LOS ANGELES – Asian American Advancing Justice – Los Angeles (Advancing Justice – LA, formerly known as the Asian Pacific American Legal Center or APALC) announced on Tuesday that they will be holding family reunification clinics that will help immigrant families to petition for binational siblings, adult married children, and same-sex spouses.
This announcement came at the heels of recent immigration developments in the Senate and in the House of Representatives, as speculation about potential consequences of reform proposals continue to circulate among immigrant communities.
Through this project, called Pro(ject) Family, Advancing Justice – LA will use the workshops as a venue to provide information on the current immigration reform legislative process, as well as holding family-based petition clinics to help individuals petition for their loved ones.
According to a statement, Pro(ject) Family will focus on these categories as a “direct response” to Senate immigration reform bill provisions that eliminates the ability of US citizens to sponsor their brothers and sisters for green cards, and places an age cap on adult married children that can be sponsored for legal permanent residency. The Senate bill provides that immigrants’ adult married children 31 years or older will no longer be qualified for green cards.
“We’re very concerned about some some of the provisions in the Senate bill,” Advancing Justice – LA Chief Executive Officer And Executive Director Stewart Kwoh said in a press conference on Tuesday in Los Angeles.
“The Senate bill weakens family-based immigration,” he said referring to the elimination of the immigration categories for brothers and sisters, as well as adult married children.
Kwoh said that these are provisions that Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities have used heavily to reunite with family and loved ones, since the 1965 immigration law was passed.
He added that advocates have been campaigning against these changes, and have worked to propose alternative language to be used in the immigration reform bill. Kwoh said however that their proposed alternative language has not been accepted “for the most part.”
“We’re hoping that there’s room for advocacy in the House and in the joint conference committee,” Kwoh added.
No new law yet
While the immigration reform movement has indeed taken huge steps this year, Advancing Justice – LA stressed that immigrant families must be aware that there is no new immigration law yet, apart from current legislation and the current immigration process being implemented.
Kwoh said there are only proposals from Congress (both the Senate and the House) and that nothing has been signed into law yet.
According to Connie Choi, staff attorney at Advancing Justice – LA’s Immigration Rights Project, the Congress is only at the beginning of the process of overhauling federal immigration policy.
Choi said that the US is only at the stage where both the House and the Senate would introduce a reform bill.
So far, the Senate is already done with this stage. Its version of the bill has already undergone scrutiny, revision and approval of the Senate Judiciary committee, as well as debates on the Senate floor and a passing vote by lawmakers.
As for the Republican-dominated House, Choi said that congressmen intend to take a “piecemeal” approach with multiple immigration bills, rather than consider comprehensive reform. These bills include the SKILLS Visa Act (family immigration bill), The Legal Workforce Act (immigrant workers bill or E-verify bill), and The SAFE Act (deportation and detention bill). The House has yet to introduce a bill that proposes a path to citizenship, and a bill that deals with border control.
Choi emphasized that there is no new immigration law yet and that there is no new application process for acquiring legal status in the US. She reminded immigrants to be careful of advertised services for immigration relief, alluding to unscrupulous notarios, lawyers, and individuals posing as immigration workers.
If and when there is a new law, the best course of action would be to first seek help from a trusted nonprofit organization for advice and legal counsel.
File petition now
Kwoh also said that while they continue to push for alternative legislative language in the proposed laws, Advancing Justice – LA is also observing the trend that the immigration discussions are taking in the Senate and the House. And it does not favor family-based immigration.
If a new immigration law does pass, there is “at least a good chance” that people who intend to petition for brothers, sisters, and adult married children may not be able to do so, Kwoh pointed out.
“YES, a new law has not been passed. YES, we’re still advocating. BUT the direction of the Senate and the House may actually disallow certain family members [from] petitioning for their loved ones,” Kwoh said.
LA Community College District Board of Trustees member and veteran immigration lawyer Mike Eng pointed out that the executive branch can promulgate regulations on how to qualify for immigration. There’s always the fear that these regulations can somehow be limiting, Eng said.
“The rule in immigration is if you can apply, apply now,” Eng said. He said that it would be wise to petition for children who are not yet adult married children, even for brothers and sisters and same-sex partners.
“If you have that right to apply, history has shown as that those rights can be narrowed or taken away. It’s common sense that if you have that right, go ahead and file now,” Eng added.
This direction that the immigration reform debate is leaning towards makes it all the more important for immigrant families to take advantage of the Pro(ject) Family program, Kwoh said.
Advancing Justice – LA’s family reunification clinic starts on August 6, every 1st and 3rd Tuesday from 12pm to 2pm.
On August 6, there will be a briefing that will update clinic participants on the status of the immigration reform legislation.
Only six (6) petitioner appointments will be entertained per session. To book an appointment or to inquire for more information, please email: [email protected].
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Weekend August 3-6, 2013 Sec A pg.1)
