Summary:   "About 1.5 million eastern Europeans have arrived in the UK since 2004--and their effect on Britain's society and its economy has been debated at length. Now a major study has analysed just how the country has changed." (The Observer) An overview of the study on the economic and social impacts of Eastern European migrants in the UK is provided.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Eastern Europe, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Emigration and immigration, Social aspects, Emigration and immigration, Statistics, Great Britain, Economic conditions, Emigration and immigration, Global impact, Emigration and immigration, Great Britain, Great Britain, Social conditions, Great Britain, Population

Summary:   "The Obama administration is allowing Haitians who were in the United States before the January 12 [2010] earthquake to remain for an additional 18 months, which will address their personal safety concerns and also permit them to continue sending remittances and other assistance to their friends and families who are recovering from the disaster." (America.gov Press Release) This article discusses the Department of Homeland Security's announcement to grant temporary status to Haitians residing in the U.S. for a period of 18 months.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Haiti, Natural disasters, U.S., Foreign relations, Haiti, U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, Napolitano, Janet

Summary:   "Violent riots and the evacuation of immigrants from a southern Italian town have prompted a wave of national soul-searching over how Italy should respond to racial tensions stoked by economic malaise." (Wall Street Journal) This article addresses recent violence in Southern Italy sparked by a rise of immigration and the economic downturn.
Subjects:  Anti-immigration movement, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Emigration and immigration, Italy, Ethnic relations, Italy, Economic conditions, Migrant labor, Race relations, Emigration and immigration, Global impact, Africans, Europe, Italy, Ethnic relations, Italy, Social conditions

Summary:   This timeline chronicles the key issues and events in the history of immigration to the United States.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration law, Emigration and immigration, Government policy, Emigration and immigration, Social aspects, Emigration and immigration, Statistics, Ethnic relations, Immigrants, Statistics, Naturalization, Overpopulation, Emigration and immigration, Timeline, Ethnic relations, Timeline, Overpopulation, Timeline

Summary:   "America declared war on human trafficking nearly a decade ago [1999-2009]. With a new law and much fanfare, the government pledged to end such human rights abuses at home and prodded the rest of the world to follow its example. But an investigation by The Kansas City Star found that, in spite of all the rhetoric from the Bush and Obama administrations, the United States is failing to find and help tens of thousands of human trafficking victims in America." (McClatchy - Tribune News Service) This article profiles human trafficking violations and abuses in the U.S. and identifies major problems in the system.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Forced labor, Human rights, Illegal aliens, Law enforcement, Slavery, U.S., Politics and government, Victims of crimes, Human trafficking

Summary:   "The largest suspected human trafficking ring ever uncovered by U.S. law enforcement brought its victims into the country on commercial airliners, using completely legal documents, records show. For almost a decade, three companies and 12 accused human traffickers charged in a landmark Kansas City human trafficking case allegedly took advantage of a guest worker visa program that is easy to defraud." (Kansas City Star) This article reveals the loop-hole-ridden system that permits traffickers to bring thousands of workers into the U.S. and expose them to terrible work conditions and other abuses.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Employee rights, Forced labor, Human rights, Investigations, U.S. Dept. of Labor, U.S., Politics and government, Victims of crimes, Visas, Human trafficking

Summary:   "A push for voluntary ID [Identity] cards has few takers in a nation where many feel Big Brother is already watching." (Los Angeles Times) This article examines Britain's much-criticized national identification cards and citizens' resistance towards the cards.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Great Britain, Great Britain, Politics and government, Identification cards, Passports, Privacy, Privacy, Right of, Emigration and immigration, Global impact, British, Attitudes

