Immigration

May. 11, 2007 -- AUSTIN – Texas Governor Rick Perry today delivered the keynote address to more than 1,000 new American citizens at the largest naturalization ceremony in Austin’s history. Hosted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and presided over by U.S. Magistrate Judge Lee Yeakel, a total of 1,023 Austin and Waco area residents representing 85 countries took the Oath of Allegiance to become citizens.    » read more »

10 May 2007 -- U.S. lawmakers have introduced legislation to increase the number of Iraqis fleeing conflict in Iraq who can be admitted to the United States. VOA's Dan Robinson reports from Capitol Hill, the focus is on people whose lives are threatened for assisting U.S. and coalition forces, and international organizations in Iraq.

Called The Responsibility to Iraqi Refugees Act, the proposed measure would establish a special immigrant visa program to allow 15,000 Iraqis whose lives are threatened because of their assistance to foreign forces to come to the United States.    » read more »

May 8th, 2007 -- Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Arlen Specter, ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, made the following statement in regards to immigration on the floor of the United States Senate.

A copy of the floor statement is below;    » read more »

May 4, 2007 -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it intends to integrate biometric exit procedures into the existing international visitor departure process. The change will make the process of departing the United States more convenient and accessible for international visitors.    » read more »

06 May 2007 -- Last week, President Bush reaffirmed his support for overhauling America's immigration system to provide a path to eventual citizenship for the estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the country. One of the most contentious issues in the immigration debate is the effect that undocumented workers have on the U.S. labor market. VOA's Michael Bowman reports from Washington, where a panel of federal officials and academic scholars addressed the subject at a recent congressional hearing.    » read more »

May 1, 2007 -- As people march and rally in support of comprehensive immigration reform around the country today, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean voiced Democrats’ strong support for comprehensive immigration reform. While Democrats are working for tough and smart reform, Republicans are only offering more of the same failed leadership, including the GOP presidential candidates who according to the New York Times are “falling over themselves to convince voters where they stand is not where they stood” as they pander to the right-wing of their Party.    » read more »

April 26, 2007 -- Washington, DC - Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton today called on President Bush to reconsider immigration proposals reportedly under consideration by the Bush Administration that would dramatically scale back the existing family visa system. The proposal reportedly would place caps and waiting periods on the parents of U.S. citizens applying for green cards, force all applicants who have been waiting in a family visa backlog to start again and pay a $500 fee, and create a point system that would deny visas to family members based on their education and skill levels.    » read more »

April 20, 2007 -- (SANTA FE)---New Mexico Attorney General Gary King has created a new component in his Consumer Protection Division to deal with immigrant related issues. The Immigrant Services Unit will address issues such as immigrant-targeted consumer problems; wage claims and working conditions; development of illegal “colonias” that target immigrants; and victim assistance.    » read more »

The Chinese Exclusion Act was approved on May 6, 1882. It was the first significant law restricting immigration into the United States.

In the spring of 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed by Congress and signed by President Chester A. Arthur. This act provided an absolute 10-year moratorium on Chinese labor immigration. For the first time, Federal law proscribed entry of an ethnic working group on the premise that it endangered the good order of certain localities.    » read more »