What is the Broken immigration system Barrier?

A Broken Immigration System exists when a government policy is outdated, has not been fully enforced, and has not been able to make progress in policy to create new pathways to citizenship and break the backlogs of people trying to get into the country. According to the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA), there are four main ways in which immigrants can migrate legally: 1) Family, 2) Employment, 3) Humanitarian Causes, & 4) Lottery. Since this act was first enacted in the 1960s, it has become outdated and is no longer sufficient because it doesn't account for labor recruitment, business development and demographic aging of immigrants. The act is also not able to be fully enforced because immigration is subject to the varying degree of enforcement that each new administration brings into the White House. The inconsistency of policies causes insecurity and instability in many immigrant families. Finally, the system does not allow for policy progress to be made because the complexity of policies leads to misinformation throughout the voting population and an overall lack of understanding of the issue. This creates confusion in how people view the issue.

Other issues within the system include the decade-long wait for legal immigration status, quotas on nationalities, the lack of immigration category for entrepreneurs, the barriers that make it difficult for immigrants to apply for permanent residency on their own, policies that force children of temporary workers that grow up here to wait in line with their parents, and the lack of opportunity to appeal visa denials.

Within our own neighborhoods, there is no legal pathway to citizenship for the vast majority of residing undocumented immigrants. In addition, the complexity of the system causes confusion in how our neighbors can successfully navigate the system.

 CAUSES

The broken immigration system is a barrier to flourishing within the Maple and Garnet communities because immigrant individuals generally experience:

• A constant level of stress

• Lack of stability

• An elevated level of fear

• Family separation

• Lack of a better paying job

• No upward mobility

• Living in varying degrees of poverty

• Less protection under the law — immigrants are at the mercy of the current administration

• Increased susceptibility to malpractice — Other law offices may 1) provide inaccurate assessments on their clients' legal status, 2) charge exuberant fees, or 3) take advantage of the inability of their clients to receive protection against malpractice.

• Victim of racism/prejudice

• Landlocked / Lack of mobility

• Limited access to higher education