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Editor's Note: This is one in a series of "On the Record" pieces highlighting the policy stances of candidates running for major offices in the 2022 Nevada election. Click here for more information on the policy positions of Tituss opponent, Mark Robertson.

Five-term incumbent Rep. Dina Titus is no stranger to campaign season, but her re-election bid this year against Republican challenger Mark Robertson is more competitive than in past years after redistricting changed the boundaries of Nevadas Congressional District 1.

District 1 includes the heart of Las Vegas and now extends into Henderson and Boulder City, which added more Republican voters to the once safely blue district. Before redistricting, District 1 had more than 147,000 registered Democrats and fewer than 66,000 registered Republicans. September voter registration statistics showed District 1 has 155,315 active registered Democrats and 112,245 Republicans.

The Cook Political Report has classified this years District 1 race as a toss up, adding it to the list of competitive contests in Nevada that could determine control of Congress.

Despite the increase in Republican voters, Titus told The Nevada Independent that she and her team have been campaigning all over the district parts of which she represented as a state legislator.

Titus hasnt been shy about expressing her displeasure with the redrawn district. Her concerns, she said, are that redistricting made three of the four congressional seats more competitive and that District 1 was broken up in a way that it no longer has a cohesive set of issues or values.

As for CD1, Titus said the new boundaries divided the Hispanic community and that the new district will become disproportionately Republican over the coming decade as the population grows.

Titus said that her priorities, if re-elected, would lie in strengthening infrastructure (she serves on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee), maintain the recovery trajectory in the tourism and hospitality industries, addressing climate change and preserving the environment including efforts to turn Avi Kwa Ame, an area that includes Spirit Mountain in the southern part of Clark County, into a national monument.

I think this is a time when you need experienced, compassionate representation. I have been representing the people of Nevada for a while through thick and thin, through good times and bad, she said. [People] know where I stand, because I don't beat around the bush. And I hope that even if we disagree on one issue, we can find another issue to work together So I'd like the opportunity to go back and kind of finish the recovery that we've already started.

Below is a summary of Tituss interview with The Nevada Independent.

Economy

Most economic experts say rising inflation comes from a combination of sources, including federal pandemic stimulus and relief aid, but Titus said the tradeoff was worth it.

According to a September inflation report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, consumer prices climbed far more quickly than expected 8.2 percent.

Inflation is caused by the spending only a small bit. It's also caused by supply chain problems, the war in Ukraine, Titus said, noting that its a problem affecting markets around the world. If we hadn't spent that money to give loans to small businesses, to give unemployment extension to people out of work we would have had unemployment, then, like a Great Depression.

Nevadas unemployment rate peaked at 28 percent in April 2020. As of August, the states unemployment rate dipped to 4.4 percent, similar to the rate in early 2019.

The minimum wage in Nevada rose this summer to $10.50 an hour for workers who are not offered qualifying health insurance, and to $9.50 an hour for those who are offered health benefits. By 2024, the minimum wage will reach $12 an hour for those not offered insurance, and $11 for those who are. In November, Nevadans will vote on a ballot measure that would set a flat rate of $12 per hour starting July 1, 2024 regardless of health insurance, which Titus said she supports.

Federal COVID-19 relief aid also went to K-12 education, which has raised concerns that the one-time infusion will hurt schools when the money runs dry. Titus said that there is ongoing federal funding for education already established, although not as large as the COVID relief aid.

But improving public education is a combined effort from the federal, state and local levels, she said.

It's not just the federal hand reaching down saying what else should be done, because school districts vary and schools themselves vary from neighborhood to neighborhood, Titus said. The thing to remember, though, is that the school is the anchor of a neighborhood. And the better it is, the stronger the neighborhood becomes.

Since March, the Federal Reserve has increased interest rates in an attempt to tame inflation, but that move has created fears that if it raises rates too aggressively, it could dampen economic growth and trigger a recession. For now, Titus said, Nevadas continued economic and job growth proves the state is not in a recession.

