UPDATED 1 pm, 1/15/18: On Saturday, January 13, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service announced that it would start accepting DACA renewal applications. This is a limited opening, in compliance with the federal court order issued on January 9.

The new order allows anyone whose DACA expires on or after September 5, 2016 to file for a renewal. It also allows people whose DACA expired before September 5, 2016 to file a new initial DACA request. It does not allow people who have never had DACA to file an initial request.

The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM) will immediately begin helping Minnesota DACA recipients positively affected under the court order.

The USCIS action in compliance with the federal court order is a limited and temporary move that does not mitigate the urgency of passing a clean Dream Act now, this week.

“Only Congressional action can establish permanent, secure protection for Dreamers,” said ILCM Executive Director John Keller. “Congress needs to act now to provide a path to permanent residence. The future of Dreamers should not depend on an anti-immigrant, anti-DACA administration that right now is trying to overturn the judicial decision ordering it to allow renewals.”

The decision to accept DACA renewals could be reversed at any time. Because this decision does not allow new applications, it offers no relief for young teenagers who, by turning 15 years old, would have qualified to apply for DACA. They continue to live in danger of deportation due to the Trump administration’s September 5 decision to kill DACA.

Congressional action to pass a clean Dream Act now remains crucial. The Immigration Law Prof blog has published a chart comparing the various proposals now before Congress. That chart shows that the bipartisan Dream Act and the “Gang of 8” Graham/Durbin Senate proposal both offer permanent residence and a path to citizenship for Dreamers. the Goodlatte “Securing America’s Future Act” and the Cotton RAISE Act and the Hurd/Aguilar Plan do NOT offer these protections.

The Dream Act is the only “clean” bill. The Graham/Durbin Senate proposal includes border wall funding and various restrictions on immigration, including denial of permanent residence to DACA parents.

Senators brought the Graham/Durbin bill to the president on Thursday, January 11, two days after the president hosted a live television meeting with Congress members in which he promised to sign any DACA bill that was passed. On January 11, Trump denounced the bi-partisan Senate proposal, saying in vulgar and racist language that the United States should not accept immigrants from Africa, Haiti, and El Salvador, but rather should seek immigrants from countries like Norway.

The clock is ticking. Congress must pass some kind of funding bill by Friday, January 19, or the government will run out of money to operate. Democrats can refuse to vote for any funding bill unless it includes a clean Dream Act. That is the leverage that Democrats have to force approval of a clean Dream Act now.

The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, together with Navigate MN, will host a Facebook Live conversation on DACA on Thursday, January 18 at 10:30 a.m. on our Facebook page.

UPDATED 1 pm, 1/15/18 with new time for Facebook Live.

UPDATED 1 pm, 1/15/18

January 15, 2018 – The government announced Saturday night that it would comply with the federal court order and accept DACA renewal applications. That step, while welcome, is a limited and temporary move that does not mitigate the urgency of passing a clean Dream Act now, this week.

“Only Congressional action can establish permanent, secure protection for Dreamers,” said John Keller, executive director of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM). “Congress needs to act now to provide a path to permanent residence. The future of Dreamers should not depend on an anti-immigrant, anti-DACA administration that right now is trying to overturn the judicial decision ordering it to allow renewals.”

Keller also pointed out that the decision to accept DACA renewals could be reversed at any time. This decision does not allow new applications, which means no relief for young teenagers who, by turning 15 years old, would have qualified to apply for DACA. They continue to live in danger of deportation due to the Trump administration’s September 5 decision to kill DACA.

ILCM will immediately begin helping those DACA recipients positively affected under the court order.

“Today,” said Keller, “as we remember Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and honor the dream we share with him, we call on Congress to create a road to citizenship for young Dreamers whose talents and energy and imagination contribute so much to our country.”

The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, together with Navigate MN, will host a Facebook Live conversation on DACA on Thursday, January 18 at 10:30 a.m. on our Facebook page.

UPDATED 1 pm, 1/15/18 with new time for Facebook Live event.

January 12, 2018—”We denounce the appalling racism expressed by President Trump yesterday,” said John Keller, Executive Director of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM). “While racism and xenophobia are part of our history, the majority of Americans recognize them as evils to be eradicated. Yesterday’s vile outbursts by President Trump showed his own racist and ignorant views, and his unfitness to speak for America.”

The Board of Directors of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM) has members who are immigrants or descendants of immigrants from around the world. Its clients last year came from more than 100 countries. Its staff and supporters are similarly diverse.

“We reject the president’s uninformed and bigoted statements that began when his campaign started and continued through yesterday,” said Enrique Vazquez, ILCM board chair. “His vulgar attack on entire countries and continents is disgusting, but we know that he speaks from his own ignorance and bigotry and does not speak for the majority of Americans or the values of equality and welcome emblazoned on the Statue of Liberty that make the United States unique in the world.”

