Problems with our asylum application process

This report sheds light on the problem with the current asylum process in the US. It is often very difficult for immigrants to get asylum seekers to get visas, and the reasons behind these difficulties are seemingly unjust. One problem with the current process is the 150-day period that asylum seekers must wait (after their initial application) before they can request employment authorization. To worsen the situation, this 150-day period can be lengthened, for years in many cases. It is lengthened whenever there is a “delay request[ed] or caused by the [asylum] applicant.” A report by the Human Rights Watch finds that these delays are often unnecessary. Another criticism of the asylum process is the lack of lawyers provided to applicants. As we talked about in class, criminal law is different from immigration law. This report points out an instance where immigration law takes advantage of this differentiation – the uncertainty of whether or not a lawyer will be provided at the hearing of an asylum seeker. Also included is the story of a double amputee and asylee who rode his bicycle 800 miles across Texas last month. The man hopes the ride will raise awareness for those rejected as refugees while trying to flee Mexico’s drug wars. This, along with many other efforts, will hopefully resonate through Congress and kickstart the stalling process of meaningful immigration reform.

http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2013/11/14/2929901/bars-vulnerable-asylum-seekers-working-receiving-assistance/

Orphan Immigrant Family in Georiga

This is a touching video that addresses the issue of immigrant orphans in the US. The video focuses on one family, the Cabrera's, made up of three orphans from Mexico. Brianda, now 23, took on the responsibilities of a mother for her younger siblings, Diana and Jose, at an early age. The Cabrera's father died 13 years ago in Mexico. At that point, their mother moved the children to the US. Suddenly, the mother was hit by a car and killed shortly after the family relocated to Georgia. Brianda, only 14, was left to take care of Diana and Jose, who were 15 and 18, respectively. What a great job she's done; in the short video, you can see how strong the family is bound. Diana's emotions say it all around the 30 second point in the video where she describes the role her sister has played. The family stuck together and made it work, living on their own - without a guardian - for around nine years in the US. Due to the family's undocumented status, Brianda struggled to keep herself and her siblings well. She took on various odd jobs to help pay for education, food, and rent for the family. This video is definitely worth watching; it's humbling for the viewer and reminds us that no matter how bad things are going, there are people making do with far greater struggles.

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/world/2013/11/07/pkg-romo-immigrant-orphans.cnn&iref=allsearch&video_referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2Fsearch%2F%3Fquery%3Dimmigration%26primaryType%3Dmixed%26sortBy%3Drelevance%26intl%3Dfalse#/video/world/2013/11/07/pkg-romo-immigrant-orphans.cnn

Proposed UK Immigration Reform

            This article is a question and answer overview of the UK’s proposed immigration reform. It starts out with a surprising thought – reducing UK’s net immigration from 200,000 down to the tens of thousands by 2015! That’s a big change; apparently they really feel immigration is causing problems. The major concerns regarding the reform are the pressures that the British feel immigration is placing upon education, as well as accusations of wages driven down by an increase of foreign employees.

            The immigration bill addresses the situation by asking landlords to check whether or not tenants are legally in the UK. Furthermore, banks will be required to check for citizenship before opening accounts. Also included in the bill is a 200 pound per year fee for temporary migrants to cover health care costs to the NHS. Perhaps the most shocking aspect of the bill requires biracial marriages – specifically those between a person of English descent and a non-European – to be registered into a database.

            The bill is largely supported, but has some resistance. Liberal Democrats feel the bill is being “rushed through” Parliament. There is also resistance from landlords and hospitals, who feel the portions of the bill that concern them will cause problems.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-24626767