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How Satellite Monitoring Can Help Protect Refugees

The Colorado School of Mines is crafting one response to the plights of refugees worldwide through a satellite monitoring technology called Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite Lumen Watch. The technology is a prototype developed by the Earth Observation Group in order to monitor changes in nighttime light radiance in geographic locations of interest. Currently, the software monitors the light radiance of two refugee settlements: the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, and Al-Jufaynah Camp in Marib City, Yemen, which hosts thousands of people who have been internally displaced by the civil war.

Another Service to the Church: Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio Deposits His Papers at CMS

The Center for Migration Studies welcomes its newest collection, the papers of Bishop Nicholas A. DiMarzio. This new collection is an opportunity to examine how the traditions of the Church can meet some of the needs of the modern world. The collection promises to expand CMS’s coverage of immigration.

New from IMR: Health Outcomes, Identity, and Immigrant Status

The Winter 2021 edition of the International Migration Review (IMR) is now available online and in print through paid or institutional subscription. This edition is thematically sorted into three sections. The first section discusses migration, family, and health outcomes. The second section has articles about identity, life satisfaction, and migration. The third section is about economic assimilation, immigrant status, and employment. Lastly, this edition includes 8 book reviews, which are free to access.

Are There Enough Special Immigrant Visas for All Afghan Allies?

Since the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program’s inception in 2007, approximately 75,700 Afghans – 21,500 principal applicants and their 54,200 family members – have been granted SIVs as of June 2021. About 18,000 principal SIV applications are pending, but there are only 13,000 unclaimed SIVs available for principal applicants.

The Migration-Related Legacy of the 9/11 Attacks: Positive Security Reforms and Scapegoating Those in Need of Protection

The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 caused the deaths of 2,996 people, injured more than 6,000, and left countless others mourning the loss of loved ones. New security measures since the attacks have altered the US immigration and refugee systems. These changes include more intensive screening and vetting of those seeking admission, the creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), heightened enforcement at the US-Mexico border, and expanded grounds of inadmissibility.

How US Tax Policy Excludes One in Six US Citizen Children from Poverty-fighting Tax Credits

In the United States, 9.6 million children are living in poverty. Federal and state tax credits are among the most effective policy tools for fighting child poverty. However, one in six US citizen children who are living in poverty are not eligible to receive these tax credits because they have at least one undocumented parent.

The Local Church Needs to Protect the Lives of Migrants. Pope Francis Shows Us the Way.

Fr. Pat Murphy, c.s. reflects on a violent incident by police against migrants and the necessity of an active presence of the local Church to defend the rights of the immigrants.

A New Migration Law in Chile Threatens Venezuelans Seeking Protection

Linda,* a Venezuelan former teacher in her thirties, is one of the more than 200,000 Venezuelans in Chile with irregular status. She lives in fear of deportation and of being separated from her 8-month-old daughter, a Chilean citizen by birth. In April 2021, Chilean President Sebastán Piñera signed a new migration law that expedites deportations and makes it more difficult for migrants to adjust their status.

One Hundred Years of American Catholic Assistance to Immigrants in Transit

One hundred years ago, it seemed that immigration to the United States would be a thing of the past. Congress had already forbidden most migration from Asia. In 1921 it began restricting migration from Europe. However, in 1921, the United States Catholic hierarchy organized within the National Catholic Welfare Conference (NCWC) its Bureau of Immigration. Since 2001, that organization has been known as Migration and Refugee Services (MRS), which is now a division of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The earliest records of the NCWC Bureau of Immigration’s main office in Washington, DC, and its busy port office in New York City, are located at the Center for Migration Studies of New York. What do these records of a century of action on behalf of immigrants have to tell us today?

The Health Insurance Gap in New York City: Promoting Citizenship for a Healthier Tomorrow

About 8 percent of New York City’s 8.4 million residents do not have health insurance. However, the percentages of New Yorkers without insurance vary by legal status. In New York City, 47 percent of undocumented people do not have health insurance, compared to 12.6 percent of legal noncitizens, 6.1 percent of naturalized citizens, and 4.8 percent of native-born citizens. For immigrants, advancing to more secure and permanent legal statuses is highly correlated with having health insurance.