I would continue a lot of the things that we have done, she said, adding that the Inflation Reduction Act was a good step to continue investing in infrastructure, environmental efforts, and affordable health care, which aims to create jobs and lower costs.

Titus has also supported the gas tax holiday to lower gas prices, but Nevada law establishes that the states fuel tax would automatically increase by the exact amount of any reduction at the federal level. Titus said she does not believe the gas tax holiday contradicts Nevada law as it is a temporary relief, arguing that Nevada law addresses a permanent reduction.

She suggested that to reduce gas prices, the country should work toward not relying as much on Saudi Arabia, which is the largest petroleum exporter to the United States, according to the federal Energy Information Administration. In 2021, the U.S. share of petroleum imports was about 11 percent and 13 percent for crude oil imports Saudi Arabia was the source of 5 percent of the countrys total petroleum imports and 6 percent of crude oil imports.

Housing

In regard to a lack of affordable housing, Titus said the problem isn't anything new.

She said pandemic-era legislation that helped subsidize mortgage and rent payments and enacted eviction restrictions was very important to do. The congresswoman also commended Gov. Steve Sisolaks Home Means Nevada initiative, which invests $500 million to lower the cost and boost the availability of housing.

One of the problems, she said, is corporations that buy homes in neighborhoods to turn them into short term rentals, which takes them off the market for others.

That's certainly something that needs to be looked at, she said.

Titus added that there should be provisions for when housing developers buy public land to build affordable housing in exchange for access to public lands. She also suggested offering investors and developers some kind of tax break program so they can focus more on affordable housing.

Environment and climate change

Lake Mead dropped to a historically low level earlier this year. Between the infrastructure package and Inflation Reduction Act, Congress has approved billions of dollars to address water infrastructure and drought issues, primarily in the Southwest.

As for water-saving measures, Titus said she does not believe desalinization would be a good solution as it would cost a lot of money, and the proposed idea of bringing water to Southern Nevada from elsewhere would have various implications and jurisdictional problems.

I think [climate change] is existential. If we don't do something about it now, it'll be too late. We don't have a very big window to start making changes, she said. One thing that I'd like to see us do is do away with single-use plastic.

Looking at the big picture, though, she said she would like the country to move away from fossil fuels to more sustainable energy, such as wind or solar, and people should be encouraged and rewarded to make those changes.

She said that if Republicans take control of Congress, they would roll back many of the clean energy provisions and regulations already in place.

Immigration

Polling shows that immigration does not seem to be among voters top concerns, but Titus said immigration has to be totally overhauled.

Republicans idea of immigration reform is to build a wall. I've never seen a wall somebody couldn't climb over or crawl under, she said. And that's just not a humane way to deal with the issue.

While immigration is a complex issue, Titus said the delegation needs to first address the people who are already in the country, including those under the Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals and Temporary Protected Status.

People can't really function to their fullest potential if they don't know what their status is. That needs to be resolved, she said. It needs to be reformed top to bottom. But I would start with Dreamers and TPS, because that's a piece you can deal with, perhaps more easily, those people are already here. Let's take care of that and then try to get some sense for the rest.

She said that she doesn't support an open border but does not believe the best way to handle immigration is by building a wall.

Republicans have called the situation at the southern border a crisis. Titus said the country is facing a lot of crises not just at the border.

I think we need a strong border. We need to put more funding into training for border officers. We need more high-tech equipment to detect what is coming across the border, she said. But you also need to invest in those who are coming for asylum with more courts of asylum or judges to deal with asylum cases, so they can be resolved more rapidly.

She also suggested investing in countries, such as El Salvador, where people are coming from. Titus believes that if the United States helped build up those economies, the people would have jobs and would be less likely to feel the need to immigrate.

