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Latin-American Immigrants
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<title>Executive Action and Latin American Immigrants</title>
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<h1>Relief for 5 Million</h1>
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<p class="text-muted byline">By Pedro Burgos and Rachel Glickhouse | Mar 30, 2015</p>
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<p><h2>Introduction</h2></p>
<p>In November 2014, President Barack Obama announced <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/immigration/immigration-action">new executive action</a> to protect undocumented immigrants from deportation, affecting an estimated <a href="http://migrationpolicy.org/news/mpi-many-37-million-unauthorized-immigrants-could-get-relief-deportation-under-anticipated-new"> 5.2 million people</a>. The programs, called expanded <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/consideration-deferred-action-childhood-arrivals-daca">Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals</a> (DACA) and <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/immigrationaction">Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents</a> (DAPA), will benefit some immigrants brought to the United States as children, as well as some undocumented parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents.</p>
<p>Mexicans, who comprise the largest undocumented immigrant group in the country, stand to benefit the most in terms of absolute numbers. Plus, the majority of immigrants eligible for these programs live in just five states, with the largest population living in California.</p>
<p>But there's an important challenge. On February 16, a federal judge in Texas ordered a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/18/us/obama-immigration-policy-halted-by-federal-judge-in-texas.html?_r=0">temporary halt</a> to the new immigration policy as part of a 26-state lawsuit against executive action. As this debate continues and as the government implements the new policy, it's important to look at who will ultimately benefit.</p>
<p><h2>How Many Latin American Immigrants Are Undocumented?</h2></p>
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<p>Around <a href="http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states#Demographic,%20Educational,%20and%20Linguistic"> 80 percent</a> of the 11.4 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States come from Latin America and the Caribbean. Meanwhile, about <a href="http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/just-facts/latinos-america-demographic-overview">half of Latinos</a> living in the United States are undocumented immigrants.</p>
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<p class="text-center"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/ONWoOqz.png" width="65%" title="Undocumented Latin American Immigrants" /></a></p>
<p>The Pew Research Center <a href="http://www.pewhispanic.org/2014/11/18/appendix-c-methodology-4/">bases its estimates</a> of the undocumented population on a residual estimation methodology using the American Community Survey and the March Supplement to the Current Population Survey. The Center subtracts the estimated legal population from the survey of total foreign born. The legal resident population is calculated using the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Immigration Statistics.</p>
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<p><h3>Living Among Us: The Geography of the Undocumented</h3></p>
<p>Close to <font color="red"><strong>half</strong></font> of undocumented U.S. residents live in <font color="red"><strong>Florida, Calfornia and Texas</font></strong>. But in several states - notably Nevada and New Jersey - undocumented immigrants make up a larger share of the state population. This is relevant given the fact that Nevada is part of the lawsuit against executive action, which New Jersey <a href="http://www.app.com/story/news/politics/new-jersey/chris-christie/2015/03/25/christie-obama-immigration-executive-order/70455932/">also joined</a> on March 25.</p>
<iframe width='100%' height='520' frameborder='0' src='http://riogringa.cartodb.com/viz/e8cedd14-ce60-11e4-ac4b-0e853d047bba/embed_map'></iframe>
<p class="text-muted"><cite>Source: Pew Research Center, American Community Survey 2012.</cite></p>
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<p><p align="center" class="lead">* * *</p></p>
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<p><h1>Who Is Eligible for Executive Action?</h1></p>
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<p><font color="green">Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)</font> began in 2012. Previously, there was a cutoff at age 31, and now there is no age restrictions. To qualify for <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/immigrationaction">expanded DACA</a>, an immigrant must:</p>
<ul style="list-style-type:square">
<li>Have entered the United States before age 16;</li>
<li>Have lived in the United States continuously since at least January 1, 2010;</li>
<li>Had no lawful status on June 15, 2012;</li>
<li>Are of any age (removes the requirement to have been born since June 15, 1981);</li>
<li>Are currently in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces;</li>
<li>Have not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor,or three or more other misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.</li>
</ul>
<p><h4>Estimated number of eligible immigrants: 1.5 million</h4></p>
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<p><font color="red">Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA)</font> is a <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/immigrationaction">new program</a>. To qualify, an immigrant must:</p>
<ul style="list-style-type:square">
<li>Have lived in the United States continuously since January 1, 2010;</li>
<li>Had, on November 20, 2014, a son or daughter who is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident;</li>
<li>Are not an enforcement priority for removal from the United States under the <a href="http://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/14_1120_memo_prosecutorial_discretion.pdf">new DHS memorandum</a>. (One cannot have committed a serious crime, multiple misdemeanors, a DUI, or have received a deportation order since January 2014.)</li>
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<p><h4>Estimated number of eligible immigrants: 3.71 million</h4></p>
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<p><a href="http://imgur.com/kzaSKdp"><img width='100%' src="http://i.imgur.com/kzaSKdp.png" title="source: imgur.com" /></a><p>
