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There was celebration in the air. Anxiety, too.

About 60 people who came to San Diego from Somalia refugees, immigrants, naturalized citizens gathered in a conference room in City Heights for their weekly meeting. Its an opportunity to work out problems, strengthen community bonds, share food. This time, Friday morning, they applauded those among them who had just completed a six-month program to learn how to read and write English.

And they worried.

Two days earlier, President Trump had endorsed a radical shift in the nations immigration policy. The bill would eventually cut in half the number of legal immigrants allowed into the country every year, currently more than 1 million, and it would take a decades-old system that favors family ties and turn it into one that is merit-based, giving preference to those with college degrees, job skills and the ability to speak English.

This legislation will not only restore our competitive edge in the 21st century, but it will restore the sacred bonds of trust between America and its citizens, Trump said at the White House. This legislation demonstrates our compassion for struggling American families who deserve an immigration system that puts their needs first and that puts America first.

Almost immediately, critics on both sides of the political aisle found fault with the plan and gave it little chance of passage. They disputed the claims that low-skilled immigrants are taking jobs from Americans and driving down wages, and they said the new restrictions would hurt the economy by shrinking the number of foreign-born workers at a time when the native population is decreasing.

To the Somalis gathered in City Heights, the new proposal felt mostly like more of the same. Trump made immigration reform a centerpiece of his presidential campaign, and since taking office in January hes moved to build a wall on the Mexican border, increase deportations, stem the influx of refugees and curtail visitors from certain Muslim-majority countries.

What hes telling us is were not welcome here, said Said Osman Abiyow, 34, president of the Somali Bantu Assn. of America, an aid organization he founded after arriving in 2003. This is not what America stands for around the world, where it has a great reputation as a place of freedom and peace.

Like many others in the room, Abiyow has relatives in Somalia he would like one day to bring to the United States. Now a U.S. citizen, hes hoping his sister can join him. But he said shes been caught up in the ban the administration put in place for newcomers from six predominantly Muslim countries (Somalia, Sudan, Libya, Iran, Syria and Yemen). He doesnt know when she might be allowed to come.

If the proposed changes go through, maybe never.

There were 44.7 million immigrants living in the United States in 2015 (the most recent year for which numbers are available), which was 13.4% of the U.S. population, according to the Pew Research Center. An estimated 11 million of those are believed to be here illegally. In San Diego County, Health and Human Services Agency figures show about 21.5% of the population is immigrants.

Under current policy, American citizens and permanent residents can sponsor spouses, minor children and parents for an unlimited number of green cards, and siblings and adult children for a limited number of visas. Thats how most lawful immigrants arrive here. In fiscal year 2015, for example, about 65% of the green cards went to relatives.

The new bill, sponsored by Republican Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia, would still allow the spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens and permanent residents to come in, but it would end the preferences for siblings and adult children.

That left San Diego newcomer Rukiya Bare concerned during Fridays weekly meeting of the Somalis.

She came here with her husband and four children 10 months ago. But their 25-year-old daughter, Natesho, had to stay behind. Now shes trying to join the family and is currently in Saudi Arabia, Bare said. When her three-month visa there expires, shell have to leave the country or risk jail.

I worry about her all the time, Bare said through an interpreter. At night, during the day it hurts my heart, the stress of not having her with us.

Several of the Somalis said they came to the U.S. because of the immigration-policy emphasis on family unity. The Somalis are a tightknit group (there were 3,534 in the county in 2015) and family connections can be crucial to helping them survive in new surroundings, Abiyow said.

Sado Moh, 29, misses her mother. Moh arrived in San Diego four months ago after spending 10 years in a refugee camp and is hoping her mother, father and four siblings will be able to come, too. That was already uncertain because of the other immigration initiatives pursued by the Trump administration, she said, and the latest proposal seems to her the most threatening yet. It would cap the number of refugees admitted annually at 50,000, about half of what it has been.

