polapragada
10-23 05:56 PM
This seems pretty amazing. I wonder how it will play out in action.
"On October 20, the Senate followed the House of Representatives in voting to protect surviving family members when either the petitioner or the principal beneficiary of a petition dies. President Obama is expected to sign this legislation shortly.
Presently, the law provides that when the petitioner or the principal beneficiary dies, so does the petition. Typically, if the beneficiaries are present in the U.S., their applications for adjustment of status are denied and they are placed in removal proceedings.
* WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THE NEW LAW?
Not only does the new law eliminate the infamous "widow penalty", it does so much more!
When either the petitioner or the principal beneficiary dies in a wide variety of instances, the law acts to protect the surviving family members:
There are few options for surviving relatives:
For example, there is a section of the law which provides that a surviving spouse of a U.S. citizen can self-petition for permanent residence, but only if the marriage occurred at least two years before the petitioner's death.
There is also a regulation which provides that where the petitioner of a family-based petition dies before the beneficiaries of the petition became permanent residents, the beneficiaries may request that the USCIS reinstate the petition for "humanitarian" reasons.
1) Parents, spouses and children of a U.S. citizen with pending or approved petitions;
2) Beneficiaries, principal or derivative, of pending or approved family-based petitions;
3) Beneficiaries, principals or derivative, of pending or approved employment-based petitions;
4) Beneficiaries, principal or derivative, of pending or approved asylee/refugee relative petitions;
5) Nonimmigrants entitled to "T" (trafficking victims) or "U" (crime victims) status.
Since the waiting times for family-based and employment-based preference can range up to between five and 22 years, often petitioners and principal beneficiaries die before the beneficiaries of the petition can obtain permanent residence.
........
* EXAMPLE #4 - Employment-Based Petition
Dr. Kumar is a physician born in India. His wife and daughter reside with him in the U.S. He is in H-1B status. His wife and daughter are in H-4 status. Dr. Kumar completed his medical residency in the U.S. on a J-1 visa. Then, for three years, he worked in a medically-underserved area in H-1B status. In 2006, his employer submitted a PERM application on his behalf. It was approved in the Spring of 2007. In July 2007, when all the employment-based numbers became current, Dr. Kumar's employer submitted an EB-2 visa petition on his behalf. Simultaneously, Dr. Kumar, his wife and daughter all applied for adjustment of status. Then his priority date retrogressed. In 2009, Dr. Kumar was killed by a drunk driver. Under present law, the visa petition would be revoked. Under the new law, Dr. Kumar's wife and daughter would be permitted to continue with their applications to adjust status. The visa petition could only be revoked if the USCIS determined that its continued approval would not be "in the public interest".
* CONCLUSION
The new law will provide immigration benefits to "survivors" in various types of immigration cases where either the petitioner or the principal beneficiary dies before the other family members are able to become permanent residents.
However, the law is complex, and the extent of its benefits will not be known until after the USCIS and the State Department promulgate regulations, or issue memos, explaining how they plan to implement the new law."
http://shusterman.typepad.com/nation...y-members.html
It is very good law...Thanks for sharing..
"On October 20, the Senate followed the House of Representatives in voting to protect surviving family members when either the petitioner or the principal beneficiary of a petition dies. President Obama is expected to sign this legislation shortly.
Presently, the law provides that when the petitioner or the principal beneficiary dies, so does the petition. Typically, if the beneficiaries are present in the U.S., their applications for adjustment of status are denied and they are placed in removal proceedings.
* WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THE NEW LAW?
Not only does the new law eliminate the infamous "widow penalty", it does so much more!
When either the petitioner or the principal beneficiary dies in a wide variety of instances, the law acts to protect the surviving family members:
There are few options for surviving relatives:
For example, there is a section of the law which provides that a surviving spouse of a U.S. citizen can self-petition for permanent residence, but only if the marriage occurred at least two years before the petitioner's death.
There is also a regulation which provides that where the petitioner of a family-based petition dies before the beneficiaries of the petition became permanent residents, the beneficiaries may request that the USCIS reinstate the petition for "humanitarian" reasons.
1) Parents, spouses and children of a U.S. citizen with pending or approved petitions;
2) Beneficiaries, principal or derivative, of pending or approved family-based petitions;
3) Beneficiaries, principals or derivative, of pending or approved employment-based petitions;
4) Beneficiaries, principal or derivative, of pending or approved asylee/refugee relative petitions;
5) Nonimmigrants entitled to "T" (trafficking victims) or "U" (crime victims) status.
