Mexico Asks US to Halt Parts of Arizona’s SB1070 Immigration Law

Fox News Latino, 12/27/2012

Opponents of Arizona’s controversial SB1070 law have a new ally: Mexico. The Mexican government is urging a U.S. court to block a part of the law that prohibits the harboring of undocumented immigrants. Lawyers representing Mexico asked the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in a filing Wednesday to uphold a lower-court ruling that blocked police from enforcing the ban. Mexico argued the ban harms diplomatic relations between the United States, undermines the U.S.’s ability to speak to a foreign country with one voice and encourages the marginalization of Mexicans and people who appear to be from Latin America.

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Dallas’ new Mexican consul has a tough act to follow

Dallas Morning News, 12/07/2012

Latino leaders in Dallas say they hope the arrival of a new Mexican consul means legal assistance to immigrants remains high, especially if Congress approves legalization for some of those here unlawfully.

Juan Carlos Cue Vega left before Thanksgiving, two weeks before last Saturday’s inauguration of Mexico’s new president, Enrique Peña Nieto. The Dallas successor for one of the largest consulates for Mexico is expected to be named several weeks after an inauguration that returns Mexico’s old often-authoritarian party to government rule after a 12-year absence.

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Unauthorized Immigrants: 11.1 Million in 2011

Pew Hispanic Center, 12/6/2012

There were 11.1 million unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. in March 2011, unchanged from the previous two years and a continuation of the sharp decline in this population since its peak in 2007, according to estimates by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center.

The estimate for 2011 is not statistically different from totals for 2010 (11.2 million) or 2009 (11.1 million).¹ The number of unauthorized immigrants peaked in 2007 at 12 million, and the decline since then has been the first significant decrease following two decades of growth.

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US, Mexico complete two-month trial to fly deportees deep into Mexico; future efforts unclear

The Washington Post, 12/5/2012

The U.S. and Mexican governments have completed a two-month program to fly deportees deep into Mexico, and the U.S. is looking to the new administration of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto on whether to continue the effort aimed at relieving overwhelmed Mexican border cities.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said 2,364 Mexican nationals flew on 18 flights during the trial period, all but three of them men. Nearly 2,000 had criminal convictions in the U.S.

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Illegal immigration: Who’s applying for Obama’s ‘DREAM Act’ deferrals?

The Christian Science Monitor, 11/20/2012

About one-quarter of the young undocumented immigrants eligible for the two-year deportation deferral established by President Obama have applied since the program started Aug. 15.

Statistics released last week by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) gave the fullest portrait yet of who is applying, and they suggested that enthusiasm for the program was not dampened by the uncertainty caused by presidential election.

Republican nominee Mitt Romney had waffled on how he would handle the program, leading some immigration advocates to wonder if applicants might be wary of starting the process until the election was decided. But the data show the election had little effect on the process.

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Majority Supports Path to Citizenship; Greater Division on Other Social Issues

ABC News, 11/14/2012

Most Americans support a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, an issue that may be high on the agenda of newly re-elected President Obama and the 113 th Congress, given the increased importance of nonwhites – including Hispanic voters – in the nation’s political equation.

On two other prominent social issues in last week’s voting, a bare majority continues to support legalizing gay marriage, and this ABC News/Washington Post poll finds a new high, 48 percent, in support for legalizing small amounts of marijuana for personal use.

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New momentum for path to citizenship, but it won’t be easy

The Washington Post, 11/09/2012

A growing number of conservatives are softening their views on immigration in the wake of President Obama’s dominating performance among Hispanic voters, giving new momentum to a years-long push by advocates to legalize millions of undocumented immigrants.

Yet even as officials in both parties pledged to make overhauling immigration a top goal in the coming months, it became clear Friday that the issue remains thorny for each side.

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Mexico: Alabama Immigration Law May Violate Trade Agreement

Fox News Latino, 9/21/2012

Mexico government officials are looking into whether Alabama’s anti-illegal immigration law – considered the toughest such state-level measure in the nation – violates the North American Free Trade Agreement.

An official with Mexico’s labor department confirms the review in a letter released Thursday by the group that filed the complaint, the Service Employees International Union. The Mexican government says it has asked the United States to begin talks about the matter that are allowed under NAFTA.

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Young illegal immigrants may get driver’s licenses

USA Today, 9/15/12

The new immigration policy has brought to the forefront the long-running and bitter debate over whether illegal immigrants should have access to driver’s licenses. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said that each state could determine whether to issue licenses or extend other benefits to young immigrants who qualify for the deferred status.

Some states, such as Oregon and Georgia, have announced that they will grant driving privileges to those eligible for the new program. Others, such as Arizona and Mississippi, have vowed to deny them.

California legislators this month approved a bill that would allow an estimated 450,000 eligible young immigrants in the state to use the federal work permits at the Department of Motor Vehicles as proof of lawful presence in the country. The bill is now headed to the governor.

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Documentation for deferred action leads to confusion among illegal immigrants

The Washington Post, 9/13/12

It can be daunting for immigrants in the country illegally to document their lives here. Many have spent years trying not to leave a footprint — working at jobs that pay in cash under the table, or using fake names and Social Security numbers to get work. To qualify for deferred action now, they must try to create a paper trail.

But in some cases, it is unclear what sort of documentation is acceptable, and this has created frustration for applicants and charges from critics that the system will be easy to game.

The confusion stems in part from instructions put out by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services stating that, along with things such as bank transactions, utility bills and school records, applicants can send in any “other document you believe is relevant.”

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