Enforcement

The enforcement of immigration laws is a complex and hotly-debated topic. Learn more about the costs of immigration enforcement and the ways in which the U.S. can enforce our immigration laws humanely and in a manner that ensures due process.

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All Enforcement Content

June 26, 2015

Last summer, the flow of Central Americans seeking refuge in the United States—many of them children—reached its height. One of the government’s first responses to the increased numbers was to...

June 24, 2015

Earlier this week, eight Democratic House Members took a trip to Dilley and Karnes, Texas to visit two immigrant family detention facilities and meet with women and children detained there. Dozens...

June 11, 2015

For years, the Border Patrol program “Operation Streamline” has criminally prosecuted asylum seekers in a terribly misguided effort to discourage them from reentering illegally again. A recent U.S...

June 10, 2015

Every day, over a thousand individuals are held in Border Patrol detention facilities near the U.S. southern border. These facilities are notorious for freezing cold temperatures, overcrowded...

June 2, 2015

Over the past year, the Obama Administration has rapidly propped up family detention facilities as a knee-jerk response to the influx of women and children who crossed our southern border last...

May 29, 2015

In 2010 and 2011, Nebraska and Alabama made national headlines for their anti-immigrant measures. Fremont, Nebraska passed a local ordinance to check immigration status of renters, and Alabama...

May 18, 2015

In the last two decades, the state of California has transformed itself from a leader in anti-immigrant policymaking—most famously attempting to bar the undocumented from attending public schools...

May 14, 2015

In February, advocates went to court to argue that the government’s family detention centers violate the long-standing Flores v. Reno settlement agreement, which set minimum standards for the...

May 13, 2015

By Karen Lucas, Legislative Associate at the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and Beth Werlin, Policy Director at the American Immigration Council. On Mother’s Day morning, we said...

May 11, 2015

If there is any aspect of immigration reform over which there should be no partisan disagreement, it is the dire need to increase the number of immigration judges. As most Republicans and...

April 26, 2017

In the latest judiciary blow to the Trump administration’s immigration agenda, a U.S. District Court Judge blocked the president’s plans to deny funding to jurisdictions deemed uncooperative on...

April 25, 2017

When President Trump signed three immigration executive orders in January of this year, much of the attention was focused on the travel ban and border wall. But within those orders is another...

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April 24, 2017

The last time the Border Patrol received a large infusion of money to hire thousands of new agents, cases of corruption and misconduct spiked in the agency. New hires were not sufficiently vetted...

April 21, 2017

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kelly stated this week that DHS is not targeting undocumented immigrants simply for being undocumented. Kelly asserted that the department is...

April 20, 2017

Under the Trump administration, immigration enforcement has become increasingly unfocused. Rather than prioritizing the apprehension and removal of immigrants who have committed serious crimes,...

April 14, 2017

Standing in the shadow of the White House Thursday afternoon, children from around the country gathered to deliver one unified message to President Trump: don’t break our families apart. This...

April 13, 2017

After issuing only three weekly declined detainer reports, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will temporarily cease publishing them. Initiated by President Trump’s January executive order...

April 12, 2017

Attorney General Jeff Sessions decried drug dealers and armed cartels at the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday, but rather than announcing a crackdown on those elements, he instead declared war on...

April 11, 2017

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a shift in policy for the Department of Justice on Tuesday, directing U.S. Attorneys to prioritize criminal immigration enforcement and drastically expand...

April 10, 2017

President Trump’s campaign promise to ramp up immigration enforcement and build a beautiful wall along the southern border have found little support on Capitol Hill. As  Congress leaves for spring...

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