I ran away from civil war and came here to build a new life, Moh said through an interpreter. But without my family, what I feel mostly is lonely. I want them to come here and have the same chance for a new life. Then I will be happy.

Lawful immigrants are more likely to be of working age (18 to 64) than native-born U.S. citizens, according to Pew 76% compared with 60%.

The occupation with the largest percentage of immigrant workers, about 20%, is farming, fishing and forestry. Many of those workers are drawn to San Diego County, which has more than 5,700 small family farms (most of them less than 10 acres). Nationwide, the county is first in avocado and nursery-crop production; third in honey production; fifth in lemons; and ninth in strawberries.

About 11,000 people are employed as farmworkers in the county, and most are immigrants a mixture of people who are here both legally and illegally.

Under the new immigration legislation, preference for green cards would be determined by a point system for attributes like education, English-language ability, high-paying job offers, entrepreneurial initiative and achievements (such as a Nobel Prize). Although that would seem to suggest limited opportunities for farmworkers, supporters of the bill said it will help bring up wages, perhaps making the jobs more attractive to native-born workers.

Wilkens writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

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Proposal to limit legal immigration ripples through Somali families in San Diego - Los Angeles Times

GREENSBORO Hundreds of people marched through downtown Saturday in support of immigration reform.

Betsy OConnor, who was meeting a friend for lunch downtown when the wave of protesters marched by, said immigration reform is needed in the United States.

This is supposed to be the land of the free but here lately, things have been pretty bad, said OConnor, 61, of High Point. I hope our politicians can get it together and stop separating people in the country.

FaithAction International House held the fifth annual Downtown Unity Walk for Immigration Reform to draw attention to issues surrounding immigration.

Melanie Rodenbough, a board member with FaithAction International, said the group wants to bring the community together and include those who are immigrants. She said Saturdays march had a great turnout that included several immigrants.

Rodenbough said FaithAction focuses on supporting immigrants, educating businesses and companies on immigration issues and connecting immigrants to community resources.

She said the immigrant community needs lawmakers to pass a comprehensive immigration bill that would protect young people without a criminal history to a pathway to citizenship.

Lisa Hitch with Indivisible High Point, a progressive political group, said families are being torn apart because of immigration laws in the United States.

Not that immigration laws in the country were better before, she said, but its gotten worse because of the current administration.

President Donald Trump has made good on campaign promises to crack down on immigration, both legal and illegal. He plans to cut legal immigration in half and has introduced legislation that eliminates preferences given to extended family members and adult children of U.S. citizens seeking green cards, according to the New York Times. Hes requested more immigration officers and signed an executive order authorizing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to widen the net of illegal immigrants to deport to include anyone, not just those with serious criminal records.

According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arrests are up nearly 40 percent since January, with an average of 400 arrests across the country every day.

Late last month, a group gathered in Greensboro to denounce the rising numbers of ICE arrests of people without criminal records.

And two Greensboro churches are offering sanctuary to immigrants who illegally entered the country years ago. Both women were annually checking in with ICE and getting stays on deportation orders until this year.

Juana Luz Tobar Ortega, an Asheboro grandmother who has lived in the United States for more than 20 years, has been living at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church since May 31.

She is thought to be the first North Carolina resident to seek sanctuary from immigration officials at a church.

Minerva Cisneros Garcia, who has lived in Winston-Salem for 17 years, and two of her three sons moved into Congregational United Church of Christ on June 28.

Greensboro resident Michael Wildman, who attended Saturdays march with his wife and two young children, said immigration is a moral issue and voters need to elect better officials who understand that.

Im a person of faith, Wildman said. We have to welcome others.

OConnor was impressed by the number of people participating in the march. She said she hopes politicians pay attention to the unrest over certain laws and bills and make some changes.

Its sad that we have to protest to draw attention to issues that should be commonsense, OConnor said. The great part about this country is we can voice our opinions to force change.

Contact Andre Taylor at 336-373-3465 and follow @andretaylorNR on Twitter.

