Approximately 4.9 million undocumented immigrants are eligible for President Barack Obama's deferred action programs, which would temporarily avoid their deportation, but it could cost at least $20 billion to deport them all.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is on track to deport the fewest number of undocumented immigrants since 2007 as President Barack Obama has eased deportations by 20 percent.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's probe into Immigration and Customs Enforcement found thousands of immigrant detainees were released in less than one month in 2013. ICE's decision to release the immigrants was done for budgetary reasons and was finalized without the consent of the White House or the Department of Homeland Security.
New York City became the first jurisdiction in the United States to provide free legal counsel to detained undocumented immigrations facing deportation. New York City's Council passed the $4.9 billion program known as the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) after a "successful" yearlong trial.
GOP Tea Party voters and conservative Republicans have verbalized the need to press forward with immigration reform. In spite of this, President Barack Obama has delayed a review of deportation policies, which won’t be addressed until the end of the summer, in hopes that Congress will approve a complete overhaul of immigration laws.
The Obama administration is expected to announce a new policy initiative that would decrease the number of deportations of nonviolent undocumented workers.
A new Department of Health and Human Services report indicates that a lower number of Latinos than expected are seeking medical coverage through Obamacare. Out of all the people who reported their race after selecting plans on the federal exchange, only 10.7 percent were Latino. In contrast, 63 percent of new signups were white, 16.7 percent were black, and 7.9 percent were Asian.
On any given day around the U.S. more than 100,000 men and women can be found looking for work on selected street corners commonly known in the Hispanic community as "paradas."
Last year Immigration and Customs Enforcement rounded up 193,000 foreign nationals with criminal convictions and charges but deported only 125,000 of them while releasing 68,000, "Fox News" reported.
In the midst of deportations, there's misery, loss and separation; and there are some who've decided to profit off of unsuspecting undocumented immigrants who are attempting to avoid relocation.
Vice President Joe Biden recently exposed the breadth of the immigration issue; dispelling the notions undocumented immigration is simply a Mexican/Hispanic issue; that all American citizens are descendants of legal immigrants; that undocumented populations are here to rashly absorb resources. While discussing immigration, an individual mentioned that their family legally emigrated from Ireland in the 19th century, and Biden countered, explaining that his family did not.
Like her strong characters, actress America Ferrera is making sure that her voice is heard, but this time it's on a political platform. The Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild-award-winning actress, has become a strong voice in support of comprehensive immigration reform as Voto Latino's artist coalition co-chair. Last week, she stopped by the set of POLITICO in Washington, D.C., to further discuss her stance on the issue.
