By Jacqueline Charles Among those deported was […] Joseph, a Florida resident for more than 20 years who is engaged to be married and has a daughter who is a U.S. citizen. Joseph, who turns 40 next week, called his lawyer, Philip Issa, on Wednesday informing him that an officer at the Krome Detention Center in southwest Miami-Dade, where he …
Ankle Monitors and Curfews: Inside Biden’s New Tracking System for Migrant Families – New York Times
By Hamed Aleaziz “The speed of the program is completely untenable,” said Cindy Woods, national policy counsel at Americans for Immigrant Justice, an organization that represents families whose cases are processed through the expedited removal program, including Sandra’s. Ms. Woods said that over the summer, a mother of two from Ecuador reached out to her two days before her family’s credible-fear …
A message to the Biden administration: Halt deportations to Haiti now | Opinion – Miami Herald
By Cesar Flores “Amid simultaneous humanitarian, security and health crises, Haiti finds itself in a critical state where there is an urgent need for empathy and understanding by the international community. With a lack of a functioning government and the ever-increasing dominance of gangs in the nation’s capital, Port-au-Prince, the conditions in Haiti are dire, necessitating a compassionate approach that …
Uncertain and afraid: Florida’s immigrants grapple with a disrupted reality under new law – ABC News
By Gisela Salomon “Florida is home to about 4.6 million people that are foreign-born, and nearly three-quarters are from Latin America and the Caribbean. At least 825,000 lack permanent legal status, according to the most recent Pew Research Center survey from 2017. And about half of those people contribute to Florida’s workforce and economy in key industries including agriculture, construction, …
Haitian and immigrant-rights advocates want all deportations to Haiti suspended – Miami Herald
“Immigrant-rights advocates are calling on the Biden administration to immediately suspend all deportation flights to Haiti, citing the inconsistencies in its policies and the deteriorating security situation in the gang-ridden Caribbean nation. Immigrants’ rights organizations from across the country have sent a letter to the administration asking for the deportation flights to stop and decrying the administration’s refusal to implement …
Despite efforts of 3 U.S. administrations, migrant families keep crossing the border – NPR
“The White House is also asking Congress for permission to reprogram some funding for ‘community-based residential facilities’ for migrants. ‘It seems like family detention, but painted with a different brush,’ said Cindy Woods of Americans for Immigrant Justice. ‘It’s another attempt to deter more families from coming to the United States.’ Woods and other advocates argue that this effort won’t …
Immigration advocates move again to block Florida transportation law in federal court – Miami Herald
By Syra Ortiz-Blanes “The preliminary injunction filed last week includes several sworn statements from people, identified only by initials, who describe emotional, financial and social harm that the passage of Section 10 has inflicted upon their lives. ‘Our plaintiffs show the profound human impact of who this law affects. We have families that are now afraid to travel together back …
Changes are coming to the family-reunification programs for Cuba, Haiti. See what they are – Miami Herald
By Syra Ortiz-Blanes “Cindy Woods, National Policy Counsel at Americans for Immigrant Justice, told the Miami Herald that these are ‘positive changes for these two processes that have not been working.’ ‘This is allowing more flexibility for folks who might have already left out of fear and insecurity to be able to try and access this process from a different …
US expands curfews for asylum-seeking families to 13 cities as an alternative to detention – ABC News
By Elliot Spagat “ICE told advocates last week that it aimed to have up to 500 families under curfews at any given time, said Cindy Woods, national policy counsel for Americans for Immigrant Justice. There were about 200 families under curfew at the time. The number of families enrolled is expected to grow significantly as the program expands, the U.S. …
Migrant workers and advocates sue over ‘vague’ language in new immigration law – WLRN
By Dara Kam “Migrant workers and advocates have filed a federal lawsuit challenging part of a new Florida law that makes it a felony to transport into the state people who enter the country illegally, arguing the law is vague and will lead to ‘unlawful arrest, prosecution and harassment.’ The law, championed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, is among a series …