Summary:   "People thought Melissa Vo was crazy to launch a new restaurant in the middle of a recession. The single mother, a refugee from Vietnam, had never managed a business, and the only place she could afford to rent in February was a tiny hole-in-the-wall across from a laundry and a corner bodega in Chelsea. But Vo, after 25 years in America, believed that the only way to make it was to become her own boss. Call it immigrant drive, or desperation, but immigrant-owned businesses are popping up at levels unimaginable decades ago. Last year, an estimated 61 percent of new businesses were launched by immigrants, according to a Babson College survey." (Boston Globe) The rise in immigrant-owned businesses and the challenges immigrant business owners experience is discussed in this article.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Entrepreneurship, Minority business enterprises, New business enterprises, Small business, Businesspeople, Businesspeople, Attitudes

Summary:   "'Major Cities' Plummeting Crime Rates Mystifying' proclaimed the headline atop a Washington Post article on July 20, 2009. The story went on to report that crime rates have dropped in New York, Los Angeles, and other large American cities to levels not seen in 40 years--'a trend criminologists describe as baffling and unexpected.' An FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] report in September [2009] showed that a nationwide plunge in violent crime dating back to the early 1990s has continued largely unabated; it too offered little by way of explanation. One plausible reason behind this welcome phenomenon, ironic as it may sound, is increased immigration, including low-skilled and illegal immigration. How can this be so?" (Commentary) The author contends that "today's low-skilled Hispanic migrants are victims of a stereotype unsupported by the preponderance of evidence." He states that "[o]ur focus should be on addressing social problems directly...rather than suppressing Hispanic immigration at great cost to our economy.
Subjects:  Crime, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Emigration and immigration, Social aspects, Hispanic Americans, Hispanic Americans, Employment, Illegal aliens, Migrant labor, Poverty, Underclass, Hispanic Americans, Social conditions

Summary:   "The number of people caught illegally entering the U.S. dropped by more than 23% during the past year, continuing a longer trend, federal data shows. The struggling U.S. economy and rising joblessness are major factors behind the decline. But government officials say investment in border security since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, also has deterred illegal immigration." (Wall Street Journal) Statistics on U.S. border apprehensions and drug seizures are included.
Subjects:  Arrest, Border patrols, Drug traffic, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Emigration and immigration, Statistics, Illegal aliens, Law enforcement, U.S., Economic conditions, Unemployment, Law enforcement, Statistics

Summary:   "Amid an overall drop in arrests of illegal immigrants crossing the U.S-Mexico border, an intriguing anomaly has cast a new light on human smuggling: Authorities report an almost tenfold spike in the number of Chinese people caught in the southern Arizona desert, the busiest smuggling corridor on the international line. The Border Patrol in the Tucson sector has arrested at least 261 Chinese border-crossers this year, compared with an annual average of 32 during the last four years, officials said." (Los Angeles Times) The rise of Chinese illegal immigrants being smuggled into the Arizona desert and caught by border control is described.

Subjects:  Arizona, Border patrols, Chinese, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, China, Illegal aliens, Human smuggling

Summary:   This article describes how "a sudden increase in the number of asylum-seekers heading to Australia, often in rickety boats after having paid unscrupulous 'people-smugglers'....are proving a serious test for [Australian Prime Minister Kevin] Rudd's government, which is facing criticism across the political spectrum for either opening the door to human smuggling or shirking responsibility on a humanitarian issue." (Christian Science Monitor)
Subjects:  Asylum, Right of, Detention of persons, Emigration and immigration, Immigrants, Attitudes toward, Immigrants, Australia, Emigration and immigration, Global impact

Summary:   "A coveted visa program that feeds skilled workers to top-tier U.S. technology companies and universities is on track to leave thousands of spots unfilled for the first time since 2003, a sign of how the weak economy has eroded employment even among highly trained professionals. The program, known as H-1B, has been a mainstay of Silicon Valley and Wall Street, where many companies have come to depend on securing visas for computer programmers from India or engineers from China." (Wall Street Journal) The record-low number of H-1B visa applications due to the weak economy and anti-immigrant sentiment in Washington is discussed.
Subjects:  Anti-immigration movement, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Labor supply, Recessions, U.S., Economic conditions, Unemployment, Visas, Google Inc.