The president’s comments came during a meeting with Senators who proposed some kind of compromise including relief for DACA recipients, along with other changes in immigration law.

“We need to stay focused and pass a clean, bi-partisan Dream Act now,” said Keller. “Every recent discussion seems to go from bad to worse. Americans in the vast majority expect Congress and the President to welcome and protect Dreamers and reject racism. Now is the time for solutions not distractions. Congress, do your job.”

He’s trying to force out 200,000 Salvadorans with TPS. No president wanted to end humanitarian immigration. Then came Donald Trump.

January 8, 2018 – Today, the Trump administration announced an end to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nearly 200,000 Salvadoran immigrants. TPS holders from El Salvador will be forced out of the United States by September 9, 2019, forced back to a country beset by violence.

The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM) has opened our Helpline for Minnesotans affected by this action, with hours from 3-5 p.m. from Tuesday, January 9 through Friday, January 12. The number for the Helpline during those times is 651-287-3715.

“This is more than a human tragedy for the Salvadoran TPS holders, their families, and communities,” ILCM Executive Director John Keller said. “The termination of TPS for Salvadorans, which follows similar terminations of TPS for people from Nicaragua, Sudan, and Honduras, exemplifies the racist and xenophobic anti-immigration policies of this administration. This decision completely disregards the violence within El Salvador and the very real dangers to returnees. It also ignores the length of time that Salvadorans have resided in the United States and the degree to which they are integrated and valuable members of U.S. communities.”

ILCM has worked with hundreds of people with TPS for the last 17 years. We will do everything we can to help those eligible to transition to a different status. That is not possible for most people with TPS, who will need Congressional action to let them stay here.

Of the Salvadorans residing in the United States with TPS:

• About 88 percent are in the work force, paying taxes and contributing to the nation’s economic growth. Many work in the construction industries in Texas, Florida, and California, helping to rebuild after hurricanes and wildfires.
• About one-third own their own homes.
• Half have lived in the United States for at least 20 years.
• About two-thirds have U.S. citizen children.

Only Congressional action can reverse this travesty and allow TPS holders from El Salvador to remain here with their U.S. citizen children, in the homes they own, in the jobs that contribute to the U.S. economy, in the communities where they are essential and valuable members. We urge every Minnesotan to contact members of our Congressional delegation to urge them to support legislation establishing permanent resident status for Salvadoran TPS holders.

January 19 is the next crucial decision date for DACA and Dreamers. That’s when funding for running the government runs out, unless Congress passes an extension. To pass an extension, Republicans need some Democratic votes in the Senate. That gives Democrats leverage to demand a clean Dream Act in exchange for their votes to keep the government open.

Time is running out for DACA recipients – 122 per day, about 14,000 since September 5 are losing DACA protection. After March 5, the number losing DACA protection—and subject to immediate deportation—jumps to about 1,000 per day. Even if Congress passed a Dream Act today, full implementation would take an estimated seven months. In the meantime, no one trusts the Trump administration to hold off on deporting Dreamers, no matter what the law says. Continue reading →

“Family-based immigration” doesn’t sound as scary — or get at the fear of losing control.

St. Paul, December 22, 2017—Yesterday, Congress refused to pass a clean Dream Act that would have allowed nearly 800,000 young Dreamers a peaceful holiday season. Congress ignored thousands of people who have filled the streets of Washington and their own offices for weeks, demanding a clean Dream Act now, before the end of the year. They ignored the plight of 122 young Dreamers who become deportable each day that passes, almost 15,000 in total by the time Congress returns to Washington in January.

“We are deeply disappointed by Congress’s failure,” said John Keller, executive director of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, “but this is not the end. Every new poll shows solid and growing support for Dreamers, across the country, among Democrats and Republicans. This year’s Congressional inaction is a setback but not a defeat. The Dreamers are here to stay.”

We need the skills, hard work, energy, courage, dreams, and imagination of young immigrants. Minnesota families, small and large cities, faith communities, colleges and universities, businesses and farms need thousands of young immigrants to remain in Minnesota; they in turn need Congress to pass a clean Dream Act in the first days of 2018.

Minnesota’s dreamers and allies showed inspiring courage and persistence over the past weeks. The struggle continues, past the disappointment of yesterday’s vote and into the new year. They will not give up now. We will not give up now

Here’s a New Year’s resolution for everyone who cares about these young people: Resolve to call your Congressional representatives on January 2 and 3 and every day until they pass a clean Dream Act, and give these young people permanent protection and a path to citizenship.

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The Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM) is a non-profit organization that provides immigration legal services to clients of all nationalities throughout Minnesota. ILCM’s work is based on a three-pronged model—direct legal services, education, and advocacy

Chain migration is not a legal term, it is a political term, which is conveniently bandied around by those who oppose immigration, including Trump appointed officials like the USCIS Director who should be objectively administering the law rather than infecting it with Trump’s and his own personal biases.