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Hundreds march through downtown Greensboro for immigration ... - Winston-Salem Journal

Kate Steinle, a 32-year-old San Francisco woman who was shot and killed by an undocumented immigrant, has become the face of immigration reform in the United States.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte introduced a bill named after the California woman as part of U.S. House Republicans sweeping push for immigration reform a charge welcomed by the former immigration attorney from Roanoke County.

In the two years since Steinles death, some conservatives have pointed to the tragedy in opposition to sanctuary city policies.

Juan Lopez-Sanchez, the man charged with Steinles death, is an immigrant from Mexico who was deported five times since first arriving in the country in 1991.

After being taken to San Francisco on an old warrant for marijuana possession, local officials dropped those charges and Lopez-Sanchez was released from jail months before the shooting. Per San Franciscos sanctuary city policy, local law enforcement did not inform U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that they were releasing Lopez-Sanchez.

Goodlattes Kates Law would increase the maximum sentences for immigrants who illegally re-enter the country after being deported.

What happened to Kate Steinle is not at all unusual, Goodlatte said in an interview last week.

The congressman also cited the March death of a Lynchburg teen whose body was found in Bedford County and is believed to have been killed by members of the MS-13 gang. One of the Salvadoran men charged with the murder is also a suspect in a Maryland homicide case.

While some Democrats criticized Goodlattes bill by saying it would apply harsh penalties for garden variety offenses, and other critics argued the legislation wouldnt have stopped what happened to Steinle, the bill passed the House in June with bipartisan support.

Working in tandem with President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans, Goodlatte chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee, which hears immigration bills is pushing an agenda that increases enforcement of illegal immigration and limits legal migration into the country.

The Judiciary Committee has heard and passed a slate of immigration measures that would cut funding for sanctuary cities and secure Americas borders. The committee has also passed measures to usurp presidential powers to grant the authority of states and localities to enforce immigration laws inconsistent with federal statutes and set the refugee resettlement ceiling, which would be capped at 50,000 people annually.

Goodlattes bills Kates Law and No Sanctuary for Criminals Act are two of the most significant in the reform package because they already have passed the House and will set the tone for how far Congress is willing to bend on immigration reform. While they face a difficult road in the Senate, Trump has thrown his weight behind the measures, calling them vital to public safety and national security.

Trump backing Goodlattes bills is no surprise considering the president campaigned heavily on immigration reform and has repeatedly vowed to withhold funds from sanctuary cities. He also name-dropped Steinle in his speech at the Republican National Convention last year, saying, but where was the sanctuary for Kate Steinle?

This collaboration represents a drastic change of pace from when former President Barack Obama was in office.

Shortly after Goodlatte was named chairman of the Judiciary Committee, he sat down with Obama to discuss immigration reform. During the 40-minute meeting, the two talked in detail about their views on immigration, but couldnt manage to see eye-to-eye.

We had an in-depth discussion about the issue and I think we could understand where each was coming from, but we couldnt find common ground, Goodlatte said.

At the time, Obama favored a comprehensive Senate approach that would give millions of undocumented immigrants a chance at citizenship while also beefing up security along the border between the U.S. and Mexico. Goodlatte, on the other hand, has long supported a stronger enforcement model that adheres to the nations current immigration laws.

But Goodlatte said he is pleased with the focus of the current administration because it largely aligns with his own vision for immigration reform.

Other House Republicans also have lauded Trumps push for increased border security and decreased migration into the country during floor debates on immigration reform.

Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., praised Kates Law, saying the U.S. should have no crimes committed by illegal immigrants because there should be no illegal immigrants in the country.

Citing a Fox News analysis, he also argued that illegal immigrants commit crimes at higher rates than American citizens, an argument PoltiFact California has debunked.

For the past 16 years, we had two presidents who did not prioritize dealing with illegal immigrants, he said. Thank God we finally have a president who takes that role seriously.