<p class="text-muted"><cite>Source: <a href="http://migrationpolicy.org/news/mpi-many-37-million-unauthorized-immigrants-could-get-relief-deportation-under-anticipated-new">Migration Policy Institute,</a> using an analysis of the 2008-2012 American Community Survey and the 2008 Survey of Income Program Participation.</cite></p>
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<p><h3>Where they are</h3></p>
<p>A majority of those eligible for executive action live in just five states. This matters because 14 states and the District of Columbia joined the federal government in <a href="https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/agportal-s3bucket/uploadedfiles/Home/News/Press_Releases/2015/15-40238+Brief+of+Amicus+States.pdf">appealing the injunction</a> holding up executive action.</p>
<p>These states - including California, Illinois, and New York - are fighting the injunction and arguing that it should not apply to them. This could potentially open the door to implementing the policy if the injunction is lifted in just those states. Notably, these states make up about 50 percent of the eligible population in the country. In parts of <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/imm/html/deferred/deferred-action.shtml">New York</a> and <a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-supervisors-immigration-20150224-story.html">California</a>, local governments are already preparing to implement executive action as soon as the injunction is lifted.</p>
<p>Texas – which has one of the country’s largest undocumented populations - is the state <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/26/states-lawsuit-immigration_n_6550840.html">leading the lawsuit</a> against executive action.</p>
<p><iframe width='100%' height='520' frameborder='0' src='http://riogringa.cartodb.com/viz/0b175340-c1c5-11e4-83b5-0e9d821ea90d/embed_map'></iframe></p>
<p class="text-muted"><cite>Source: Migration Policy Institute.</cite></p>
<p><h3>Where they come from</h3></p>
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<p>Among Latin Americans, the ones that will benefit the most on the new policy based on absolute numbers are Mexicans. Around 3.2 million - or 55 percent of the undocumented population - will be eligible. The other largest groups to benefit are Salvadorans and Guatemalans. Proportionally, Haitians stand to benefit the most: around 68 percent of undocumented Haitians are eligible for relief.</p>
<p>Around <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/11/19/your-complete-guide-to-obamas-immigration-order/">6.2 million immigrants</a> will be left out of the deportation relief policy.</p>
<p>In terms of Latin Americans, the biggest proportion of Brazilian immigrants will be left out, with nearly 70 percent ineligible for executive action. Dominicans are the second largest left-out group, with about two-thirds ineligible.</p>
<p class="text-center"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/BRX8ss9.png" width="100%" title="source: Left Out of Executive Action" /></a></p>
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<p class="text-center"><iframe src="http://e.infogr.am/eligible_for_deportation_relief?src=embed" width="100%" height="800"></iframe></p>
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<p><h3>Date of Arrival Matters for Executive Action</h3></p>
<p>Since 1980, the largest flow of undocumented immigrants - 28 percent - took place from 2000 to 2004. This is important, since <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/immigrationaction#daca">executive action will benefit</a> those who have continuously lived in the United States since at least January 1, 2010.</p>
<p>But around <a href="http://migrationpolicy.org/data/unauthorized-immigrant-population/state/US">22 percent</a> of undocumented immigrants have lived in the United States less than 5 years - making them ineligible for relief. This is especially relevant in the wake of the <a href="http://www.cfr.org/immigration/us-child-migrant-influx/p33380">Central American child migrant crisis</a> last year, when over 60,000 unaccompanied minors crossed the border.</p>
<p class="text-center"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/NSojtXg.png" width="65%" title="Undocumented Arrivals by Year" /></a></p>
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<p><p align="center" class="lead">* * *</p></p>
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<p><h1>Who's Left Out</h1></p>
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<p><h3>Mixed-Status Families at Risk</h3></p>
<p>The new executive action excludes parents of immigrants who qualify for deferred action, which means that the phenomenon of "<a href="https://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/DrebyImmigrationFamilies_execsumm.pdf">mixed status</a>" families - those who have some members at risk of deportation - will continue to be an important issue that can potentially mean more separations.</p>
<p>The Migration Policy Institute <a href="http://migrationpolicy.org/data/unauthorized-immigrant-population/state/US">estimates</a> that nearly 40 percent of undocumented immigrants have at least one child under 18. A large majority of undocumented parents live with at least one U.S. citizen child, meaning that they could potentially qualify for DACA.</p>
<ul type="disc">
<li><font size="4">4.1 million undocumented immigrants live with at least one child under age 18</font></li>
<li><font size="4">6.9% of all K-12 students in the U.S. has at least one undocumented parent. In Nevada, this rate is 17.7%, the highest in the country.</font></li>
</ul>
<p class="text-muted"><cite>Source: Pew research Center, 2012.</cite></p>
<p><h3>Latin Americans: The Main Target for Deportations</h3></p>
<p>While Latin American and Caribbean immigrants make up 80 percent of the undocumented population, they accounted for 98 percent of deportees during the last fiscal year, so deportation relief is especially important to this group. With executive action stalled, immigration enforcement authorities <a href="http://blogs.ilw.com/entry.php?8490-ICE-No-Longer-Honoring-New-Prosecutorial-Discretion-Memo">continue to target</a> those eligible for expanded DACA and DAPA. A <a href="http://www.pewhispanic.org/2014/10/29/latino-support-for-democrats-falls-but-democratic-advantage-remains/">2014 Pew Hispanic study</a> found that a quarter of Latino adults personally knew someone deported or detained by immigration authorities within the past year.</p>
<iframe width='100%' height='520' frameborder='0' src='http://pedroburgos.cartodb.com/viz/f55ebb9a-cdab-11e4-ab8c-0e018d66dc29/embed_map'></iframe>
<p class="text-muted"><cite>Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.</cite></p>
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