Since the waiting times for family-based and employment-based preference can range up to between five and 22 years, often petitioners and principal beneficiaries die before the beneficiaries of the petition can obtain permanent residence.
........
* EXAMPLE #4 - Employment-Based Petition
Dr. Kumar is a physician born in India. His wife and daughter reside with him in the U.S. He is in H-1B status. His wife and daughter are in H-4 status. Dr. Kumar completed his medical residency in the U.S. on a J-1 visa. Then, for three years, he worked in a medically-underserved area in H-1B status. In 2006, his employer submitted a PERM application on his behalf. It was approved in the Spring of 2007. In July 2007, when all the employment-based numbers became current, Dr. Kumar's employer submitted an EB-2 visa petition on his behalf. Simultaneously, Dr. Kumar, his wife and daughter all applied for adjustment of status. Then his priority date retrogressed. In 2009, Dr. Kumar was killed by a drunk driver. Under present law, the visa petition would be revoked. Under the new law, Dr. Kumar's wife and daughter would be permitted to continue with their applications to adjust status. The visa petition could only be revoked if the USCIS determined that its continued approval would not be "in the public interest".
* CONCLUSION
The new law will provide immigration benefits to "survivors" in various types of immigration cases where either the petitioner or the principal beneficiary dies before the other family members are able to become permanent residents.
However, the law is complex, and the extent of its benefits will not be known until after the USCIS and the State Department promulgate regulations, or issue memos, explaining how they plan to implement the new law."
http://shusterman.typepad.com/nation...y-members.html
It is very good law...Thanks for sharing..
vin13
05-19 01:34 PM
My friend,
to a certain extent I agree with your point. However I believe MR Singh could have initiated a dialog on Indian immigrants. Reason being most us, send our money back home, keep money in our accounts over there? Lets not forget the air tickets we bought to come over here, the loans we picked from there, all the taxes are paid to the government.
How many of us, buy properties over there, so my point is yes it not a direct concern of an Indian PM, but indirectly we are paying their fat bills or a polite version -- taxes. They should have brought that point.
Immigration is more of a domestic political issue/concern. It is mostly based on popularity and vote bank. This is not a major bilateral concern for US and India. I guess that is why i am saying India's PM may not be able to influence much.
Anyway i don't want to beat this to death. Just an opinion.
to a certain extent I agree with your point. However I believe MR Singh could have initiated a dialog on Indian immigrants. Reason being most us, send our money back home, keep money in our accounts over there? Lets not forget the air tickets we bought to come over here, the loans we picked from there, all the taxes are paid to the government.
How many of us, buy properties over there, so my point is yes it not a direct concern of an Indian PM, but indirectly we are paying their fat bills or a polite version -- taxes. They should have brought that point.
Immigration is more of a domestic political issue/concern. It is mostly based on popularity and vote bank. This is not a major bilateral concern for US and India. I guess that is why i am saying India's PM may not be able to influence much.
Anyway i don't want to beat this to death. Just an opinion.
p_kumar
04-08 03:44 PM
PD: July 01 EB3 India
I-140 approved: 03/2004 (Not concurrent)
485 RD: March 05 (CSC)
Case transferred to NSC: 03/2006
I am surprised you didnt get your GC around july,2007. are you stuck in namecheck?.
I-140 approved: 03/2004 (Not concurrent)
485 RD: March 05 (CSC)
Case transferred to NSC: 03/2006
I am surprised you didnt get your GC around july,2007. are you stuck in namecheck?.
trueguy
08-09 06:15 PM
Bump
more...
RajWantsGC
05-19 03:20 PM
Online case status and infopass are useful for things like address change, namecheck status, finger printing issues , and other issues being dealt where no processing or less processing is required like GC not received, approval not received , letters lost etc...
When it comes to such complicated issues, you have to get real help.
Basically - you have to somehow cut through beurocracy and get your issues resolved.
Good luck, I am sure, things will get under control soon.
