Today we examine the Biden administration's Build Back Better Act, $100 billion dollars of which is sought to be allocated to immigration reform. Please note that this act has already passed the House but at the time of this recording on 12/10/21 it has not yet passed the Senate and is not officially enacted. We’ll walk through the key immigration initiatives being proposed, how they will affect clients, and where negotiations stand today on capitol hill. To help me through the political ins and outs, Erickson Immigration Group's Legal and Government Affairs Manager, Nils Kinuani joins.

On November 10, 2021, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security entered into a settlement with plaintiffs, significantly changing USCIS policy regarding work authorization for qualified H-4 and L-2 status holders. On November 12, 2021, USCIS updated its Policy Manual to reflect these changes. USCIS and CBP are working to reflect these changes on Form I-94 so as to distinguish E and L dependent spouses from E and L dependent children. When the new code and notation are implemented, Forms I-94 for E or L dependent spouses may constitute as evidence of employment authorization.

Erickson Immigration Group's Associate Attorney, Sarah Amendola joins today to explain these changes.

Joining today is Senior Staff Attorney for Immigrant legal Resource Center, Rose Cahn.

Rose oversees the resource center’s pro bono Immigrant Post-Conviction Relief Project, coauthors many manuals at the cusp of criminal and immigration law, and was instrumental in drafting California Penal Code § 1473.7, a landmark piece of legislation that created a legal framework to vacate unconstitutional convictions.

We discuss:

• Running “Immigrant Post-Conviction Relief Project”
• How industry leaders can better serve the rights of immigrants with criminal convictions (From a local/national policy level)
• The drafting process and the resulting outcome of California Penal Code § 1473.7: Providing a legal framework to vacate unconstitutional convictions.

This September Erickson Immigration Group hosted their Women in Law event, which highlights the contributions and stories of pivotal women who work in immigration law. This event was led by EIG’s Erickson Immigration Group’s Partner, Hiba Anver. In this conversation, Policy and Advocacy Strategist, Maunica Sthanki joins Hiba to share her story.

The two address navigating the legal industry as a woman of color, and the methods used to advance in a career when faced with challenges:

• How Maunicas father arriving in the US as a refugee has shaped her view and empathy towards what immigration can bring 
• The insights she gained working on the Subcommittee of Immigration and Border Security during the Trump Administration.
• In conclusion,  what lessons she passes down to young women aspiring to become lawyers

Global Strategy Advisor and best-selling author Dr. Parag Khanna joins Immigration Nerds. Dr. Parag is the Founder & Managing Partner of FutureMap, a data and scenario-based strategic advisory firm, a Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum, and Author of the latest book titled “MOVE: The Forces Uprooting Us” (2021).

FutureMap has developed a comprehensive data forecasting suite to identify the locations with the highest likelihood of land value appreciation. ClimateAlpha.ai provides investors, property developers, and state and municipal authorities guidance on where to build for the population of tomorrow.

Our discussion centers around using a data-driven lens to predict migration and social trends in the near future.

Today, Ari Shaw Director of International Programs at the Williams Institute, and Ingrid Eagly Law Professor at UCLA joins Immigration Nerds.

The Williams Institute conducts independent research on sexual orientation and gender identity law and public policy.

In March earlier this year, the team completed a comprehensive research paper titled LGBT ASYLUM Cases in the US. Where they tracked the data of LGBTQ-related asylum cases, the types of persecutions experienced worldwide through fear interviews, and provide recommendations to improve our policy and asylum tracking systems.

Links:

https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/lgbt-asylum-claims/

https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/measuring-absentia-removal-immigration-court

Erickson Immigration Group’s Partner Justin Parsons and Lead Researcher Luke Bianco welcome guest Executive Director of National Foundation for American Policy, Stuart Anderson. They discuss the context surrounding Stuart’s latest Forbes article titled “H-1B Visas Are Scarce As Computer Job Vacancies Reach 1.2 Million”. They address:

• The recent growth trends in the Technology/Computer sector, and how H-1B can capitalize
• Combating the false narratives that high-skill immigration means fewer opportunities for US workers
• In conclusion, what will the employment landscape look like in a future when policy changes reflect our new normal

E. Kyle Romero is a visiting professor of history at Loyola University Maryland. He teaches U.S. foreign policy, immigration and global migration, and the history of humanitarianism and human rights. He is currently working on his first book, titled, “Moving People: Refugee Politics, Foreign Aid, and the Emergence of American Humanitarianism”.

This week was dominated by a flurry of headlines, centered around the creation of new standards, unfulfilled promises in policy, and how recent government actions may or may not align with its prior declared commitments.

Three stories this week predominately enveloped our timelines.

1. The senate parliamentary issues guidance against Biden’s proposed immigration measures in the upcoming budget bill
2. The treatment of Haitian migrants crossing US border seeking refuge in Del Rio Texas, and the shocking footage of apprehension techniques by the CBP
3. And lastly, President Biden officially lifting travel restrictions for foreign nationals who are fully vaccinated, and the implications for those who are not

Policy and Advocacy Strategist, Maunica Sthanki was gracious enough to stop by to provide greater context surrounding this proposal as well as Lead Researcher Luke Bianco.

Vivian Zavataro is the Director of the John and Geraldine Lilley Museum of Art at the University of Nevada. She specializes in contemporary art and mediation, traveling the world working on installations, museums, and galleries that teach onlookers the value of Diversity, inclusion, and creativity in the work she presents. Joined by Lead Researcher, Luke Bianco.

We discuss:

• How the En Medio exhibit came to be, an installation that focuses on the travels to the US-Mexico border expressed through music, photography, painting, video, and performance art 
• A discussion of some of the noteworthy pieces/artists featured within the exhibit
• Ways we can engage with immigration art and expression