Integration and Citizenship

The current political debate over undocumented immigrants in the United States has largely ignored the plight of undocumented children. Yet children account for 1.8 million, or 15 percent, of the undocumented immigrants now living in this country. These children have, for the most part, grown up in the United States and received much of their primary and secondary educations here. But without a means to legalize their status, they are seldom able to go on to college and cannot work legally in this country. Moreover, at any time, they can be deported to countries they barely know. This wasted talent imposes economic and emotional costs on undocumented students themselves and on U.S. society as a whole. Denying undocumented students, most of whom are Hispanic, the opportunity to go to college and join the skilled workforce sends the wrong message to Hispanics about the value of a college education-and the value that U.S. society places on their education-at a time when raising the educational attainment of the Hispanic population is increasingly important to the nation's economic health. Read more...

Published On: Mon, Oct 01, 2007 | Download File

What is the real story about the importance of immigration for America’s future? Demographer Dowell Myers examines trends in U.S. immigration and finds that immigration has not only begun to level off, but immigrants are climbing the socio-economic ladder, and will become increasingly important to the U.S. economy as workers, taxpayers, and homebuyers supporting the aging Baby Boom generation.

Published On: Tue, Jan 01, 2008 | Download File

Executive Summary

            Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, changes in federal, state, and local law-enforcement priorities and practices have had a profound impact on America’s Muslims, Arabs, and South Asians.  Some of these policy shifts applied exclusively or primarily to those communities, such as the federal “special registration” program, selective enforcement of immigration laws based on national origin or religion, and expanded federal counter-terrorism efforts that targeted these communities.  At the same time, a wide range of ethnic groups have been affected by the use of state and local police agencies to enforce federal immigration law, and the aggressive use of detention and deportation authority for even minor infractions and technicalities.

Read more...

Published On: Tue, Jun 24, 2008 | Download File

States need to create practical, workable solutions, and denying undocumented immigrants licenses is simply bad public policy.

Published On: Tue, Jan 01, 2008 | Download File

Scriptural Passages About Migration Compiled by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Published On: Wed, Nov 14, 2007 | Download File

The immigration debate has become divisive and hate-filled to a degree that undermines Christian and civic values. Christians have a responsibility to bring our core values of love, mercy and justice back into the debate, to unite our communities, to bridge deepening divides, and to be a source of healing and reconciliation.

Published On: Wed, Nov 14, 2007 | Download File

Surveys show that Hispanics by a large margin believe that immigrants have to speak English to be a part of American society and even more so that English should be taught to the children of immigrants.

Published On: Wed, Jun 07, 2006 | Download File

This fact sheet's questions and answers take an in-depth look at the provisions of the final REAL ID Act regulations that particularly affect immigrants.

Published On: Fri, Feb 01, 2008 | Download File

A list of famous people who have chosen to become U.S. citizens.

Published On: Sat, Jun 30, 2007 | Download File

A fact sheet that describes the costs associated with local anti-immigrant ordinances.

Published On: Mon, Oct 01, 2007 | Download File