Pro-immigrant groups see the legislation differently.

Monica Sarmiento, executive director of the Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights, called the Trump administrations push for immigration reform a systemic effort to vilify the nations undocumented immigrant community and reduce the number of legal immigrants into the country.

Its easier for the administration to use immigrants as a scapegoat for Americas problems than it is for Trump and Congress to fix real problems like crippling student debt, reforming the criminal justice system and growing the economy, she said.

What were seeing is that the administration and Congressman Goodlatte are constantly trying to focus and really spend taxpayer money on initiatives that lead to attacking individuals that should not be under the limelight, she said.

Goodlattes sanctuary cities bill would bar sanctuary cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities from receiving some federal funds and opens those localities up to being sued by the victims of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants. The legislation also calls for undocumented immigrants who have committed dangerous crimes to be detained during their removal proceedings.

In June, hundreds of local, state and national organizations that advocate for or depend on immigrants signed a letter to the House of Representatives, urging members to vote down Kates Law and the No Sanctuary for Criminals Act.

Sanctuary policies are critical to promote public safety for local communities, the letter said. Fearing referral to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, victims and witnesses of crime are significantly less likely to communicate with local law enforcement. Local law enforcement authorities have repeatedly echoed this sentiment, acknowledging that community policing policies are paramount to enhancing public safety.

The national Fraternal Order of Police echoed similar sentiments in a letter sent to House leadership in June.

Having garnered support from just three House Democrats, Goodlattes sanctuary cities bill faces a tough road in the Senate.

For comparison, two dozen House Democrats voted in favor of Kates Law, but Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, introduced similar legislation under the same name last year. His bill failed in the Senate.

Regardless of the outcome of his two bills, Goodlatte will continue to work toward immigration reform with the help of the executive branch and his Republican colleagues. Last week, he praised two Republican senators for introducing the Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy (RAISE) Act, which would cut the number of legal immigrants entering the U.S. by half in the next decade and create a merit-based green card system, as opposed to the lottery system currently in place. Trump also has backed the legislation.

This Congress must pass strong measures to ensure that immigration enforcement in the interior of the United States remains a priority , Goodlatte said in June.

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Goodlatte and House Judiciary Committee leading Trump's call for immigration reform - Roanoke Times

The Utah Immigration Reform Coalition responded to theRAISE Act, new legislation sponsored by Senators Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and David Perdue (R-Ga.), and called for a revised solution that harnesses the economic power of foreign-born workers in the U.S. economy.

The proposed bill was endorsed this week by President Trump, and called for a substantial limit to legal immigration with the intended outcome of raising wages for American workers. Instead, the bill will have negative economic impact on both American and foreign-born workers.

While the coalition agrees on the need to modernize our broken immigration system with merit-based solutions, the bill contains a broad misconception that immigrants are hindering the wages of American workers. In fact, research has shown time and time again that foreign-born workers often act as key drivers ofinnovationandjob creation, and do their part infilling the workforce gapsthat the American economy faces with its ongoing aging crisis. Instead, the coalition is urging Congress to take an approach that harnesses the power of immigrants to create a streamlined process that attracts the best talent, builds the workforce needed to support Americas industries, and ultimately lays the groundwork for greater economic growth.

While most agree that our countrys immigration system and policy is broken and outdated, the RAISE Act is not the solution our country needs. It falsely assumes that legal immigration harms our economy, when study after study from leading nonpartisan groups and think tanks confirm that legal immigration actually helps grow our economy, saidTim Wheelwright, Salt Lake City Immigration Attorney and Immigration Reform Task Force Chair at the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce. The need to reform our immigration system has never been greater, but the RAISE Act would actually be a big step backwards. I urge Utahs Congressional delegation to oppose the RAISE Act.

Former Utah Republican Party Chairman Stan Lockhartadded: We all agree our immigration system needs reform. The election rhetoric of 2016 was to make it harder to come here illegally, but easier to come here legally. That is not what this bill does. Limiting even more of those who can come legally actually has the opposite effect by providing greater incentive to come illegally. Its the wrong policy for America.

