Blog: Think Immigration
We believe that immigration law is an integral part of America’s past, present and future. We also know that immigration law is complicated. Here you’ll find experts writing in an accessible way about immigration issues, from big, broad ideas down to specific cases. Our members bring knowledge they’ve gleaned from the daily practice of immigration law to this space and offer their expertise to readers.
Browse the Blog: Think Immigration collection
Big Brother is “Friending” You
Someone once told me that you should never post anything online you don't want to read on the front page of the newspaper. As an employer I often peruse facebook, myspace and other social networking sites when evaluating job applicants. The sites sometimes offer a candid glimpse into a prospective
Amnesty for Lou Dobbs?
How dysfunctional is the US immigration system? It is so dysfunctional that even Lou Dobbs, a man who has built his brand spewing hate speech at immigrants, can't even follow it. Last week The Nation labeled Dobbs an “American Hypocrite“ for hiring unauthorized immigrant workers, But with his
Touting the Record
by Victor Nieblas Pradis, AILA Secretary Yesterday, the secretary of homeland security, Janet Napolitano and the director of ICE, John Morton proudly announced they had broken a record—in fiscal year 2010, the Obama Administration deported 392,000 immigrants. That's good news for those who claim Ob
DHS: It’s Time to Act
“Representative [Lamar] Smith … called for the Immigration and Naturalization Service to exercise prosecutorial discretion in hardship cases. That is, immigration officials would simply decline to proceed with a deportation case… Second, Mr. Smith proposed that the attorney general use a
Dreams of DREAM
The United States of America is the result of an audacious dream. At a time when kings and queens were the norm a group of radicals dreamed of a place where the will of the people would govern; a radical and dangerous concept at the time. And ever since, dreaming has defined our political and [̷
Note to USCIS: Small can be Good!
Yesterday, the Senate approved a multi-billion dollar package of tax breaks and government-backed loans to aid small businesses. It was a victory for the Obama Administration. As Senator Barbara Boxer stated, “Small businesses are the major job creators in our economy, and this legislation will ensu
Counting The Silverware
Nobody likes to pay for legal advice. But it's a double whammy when you end up paying for really bad legal advice. Just ask the good citizens of Hazelton, Pennsylvania whose pockets have been emptied to the tune of $2,400,000 in legal bills run up by Kris Kobach, a fringe anti-immigrant restriction
Investing in America
One of the strongest arguments in favor of comprehensive immigration reform is that it will make America more prosperous and competitive. All credible studies show that an immigration system which meets the needs of businesses and US workers will add trillions to the economy, raise wages, and put A
Crying Wolf
On August 20 John Morton, head of ICE, issued a memorandum to the agency about how to handle deportation cases involving foreign nationals who are also legally eligible to apply for green cards. The policy has the anti-immigrant restrictionists and their friends on Capitol Hill in a tizzy and howli
Fernando’s Hideaway
By Crystal Williams and David Leopold Washington reminds us of Fernando Lamas, the Saturday Night Live character played by Billy Crystal who would interview various celebrities, often confusing them with someone else. Always during the interview he would say, “You look mahvelous“ and the sket
10 Reasons Amending the Constitution to End Birthright Citizenship Is a Terrible Idea
guest blogger Greg Siskind, AILA Board of Governors One of the greatest accomplishments of the Republican Party was actually one of its earliest. After winning the Civil War and freeing the slaves, the Grand Old Party worked to pass the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, the bedrock of civil rights
Where the 1986 Amnesty Went Wrong – Fixing the Symptoms But Not the Problem
Guest Blog by Deborah Notkin, AILA Past President I am getting increasingly impatient with restrictionists and xenophobes opposing a badly needed legalization program by knocking the 1986 Amnesty Program. The problem with the '86 Amnesty was not that it encouraged future illegal entries to the U.S.
Who Doesn’t Have Cojones?
She's going to do all that she can to continue down the litigation path to allow secure borders…Jan Brewer has the “cojones“ that our president does not have to look out for Americans, not just Arizonans, but all Americans, in this desire of ours to secure our borders and allow legal im
Oh Come On Now!
I'll admit it. It's summer and I'm cranky. But, come on people. Not another outbreak of hypocrisy on immigration! We've watched while agency officials pulled apart the law to find ways to make illegal the status of people here legally or struggling to attain legal status. Making Muslim men register,
Will Somebody Please Hand That Man A Napkin?
The Arizona court ruling enjoining parts of Arizona's S.B. 1070 is a major victory for all who respect and cherish the rule of law. True, Judge Bolton did not halt the entire law. But what she did do—enjoin S.B. 1070's most dangerous and damaging provisions—was astonishing. Federal courts do not
An Amnesty? Is That Legal?
Guest blog by Charles Kuck, AILA Immediate Past President I was driving to court recently down a highway in Atlanta when I drove past a toll booth with a HUGE sign on it. The sign read “AMNESTY.“ I thought, “wait a second!“ “Amnesty“ is a dirty word, literally unmentionable in poli
This Is the Part of Illegal That I Don’t Understand
Yesterday, I looked down at my speedometer to see that I was driving at 55 mph in a 40 mph zone. I clearly was in violation of traffic laws. I came home to notice my neighbor firing up a barbeque grill on his balcony-a definite violation of the city fire code. I then read about […]
In The Eye of The Perfect Storm
4:30 a.m. came a little too early. But the alarm went off and I had to get up to catch my plane to Kansas City. Tony Weigel, the Kansas/Missouri AILA chapter chair, had assembled a very ambitious agenda for the day, chock-full of print and electronic media interviews, a press conference, and partic
Preparing for the Perfect Storm
Guest blog by Tony Weigle, Chair, AILA Missouri/Kansas Chapter On July 1st, I walked into the opening session of the Annual Conference and into my first day as Chapter Chair of the Missouri/Kansas Chapter. As I found my seat, a few of my chapter members informed me that Kansas City's Kris Kobach an
Suing Arizona—What Choice is There?
Guest blog by Charles Kuck, AILA Immediate Past President There is no surprise in the Obama Administration's lawsuit to stop enforcement of Arizona's immigration law-SB 1070. President Obama must defend federal authority to act exclusively on immigration law. The Supreme Court has long held that sta
Installation Speech of AILA President David W. Leopold
As delivered to the membership at the plenary session of the AILA Annual Conference on July 1, 2010 in Washington, D.C. Thank you, Chuck, for your kind introduction. I would also like to thank my father, who you have now all had the pleasure of meeting via video. The rest of the story is that [R
Have We Really Come To This?
The headline in a report on KGUN9 (a Tucson, Arizona TV station) reads: Group of illegal immigrants shot at, 1 wounded near Rio Rico (AZ) Apparently a group of undocumented immigrants were shot at while walking in the desert away from the border on Friday. The reports indicate that two men weari
USCIS Fee Increases: Show Us the Service
It's fair to say that no one likes price increases. However, any price increase is far easier for a consumer to swallow if the consumer feels that he or she is getting something of value in return for the additional money paid, whether it is an improved product or more efficient service. Would tha
I HAVE Read the Arizona Law. And, It Still Stinks
I was at church on Sunday when a fellow parishioner decided to engage me on the Arizona anti-immigration Law. His main point was this: “it is exactly like federal law.“ When I explained to him that it was not actually “exactly“ like federal law and that in fact there is no federal law
Troops On The Border – Again
Written by: Kathleen Campbell Walker Sitting here in El Paso where I can actually view the border fence and one of our ports of entry from my office window, I am disappointed to see the typical report about the placement of National Guard troops at the border during an election season. We are n