Foreign affairs

Titus said she supports the Biden administrations approach to the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

Russia is not our friend And Ukraine has kind of become a symbol there of European resistance, she said. And it's not just Ukraine. It's Poland. It's Hungary. It's the countries around there that we need to support and these are our friends. These are our allies.

She also supports the decision to not send troops to assist Ukraine, while sending other humanitarian and military aid. She said she would change her mind if Ukraine joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the defense alliance made up of 30 member nations.

Titus gave President Joe Biden an A grade for his performance in the past 21 months, but an incomplete to see whats to come in his term.

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On the Record: Democratic Congresswoman Dina Titus The Nevada Independent - The Nevada Independent

Democratic congressional candidate Christina Bohannan showed her support for organized labor and talked education and other issues during campaign stops in Burlington on Thursday.

Bohannan, a University of Iowa law professor and Democratic state representative from Iowa City, is running against Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Ottumwa for Iowa's newly redrawn 1st Congressional District.

Bohannan first stopped to meet with striking workers outside of the Case New Holland International plant, tweeting: "They deserve a fair contract wages that keep up with inflation, better retirement plans, and a more consistent time-off policy. And we want to get them back to work. I support them 100%."

Bohannan then hosted a town hall meeting at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 13, speaking to an audience of approximately a dozen. She answered questions on topics including her background and family, her support for labor unions, the Case strike, concerns that Democrats are losing support from union members, education, and workforce issues.

Bohannan began by explaining her support for unions, describing the types of adversities she saw her father experience working as a non-union laborer.

"My dad was a construction worker. He worked really long hours," she said. "But he did not belong to a union. And life was rough a lot of times."

More:Democrats Christina Bohannan, Mike Franken tout support for working class at Burlington picnic

Bohannan described how her uncle, who was also a non-union laborer, died at a construction site due to unsafe conditions.

She also described her father's experience becoming ill with emphysema and losing his health insurance after battling the illness for 10 years.

"We'd never had much before that, but when that happened, we really lost everything," Bohannan said of her family's financial struggles after her father's illness. "So I saw up close how sometimes even people who work really hard don't get a fair shot."

In contrast, Bohannan went on to describe how her brother, who is an IBEW worker, has been able to lead a prosperous life in part due to his union membership, and in spite of his recent battle with cancer.

"He's had the health care that he needs," she said. "(IBEW) have been there for him. And he's had the time off that he needed, to be with his family, to have the care. And so I've seen that up close and seen the difference that one generation and union membership makes.

"For me, it really is about making sure that when people work hard, they can afford to have a basic wage, that they can have a home, that they can have health care."

More:Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Christina Bohannan spar on abortion in 1st Congressional District debate

Bohannan spoke about her visit to the Case New Holland picket line Thursday, adding that she's been to several other picket lines this year.

"We're kind of having a labor moment here in Iowa," Bohannan said. "(Case workers) have been out there for months. And it's getting cold. ... It's so important to stand up for people, and a lot of Iowans have been striking this year because they're not getting a fair contract, because they're not getting a fair shot.

"And people want to be at work. They don't want to be striking. But if you're not treated with respect, if you're not given a decent contract, if you're not treated well, (strikes are) going to happen."

Bohannan added that work needs to be done at the federal level to prevent employers from interfering with collective bargaining and spoke about the importance of prevailing wages.

"I've been in the state Legislature the last couple of years. I fought really hard for strong labor protection, and I've watched some really bad bills go through, and I've done everything I could to stop those things. But it's rough in Iowa right now," Bohannan said.

Bohannan accused Miller-Meeks of not supporting the working class and organized labor.

More:Iowa City a focus for U.S. House candidates Christina Bohannan, Mariannette Miller-Meeks in first ads

"(Miller-Meeks) voted against the infrastructure bill, which is incredible when you think about Iowa, you think about southeast Iowa, you think about all of the locks and dams and the bridges that are in trouble and the roads," Bohannan said. "She voted against funding to fix those things and the jobs that are going to come from that. ... Even Chuck Grassley voted for that bill, and she voted against it.

