Legalization

Community Grants

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The Community Education Center awards educational bi-annual grants of $100 to $500 to fund educational projects about immigrants and immigration.

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Why an immigration amnesty could benefit British workers

Published on Fri, Oct 08, 2010

Indeed, there is conclusive evidence that granting amnesty to illegal immigrants enables them to boost their income, reducing socio-economic disparities. As part of the last attempt at immigration reform 25 years ago, the United States granted amnesty to nearly 3 million immigrants. A study carried out last November by the American Immigration Council found that whereas their homeownership rates and skills levels lagged those of equivalent ages who had been born in the United States, this gap had almost completely disappeared by 2006. Indeed, many of those who came to the United States in their late 20s and early 30s without the equivalent of a secondary education had improved their levels of qualifications, suggesting that they had invested time and money in remedial education.

Published in the Statesman

Immigration Judge Jurisdiction over INA § 204(j) Portability

Because the process for an immigrant worker to become a lawful permanent resident can be quite lengthy, Congress enacted a provision in 2001 that gives immigrant workers needed job flexibility. A worker with an approved visa petition and a pending application for permanent residence can change jobs during the transition period if the new job is the same or similar to the job for which the original visa was approved. In a precedent decision issued in 2005, the BIA ruled that an immigration judge did not have jurisdiction to decide whether an applicant’s new job was the same or similar to the prior job. Matter of Perez-Vargas, 23 I&N Dec. 829 (BIA 2005). This effectively prevented many noncitizen workers who had changed jobs in accordance with the law from having their permanent resident applications approved.

The Legal Action Center successfully challenged this decision in several courts of appeals. These decisions and our arguments, in turn, persuaded the BIA to withdraw Matter of Perez-Vargas and issue a new decision finding that immigration judges do have jurisdiction to decide this issue.

CASES

Ahmad v. Mukasey, No. 08-4081 (2d Cir. amicus brief filed Jan. 16, 2009) (remanding case to BIA for new decision in light of the Board’s decision in Matter of Neto).

Matter of Neto, No. A095-861-144 (BIA amicus brief filed Aug. 27, 2009). In a precedent decision, the BIA adopted the position of the Legal Action Center and vacated Matter of Perez Vargas. Matter of Neto, 25 I&N Dec. 169 (BIA 2010).Read more...

Appreciating America's Heritage: 2008 Edition

The American Immigration Law Foundation (AILF) is pleased to present the 2008 edition of "Appreciating America's Heritage" Teacher Resource Guide. First and foremost, this latest edition continues to keep the needs of classroom teachers in mind by providing new and innovative lesson plans, which can be implemented in any classroom, and book reviews for literature based lessons and research support. All materials included in these pages have been created by fellow educators who either serve as members of our Curriculum Advisory Board, have presented at an AILF symposium or have been awarded AILF classroom grants.

View the 2008 "Appreciating America's Heritage" Teacher Resource Guide

One woman spared deportation, but millions live on the edge

Published on Wed, Dec 22, 2010

Private bills are not routinely introduced for undocumented individuals, according to Wendy Sefsaf, spokeswoman for the Washington-based Immigration Policy Center. During the 111th session of Congress, 104 bills were introduced for those who may suffer hardships if they were returned to native countries or became undocumented due to administrative delays.

That's low, Sefsaf said, compared to deportations: A record-breaking 392,000 illegal aliens were removed in 2010, a 70 percent increase from the previous administration, officials from the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced in October.

Exactly how many private bills pass is unclear. Last week, for the first time in five years, Congress approved private bills for two Japanese citizens fighting to live in the United States — Shigeru Yamada, son of a woman who was killed in a car crash when he was a teenager and was never adopted, andHotaru "Hota" Ferschke, who found out she was pregnant and got married over the phone with a Marine who was killed in Iraq.

But Sefsaf said those cases are exceptions.

"Congress just needs to focus on a broader plan that would provide relief for the millions in this country that deserve to stay and figure out a way to weed out the ones that might not."

Published in the Detroit News

Relevant Decisions

In contrast with criminalproceedings, removal proceedings include only minimal safeguards for respondents with mental disabilities. This page contains summaries of select cases addressing the rights of noncitizens with mental disabilities.

Federal Court Decisions

Franco-Gonzalez v. Holder, No. 10-02211 (C.D. Cal. Apr. 24, 2013): Federal Judge Orders Government to Provide Counsel to Detained Immigrants with Mental Disabilities Facing Deportation

In March 2010, attorneys from the ACLU of Southern California filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in a California federal district court on behalf of Jose Antonio Franco-Gonzalez, a Mexican citizen with a cognitive disability who had been in immigration detention for more than five years. Several months later, the ACLU and other organizations and attorneys filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of Mr. Franco-Gonzalez and other detained unrepresented individuals with serious mental disorders in removal proceedings in California, Arizona, and Washington. The complaint stated that the government was required to 1) conduct competency evaluations for all those who the government knows or should know may be incompetent to represent themselves, 2) appoint attorneys for those found in need of counsel as a result of the evaluations, and 3) conduct custody hearings for those who face prolonged detention as a result of the delays caused by their mental disabilities. As a result of the habeas petition, ICE released Mr. Franco-Gonzalez from custody.Read more...

MIPEX- Interactive Snapshot of World Migration

MIPEX is a fully interactive tool and reference guide to assess, compare and improve integration policy.Using 148 policy indicators MIPEX creates a rich, multi-dimensional picture of migrants’ opportunities to participate in society by assessing governments’ commitment to integration. By measuring policies and their implementation it reveals whether all residents are guaranteed equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities.

What can you do with it?

• Analyse seven policy areas which shape a legally resident third-country national’s journey to full citizenship.
• Examine how policies compare against the standard of equal rights and responsibilities for migrants.
• Find out how your country’s policies rank compared with other countries.
• Track if policies are getting better or worse over time.
• Dig into real examples of how to improve policies.
• Use it to design and assess new laws and proposals on an on-going basis.

Year Released: 2012

High School

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Santa Clara Valley Creative Writing Contest WInner

Santa Clara Valley 2011 Creative Writing Contest Winner

Published on Fri, May 20, 2011

During the Santa Clara Valley American Immigration Lawyers Association meeting the winner of the local American Immigration Council's 14th Annual "Celebrate America" Creative Writing Contest was honored and read his winning entry.

Published in the ImmigrationProf Blog

Litigation Clearinghouse Newsletter Vol. 2, No. 9

This issue covers successful challenges to state ordinances, rehearing petition in 5th Circuit natz delay case, the Orantes injunction, and news from AILF's Legal Action Center, including recently filed and successful amicus briefs.

Published On: Monday, August 6, 2007 | Download File