Summary:   "Arizona could become the first state in the U.S. to criminalise the very presence of undocumented immigrants. Local politicians renewed a push to pass legislation that would make it a misdemeanor to trespass on state lands, allowing local police to arrest anyone illegally in the country." (Global Information Network) This article discusses a new initiative in Arizona state law that promises to crack down on undocumented immigrants and the controversy surrounding this possible new legislation.
Subjects:  Anti-immigration movement, Arizona, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration law, Emigration and immigration, Social aspects, Illegal aliens, Immigrants, Attitudes toward, Legislation, U.S., Politics and government

Summary:   "Gloria Garcia Barragan, 52, boarded a plane for the first time this summer June, 2009] to travel from her home in southern Mexico to Decatur. She came to this industrial central Illinois town to testify in the wrongful death lawsuit concerning her son, who died in 2007 at age 26 of burns from an accident at the BioProducts plant of Archer Daniels Midland. Every week, Garcia's son, Francisco Garcia Moreno, sent money to his family. He came to the United States as a teenager and was earning about $16.50 an hour working for a contractor at the ADM plant, which makes lysine and other additives. Besides helping Garcia and his father, Antonio Garcia Valencia, an unemployed field worker with health problems, the funds helped support Francisco's five adult siblings in a town near Guadalajara." (Washington Post) This article discusses Garcia's lawsuit against ADM and takes a closer look at the rights of immigrant workers.
Subjects:  Actions and defenses, Emigration and immigration, Employee rights, Hispanic Americans, Labor laws and legislation, Decatur (Ill.)

Summary:   "The nation's recession has slowed assimilation among immigrants because many have left the country and fewer are trying to enter the United States, according to a study released Monday [October 5, 2009] in New York. 'The economic downturn had a disproportionate impact on immigrants relative to natives,' said Jacob L. Vigdor, author of 'Measuring Immigrant Assimilation in the United States' published Monday by the conservative Manhattan Institute." (Miami Herald) This article provides an overview of the report which shows a declining trend in assimilation due to the recession.
Subjects:  Assimilation (Sociology), Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Illegal aliens, Population, Recessions

Summary:   "A new initiative by federal authorities to temporarily house illegal immigrants in converted hotels and nursing homes is the latest effort by the Obama administration to overhaul how the US treats people being detained for entering the country illegally. In June [2009], the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) directed local law enforcement to release on their own recognizance illegal immigrants caught on minor charges and not deemed a national security risk." (Christian Science Monitor) This article discusses the Obama administration's improvements to the detention system for illegal immigrants and critics response to the reform.
Subjects:  Detention of persons, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration law, Human rights, Illegal aliens, U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, Obama, Barack

Summary:   "Law enforcement personnel strive for strong connections with all citizens. In pursuit of this goal, striking an appropriate balance—one that punishes wrongdoers while protecting victims—can present a challenge. One way that officers not only can foster better relationships with immigrant communities but also increase offender accountability, promote public safety, and help ensure that crimes translate into convictions is to promote awareness of the U visa, which provides important immigration benefits to cooperating crime victims." (FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin) "The authors believe that the fear of deportation has created a class of silent victims and undermined officers' attempts at community-oriented policing among immigrant populations. They opine that the U visa helps improve relations with these communities, increase the reporting of criminal activity, enable provision of services to victims, and enhance the prosecution of violent perpetrators."
Subjects:  Crime, Criminal behavior, Deportation, Emigration and immigration, Law enforcement, Victims of crimes, Visas, Emigration and immigration law, Germany

