The Facts Behind ICE; U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement
U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE(’s) stated mission is to “protect America from the cross-border crime and illegal immigration that threaten national security and public safety.” ICE was created in 2003 under the presidency of George W. Bush. This is context taken straight from ICE’s website,
“ERO operations target public safety threats, such as convicted criminal aliens and gang members, as well as individuals who have otherwise violated our nation's immigration laws, including those who illegally re-entered the country after being removed and immigration fugitives ordered removed by federal immigration judges. ERO deportation officers assigned to INTERPOL also assist in targeting and apprehending foreign fugitives or Fugitive Alien Removal (FAR) cases who are wanted for crimes committed abroad and who are now at-large in the U.S.”
This article is going to talk about what is currently happening at the U.S. Mexico border and the new rules put into place for international students studying across the nation.
Under the Trump administration in 2017, the government began separating families across the U.S-Mexico border, “including those entering through official ports of entry.” In May 2018, Trump implemented a ‘zero tolerance’ policy which stated, any migrant crossing the border without permission would immediately be referred to the U.S. Department of Justice to be prosecuted. Children who are present are referred to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where they are put in “shelters” or “refugee camps”. These “refugee camps” consist of unsanitary and unsafe conditions. Many children are put into ‘dog-sized’ cages and are refused the proper care and attention they need.
The Associated Press reports that overhead lighting stays on around the clock, children are sleeping under “large foil sheets,” older children are forced to change the diapers of toddlers and that children have no books or toys. Under President Barack Obama administration, ICE prioritized removing undocumented immigrants who had committed serious crimes, but under the Trump administration, he broadened its mandate to target ANYONE in the US illegally.
In January 2020, Judge Sabraw refused to issue new guidelines to limit the government from separating migrant families, in turn allowing immigration officials to use their discretion when doing so. In the same month, the official government count of children separated from parents or guardians since 2017 was reported to be 4,368. By February, the administration had separated at least 1,142 additional children from parents at the border since the policy’s “end.” And by mid-May, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement began forcing parents and their children to separate, or risk being detained together indefinitely.
Ways you can help:
The best way you can help is by educating yourself. It is important to know your rights and when you do, you are able to help other people know theirs.
On Monday, July 6, ICE announced a new policy requiring international students to leave the country if their school is having ‘online’ only instruction for the upcoming fall semester. Under this policy, international students are allowed to remain in the country ONLY if they transfer to a school that is giving ‘in-person’ classes. This results in many students giving up their scholarships and/or dream school.
“The U.S. Department of State will not issue visas to students enrolled in schools and/or programs that are fully online for the fall semester nor will U.S. Customs and Border Protection permit these students to enter the United States. Active students currently in the United States enrolled in such programs must depart the country or take other measures, such as transferring to a school with in-person instruction to remain in lawful status. If not, they may face immigration consequences including, but not limited to, the initiation of removal proceedings.”
“Nonimmigrant F-1 students attending schools operating under normal in-person classes are bound by existing federal regulations. Eligible F students may take a maximum of one class or three credit hours online.”
For many students, going home is not an option. Many countries' borders are closed from travelers coming from the states. Also, many students home environments are not equipped with high tech, high speed technology to handle the online classes. They also will have to figure out how to deal with a time difference, if there is one.
Some schools are suing ICE to stop deportation of their international students. Many universities are also adding a mixture of in-person and online classes to allow their students to remain in the country. Studying in the middle of NYC and knowing how significant the international student population is, it is important to bring awareness to what is happening around us in our communities and to try to help in as many ways as possible.
Here is the petition for CUNY Baruch College, it takes two seconds to sign:
If your school doesn’t have a plan or petition set in place, you can start and help be the change. A signature goes a long way.