In the News

Immigration crisis forces Obama to ‘act alone’ with executive orders

The Guardian (August 4, 2014)

Due to the inability to come to an agreement on how to address the immigration crisis, Congress leaves on recess, leaving President Obama forced to “act alone”. This article discusses the routes that President Obama may take in order to address this issue.

The case for asylum: A child’s long, lonely trek. Fleeing gangs, Elvin Rodriguez finds abuse, delays in U.S. immigration system

Houston Chronicle (August 2, 2014)

Describes the experience of case managers working with children who have fled their home countries in Central American countries, and the difficulties they are experiencing, as well as the similarities among their clients’ cases.

NASW Unaccompanied Migrant Children Social Justice Brief: What Social Workers can do to address the crisis

NASW Social Work Blog (August 2014)

The NASW releases a brief that highlights steps and actions social workers can take in order to help with the immigration crisis.

They Are Children

HuffingtonPost (July 29, 2014)

Children are “fleeing for their lives,” often by themselves at enormous risk, to the United States and other countries throughout the Americas from the Central American countries of Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador.

Exiling children, creating orphans: When immigration policies hurt citizens

Social Work, 59(2), 167-175

Zayas, L.H., & Bradlee, M.H. 2014

The authors discuss that under the current immigration enforcement system, U.S. citizen children of undocumented immigrant parents become either exiles or orphans when their parents face deportation. This article discusses the impact of parental detention and deportation on children’s health and development and provides recommendations for addressing the best interests of children at the intersection of immigration enforcement and child welfare policy.

Jerry Brown urges ‘religious call … to welcome the stranger’ in border crisis

The Sacramento Bee (July 28, 2014)

While in Mexico to discuss the environment and trade, Governor Jerry Brown stated that the ordering of National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border to address the surge in border crossings is misguided, urging politicians instead to heed the “religious call … to welcome the stranger” in addressing the crisis.

Undocumented immigrants call for W.H. boycott

Politico (July 28, 2014)

Immigrants made surprise visits to the Center for American Progress, National Immigration Forum and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights in order to urge them to boycott meetings with President Barack Obama until they are included in talks on how he will use his administrative powers to fix the immigration system.

Flood of Immigrant Families at Border Revives Dormant Detention Program

NBC News (July 25, 2014)

A flood of families crossing the southwestern U.S. border illegally is prompting the Obama administration to revive a much-criticized detention program that previously led to children and their parents being held for extended periods of time in harsh prison-like conditions.

Amid Wave Of Child Immigrants, Reports Of Abuse By Border Patrol

NPR (July 24, 2014)

Dozens of children have come forward to make complaints of abusive and inhumane treatment received in U.S. Border Patrol stations in South Texas, however, the border patrol agency states that no maltreatment is taking place, but that rather the facilities are overwhelmed.

Obama Eyes Major Immigration Move

Time (July 24, 2014)

Following the meeting with pro-reform activists, President Obama declared his intention to use his executive authority to reform parts of a broken immigration system that has cleaved families and hobbled the economy.