"Now, (Miller-Meeks) is going to all these ribbon-cutting ceremonies and doing these op/eds and taking photos in the papers, smiling at these different projects that she didn't want to happen."

Bohannan also criticized Miller-Meeks for her vote against the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which will invest billions of dollars over the next five years in semiconductor chip manufacturing in the U.S.

"We could be a great place for semiconductor manufacturing here in Iowa," Bohannan said. "We've got everything you would need to do that. And she voted against that. She voted against bringing those jobs back to the United States."

More:U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks rallies supporters during Burlington campaign stop

Bohannan went on to describe her distaste for extreme partisan bickering and her desire to fight for Iowans regardless of the agenda of the leaders of either party in Congress.

She also acknowledged support Democrats have lost among union members in recent years, pointing to immigration as one area of concern for some.

"I think both of our parties have failed on immigration," Bohannan said. "I think sometimes Democrats don't acknowledge some of the problems at the border. They don't acknowledge that border states do face particular challenges with the influx of people, and with people dying in trucks at the border."

She went on to express her support for border security, bipartisan immigration reform, and pathways to citizenship for immigrants.

"I've been talking to a lot of people, including here today in Des Moines County, about how we need that workforce, we need more working," Bohannan said. "And immigrants to Iowa are one place where our population is growing. ... I'm hearing from businesses that (immigrants joining the Iowa workforce) would be helpful, but it needs to be done in a lawful, orderly way."

Bohannan expressed support for gun ownership but also described her support for some gun control measures.

More:Christina Bohannan takes aim at Mariannette Miller-Meeks at Iowa State Fair during Soapbox speech

"Law-abiding, responsible gun owners have nothing to fear from me," she said. "I am a gun owner myself. ... It's one of my most cherished possessions, because my dad gave it to me. It's one of the few things I have left of him, and he gave it to me to take care of myself."

Bohannan added that she has supported "common-sense" gun reform measures, including background checks and mental health services.

More:Mahaska County GOP censures U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks over support of same-sex marriage

She also spoke of the importance of funding public education.

"Education, for me, it changed my life," Bohannan said. "Neither of my parents had graduated high school. For me, I went to engineering school and then law school at a public university. I worked my way through it. But getting a good public education prepared me for that. And I think (education) is the great equalizer. I think it's what lifts people up. And it lifted me out of poverty and gave me opportunities."

More:New midterm election Iowa Poll to be released Saturday

Bohannan said she believes it is important to provide more funding for education at all levels.

"I would like to see (the U.S. make) a national investment in (education) like we did with infrastructure," she said. "A targeted, focused investment in our public education system, which includes preschool, not just K-12, and then all the way up, including community colleges, apprenticeships.

"I really think that needs to be a focus, because we are losing ground in the United States, and Iowa for sure, but across the United States, our education system is not excelling the way that it did. We are falling behind. In countries like China, you better believe they are investing heavily in their education. And we really can't afford to fall behind."

More:Meet Christina Bohannan & Mariannette Miller-Meeks, running for Iowa's 1st Congressional District

Bohannan finished the town hall by asking that those who plan on voting for her be vocal about their support and share their reasons for supporting her with others.

"Hearing it from you will mean more than coming from some stranger or somebody who is knocking at their door that they don't know," she said.

Ryan Drew, president of the Southeast Iowa Building and Construction Trades Council, and one of the moderators of the town hall, said he believes Bohannan is the candidate to beat Miller-Meeks, but stressed the importance of getting out the vote.

"This race was decided by six votes the last election," Drew said. "I think we have a better candidate than we did before. Nothing against Rita Hart, but I think (Bohannan) has more fire in her. ... But six votes. It does matter."

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Labor, education tops of Bohannan campaign stop in Burlington - Burlington Hawk Eye

September sales were up year-over-year in all but one individual retail category, electronics and appliance stores.