The state coalition is sponsored by New American Economy (NAE), a bipartisan organization that supports immigration reforms that help both American workers and immigrants build a better economy. The coalition utilizes local leadership roles and NAEs detailed research on immigrants to create a constructive platform to discuss immigration reform with Congress.

Closing our doors to immigrants wont reverse any of the challenges we face in todays global economy, saidformerUtah State Representative Holly Richardson. Instead, such policy would be severely limiting one of our countrys longstanding strengths, which is the willingness to embrace the best and brightest from across the world. Immigrants are part of the economic engine that makes this country run and should be embraced as the contributors they are.

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Utah Immigration Reform Coalition responds to the RAISE Act and calls for modernized system that harnesses the ... - Utah Policy

Immigration returned to the forefront of political discourse with the emergence of Donald Trump, whoannounced his bid for the presidency two years ago by saying he would build a wall between the United States and Mexico, which he accused of sending drugs and rapists into the U.S.

That wall has not yet materialized Congress has so far refused to go along with funding for it but the U.S. Supreme Courtrecently upheld portions of President Trumps travel ban, criticized by some as a discriminatory ban on Muslims.

And last week, the president and a pair of Republican members of the U.S. Senatetouted a plan to dramatically alter the immigration system by slashing the number of legal immigrants allowed to enter the country over the next decade.

Trumps tough talk, the travel ban and recent legislation aimed at punishing cities that provide sanctuary to illegal or undocumented residents has, again, focused attention on an issue that has been held up as an example of American laxity, hypocrisy, cruelty and racism.

Immigration attorneys and foreign-born residents alike say anew, chilling climate has taken hold, one that raises thespectre of deportation for those in the country illegallyeven if they have not committed other crimes since their arrival.

Liberals talk of a system in need of a pathway to citizenship so undocumented residents no longer live in fear. Conservatives talk of one begging for enforcement at the nations southern border and within the country itself, where they say illegal immigrants commit crimes and depress the wages of American workers.

And yet for all of the talk, no sweeping action seems to be in the offing.

Reform efforts by successive presidents, George W. Bush and then Barack Obama, crashed and burned, and Trumps plans have been met by immediate opposition.

Meanwhile, in Palm Beach County and elsewhere, the issue continues to fester, generating fear among those worried they might be deported, concern among farmers who dont have enough workers for their fields and anger among those who see illegal immigration as a threat to the nations economy and safety.

Over the next several months, The Palm Beach Post will explore various aspects of the issue, attempting to bring clarity to a topic that has remained maddeningly muddy.

There are no firm figures on precisely how many undocumented people live in Palm Beach County.

Using U.S. Census data from 2014, the Pew Research Center estimated in February that 450,000 undocumented people live in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach area.

Two of Palm Beach Countys signature industries tourism and agriculture rely heavily on foreign-born workers.

Even as Trump castigates undocumented residents and calls for a reduction of legal immigration, his businesses in Palm Beach County make extensive use of foreign-born workers.

The Trump Organization has asked the federal government for dozens of special visas for people who would serve as waiters, waitresses, cooks and maids at Mar-a-Lago on Palm Beach and Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter.

Every year, Trump hires dozens of foreign workers through the U.S. Department of Labors H-2B visa program, which is similar to the H-2A program farmers use to staff their operations.

Foreign-born workers definitely play a role in the make-up of the hospitality workforce here, said David Semadeni, secretary of the Palm Beach County Hotel and Lodging Association. Exactly how much is difficult to say without doing an in-depth survey and I have not been able to do this.

For farmers, the visa program is critical and, they say, utterly insufficient.

There are several problems with the program, said Lisa Lochridge, public affairs director for the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association.

Its very expensive, Lochridge said. Its incredibly cumbersome, and its not reliable.