Thank you Chandu for the reply. You are right about the info pass. Yesterday I took the info pass. I thought it would be very helpful because I can talk to IO face to face and explain my situation in detail. One thing I would appreciate about IO is she was very patient and she tried to understand my case fully. But at last she said she cannot help me. She said the only option I have left is just to wait to hear from AAO. She said her daily job is to give the latest status of the cases, giving immigration forms and help people if they have any doubts.
I asked her that can I file EAD when my MTR for I485 is pending with AAO? She was not sure about it. Then she made a call to Nebraska Service Centre and found out that I can file EAD. I need to attach I290B receipt along with EAP application form. I am just wondering has any one has done this before? Is that really possible?
Thanks
Raj
When it comes to such complicated issues, you have to get real help.
Basically - you have to somehow cut through beurocracy and get your issues resolved.
Good luck, I am sure, things will get under control soon.
Thank you Chandu for the reply. You are right about the info pass. Yesterday I took the info pass. I thought it would be very helpful because I can talk to IO face to face and explain my situation in detail. One thing I would appreciate about IO is she was very patient and she tried to understand my case fully. But at last she said she cannot help me. She said the only option I have left is just to wait to hear from AAO. She said her daily job is to give the latest status of the cases, giving immigration forms and help people if they have any doubts.
I asked her that can I file EAD when my MTR for I485 is pending with AAO? She was not sure about it. Then she made a call to Nebraska Service Centre and found out that I can file EAD. I need to attach I290B receipt along with EAP application form. I am just wondering has any one has done this before? Is that really possible?
Thanks
Raj
H1bslave
06-27 02:28 PM
You should be perfectly fine as your joining date is 11/27. The first payday could take more than 30 days in many organizations and its a common practice.
For USCIS: It is perfectly fine argument that your first pay day falls in 2008 because of account/payroll setup.
For IRS: Their calculation starts when employer issues a pay check (pay day) with in same month they need to receive their (cut) taxes reagardless of what was the pay period.
I run payroll for my company and can provide insight, PM me if you have more questions.
Take it easy & Enjoy your weekend :D
I started work on 11/27 and that has been reported as the official start date. We will be talking to the lawyers next week to clarify all these issues. To my knowledge, I should not get a W2 as I did not get paid in 2007. Those wages should appear on my 2008 W2.
Outside of this topic, I have a question. Will I be eligible for the economic stimulus for 2007 if I did not get my W2 ? My husband will be filing the tax return (as joint) but he will not be able to enter my W2 information.
Thanks.
For USCIS: It is perfectly fine argument that your first pay day falls in 2008 because of account/payroll setup.
For IRS: Their calculation starts when employer issues a pay check (pay day) with in same month they need to receive their (cut) taxes reagardless of what was the pay period.
I run payroll for my company and can provide insight, PM me if you have more questions.
Take it easy & Enjoy your weekend :D
I started work on 11/27 and that has been reported as the official start date. We will be talking to the lawyers next week to clarify all these issues. To my knowledge, I should not get a W2 as I did not get paid in 2007. Those wages should appear on my 2008 W2.
Outside of this topic, I have a question. Will I be eligible for the economic stimulus for 2007 if I did not get my W2 ? My husband will be filing the tax return (as joint) but he will not be able to enter my W2 information.
Thanks.
more...
Prashanthi
05-12 03:29 PM
You can travel on the same visa as long as you come back before september.
ilikekilo
07-25 01:29 PM
Hello,
I have an unfortunate situation. My parents names are misspelled in the Birth certificate compared to the Passport parents name page. Do we need to submit the parents names page of the passport when we submit our documents for 485 ?? Please let me know if this will be a problem and if there is a work around for this ??
Also if I have a Birth certificate (with my actual full name - dated in 2007 though), do I need to submit the affidavits ??
Thanks
dont confuse dated dob cert with the registration date...as long as the dob cert has the registraation date within 3 years or less, i believe, then u r ok...
I have an unfortunate situation. My parents names are misspelled in the Birth certificate compared to the Passport parents name page. Do we need to submit the parents names page of the passport when we submit our documents for 485 ?? Please let me know if this will be a problem and if there is a work around for this ??
Also if I have a Birth certificate (with my actual full name - dated in 2007 though), do I need to submit the affidavits ??
Thanks
dont confuse dated dob cert with the registration date...as long as the dob cert has the registraation date within 3 years or less, i believe, then u r ok...
more...
kubmilegaGC
09-11 06:05 PM
bump..
onemorecame
10-25 01:19 PM
Hi Gurus,
I got You 2 A# number. one is from I-140 and other is from I-485 which i filled on July 2007.