Despite continued inflation and an interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve, retail sales remained strong month-over-month with no change from August in September and in year-over-year comparisons, gaining 8.2 percent from September 2021.

September retail sales confirm that even with rising interest rates, persistent inflation, political uncertainty and volatile global markets, consumers are spending for household priorities, explained the National Retail Federation (NRF) President and CEO Matthew Shay.

Septembers totals from the U.S. Census Bureau compared with increases of 0.4 percent month-over-month month and 9.4 percent year-over-year in August. On a three-month moving average, sales were up 9.2 percent total year-over-year.

Sales were uneven across retail categories and inflation is the main factor that is determining how much shoppers are willing to spend, added Jack Kleinenz, the NRFs chief economist. Households are tapping into savings, accessing credit and reducing their savings contributions as they meet higher prices head on. Shoppers are looking for bargains and value in the current economic environment and even more so as we head into the holiday season.

The NRFs calculation of retail sales which excludes automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants to focus on core retail showed September was up 0.3 percent from August and up 7.2 percent unadjusted year-over-year. In August, sales were also up 0.3 percent from the previous month and were up 8.5 percent in comparison to August 2021.

Numbers from the NRF were up 7.6 percent unadjusted year-over-year on a three-month moving average as of September. Sales were up 7.2 percent in yearly comparisons for the first nine months of the year, keeping results on track with NRFs forecast that 2022 retail sales will grow between 6 percent and 8 percent over 2021.

September sales were up in all but one individual retail category, electronics and appliance stores, on a yearly basis, with gains led by online sales, building materials stores and grocery stores, and increased in five out of nine categories on a monthly basis.

More specifically, online and other non-store sales were up 0.5 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted and up 11.5 percent unadjusted year-over-year. General merchandise stores were up 0.7 percent from August and up 4.8 percent from September 2021.seasonally adjusted and up 4.8% unadjusted year over year. Clothing and clothing accessory stores were up in monthly and yearly comparisons, rising 0.5 percent and 4.5 percent, respectively. Furniture and home furnishings stores had a harder month, down 0.7 percent from August seasonally adjusted but up 1.5 percent unadjusted from 2021.

As we enter the holiday season, shoppers are increasingly seeking deals and discounts to make their dollars stretch, and retailers are already meeting this demand, concluded Shay. However, the Biden administration must enact policy measures to relieve inflationary pressure and lower costs for American families. While the Federal Reserve tackles long-term actions meant to end inflation, we believe removing China tariffs, enacting smart immigration reform to address the worker shortage, and increasing investments in supply chain resiliency can and will have an immediate impact on consumers and the economy.

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Retail Sales Grew Again in September. Hear from Experts on Whether or Not This Can Last - Gifts & Decorative Accessories

We have an anonymous problem with illegal aliens coming into our Land of the Free and home of the Brave.

This is not new, it has been going on for over a decade, if not longer.

Our political parties wont or cant deal with it. Why, because one party likes the cheap labor cost for businesses and large corporations, the other party believes they can make them citizens and get their votes in the near future.

Very disappointing positions by both political parties, once again demonstrating they only care what they think is good for their party, not what is good for our Land of the Pilgrims Pride.

Our present Presidential administration has just ignored the problem, and by doing so, has exacerbated the problem.

So far this year, that we know of, 2.1 million illegals have been permitted to enter our country.

They turn themselves in at the border, are arrested, registered, given a work permit, and told to come back for a hearing on their request for asylum.

This process turns them from illegal aliens into legal immigrants.

I would love to know how many come back for that hearing, unfortunately my research has not turned up a current number.

At one time it was 61%, but most people that work in the immigrant community think it is much lower now.

Because of this Presidential administration ignoring the problem the states along the border have been overrun by illegal aliens, driving many of their voters into the hands of the Republicans, that is if the Republicans dont mess it up; as they so often due.

Perhaps we have stumbled into an opportunity for us to get a handle on our illegal immigration challenge.

