clear delineations between local police officers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
• Create accountability over and reform the detention system. The unregulated and unhealthy network of privatized detention centers must be reformed and regulated. This should include expanding accountability and oversight for current detention centers.  The all-historic-high number of detention beds in centers and county jails creates a gross profit motive and should be reduced.
• End the militarization of the border.  Border fence and patrolling policies throw money into militarization, rather than the true safety of people in the United States.  There should be an end to financial support for the border fence, reduction in funding for the Border Patrol, and increased oversight over the Border Patrol, including the training and background of officers and their use of surveillance technology.
• Increase access to education and social services for all immigrants.  Immigrants should be positively included in public policies.  This is a matter of both fairness and of effective crafting of public policies, as economic, social service and health policies ultimately have an impact on immigrant communities, such as the Affordable Care Act and the Violence Against Women Act.

The connection to health

At The Curious Ostrich, we believe that all of these policies and their resulting challenges and opportunities for immigrants are public health issues. Immigration policies, and related social and economic policies, directly impact the health of immigrants in a number of ways – from reduced access to essential services and resources to the  fear and stress that result from discrimination, criminalization and deportation. Over the course of 2013, we will continue to explore these links between immigration policies and health:

• Access to health care– Many people are barred or have limited access to health insurance and health care services due to their immigration status. Access to regular primary care is important in preventing many diseases (e.g. diabetes), while limited emergency care services results in unnecessary deaths.
• Diminished rights and protections– Fear of deportation diminishes the rights of undocumented individuals by shaping their decisions about accessing services such as education or police protection. For instance, many undocumented workers are victims of wage theft, yet they do not have legal recourse without risking deportation.
• Access to resources– Diminished rights lead to reduced access to resources to lead a healthy life. For example, undocumented immigrants may choose not to access public resources, such as education or social services, because they believe they are not eligible or they are afraid of coming into contact with government officials.
• Discrimination– There is widespread anti-immigrant sentiment embedded in our national policy and media discourses, and anti-immigrant groups continue to advocate effectively for policies that devalue and dehumanize immigrants because of their lack of legal standing. From conservative politicians campaigning on deportation policies, to widespread discriminatory commentary in the news, there is a strong national narrative that a lack of papers justifies less-than-humane treatment.

There are feasible policy solutions that can reduce the risks to and protect the health of immigrant communities. There are dynamic and mobilized advocates who will continue to fight for the rights of immigrants.  Public health advocates can play a critical role.  Therefore, in 2013, our hope is to see not a continuation of the short-term and enforcement-focused policies often associated with “comprehensive” immigration reform, but rather the promotion of healthy immigration reform.

Republicans submit faux-DREAM Act proposal, the Plight of Domestic Workers, and the History of US Immigration Laws

Senators Jon Kyl and Kay Bailey Hutchison (Getty Images)

Post-presidential election paths to immigration reform are emerging

In the presidential election Mr.Obama won the Latino and Asian vote by a large margin. Post-election analysis has suggested that Mr. Romney’s hard line approach to immigration was a major factor for the gap. He was never able to present a convincing argument to these constituencies and maintain his “self-deportation” strategy. There now appears to be consensus between the two major political parties that immigration reform should be a priority. Democrats may feel like they have a mandate, while Republicans understand they won’t be able to win elections without receiving more of the Latino and Asian vote.

Republicans are pushing forward two immigration measures, the ACHIEVE ACT and the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Bill. The ACHIEVE Act was introduced by Jon Kyl of Arizona and Kay Bailey Hutchison and would create a new visa for undocumented youth. The ACHIEVE act requires that applicants arrive before the age of 14, instead of age 16 as specified in the DREAM act. The visa holders would also be prohibited from federal student loans or any other kind of public benefits. Another bill the Republicans are pushing is the STEM Bill which would create visas for advanced degree graduates. These visas would be taken from another program that promotes immigration from low-immigration countries. There will likely be many months of wrangling between Republicans and Democrats before we see the new immigration reforms. These policies continue to offer minimal relief, and would end up causing many more problems in the long term.

Immigration status and affects domestic workers’ pay

A new report on pay and working conditions from the National Domestic Workers Alliance has found that undocumented domestic workers are worse off than citizen domestic workers. Undocumented workers on average receive 20% less pay, are more likely to be required to do strenuous work, more likely to be injured on the job, and more likely to work while injured. The current immigration policies weaken worker protections and create situations across the country where immigration status is exploited by employers.

