Recent news coverage of U.S. Border Patrol agents on horseback chasing asylum-seekers from Haiti who tried to enter the United States at Del Rio, Texas, is disturbing. The images harken back to a time when white slave patrols used horses…
Haitians at the border represent a humanitarian crisis, not a security crisis, evangelical leaders say
Americans worried about border security should look beyond the popular-but-false portrayal of migrants as invaders and seek ways to help those in troubled nations not need to become immigrants in the first place. That’s the message of two evangelical leaders…
Dreamers left with disappointment once again as Senate parliamentarian dashes their hopes
Immigrants and their allies are calling for bold and creative Congressional action after a U.S. Senate official blocked a Democratic attempt to address immigration reform through a $3.5 trillion budget proposal. Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough this week ruled that budget…
Lost amid other news: Number of migrants being held in U.S. detention centers has decreased
The number of migrants being held in U.S. civil immigration detention centers has stabilized after many weeks of growth and remains well below pre-pandemic and Trump administration levels, according to researchers at Syracuse University. “The most recent numbers show that…
Why all the fuss about the ‘Remain in Mexico’ immigration policy?
How would you feel if someone you trust harmed you as badly or worse than someone who beat you? On an international level, that’s what the U.S. immigration policy known as Migrant Protection Protocols — or MPP, or “Remain in…
Scholar explores the ways migration changes people’s attitudes, beliefs and religion
Over time, immigrants to new countries behave in new ways and embrace new ideas that they would not have embodied had they never left home, according to João Chaves, author of a forthcoming book titled Migrational Religion: Context and Creativity…
With refugee and immigrant ministries already on high alert, Supreme Court delivers an unwanted message
While the nation’s agencies serving refugees and immigrants are scrambling to welcome thousands of Afghan refugees, the U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to their advocacy on another front Aug. 24 by telling the Biden administration it must reinstate the…
Is there a crisis at the Southern border? Follow the numbers
The official Twitter account of the Arizona Republican Party tweeted on Aug. 9, “The border is wide open, and our towns are being overrun by migrants.” U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn tweeted on Aug. 4, “The Democrats have abandoned our border…
Understand the humanity of the Dreamers, DACA recipient urges
Wanting secure borders and other controls shouldn’t require Americans to judge immigrants harshly or use denigrating language to label them, a DACA recipient said during a national immigration forum Aug. 11. “Even if people … can’t understand immigrants or why…
Conservative commentator Kristol says Republicans should support immigration measures
Comprehensive immigration reform is needed to uphold the values that “make America, America” but has at best a slim chance getting past Congressional Republicans still enmeshed in the anti-immigrant xenophobia stoked by President Donald Trump, said William Kristol, a political…
On anniversary of El Paso massacre, leaders connect the bullets to beliefs of white supremacy
Two years after the gun massacre at an El Paso Walmart, fears of “the great replacement” continue to stoke violence in America, according to participants in a livestreamed memorial for the 23 killed on Aug. 3, 2019. White supremacists emboldened…
God bless the USA but don’t mess with Texas: Reflections on America by a native Texan returning to Texas
I recently returned to Texas after living in Boston for the last several years. I grew up in Texas. I’m not unaccustomed to the culture here, but sometimes I’m a bit taken off guard by aspects of West Texas culture…