The governors of Texas and Florida may have found away to force President Biden into doing something about our immigration challenge.

By bussing and flying these illegals into democratic sanctuary cities, such as Chicago, New York, Washington D.C. and Marthas Vineyard it has brought the immigration issue to the front page of liberal newspapers and liberal television news.

The criticism of these governors of course has been way over-the-top, calling them brutal and inhumane, but it has gotten the issue in front of the American people, hopefully forcing the Biden administration to stop ignoring the issue and taking some corrective action.

President Biden cannot solve our immigration problem by simply dealing with the influx of illegal aliens at the border, but it would be a step in the right direction; perhaps leading to a comprehensive reform of our immigration system.

I strongly support legal immigration, it has been necessary and great for our country, in future columns I will offer my ideals on a comprehensive reform bill.

I had some strong reservations about supporting the last immigration reform bill, until President Reagan asked me and others to vote for it, and I did.

What we need is to do is stop playing politics with immigration and start addressing the real problem ensuring that people who come to this country and properly vetted and welcomed and immersed in our culture.

I would love to hear your thoughts, readers, on what you think needs to be done.

Share your comments about this column by emailing former Congress Bill Lipinski atBillLipinski@hotmail.com.)

Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily Newscriticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.

Email Ray Hanania at rghanania@gmail.com.

Follow RayHanania on Gettr.com, the uncensored Twitter Ray Hanania on Gettr, the new Twitter

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Immigration needs more than reform, it needs to be fixed - Suburban Chicagoland

Bruno DBritto. Photo/ Kate Brindley

Bruno DBritto left his home in Rio de Janeiro as a teenager, arriving in Nashua to join his father, who had left Brazil for the United States years earlier after his parents divorced. Coming to the U.S. was a chance to seek better opportunities, he said, and to leave a neighborhood beset by violence.

I saw many people being shot. Like a month before I came (to the United States), this kid got shot, killed pretty much in front of my school as we were leaving. When you are living with that, you kind of become numb to it, he said. It actually took me a couple of years after I came to realize that wasnt the norm.

DBritto said his father was able to bring him to the United States under the family reunification program, the leading immigration pathway for foreign nationals (citizens of a foreign country), according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Other pathways: employment-based immigration, refugee resettlement, asylum, and the diversity lottery.

As with much of immigration policy, family reunification also called family-based immigration can be a complicated process involving multiple eligibility categories and qualifications. Now an immigration attorney, DBritto helps others hoping to bring family members to the United States.

DBritto is also founder and member of the N.H. Brazilian Council, which provides a variety of legal and social services to the Brazilian population and other immigrants in New Hampshire, including promoting language access.Bruno DBritto. Photo/Kate Brindley

Recently, DBritto said, he helped clear the path for a father to make his way from Brazil to join his wife and child in New Hampshire. Of the 60 immigration-related cases he is working on, he said, most address family reunification, involving such countries as Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela, Thailand, and Colombia.

U.S. citizens have certain advantages when it comes to petitioning on behalf of immediate family, a category that includes spouses, unmarried children under the age of 21, and parents of U.S. citizens if the U.S. citizen is 21 years of age or older. There are unlimited visas for this group and reunification generally takes two to three years, according to Lina Shayo, an immigration lawyer with Mesa Law Immigration Services in Manchester.

Other family members, such as siblings, fall outside the immediate category and can involve a longer wait. A U.S. citizen petitioning for a sibling can take 15 years, for example. A U.S. citizen petitioning for reunification with a child who is over 21 can take eight years. There are a limited number of visas available and a lot more people apply than the numbers that are available, so it creates a backlog, she said.

Those approved for entry into the U.S. can apply to become lawful permanent residents (LPRs), non-citizens authorized to live permanently in the United States, also referred to as Green Card holders. They are allowed to work and own property here, receive financial assistance at public colleges and universities, and join the Armed Forces. After meeting certain eligibility. requirements, they may also apply to become naturalized U.S. citizens.