Summary:   "Some might consider this an impolite way to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. But this year [2010], I'm giving Hispanic immigrants a gift straight from the heart: a lecture....Immigrants are one of the best things about this country, but with Congress about to restart the immigration reform debate, they will soon have to be on their best behavior. A lot of American citizens are asking what immigrants are prepared to do for America--in exchange for what immigrants want America to do for them....Where immigrants--and particularly Hispanic immigrants--could stand some improvement is in their relationship with the United States." (The Sun (San Bernardino)) The author offers suggestions for how Hispanic immigrants can better integration themselves into U.S. culture.
Subjects:  Americanization, Assimilation (Sociology), Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration law, Emigration and immigration, Economic aspects, Hispanic Americans, Immigrants, Attitudes toward

Summary:   "The number of foreign-born residents of the U.S. declined for the first time since at least 1970, as a recession and tight labor market dented America's image as the land of opportunity. A decline in construction jobs lured fewer immigrants from their home countries, especially those from Mexico, according to the Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey." (Wall Street Journal) This article discusses how the recession has caused a slowdown in the number of immigrants coming to the U.S.
Subjects:  Census, Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Statistics, Hispanic Americans, Immigrants, Population, Recessions, Surveys, Immigrants, Economic conditions

Summary:   "Migration has always been part of human history But because of widespread changes caused by globalization, more people are migrating than ever before, prompting some to call our own generation 'the age of migration.' In the last 25 years the number of people on the move has doubled from 100 million to nearly 200 million people. One out of every 35 people around the world are now living away from their homelands. This is roughly the equivalent of the population of Brazil, the fifth-largest country on the planet....Hotly debated, much has been written about the social, political, economic and cultural dimensions of immigration, but surprisingly very little has been written from a theological perspective, even less from the vantage point of immigrants themselves." (National Catholic Reporter) This article explores the spirituality of migrants as well as the theology of migration.
Subjects:  Christianity, Emigration and immigration, God, Illegal aliens, Religion, Theology, Emigration and immigration, Religious aspects

Summary:   "When Jeff Passel set out to research unauthorized immigrants this past year [2009], it was far from his first time. As senior demographer at the Pew Hispanic Center, he has been tracking this population for 30 years....His latest report, A Portrait of U.S. Unauthorized Immigrants , coauthored by D'Vera Cohn and released in April [2009], paints a different and more detailed picture than that of 30 years ago. Back in the late 70s and '80s, a lot more attention was placed on how many unauthorized immigrants there were in this country, whereas now policymakers and the public at large are more interested in knowing characteristics that make up this population, explained Passel." (Hispanic Outlook) An overview of Passel's report which explores the who, what and where on immigrants is given.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration, Social aspects, Emigration and immigration, Statistics, Hispanic Americans, Hispanic Americans, Education, Hispanic Americans, Employment, Illegal aliens

Summary:   "In 1996, Congress decided that it needed a way to track people who overstay their visas--a huge and understated part of the nation's illegal immigration problem. So it authorized a program to verify that visa holders who arrived in the country eventually left it. Five years later, on 9/11, terrorists tragically confirmed that program's failure by flying hijacked airplanes into buildings. Two of the 19 hijackers had overstayed visas. In the years that followed, the newly created Department of Homeland Security initiated what it called the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program (or US-VISIT for short) with much fanfare." (USA Today) The author contends that the U.S. does not have an effective entry-exit monitoring program to track visitors and this creates a problem for both national security and immigration control.
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration law, Illegal aliens, National security, Terrorists, U.S., Politics and government, Visas

Summary:   "Should we fingerprint all foreigners as they leave the country? I'm all for security, but stopping people as they leave won't keep terrorists out of the country. No, this proposal is about immigration enforcement, not security. Here's the theory behind it: A lot of foreign visitors come here on a visa, then stay illegally after the visa expires. If we made everyone check out, we'd know who didn't leave. Then we could track them down." (USA Today) The author opines that the US government should spend more money trying to track down foreigners who overstay by adding more enforcement agents rather than spending more money on a "record-keeping system that doesn't actually catch a single illegal immigrant."
Subjects:  Emigration and immigration, Emigration and immigration law, Illegal aliens, National security, Passports, U.S., Politics and government, Visas