Is it any problem to get 2 A#? if yes then what should be plan of action?
If No then which one is active A# number.
Please advice.
onemorecame.
Bump
I got You 2 A# number. one is from I-140 and other is from I-485 which i filled on July 2007.
Is it any problem to get 2 A#? if yes then what should be plan of action?
If No then which one is active A# number.
Please advice.
onemorecame.
Bump
more...
Life2Live
02-09 03:57 PM
I remember one of my colligue got I-94 extended till visa period at Jacksonville, FLORIDA. I do not know which state you are living in. Anyway...atleast I know that is possible since you have valid visa stamped on your passport.
leonqiu
06-14 09:06 PM
What do you mean by AP and EAD delayed? Once you have applied for your 485 and all things considered OK, you should get your AP and EAD. If dates retrogress again, you will have to keep renewing your AP and EAD till you get your GC. How long it will take to get AP and EAD? Right now, I believe it will take a lot longer, maybe upto 6 months given the load of apps. they will receive.
looks like the sooner you submit the package, the better !!! even if I don't harbor any hope to get my GC before mid-2008.
Status:
PD: May 2006
I-140 approved.
EB-2
looks like the sooner you submit the package, the better !!! even if I don't harbor any hope to get my GC before mid-2008.
Status:
PD: May 2006
I-140 approved.
EB-2
more...
gbeltrao
08-30 04:42 PM
My wife had her fingerprinting done about a year ago. Same happened for the medical exam. I had my I-140 approved and we're now on the I-485 stage. Yesterday my wife received a letter scheduling an appointment to do a biometric at our local uscis office... what is this biometrics about since the med exam and fingerprints are done? Would this be for the final interview or are there an specific letter for this? :confused:
gman
07-29 05:47 PM
what was job description before becoming Director? Did you apply AC21 by default? Seems like you do not have to notify INS unless you get an RFE
more...
arc
05-14 09:07 PM
Technically you will be considered a Bachelors in US + 3 yrs Experience = Masters Equivallent = EB2.
You should be a safe - EB2.
Disclaimer: I am not an attorney, pls. consult a immigration attorney for advice.
You should be a safe - EB2.
Disclaimer: I am not an attorney, pls. consult a immigration attorney for advice.
pappu
07-20 09:25 AM
No, only contiguous H1-B renewals(after 3 years or yearly extensions after 6 years) are exempted from the cap. If you go back to school and apply for a fresh H1, then it is very much counted against the cap. Apart from falling back to H4 or F2(if you are married and your spouse is on H1/F1), i dont see too many options if you cannot get one of the masters quota H1. BTW, if you dont have an OPT and are out of school, then how are you still here ?
If the company is multinational, ask them to give you a foriegn posting for a year and then you can come back on a fresh new H1B visa or L1 visa.
If the company is multinational, ask them to give you a foriegn posting for a year and then you can come back on a fresh new H1B visa or L1 visa.
more...
surabhi
10-17 12:28 PM
I am new to cnsulting jobs and was wondering if anyone can elaborate on what these terms mean ..
Contract - Corp-to-Corp ?
Contract - W2 ?
Contract to Hire - Independent ?
Contract to Hire - W2 ?
These are all tax terms on which the contract is signed
Corp-corp - Between 2 corporations. From your point of view, you are represented by a corporation. The corporation gets paid from other corporation. Your payment can be W-2
Contract - W2. The client pays you directly on W-2. Most of the times, this doesnt have benefits.
Contract to Hire - W2 : Initially you'll start as W-2 contract. the client has right to hire you full time after a period, normally 3 -6 months.
Contract to Hire - Independent: YOu are starting off on 1099, but company has right to offer you full time on W-2 basis after a period.
If you are on H1, your relation with your employer is always W-2. So only corp-corp is applicable.
If you use EAD, its debatabe whether you can be on 1099.
Being on W-2 contract, you should still ensure your job conforms to AC-21
Contract - Corp-to-Corp ?
Contract - W2 ?
Contract to Hire - Independent ?
Contract to Hire - W2 ?
