The 2016 Gala brought together the stories of many individuals, each of whom shared moments from their life, work, and identity. Board member Adam Yang spoke to his family’s journey from Laos to a Hmong refugee camp in Thailand. Today, his dedication as a Minneapolis public defender, and his leadership as Hmong attorney on behalf of several organizations, is still driven by the dream his family pursued in journeying to America. His commitment to giving back to his community is an inspiration for all Minnesotans.

Jaylani Hussein, who is also a refugee, told guests about his identity as a Somali-Minnesotan and his subsequent career. As Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Minnesota, he has dedicated himself to advocacy on behalf of Muslim-American communities. His and CAIR-MN’s tireless advocacy work to encourage dialogue and protect the civil liberties of American Muslims earned the organization our State Advocate of the Year Award. Jaylani’s words demonstrated the importance and the power of his work.

Prairie Home Companion’s very own Garrison Keillor made our Gala a night to remember. He focused on the topic of immigration as well as the sometimes fraught concept of the home immigrants and refugees leave behind. Keillor muses half of songs are about leaving home and the other half are about going back – or, at least, wanting to. He recalls Sunday afternoons where his neighbors of Scandinavian decent would gather in public parks to sing themselves to tears. They reminisced about their countries of origin, even without ever having seen them. Yet, without having left their homes, Keillor points out, his neighbors would have nothing to sing about. Keillor goes on to applaud ILCM for doing the work that gives people cause to sing.

Maria Isa delivers a tremendous spoken word performance. Her work mixes multi-lingual, rhythmic poetry with Spanish ballads and sound-bytes from famous artists like Bruce Springsteen. During her performance, she parodies Springsteen’s “Born in the USA”. While her jeans are ripped like Springsteen’s, her hands are holding maracas instead of a guitar. The work serves to establish her “Sota-Rican” (Minnesotan-Puerto Rican) identity. For Isa, these two identities are inseparable. Thus, she embraces both cultures, each enriching the other. She embraces art and music to carve out a space for a new identity to form.

ILCM is proud to have hosted these powerful storytellers, friends, and artists, and wholeheartedly thanks them for sharing this moment with us. Please enjoy a few more videos of our storytellers, below: ILCM staff Sandra Portilla and John Keller took the stage to share their words as well.

ILCM teamed up with documentary producer Matt Ehling from TwelvePlus Media to tell the story of ILCM’s impact on Minnesota’s immigrant and refugee communities. The documentary brings together the voices of many who have been a part of ILCM’s journey and growth over the years.

The video is begins and ends with the voice of Sandra, our very own employee, who shares her experience of crossing the Mexico-United States border at the age of twelve. Her parents, like many parents before her, brought her to the United States with the dream of a better life for their children. Sandra’s story is remarkable, yet also speaks for the experience of many immigrants.

Partners, clients, friends, and staff that have guided ILCM since 1996 and before appear in the video, speaking to the incredible impact of ILCM’s work. As you will learn, ILCM is the premier provider of legal services to Minnesota’s immigrant and refugee communities, but it is also so much more than that. Minnesota’s immigrant and refugee communities thrive from the education ILCM provides on the legal challenges of naturalization, Deferred Action, family reunification, and much more. ILCM is on the cutting edge of Minnesota’s immigration legislation. When Minnesota’s legislators need advice on immigration policy both on the state and federal level, they turn to ILCM. In the words of Senator Al Franken, ILCM works to secure a “greater measure of fairness” for all. Congresswoman Amy Klobuchar offers praise for the “fine work” ILCM does to help immigrants become citizens and take full advantage of their civil liberties, and Congressman Keith Ellison singles out immigration as one of the most pressing issues his constituents face, and prizes ILCM for their advice on his work in Washington D.C.

We hope you enjoy this short documentary and invite you to share this with your friends and family.

A new report produced by Dr. Katherine Fennelly at the University of Minnesota examining the economic impact of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) is now available.

Sponsoring organizations of the report include the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM), LatinoLead, the Minnesota Business Immigration Coalition, the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, and the Minneapolis Foundation.

The full report is available here.

Source: The StarTribune

ILCM was recently quoted in a StarTribune article about the rise of citizenship applications in 2016. 

Nationally, the number of naturalization applications shot up by 13 percent in the first few months of this year, compared to the same period in 2015. In the Minnesota field office, where data includes North Dakota, South Dakota and western Wisconsin, applications have surged by 12 percent in that period.

