Many undocumented children have no idea that they are undocumented. It's not something they think about. For a lot of them, they think of the United States as home. They came to America when they were far too young to consider legal immigration and what coming in without proper documentation really meant.
One girl's story
Imagine you're walking through your neighborhood -- trying to get a brisk 30 minutes of exercise -- before heading to work in the morning, and police stop to ask you about your immigration status. Considering the tense legal climate for all immigrants in the United States right now, being asked about your immigration status by any police officer -- no matter who you are -- could frightening enough to make your heart jump into your throat.
If you happen to be an undocumented immigrant, a host of questions will be racing through your mind. Am I about to get arrested and taken away from my family? Could I be deported? Will the police be violent with me?
If you want to immigrate to the United States, you might be able to do it in a professional capacity. The United States needs certain individuals with specific skills and abilities, and depending on the need for specific professions, you might be able to gain entry by virtue of your skills, education and experience.
Here are three categories of employment-based visas that you'll want to consider:
Being arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities is a terrifying and heart-wrenching experience for the arrested person and his or her family members. The worst part about this process may not be the arrest itself, but the fact that the person will usually have to wait for long periods of time while separated from family members before he or she knows what's going to happen.
Those who have been arrested by ICE agents could be processed as an expedited removal candidate. Those who are subjected to expedited removal are usually people who have overstayed their visas or those who illegally entered the United States. If someone crossed a border unlawfully, for example, he or she could be processed through expedited removal.
Every country has immigration laws and procedures that apply to the arrest, detainment and deportation of unlawful immigrants. This means that every country also needs to have facilities in which to detain and care for immigrants who have been arrested under these laws. If your loved one has been detained in a U.S. immigration detention center, you may want to know what he or she is experiencing inside.
One way to better understand U.S. immigration detention centers is to see how they measure up compared to others around the world. In the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and Italy, for example, private companies run the detention centers on behalf of the government. In the Netherlands and Sweden, on the other hand, central government agencies operate the centers.
Given its proximity to the southern border and the importance of agriculture to the state of California, it is no surprise to most people that the state's laws are more lenient than others when it comes to immigration. After all, much of California's economy depends on the work provided by immigrants, whether they are migrant farm workers or visa-holding skilled workers.
Recently, amid the furor around international immigration and so-called illegal immigration, Federal law and California law on immigration seem to clash. Thankfully, a district judge has recently upheld California's two critical state laws on immigration, despite the conflict with federal standards.
Many people can see the benefits of becoming a United States citizen. Whether you want to live here because you have close family and friends in the United States or you just want to move here for improved living conditions, you will certainly have one important question on your mind while applying for citizenship: How long is this process going to take?
In the best of conditions and provided that you meet all the requirements, getting U.S. citizenship can take under one year or as long as several years. If you're not a permanent resident already, however, you'll first need to formally immigrate to the country and begin the process of becoming a legal permanent resident. In that case, your road to citizenship will be longer than this depending on your circumstances.
Anyone watching the news over the past few weeks will no doubt be horrified to hear about the numerous instances of immigrant children being separated from their mothers and fathers by the United States government. If you are a U.S. immigrant and a parent, this news must be particularly frightening and you probably want to know how the government can legally do this.
What's important to understand from a legal perspective is that the Trump administration did not specifically create a policy to separate children and families. What the administration did do, however, was institute a policy to criminally prosecute every adult accused of illegally crossing into the United States. Tragically and sadly, in the case of an arrest and federal criminal prosecution, the parents will inevitably face separation from their children.
If you're not a full United States citizen, and immigration agents come to your door, it could strike terror in your heart given recent events in which legal and undocumented residents were unexpectedly arrested by immigration authorities. If you're facing a situation like this, and immigration agents are knocking on your door and ringing your doorbell, here is some important information that will help you navigate this circumstance:
1. Don't open the door but ask who they are. With the door closed, specifically ask the people if they are immigration agents or if they have come from ICE.
The current presidential administration has ramped up immigration law enforcement to such a strict degree that foreign nationals living in the United States are getting arrested at a terrifying pace. Even permanent residents with green cards, who have lived in the United States for decades are at risk of getting arrested by ICE agents. However, the people who are most at risk of deportation are the many undocumented immigrants currently living in the United States.
After being arrested for an immigration law violation and scheduled for a deportation hearing, accused individuals will have various defense options available depending on their situations. In some cases, especially when deportation appears likely, the arrested individual might want to consider applying for a voluntary departure.
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