Immigration 101
Immigration in the United States is complex and ever-evolving. Start here to understand the fundamental aspects of immigration policy, its history, and its impact on both individuals and the country at large. Learn commonly used terms about immigration law and how the U.S. immigration system is designed. Explore layered topics like how and whether immigrants can become citizens, as well as what individual protections look like under the law.
How the United States Immigration System Works
- How the Immigration System Works
- June 24, 2024
U.S. immigration law is very complex, and there is much confusion as to how it works. This fact sheet provides basic information…
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Birthright Citizenship in the United States
- Birthright Citizenship
- July 9, 2026
This fact sheet explains birthright citizenship, the Fourteenth Amendment, and its interpretations. Who is…
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Asylum in the United States
- Asylum
- August 27, 2014
Asylum seekers must navigate a difficult and complex process that can involve multiple government…
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Washington Post: Companies to offer ‘dreamers’ legal protection as Trump scraps DACA
President Trump’s decision Tuesday to scrap an Obama-era program allowing young undocumented immigrants to work in the United States would fall most heavily on the hospitality, retail and construction industries, which together employ nearly half of the 1.3 million immigrants initially eligible for protection, according to an analysis by New… Read More
WBUR: Boston Business Leaders Blast Trump’s Decision To End DACA
Boston-area business leaders say they’re disappointed with the Trump administration’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivalsprogram. The program, known as DACA, granted temporary legal status to about 800,000 people whose parents brought them to the country illegally as children — including about 8,000 here in Massachusetts. Read More
Marketplace: CEOs are coming out in favor of DACA, but can their support influence Congress?
President Donald Trump announced plans Tuesday to roll back the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but with a six month delay that would allow Congress to act. Last week, corporate leaders came to the defense of DACA recipients, also called Dreamers, who get deportation relief and temporary work authorization… Read More
Washington Post: How big business is trying to convince Congress to save the ‘Dreamers’ from Trump
Business leaders across industries, from tech to agriculture, are appealing to Congress to protect nearly 800,000 undocumented workers from deportation as President Trump is expected on Tuesday to announce a plan to revoke their permission to work. The Trump administration has indicated it would phase out the five-year-old Deferred Action… Read More
DACA Entrepreneur Gives Back, Offers Free Web Training
Ramiro Rodriguez is an ivy league-educated entrepreneur whose startup, the live-streaming company Riivet, recently graduated from a tech accelerator program to a company with a dozen steady clients. He is also an undocumented immigrant who owes his success to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a 2012 policy that allows… Read More
Spotlight on the DACA-Eligible Population
In 2012, the Department of Homeland Security implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, which grants law-abiding undocumented youth a renewable two-year reprieve from deportation and the ability to work in the United States if they are in, or have graduated from, high school. Although there are currently… Read More
Dreamer Wants to Give Back to U.S. — To Do So Needs DACA
Ana Ramirez grew up in north-central Washington, studying hard, earning good grades, and believing she had the same opportunities as her peers. It wasn’t until she was a freshman in high school that she learned the truth. After being accepted into a European summer study program, she ran home to… Read More
Immigration Reform Calls For ‘Complete Shift in Mentality,’ Says Georgia Lawyer
“I come from a very conservative family, but my parents raised me to believe we are all equal in God’s eyes,” says Ashley Deadwyler-Heuman, an immigration lawyer in Macon, Georgia. “Our horrific immigration court system treats many people without dignity or respect. Being able to level that playing field is… Read More
Where Do You Find the Most Resistance to Immigration?
Conventional thinking may lead some to believe that those communities that fight the hardest against immigration are the ones receiving the greatest influx of foreign newcomers. If people are wary of the changes immigrants are bringing to their communities, they would naturally seem to be the most vocal in… Read More
Helping Immigrant Workers Helps U.S. Workers and Towns, Says Mainer
As the client services coordinator for Mano en Mano (Hand in Hand), Christina Ocampo understands that helping undocumented farmworkers and other immigrants prosper has a positive impact overall on America’s communities. Nationally, undocumented immigrants account for more than 36 percent of the agriculture workforce. And because this… Read More
America's story is an immigrant story.