Read the full article here.

Source: Star Telegram

This morning, the Supreme Court issued a 4-4 decision in United States v. Texas, the case challenging expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA). Given the tie, the lower court decision will stand, and the new programs will remain blocked by a nationwide injunction.

The 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which was not challenged by the lawsuit, will continue. Learn if you, a friend, or family member qualify for DACA here.

ILCM, along with many allies who recognize the benefits of expanded DACA and DAPA, is disappointed by this news. Personal and family stories remind us of how much the United States has to gain by improving national immigration policies.

Despite this setback, advocacy around programs like expanded DACA and DAPA, as well as comprehensive immigration reform, won’t stop. ILCM will continue working to keep families together, and to create a more welcoming and inclusive Minnesota.

Infographics regarding the Supreme’s Court decision are available in English and Spanish.

As always, individuals should continue to be aware of the rights that all of us have in the United States, regardless of immigration status. For more information, please visit our “Know Your Rights” page.

 

Strong public safety reasons support creating a license for immigrants

ILCM worked with many elected officials, allies, partners, and other leaders to create a two-tiered REAL ID compliant system in Minnesota in 2016. First-tier licenses would be compliant with all federal purposes, such as boarding an aircraft and gaining entrance into federal facilities. The second-tier license, as contemplated in the federal REAL ID act, allows for a state to create a “state-only” license for those who do not wish to share their personal data with the federal government, those that do not intend to use it to board aircraft, and for the state to license all immigrant drivers.

During the 2016 session, we successfully repealed the 2009 state prohibition on REAL ID planning and passed the two-tier system in the Senate. Unfortunately, the House legislation specifically included statutory language to prohibit undocumented Minnesotans from obtaining a driver’s licenses in the future. This would have codified the prohibition in statute for the first time in Minnesota history, leading to a conflict with the Senate and the Governor’s office.

While REAL ID stalled on the last day of the 2016 session, it is important that the process to obtain drivers licenses for all immigrants did not take a step backwards during this process. Strong public safety reasons support creating a license for immigrants to allow them to pass driving tests and obtain auto insurance. There is still time for Minnesota to resolve REAL ID, as Homeland Security has granted a continuing extension of current licenses for boarding aircrafts into 2018. ILCM will continue to work with all partners and leaders to resolve both issues in a timely fashion.

Source: The Politic

The Supreme Court will soon determine the constitutionality of President Obama’s 2014 executive actions around immigration, likely by the end of the week of June 20th or the beginning of the week of June 27th. 

 

In November 2014, President Obama announced a series of administrative actions related to immigration. One proposal expanded the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for unauthorized youth who had entered the United States before the age of 16, and a second action, called Deferred Action for Parents of Childhood Arrivals (DAPA), would defer the deportation of certain parents with children who are U.S. citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs). The implementation of DAPA and expanded DACA is currently stalled pending a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. The original DACA program will remain in effect, regardless of the upcoming decision.

 

ILCM joins with 136 law professors in asserting that President Obama’s executive actions were within the legal authority of the executive branch. ILCM, along with many other organizations nationwide, have advocated for the Supreme Court to accept the case and subsequently to side with the President’s position in an amicus brief.

 

If the Supreme Court does allow the expanded DACA and DAPA programs to move forward, as many as five million parents of U.S. citizens or permanent residents and DREAMers could obtain temporary protection from deportation and apply for work permits. Data from ILCM’s Deferred Action clients demonstrates the impact of DACA on immigrant lives: Seventy-percent of DACA recipients obtained a new or different job, almost three-quarters were making more money than before, and percentage increases of individuals with a bank account, healthcare, and government IDs were 25% and 50%, respectively. In addition, 88% of DACA recipients reported securing a state identification card, and 63% reported securing a driver’s license. Overwhelmingly, DACA recipients report the sentiment that “Now, I feel like I belong.”