Lawful permanent residents can also petition for family, including spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21. The number of visas is limited for this group, however, and these family-based immigration efforts can take decades, Shayo said. Additional limits apply to oversubscribed countries including India, China, and Mexico that have exceeded their allocation of visas.

In certain circumstances, U.S. employers can hire foreign workers. Its a bit of a complicated process, said Shayo. They have to prove that they cant find an American worker who is willing and able to do the job, and that theyre going to pay the foreign worker what they call the prevailing wage, which is set by the Department of Labor, she said.

The process is designed to protect American workers and American jobs, she said. So they have to jump through a lot of hoops to do it, but if its successful then youre able to bring foreign talent to the United States. As with family-based immigration, there is a big backlog of cases.

Employment-based immigrants fall under various categories, including priority workers, or people with extraordinary abilities in various fields, outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational managers and executives. Other groups, in order of preference, include people with advanced degrees and exceptional ability, and both skilled and unskilled workers.

In some cases, individuals themselves petition to gain entry to the U.S. This is when the foreign national or the non-U.S. citizen petitions on their own behalf to the U.S. government to get a Green Card to live and work in the United States, Shayo said.

If, for instance, someone plans to come to the U.S. to make an investment a minimum of about $750,000 and open a business, they can apply for entry, she said. You have to have a lot of money and you have to promise the U.S. government that youre going to come and open a business and this business is going to hire American workers, she said.

In some cases, people who are outstanding in their field or considered high-performing can petition for themselves recipients of major internationally recognized awards, for instance. They can petition the U.S. government based on their outstanding ability and, if they are successful, theyll get a Green Card and theyll come and live and work in the United States, or stay here permanently, she said.

Under the asylum program, individuals who come to the United States petition to remain for various urgent reasons. They must be in the country or at a point of entry to do so. An example of a self-petition is an asylum, which is when someone says my government or a group that my government cannot control is persecuting me because of my race, or my religion, my national identity, membership in a particular social group, (or political opinion), Shayo said. Its not, for example, conditions in my country are not very good, and I have to come because there are no jobs.

In addition, Bruno DBritto said, You have to show that you were unable to relocate to another region of your country, and even if you do, you would suffer the same effect.Fred Nshimiyimana. Photo/Kate Brindley

Unlike asylees, refugees gain approval for entry from a third country before arriving in the United States. Like asylees, they must demonstrate they have experienced persecution or have reason to fear persecution on the basis of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.

Concord resident Fred Nshimiyimana and his family lived in a refugee camp in Rwanda for many years. His parents arrived there in about 1998 after fleeing war in Congo, he said. Nshimiyimana was born in the camp. We didnt have much food, we didnt have clean water. We didnt have electricity, and education was tough, he said. We survived that life, he said.

When he turned 12 or 13, he said, his family began a series of interviews with the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees, the beginning of a process that would take more than a year and lead to resettlement in the United States. We went for many interviews (with UNHCR). They asked a lot of questions on why we wanted to go to the United States, why my parents left Congo, he said.

The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration within the U.S. State Dept. oversees this admissions program. After conducting initial screening, UNHCR refers qualifying individuals to a State Department Resettlement Support Center (RSC). These RSCs conduct further interviews and submit information for background checks to various U.S. national security agencies. Domestic resettlement agencies meet to review the biographies of refugees selected by the RSCs to determine where they should be resettled in the U.S.

Nshimiyimana and his mother and two brothers were resettled to Concord in 2015, he said. It was a difficult period, in part because they had left his father behind. He was working outside the camp, he said, so that we could have a better life. Leaving the camp to work on behalf of his wife and sons complicated his fathers resettlement case, causing him to lose his refugee status, Nshimiyimana said. His mother has been working with an immigration lawyer for several years to try to bring his father, who now lives in Kenya, to the U.S.