23 moments of immigrant policy in the United States
ABC News and Univision have created summary of 23 pieces of legislation that have shaped the US’s current immigration policy, starting with the Naturalization Act of 1790. The article is a glimpse into the complicated and shameful history of US immigration law.

“Reform” for whom?; deportation is the problem; DACA update; and the 10 worst detention centers 11/12-11/18

Senators Charles Schumer and Lindsay Graham

What’s really in immigration “reform”?  
Seth Freed Wessler of Colorlines.com posses the question: “What qualifies as “reform,” for whom and at what price?“ Those who are concerned about the well-being of immigrants should be wary of the political rhetoric starting to fly about the halls of Congress and the airwaves of the mainstream media. The dominant narrative in the US is that the immigration system is broken.  This narrative helps perpetuate the view that undocumented people are criminals or lawbreakers.  As a result, the policy “solutions” that are likely to be re-introduced in the next Congress focus heavily on enforcement measures.  Senators Charles Schumer and Lindsay Graham, who co-authored a bill that failed in 2010, are likely to take the lead.  In interviews after the election, both stated that their plan would be “heavy on enforcement and avoid anything that sounds like amnesty.” As Colorlines.com reports, immigrant advocates are prepared to take a stand against so-called reform measures that increase enforcement.

Deportation the problem, not immigration courts
A report by the Inspector General of the Justice Department highlights our nation’s broken enforcement and deportation policies. The report determined that the backlog of cases in immigration courts are due to increased deportations, not problems with the court system.  Currently, immigration judges are ruling on an average of 1,200 deportation cases each year and the system still has a backlog of over 300,000 cases of individuals awaiting to see whether or not they face deportation.

 
Over 50,000 individuals approved under DACA
In total, over 300,000 applications have been filed.  Data released by USCIS show that over 80,000 applications have been submitted by individuals in California, almost 50,000 from Texas, and almost 20,000 from New York.  It is predicted that as many as 100,000 individuals will be approved by the end of the year.  The New York Times predicts that the number of applicants is likely to increase now that President Obama’s re-election ensures that the policy will continue.

“Expose and Close” campaign pushes for closure of 10 detention centers
Detention Watch Network’s campaign to end the nation’s detention system has released a report highlighting the conditions in 10 of the worst detention centers in the US.  They document the chronic human rights violations in these 10 centers as a means of drawing attention to the rampant abuses and lack of oversight across all 250 of ICE’s detention facilities.

President Obama Wins a Second Term, 11/5 – 11/11

President Obama will have a second chance to enact comprehensive immigration reform that he campaigned for on in his first bid of the presidency in 2008. There is more hope than ever now that the Republican party has begun to realize their need to bolster support from the Latino community. In the analysis of the race, many pundits lay blame for Romney’s loss on the hard line he took on immigration. Romney advocated for “self-deportation” which would make life so miserable for immigrants, that they would return to their home country on their own volition. Romney also counted Kris Kobach, architect of AZ SB1070, among his advisors during his campaign. As a result of these stances, Latinos came out in favor of four more years with Obama by a wide margin. Notable conservatives are arguing for a new strategy that welcomes Latinos to the GOP. With the growing Latino population, GOP would be wise to listen to Sean Hannity. Otherwise, the Democratic victories on Nov. 6th might be the first of many.  Even the notorious sherriff from Maricopa County is striking a conciliatory tone, saying that he wants to meet with Latinos to explain his policies. Although, unless he dramatically changes course he is unlikely to receive a receptive audience. In addition to getting pushback from moderates, there is a growing movement that seeks to push back against his abuse of power.
In other election related news, USC’s Center for Study of Immigrant Integration has released a report on the vote of Naturalized citizens, a group that represents 3.6% of voting aged citizens in the US.

Giants Closer Sergio Romo Makes Statement with t-shirt
On October 31st, the San Francisco Giants led a parade through San Francisco celebrating their World Series victory. Sergio Romo, one of the team stars, and child of Mexican farmworkers, wore a t-shirt that read “I just look illegal.” The shirt brought attention to the debate on immigration and the stigmatizing use of the word “illegal” by many in the anti-immigrant movement. The t-shirt was a bold statement in sport that often prefers to avoid political controversy.