Jimmy Chavez helps his mother, Maty Carrillo, work on some tax forms after school in their family owned Tikal Tires shop in Jupiter on July 11, 2017. Jimmy, 13, was born in the United States, but both of his parents came to the United States illegally and have been alerted during the Trump administration that they may be deported. (Richard Graulich / The Palm Beach Post) Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Farmers have to estimate how many workers they will need months before knowing anything about their harvest, Lochridge said. And foreign-born workers often arent processed on a timeline that matches up with when farmers need them.

Flawed as it is, the program is still important, Lochridge said.

More and more growers are using it because its all we have, she said. They realize its one of the only tools in their toolbox

Jobs offered through the H-2A program must first be made available to American workers. Lochridge said Americans arent lining up for jobs that are temporary and physically demanding.

With the limitations of the H-2A program, farmers turn to another important labor supply illegal or undocumented workers.

The reality is that agriculture still relies on foreign-born workers who may not be documented, Lochridge said. The stark reality is that these are jobs American workers will not do.

That doesnt have to be true, said Ira Mehlman, media director for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that supports better border management and lower overall levels of immigration.

Businesses want to hire undocumented workers so it can pay them less, Mehlman argued.

Hiring illegal workers is basically a subsidy for these employers, he said, and the rest of us are paying in other areas.

Those other areas include depressed wages and more demands on schools and law enforcement, Mehlman said.

Youre not really getting anything cheaply, he said. Youre just padding the profit margins of these employers.

Several studies, however, indicate that undocumented workers are a net positive to the U.S. economy.

A study released in February by Florida International Universitys Center for Labor Research and Studies found that undocumented immigrants contribute $437.4 million to the economy of the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metro area.

The precise impact of illegal or undocumented immigrants on education and law enforcement in Palm Beach County is difficult to discern.

Federal law prohibits the School District of Palm Beach County from asking students if they are here illegally. Aimed at protecting student privacy and preventing discrimination, the policy also makes it impossible to know how many students are not legal residents.

The district can and does track how many students speak English as a second language.

There were 17,196 English language learners in the district during the 2011-12 school year, the district reported. That figure dropped to 16,749 the next school year and stood at 16,895 in 2013-14.

The next three school years saw major upticks to 21,180 students in 2014-2015, 22,441 in 2015-16 and 24,639 in 2016-17, the district reported.

Not all English language learners are in the country illegally, of course. Many are the children of foreign-born residents who are in the country legally and have moved to the county from some other location.

More than 322,000 of Palm Beach Countys 1.4 million residents are foreign-born, according to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

As the immigration debate rages, high-profile crimes by undocumented residents have intensified calls for their deportation.

That was the case in May when Boynton Beach police say a truck driven by a 48-year old Mexican citizen, Victor Villanueva Rivera, hit and killed Brandon Wesson of Palm Beach Gardens as Villanueva was turning from Hypoluxo Road north onto Lawrence Road.

Wesson, 21, was thrown from the motorcycle he was riding and was dead by the time Boynton Beach Fire Rescue crews arrived.

Police said Villanueva, fearful of being caught driving without a license, kept going after he struck Wesson, dragging Wessons motorcycle behind his truck about 1,400 feet.

This only proves Trumps point why we need the wall! one Palm Beach Post reader wrote on Facebook.

There is no tally for how many crimes in Palm Beach County are committed by undocumented immigrants.

Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office Spokeswoman Teri Barbera said PBSO does not track crimes by illegal immigrants and therefore cant give a factual response about whether criminal activity by undocumented residents is a significant problem here.

PBSO detained 658 people in 2012 and 669 in 2013. In July of 2014, PBSO changed its policy, requiring a federal judge to sign off on the holds, which fell to 438 in 2014 and down to 168 in 2015 and 166 in 2016.

So far in 2017, the number of people detained for ICE stands at 258.