These are all tax terms on which the contract is signed
Corp-corp - Between 2 corporations. From your point of view, you are represented by a corporation. The corporation gets paid from other corporation. Your payment can be W-2
Contract - W2. The client pays you directly on W-2. Most of the times, this doesnt have benefits.
Contract to Hire - W2 : Initially you'll start as W-2 contract. the client has right to hire you full time after a period, normally 3 -6 months.
Contract to Hire - Independent: YOu are starting off on 1099, but company has right to offer you full time on W-2 basis after a period.
If you are on H1, your relation with your employer is always W-2. So only corp-corp is applicable.
If you use EAD, its debatabe whether you can be on 1099.
Being on W-2 contract, you should still ensure your job conforms to AC-21
Munshi75
08-08 06:47 PM
include options for all the people in the EB-3. Are you trying to discrimiate recent applicants? I am one of them with 2006 PD.
pbojja
10-17 12:34 PM
Can anyone tell me what it means in terms of documents...???
Your questions are too demanding dude
Your questions are too demanding dude
regacct
11-23 01:27 PM
Why the Anti-immigrant Dog Did Not Bark in Illinois (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-creamer/why-the-anti-immigrant-do_b_787368.html)
In the Sherlock Holmes short story "Silver Blaze" the famous detective focuses his analytic prowess on the "curious incident" of the dog that did not bark in the nighttime.
In the recent mid-term elections there was a similar "curious incident" in Illinois that is important nationally. No major candidate in Illinois from either the Republican or Democratic Party demagogued the immigration issue. Neither the ultra-conservative Republican candidate for Governor, Bill Brady, nor the supposedly "moderate" candidate for Senate, Mark Kirk, ran ads, did mailers, or used talking points about the supposed scourge of illegal immigrants taking jobs or sponging up our tax money. Nor did any major candidate for Congress.
It is definitely true that a number of the Republican candidates that were elected to Congressional seats hold anti-immigrant positions. But they did not choose to use those positions as wedge issues in the recent election. Why not?
A possible explanation is that Republicans in Illinois are a kinder, more reasonable group than Republicans elsewhere. That, I'm afraid, does not pass the laugh test.
You could argue that it's because Illinois has a large immigrant population in general and a large Latino population in particular. But so do Colorado, Nevada, Arizona and California where Republican Party candidates tried to use "illegal immigration" and "amnesty" as wedge issues to galvanize their base.
It is true that Illinois has a more immigrant-friendly tradition than some of the states in the Southwest. Much of the Caucasian population in Illinois comes from recent immigrant stock themselves - from Ireland, Poland, Lithuania, Italy, Germany, Croatia and Serbia.
But there is also a more old-fashioned reason. Demagogues and bullies tend to prey upon those whom they consider too weak to strike back. It turned out that in Nevada, California, and Colorado they made the wrong call, since their demagoguery galvanized turnout among Latino voters that defeated right-wing candidates for the Senate.
In fact, the Latino vote saved the Senate for the Democrats.
But in Illinois the right didn't even try their demagogic tactics. That's largely because the immigrant communities in Illinois have worked hard over five election cycles to build a muscular political organizing vehicle that gets out the immigrant vote -- and can bite back fiercely at anti-immigrant demagogues.
In 2008, Jim Oberweis ran for Congress against Democrat Bill Foster on a heavily anti-immigrant platform and was flattened by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. That experience sent a lesson through Illinois' right-wing political class. Nothing like watching one of their own get scalded to teach others not to touch the stove.
The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) no leads The New Americans' Democracy Project . This year, 13 electoral organizers worked for months in both the City of Chicago and the Suburbs. They targeted 133,128 infrequent immigrant voters for a multi-contact phone and door operation, and before the election was done the volunteers they recruited did a total of 549,000 live phone calls to their universe of Latino, Asian and Muslim voters.
This work has been growing in scale and bite since 2002 when it began with no funding and in only nine precincts. At this point the immigrant vote can no longer be ignored by either party. Here are several key lessons from the Illinois immigrant organizing experience:
1) Consistency Counts: ICIRR has had between 10 and 20 full-time immigrant election campaign organizers every election since 2004. They begin their work in July and work through November, building a "recent immigrant" field operation. In every single cycle they add new skills to their electoral organizing.
2) Numbers Count: The immigrant voter program has registered over 90,000 new immigrant voters. They door-knock between 35,000 and 60,000 doors every election cycle.