 

Pictured (left to right) is John Keller, Senator John Marty, Monica Hurtado (Voices for Racial Justice), Maureen O’Connell (Health Access), Sarah Greenfield (Take Action), Jonathon Watson (MN Association of Community Health Centers), Emilia Avalos (Navigate MN) and her daughter, Miranda

Beginning in the fall and continuing through January of 2016, ILCM, along with Take Action Minnesota, Health Access MN, Voices for Racial Justice, SEIU Healthcare, Navigate MN, ISAIAH, and the Safety Net Coalition attended dozens of meetings and invested at least 300 collective hours into the newly created Minnesota Health Care Financing Task Force. The Task Force identified barriers to health care equity as well as solutions to address them. The final package of recommendations to Governor Dayton and the legislature are available here. The Governor’s 29 member Task Force, including health care industry and academic experts, elected and appointed officials, and advocates from labor and community groups, overwhelmingly approved our top health care recommendation to create a new coverage eligibility program to provide access to health insurance to everyone in the state, regardless of immigration status.

The recommendation (number five in the report) aims to provide access to health care coverage for uninsured, low-income individuals who do not have access to Medical assistance, Qualified Health Plans, and MinnesotaCare because of immigration status. It predominantly includes undocumented persons, but also those with lawful status such as DACA (their status precludes them from coverage by state/federal health insurance regulations). By creating a new coverage program, the state will also reduce the use of emergency room visits by the uninsured, using health care dollars more efficiently by improving access to routine and preventative care. Reducing health care disparities in Minnesota requires the state to provide affordable coverage to undocumented immigrants: about 90,000 undocumented immigrants reside in Minnesota, and about one-third have at least one U.S.-born child.

In testimony, community members shared their powerful stories, showing the importance of passing this recommendation. One community member shared his story of being a small business owner who became ill and needed an operation. He could not afford the necessary surgery both due to his limited economic means and not qualifying for health care due to his immigration status. His pain does not allow him to work as hard as he used to, or provide for his family in the same way. His small business had to let employees go—impacting more families. Allowing patients like this father, access to health care would greatly improve their ability to provide for themselves, their families, and their employees.

The Task Force’s immigrant coverage recommendation moved into legislation and had its first successful hearings in the Senate. Unfortunately, it was not given a hearing in the House. ILCM is grateful to Navigate MN’s Executive Director, Emilia Avalos, for providing some of the most powerful testimony of the session to educate and persuade senators about the importance of this equity-creating health initiative. ILCM and many of our partners are committed to continued advocacy for health care equity.

Pictured is John Keller, Executive Director of ILCM 

ILCM attorneys John Keller, Sheila Stuhlman, and Julia Decker, along with attorneys from The Center for New Americans and a pro bono team from Faegre Baker Daniels, won the 2015 Minnesota Lawyer Circle of Excellence award. This award recognizes all of their hard work in securing a victory in the Supreme Court which will help protect thousands of people from deportation because of unjust paraphernalia convictions.

Moones Mellouli, a math professor at the University of Missouri, was deported in 2012 due to the possession of drug paraphernalia; several adderall pills were found in his sock. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled the government cannot deport a lawful resident through inferences alone; instead, the crime of conviction must be a deportable offense. Nothing in the record identified the drug as a controlled substance, which would be key to the sock being considered “paraphernalia.”

Ben Casper, director of the Center for New Americans at the University of Minnesota Law School said, “it was gratifying to be able to bring some sense of proportionality to the deportation laws, which has really been lacking in recent years.” The Center for New Americans, which the ILCM helped to create, played a substantial role in fighting to advance this case to the Supreme Court.

Pictured is Mirella Ceja-Orozco, an ILCM pro bono attorney 

ILCM, in partnership with the Volunteer Lawyers Network (VLN), recently launched a new pro bono project, the Family Unity Self-Help Clinic. Volunteer legal staff provide legal advice and brief services to low-income immigrants and refugees in Minnesota regarding family petitions and immigrant visa processing. The goal of the clinic is to provide the most holistic legal services available in a clinic format, including comprehensive legal screenings, general education about the family reunification process, bilingual pro se materials, identification of alternative forms of reliefs for clients, on-site brief services, and placement for full representation where possible.

Services relating to family reunification represent one of the most frequently requested services for immigrant and refugee communities, but due to limited funding, legal aid offices are often not able to meet those needs. The Family Unity Clinic was developed as a first step to increase access to services in this legal area, and to support immigrant families in Minnesota. Family Unity Self-Help Clinics are held every six weeks, and alternate between the ILCM St. Paul office and a location in Minneapolis overseen by VLN. Clients may contact ILCM’s intake line to register for clinics.