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Trail of DREAMs XI- Meditative Walking and Trail of DREAMS XII - My Real Home at DREAM Activist.
Rep. Gutierrez in Los Angeles - "Love Thy Neigboor Means Not Tearing Families Apart" at Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.
'Qué pasa' in Immigration: Members of Congress Debate Reform at America's Voice.
Tea Party Leader Exemplifies Hypocrisy at its Worst at Anti-BVBL.
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I am the son and grandson of American citizens I have been an illegal alien for 19 years so far, originally applied through a fake 'American' lawyer who charged a hefty fee, a few years later it put me into an overstay status because he never filed, I have now spent 17 years applying I have started going through the approval patch affidavits etc but basically been told once they have everything I am subject to a 10 year ban at the end of all this even though I am a retired investor and never worked one day for an American while here...
The problem with immigration is that the processing time frames are inhumane and so long people get old or die waiting and the hoops you need to jump through get smaller and smaller also the fact that you are never given one long list of items needed its always one thing out of dozens sent to you at a time its the carrot in front of the donkey syndrome, this is why many do not bother applying..
You watch the processing time frame speed up if immigration could only collect a fee once they were ready to process a fully eligible application and hand over a green card.
The whole system is a racket to extract fees then find every possible way to draw it out, make it extremely difficult, separte families develop deathly time frames and to find any possible angle to deny no matter how petty.
And what is the point in a ten year ban if you are going to let the applicant apply at the end? Let me answer that one to... The point is by the time 10 years go by the spouse has either died moved on with someone else or given up, if none of those have happened yet then hell let the immigrant pay more fees and apply from where he is that will notch up another 10 year wait for processing adding up to around 20 years since the beginning of the ban surely that will kill of or separate permanently 90% well if anyone is still kicking around after that suck up the fees and look for a loop hole to deny or why not just deny anyway and make a few more loopholes that should reduce whats left to about 1%..
Lets face the fact having discussions on immigration bans and family separation is really pointless, the problems are there because that is how the system is designed its not broken its a perfect money making racket that takes fees and money and does not need to provide a service its a bit like running a bar where people pay in advance for a drink but you make it almost impossible to get in the door or you just plain bar them from coming in for such a long time that they end up walking of after paying in advance.
And don't forget folks sure anybody can apply, sorry what was that sorry we cannot tell you if you are elligible or not you just need to pay the fees wait 10+ years we will let you know at the end.... Meanwhile in the INS tea room laughter and sure anyone can apply NO F-ING REFUNDS!!
Posted by Stuck InTime on 02/03/2010 @ 04:09AM PT
| | Immigrants & American-born: "Are you listening?" at Yes on the upcoming Night of 1,000 conversations.
Obama's State of the Union: Immigration? Gays in the military? at The Oval.
The Orange County Register: Rally Celebrates Contributions from Immigrants at Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.
SANTA ANA Prayer vigils and press conferences took place across the country today -- from Santa Ana to Tennessee -- to tout the release of a report detailing the contributions of immigrants to California.
The grossly incomplete Latino Blogosphere list from BlogWorldExpo at Culture Kitchen.
| | Yes they did- student activism from around the world at DREAM Activist.
This one's called La Septima Papeleta, and the story takes place in Colombia... It´s 1989, and the Colombian constitution is 103 years old and clearly not working: its institutions are crumbling away due to drug trafficking and its networks of power and violence. Something's gotta give.
On Immigration, Scrap the Obituary at America's Voice.
For months, pundits in Washington have been dying to write the obituary for comprehensive immigration reform. Predictably, they're using Tuesday night's special election in Massachusetts as a chance to do just that. But what they overlook is that immigration may well be one of the few issues where a bipartisan breakthrough is possible.
Rebuilding Haiti's infrastructure, people's lives, and their grassroots movement for Social Justice at CAUSA.
VIDEO: Immigration Reform Update for Jan. 22, 2010 at Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.
Trail of DREAMs VII and Trail of DREAMs VIII - Central Florida Lakes at DREAM Act Texas.
| | "Secrets of Immigration Jails" a Disturbing Call For Reform at America's Voice.
Here's another damning piece from the New York Times exposing the nation's shadowy immigration detention system, which exploded under the Bush administration.
Donate Blood to Help Haiti at All About Race. Check out the Red Cross video and donate if you can.
La Opinion: Pressure Grows to Move Immigration Reform Forward at Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.
Un año después, las cosas parecen seguir igual. A pesar de las promesas del presidente Barack Obama, quien aseguró que durante el primer año de su administración sería aprobado un proyecto de reforma migratoria, el plazo se cumplió y la promesa sigue en el aire.
| | Victory: Obama Administration Grants Crucial Immigration Protection, TPS, to Haitians in U.S. at America's Voice.