3) Diversity is Strength: The Democracy Project works with leaders and organizations in Latino community, but also the Asian, Arab, and Polish immigrant communities.
4) Mine the "Base" and work the "Swings": The electoral work is done in the immigrant "base" Chicago port of entry neighborhoods to generate numbers, but also in swing suburban political districts where multi-ethnic immigrant organizing multiplies the voting power of Latinos. The activation of new immigrant voters in suburban "swing" communities forces Republican attention to immigrant issues.
5) Reward Friends, Punish Enemies: ICIRR keeps track of who engages in immigrant bashing -- and stikes back. When Republican anti-immigrant candidate Jim Oberweis polarized voters against "illegal immigrants", ICIRR released to the media a film of undocumented immigrants cleaning his business while being paid only $3.23 an hour. When old-school Democratic Mayor of Waukegan, IL attacked "illegals" with local law enforcement of immigration laws, he went down to defeat in the next election because Latinos in Waukegan mobilized to support his opponent.
6) Naturalize, Naturalize, Naturalize: ICIRR has one of the most aggressive citizenship programs in the nation. All told, an additional 170,000 immigrants were naturalized in Illinois over the last five years. The coalition itself directly assisted over 48,000 of those legal immigrants to become citizens, and thus voters.
ICIRR is not a partisan organization. In fact, their most recent fundraiser was headlined by the popular former Republican Governor Jim Edgar. But because of the track record of Republicans across the country, its organizing definitely benefits Democrats. In fact, Democratic Governor Pat Quinn - who won by fewer than 20,000 votes -- would not likely have been re-elected had it not been for their work.
On the policy side, ICIRR works for immigrant-friendly policies, and by any definition they have succeeded in winning some of the most immigrant-friendly policies in the nation at the state level in Illinois.
The state of Illinois leans Blue, but it has wide swatches of Red. In the recent elections the Democrats barely lost the Senate race and took some terrible losses in the Congressional delegation. But in addition to electing a Democratic Governor, both the State House and Senate remained in Democratic hands. The immigrant vote was critical to these Democratic victories, but it is also a force that Republicans ignore or abuse at their peril. In this election, at least, Illinois Republicans generally had the good sense not to bait the immigrant community.
In the current environment of racialized fear and polarization against immigrants across the U.S., the hard work of immigrant advocates in Illinois provides two key lessons:
* Demagogues go after the weak, not the strong. You don't stop anti-immigrant demagoguery through accommodation, you stop it with strength.
* Nuts and Bolts Organizing works.
In the Sherlock Holmes short story "Silver Blaze" the famous detective focuses his analytic prowess on the "curious incident" of the dog that did not bark in the nighttime.
In the recent mid-term elections there was a similar "curious incident" in Illinois that is important nationally. No major candidate in Illinois from either the Republican or Democratic Party demagogued the immigration issue. Neither the ultra-conservative Republican candidate for Governor, Bill Brady, nor the supposedly "moderate" candidate for Senate, Mark Kirk, ran ads, did mailers, or used talking points about the supposed scourge of illegal immigrants taking jobs or sponging up our tax money. Nor did any major candidate for Congress.
It is definitely true that a number of the Republican candidates that were elected to Congressional seats hold anti-immigrant positions. But they did not choose to use those positions as wedge issues in the recent election. Why not?
A possible explanation is that Republicans in Illinois are a kinder, more reasonable group than Republicans elsewhere. That, I'm afraid, does not pass the laugh test.
You could argue that it's because Illinois has a large immigrant population in general and a large Latino population in particular. But so do Colorado, Nevada, Arizona and California where Republican Party candidates tried to use "illegal immigration" and "amnesty" as wedge issues to galvanize their base.
It is true that Illinois has a more immigrant-friendly tradition than some of the states in the Southwest. Much of the Caucasian population in Illinois comes from recent immigrant stock themselves - from Ireland, Poland, Lithuania, Italy, Germany, Croatia and Serbia.
But there is also a more old-fashioned reason. Demagogues and bullies tend to prey upon those whom they consider too weak to strike back. It turned out that in Nevada, California, and Colorado they made the wrong call, since their demagoguery galvanized turnout among Latino voters that defeated right-wing candidates for the Senate.
In fact, the Latino vote saved the Senate for the Democrats.