In July 2016, when he accepted the Republican Partys nomination for president, Trump said that nearly 180,000 illegal immigrants with criminal records, ordered deported from our country, are tonight roaming free to threaten peaceful citizens.

Several studies, however, have shown that foreign-born residents those here legally and illegally are less likely than native-born Americans to commit crimes.

With few exceptions, immigrants are less crime prone than natives or have no effect on crime rates, Alex Nowrasteh, an immigration policy analyst, wrote in 2015 for the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.

Immigrant advocates say undocumented residents, fearing deportation, are reluctant to report when they are victims of crimes.

Maty Carrillo works on a mounting machine in her family owned Tikal Tires shop in Jupiter on July 11, 2017. She and her husband, Victor Chavez, face immigrated to the United States illegally and during the Trump administration have been told they face possible deportation from the country. (Richard Graulich / The Palm Beach Post) Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

That was the experience ofMaty Carrillo, a Guatemalan citizen who owns a tire sales and auto repair shop in Jupiter with her husband, Victor Chavez.

Carrillo said a man attempted to sexually assault her not long after she entered the U.S. illegally. She said she did not report the man because she feared deportation.

After attempting to get a work permit extended in March, Carrillo and her husband now both face deportation, part of more aggressive removal push launched since Trump became president.

Its a totally different culture with this administration, said William Cavanaugh, an immigration attorney in West Palm Beach. Its very enforcement-oriented.

The Obama administration focused its deportation efforts on undocumented residents who committed felonies after entering the country. The Trump administration has moved away from that focus, seeking instead to remove undocumented residents even if they have no criminal history beyond entering the country illegally.

There are no changes in the law, Cavanaugh said. Its just the application of it, a shift in priorities.

FIRST IN A SERIES

This is the first installment of The Palm Beach Posts continuing coverage of immigration in Palm Beach County.

ILLEGAL OR UNDOCUMENTED?

Whats in a name?

When it comes to the immigration debate, quite a lot.

The terminology one chooses to use in describing people who have entered the country illegally or remained in it without proper documentation says a lot about where one comes down on things like border enforcement, deportations and a pathway to citizenship.

In general, those who favor more aggressive border enforcement, stepped up deportations and no pathway to citizenship (or a very costly, time-consuming one) tend to use the terms illegal immigrant or illegal alien.

Ira Mehlman, media director for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, explains why here:

Illegal alien is a legal term. It doesnt mean you came from Mars. Illegal alien is the proper legal term. The advocates for illegal aliens have come up with all kinds of euphemisms to make whats been done sound kind of innocuous undocumented immigrant, undocumented worker. Those who are not in the country legally are illegal aliens.

As Mehlman noted, those who back limited, prioritized deportations and an easier pathway to citizenship tend to use the terms undocumented immigrant, undocumented worker or undocumented resident.

Afifa Khaliq, a Palm Beach County immigration activist, explains why here:

The logic behind that is if you get a speeding ticket or commit any other offense you are still a legal human. When we use the term illegal we are effectively saying that the persons very existence as a human is unlawful. Illegal Immigrant was the term first used in 1939 by the British towards the Jews fleeing Nazis and entering Palestine without authorization. We the activists believe that no human being is illegal. The unauthorized residents just by overstaying or lack of documentation do not commit a criminal offense. They are subjected to deportation because of civil administrative procedure, not because they have broken a law. The Supreme Court has also noted where Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority, said that, As a general rule, it is not a crime for a removable alien to remain present in the United States. Justice Kennedy also noted that the removal of a person is a civil matter. So the activist community uses the word Undocumented Immigrants instead of the term illegal.

In this story and the ones that will follow, The Palm Beach Post will use terms such as illegal immigrant and undocumented immigrant or unauthorized worker interchangeably where appropriate. The Post will not use the term illegal aliens because while it may be a technical term used in legal documents, it is not common American parlance. The terminology used by The Post is not meant to convey support for one set of policies or another.

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Immigration in the age of Trump: What it means for Palm Beach County - Palm Beach Post