Why the US attacked Yemen: president Obama authorized bombing that killed 120 civilians including children [VIDEOS] Humanitarian Crisis Worsening at Carlos in DC.
The internal conflict in Yemen started in 2004 but the military conflict has restarted in August 2009, after peace talks failed. This has caused the displacement of over 175,000 civilians in the border region between both countries. A humanitarian crisis is increasing in the region, with children being the most affected.
Pat Robertson's Repugnant Comments about Haiti at All About Race.
| | My girlfriend is with her class on a trip to Asia. A few days ago she visited Cambodia and toured the genocide museum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. When we learn of the terror humans are capable of inflicting on one another we ask how could it happen. In the United States we are so guarded from much of the world's terror, yet upon close inspection we realize how much we're responsible for. Case in point is the following post from Carlos in DC.
Why the US attacked Yemen: president Obama authorized bombing that killed 120 civilians including children [VIDEOS] Humanitarian Crisis Worsening at Carlos in DC.
Pat Robertson's Repugnant Comments about Haiti at All About Race.
The internal conflict in Yemen started in 2004 but the military conflict has restarted in August 2009, after peace talks failed. This has caused the displacement of over 175,000 civilians in the border region between both countries. A humanitarian crisis is increasing in the region, with children being the most affected.
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Dear Mr. Santa Claus,
This is an open letter from William Gheen, president of the Americans for Legal Immigration Political Action Committee, Jim Gilchrist founder of The Minuteman Project, Peter Brimelow, founder of VDARE, Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, Roy Beck, executive director of NumbersUSA, Lou Dobbs, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Pat Buchanan, the members of the House Immigration Reform Caucus, and most Republicans, along with some Democrats, in the U.S. Senate.
We have just received word from the North Pole that you have been delivering presents to the United States all of these years without adhering to the proper legal immigration procedures. We ask you, Mr. Claus, the same question we ask of all illegal aliens in America, "What part of ILLEGAL don't you understand?" We ask that you cease and desist delivering presents to Americans this very Christmas Eve, or we will be forced to report you to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. You are infringing upon America's sovereignty and encouraging law-breaking by flouting a complex immigration system that few people understand.
It does not matter to us that there is, in actuality, no legal way for anyone to migrate to America from the North Pole. There is no way for most illegal aliens to migrate to America. That is the way we like it and we call any attempt to change it: AMNESTY. Yes, we enjoy writing both the words, AMNESTY, and ILLEGAL, in capital letters. They make more sense when we write them that way. We also believe it is important to tell you on this Christian holiday, Mr. Claus, that we do not believe in the Christian values of forgiveness, compassion, and mercy.
| | The NY Times reports that Cambodia is deporting Uighur political refugees back to China to be detained, tortured, or killed.
Under pressure from China, and despite the objections of the United States and the United Nations, the Cambodian government on Saturday deported 20 members of the Uighur minority who had sought asylum after fleeing a government crackdown in China.
The U.S. government is unhappy with Cambodia's explanation that it is just "implementing its immigration law," as a spokesman of the Cambodian government put it. "They came illegally without any passports or visas, so we consider them illegal immigrants."
The United States and the United Nations have urged Cambodia not to deport the group. "We are deeply disturbed by the reports that the Cambodian government might forcibly return this group of Uighurs without the benefit of a credible refugee status determination process," said John Johnson, an American Embassy spokesman in Phnom Penh. "The United States strongly urges the Cambodian government to honor its commitments under international law."
I am glad to see the State Department take a stand on behalf of members of this long-suffering ethnic minority.
I wonder, though, if any DOS spokesperson would like to weigh in on the U.S. government's prolonged detention at Guantanamo of Uighur men it knew for years were innocent, and the U.S. refusal to allow any "credible refugee status determination process" for them.
I wonder if the DOS will opine on the cases of any Uighurs currently in removal proceedings in the U.S. and whether they should be sent back to China given the capricious asylum system they must navigate in the U.S. to avoid deportation. One might assume from the NY Times article above that the U.S. has a practice of not deporting Uighurs to face their fate in China. If DHS does have such a policy, I've never heard of it.
Given the U.S.'s substantial credibility gap on the issue of honoring treaty obligations to Uighur refugees, I would suggest that someone explain U.S. immigration policy to DOS employees before they make demands of other countries. But I know that newly-minted Foreign Service Officers typically work in the consular section of whichever U.S. embassy they are first assigned, so they should know the law pretty well. Perhaps the experience of denying visas every day for a couple of years is useful in inoculating FSOs against outside criticism of U.S. immigration law and foreign policy. I suspect that is one reason that FSOs are first sent to Consular.
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Illegal is Not a Noun