Now entering his junior year at UNH, Nshimiyimana recently started a one-year internship at the American Friends Service Committee of New Hampshire and works as lead organizer for Change for Concord, a group of young adults working to improve the quality of life for young people in the Concord community. He is particularly interested in helping immigrant students. I will try my best to work with the schools and try to make middle school and high school a better place for the immigrants, so that once they leave they have a better future and they can go to college and have a career, he said.

This summer, Nshimiyimana passed the test for U.S. citizenship. He was asked to come back later that same day for the naturalization ceremony, when he took the oath of allegiance and received his Certificate of Naturalization, proof that he is now a U.S. citizen.

Its a relief, he said. Its a big relief. I was not a citizen of Rwanda and I didnt have citizenship of Congo, he said. I didnt have a nationality. Now that Im American and I belong to a country, that feels amazing.Fred Nshimiyimana. Photo/Kate Brindley Photography

At the beginning of every fiscal year, in October, people can enter the diversity lottery, a program limited to about 50,000 people from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.

Its a true lottery, Lina Shayo said. You get picked and if you get picked you have to be vetted. They want to make sure you graduated from high school, that youre not a criminal. Then you get an interview at the U.S. Embassy where you live and then, if you pass the interview and you pass all that vetting, you get an immigrant visa and you come to the United States and get a Green Card.

During the pandemic, interviews have been difficult to get, she said. And since the law requires a Green Card to be issued the same year a person is picked by lottery, a years delay can mean losing out.

This is the third year where people are getting picked and theyre submitting all of their applications and then they never get called for an interview, Shayo said. And those visas cannot be issued, which means those Green Cards will never be issued and theyre just wasted.

As Shayo has found, there are some common misconceptions, both among those who are new to navigating the immigration system and the general public those who observe it from afar, perhaps hearing about it fleetingly on the evening news.

A recent client, for instance, inquired about bringing a friend to the U.S. from a foreign country, Shayo said. She asked What can I do to sponsor this person to come here? Shayo informed her that her friend does not qualify under any of the immigration categories. She was very shocked and she said I really cant believe that as a U.S. citizen I cant do anything to help my friend.

Shayo encouraged her client to push for immigration reform as a voter. A U.S. citizen should be able to bring a person here, as long as that person passes the vetting process, Shayo said. We can create common sense laws to allow people to come into the United States. Other countries are able to do it; we can do it.

Shayo also said she believes average Americans may not not realize how steep the path can be to get into this country, and how few immigration pathways there are.

The stars have to align so perfectly for people to be able to immigrate in the way our law is written, she said. You have to have a family member; you have to have an employer; or you have to have advanced degrees; or you have to have a lot of money; or you have to have this horrible story of persecution, and you have to flee persecution and cross all these borders to get here. The stars have to align so perfectly, that most people are just locked out of it.

Theres also the category of humanitarian parolee, the status of many Afghans and Ukrainians who needed admission for urgent humanitarian reasons. Under the program, the person isnt on the path to citizenship and doesnt have permanent legal status, but is here temporarily.

Comprehensive immigration reform, meanwhile, remains a contentious issue.President Joe Bidens immigration bill, which includes a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, has stalled in Congress and reportedly has virtually no chance of gaining enough GOP votes to pass.

When people so casually say get in line, for most people there is no line. There simply is no line to get into, said Maggie Fogarty, N.H. program director for the American Friends Service Committee, a Quaker-founded organization that works on peace and justice issues, including immigration-related efforts, such as helping to build a network of host homes for asylum seekers.

Yet despite limited opportunities, migration remains a fundamental human behavior, Fogarty said.

Every story of migration is about human beings either trying to live, trying to be safe, trying to make sure that their children can live or be safe, or trying to live more fully, Fogarty said. It isnt always fleeing war and poverty and other kinds of violence. Its simply the universal human longing to seek and have adventures and learn and explore new places.

These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.

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