But in Illinois the right didn't even try their demagogic tactics. That's largely because the immigrant communities in Illinois have worked hard over five election cycles to build a muscular political organizing vehicle that gets out the immigrant vote -- and can bite back fiercely at anti-immigrant demagogues.
In 2008, Jim Oberweis ran for Congress against Democrat Bill Foster on a heavily anti-immigrant platform and was flattened by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. That experience sent a lesson through Illinois' right-wing political class. Nothing like watching one of their own get scalded to teach others not to touch the stove.
The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) no leads The New Americans' Democracy Project . This year, 13 electoral organizers worked for months in both the City of Chicago and the Suburbs. They targeted 133,128 infrequent immigrant voters for a multi-contact phone and door operation, and before the election was done the volunteers they recruited did a total of 549,000 live phone calls to their universe of Latino, Asian and Muslim voters.
This work has been growing in scale and bite since 2002 when it began with no funding and in only nine precincts. At this point the immigrant vote can no longer be ignored by either party. Here are several key lessons from the Illinois immigrant organizing experience:
1) Consistency Counts: ICIRR has had between 10 and 20 full-time immigrant election campaign organizers every election since 2004. They begin their work in July and work through November, building a "recent immigrant" field operation. In every single cycle they add new skills to their electoral organizing.
2) Numbers Count: The immigrant voter program has registered over 90,000 new immigrant voters. They door-knock between 35,000 and 60,000 doors every election cycle.
3) Diversity is Strength: The Democracy Project works with leaders and organizations in Latino community, but also the Asian, Arab, and Polish immigrant communities.
4) Mine the "Base" and work the "Swings": The electoral work is done in the immigrant "base" Chicago port of entry neighborhoods to generate numbers, but also in swing suburban political districts where multi-ethnic immigrant organizing multiplies the voting power of Latinos. The activation of new immigrant voters in suburban "swing" communities forces Republican attention to immigrant issues.
5) Reward Friends, Punish Enemies: ICIRR keeps track of who engages in immigrant bashing -- and stikes back. When Republican anti-immigrant candidate Jim Oberweis polarized voters against "illegal immigrants", ICIRR released to the media a film of undocumented immigrants cleaning his business while being paid only $3.23 an hour. When old-school Democratic Mayor of Waukegan, IL attacked "illegals" with local law enforcement of immigration laws, he went down to defeat in the next election because Latinos in Waukegan mobilized to support his opponent.
6) Naturalize, Naturalize, Naturalize: ICIRR has one of the most aggressive citizenship programs in the nation. All told, an additional 170,000 immigrants were naturalized in Illinois over the last five years. The coalition itself directly assisted over 48,000 of those legal immigrants to become citizens, and thus voters.
ICIRR is not a partisan organization. In fact, their most recent fundraiser was headlined by the popular former Republican Governor Jim Edgar. But because of the track record of Republicans across the country, its organizing definitely benefits Democrats. In fact, Democratic Governor Pat Quinn - who won by fewer than 20,000 votes -- would not likely have been re-elected had it not been for their work.
On the policy side, ICIRR works for immigrant-friendly policies, and by any definition they have succeeded in winning some of the most immigrant-friendly policies in the nation at the state level in Illinois.
The state of Illinois leans Blue, but it has wide swatches of Red. In the recent elections the Democrats barely lost the Senate race and took some terrible losses in the Congressional delegation. But in addition to electing a Democratic Governor, both the State House and Senate remained in Democratic hands. The immigrant vote was critical to these Democratic victories, but it is also a force that Republicans ignore or abuse at their peril. In this election, at least, Illinois Republicans generally had the good sense not to bait the immigrant community.
In the current environment of racialized fear and polarization against immigrants across the U.S., the hard work of immigrant advocates in Illinois provides two key lessons:
* Demagogues go after the weak, not the strong. You don't stop anti-immigrant demagoguery through accommodation, you stop it with strength.
* Nuts and Bolts Organizing works.
chanduv23
04-23 09:17 AM
If you find this on your 140 approval notice
Notice Type: Approval Notice
Section: Mern of Profession w/Adv Deg,or
of Excentn'l Abllitv
Sec .203.(b) (2)
Then it is EB2.
Notice Type: Approval Notice
Section: Mern of Profession w/Adv Deg,or
of Excentn'l Abllitv
Sec .203.(b) (2)
Then it is EB2.
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