This episode of CMSOnAir is the third in a series featuring academics, policymakers, and advocates who have written for the Center for Migration Studies’ (CMS) Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS). In this interview, Dora Schriro speaks with Michele Pistone and Jack Hoeffner about family residential facilities and her 2017 paper, “Weeping in the Playtime of Others: The Obama Administration's Failed Reform of ICE Family Detention Practices.” During the Obama administration, Schriro served as senior advisor to US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and then as US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) first director of the Office of Detention Policy and Planning. She later served as a subject matter expert on the DHS Advisory Committee on Family Residential Facility formed by Secretary Jeh Johnson. Schriro shares her insights on working to reform immigrant detention practices, the difference between criminal and civil detention, and the impact of family detention on parents. Schriro recommends a case management approach to the reception of families and suggests US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) as the first point of contact. “Weeping in the Playtime of Others: The Obama Administration's Failed Reform of ICE Family Detention Practices.” https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/233150241700500212 Learn more about the Center for Migration Studies: https://cmsny.org/

CMSOnAir

Dora Schriro On Family Detention

This episode of CMSOnAir is the second in a series featuring academics, policymakers, and advocates who have written for the Center for Migration Studies’ (CMS) Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS). In this interview, Jennifer Podkul, the Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), describes the United States’ recent history with respect to the humanitarian protection of children and offers an overview of the current situation at the US-Mexico border for child migrants. An international human rights lawyer and expert on child migration to the United States, Podkul recently testified before the House Committee on Homeland Security on the best practices for the care and protection of child migrants. Podkul’s 2016 JMHS paper, “The Impact of Externalization of the Migration Controls on the Rights of Asylum Seekers and Other Migrants,” examined how the United States, Australia, and the European Union sought to prevent migrants and refugees from arriving at their borders to seek protection. One example presented in the paper is the Obama administration’s response to the increase in unaccompanied children in 2014. Podkul describes what has changed since the Obama administration with respect to the deterrence of child migrants and offers policy recommendations for the care and reception of child migrants. Read the JMHS paper: https://cmsny.org/publications/jmhs-impact-of-externalization/

Jennifer Podkul on the Humanitarian Protection of Children

This episode of CMSOnAir is the first in a series featuring academics, policymakers, and advocates who have written for the Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS). Created by the Obama administration in 2012, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program offers certain young immigrants who came to the United States as children work authorization and a temporary reprieve from deportation. As the Supreme Court heard oral arguments regarding the Trump administration’s efforts to terminate the DACA program, CMS released a paper offering detailed estimates about DACA recipients, their economic contributions, and their deep ties to US communities. The paper found that: *83 percent of DACA recipients is in the labor force. From this pool, 95 percent is employed; *346,455 US-born children under the age of 18 have at least one DACA parent; and, *81 percent of DACA recipients has lived in the United States for more than 15 years. The paper, which also features testimonies of several DACA recipients, was subsequently published in the Journal on Migration and Human Security (JMHS), CMS’s peer-reviewed, public policy journal. In this episode, Daniela Alulema — author of the JMHS paper and herself a DACA recipient — describes the paper’s findings and shares the stories of the DACA recipients. She also outlines potential policy directions for the DACA program, given the Supreme Court’s decision that the way the Trump administration ended the program was unlawful and the Biden administration’s support for the program. Read the JMHS paper: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2331502419893674

Daniela Alulema on the Contributions of DACA Recipients

The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) is an international Catholic organization with a mission to accompany, serve, and advocate on behalf of refugees and other forcibly displaced persons, that they may heal, learn, and determine their own future. In this episode of CMSOnAir, Joan Rosenhauer, the Executive Director of JRS-USA, shares how JRS is adapting its advocacy for a new administration and transforming its programs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also shares stories about the “proactive, resilient, hopeful” refugees she has met through her work with JRS. If you want to learn more about the Jesuit Refugee Service, please visit: jrsusa.org RELATED WORK FROM THE CENTER FOR MIGRATION STUDIES https://cmsny.org/publications/rebuilding-usrap/ https://cmsny.org/publications/biden-refugees-martin-021921/ https://cmsny.org/publications/biden-refugees-martin-021921/ https://cmsny.org/publications/us-refugee-resettlement-program/

Joan Rosenhauer on Sharing Refugee Stories

This episode of CMSOnAir features four students at the University of Notre Dame who are doing research about international migration. Syeda (Fiana) Arbab, Sofia Piecuch, and Kara Venzian are graduate students pursuing their Masters in Global Affairs at Notre Dame’s Keough School. They partnered with Catholic Relief Services on a research project about how internally displaced persons and refugees describe and create home. Elsa Barron examined migrant integration, dialogue, and religious acceptance using the first mosque in Athens, Greece as a case study. An undergraduate student, Elsa conducted her research with support from the Nanovic Institute for European Studies at the University of Notre Dame. Here’s Elsa, Fiana, Sofia, and Kara describing the findings of their research at the Catholic Immigrant Integration Initiative Conference.

Students at the University of Notre Dame Present their Migration-Related Research

Dominican University is unique among Catholic colleges for its commitment to immigrants. About 10 percent of the students at Dominican University are undocumented or have temporary legal status, including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. This episode features an interview with Donna Carroll, president of Dominican University. She reflects on the challenges facing undocumented college students, including: lack of federal financial aid funding, the difficulty of career planning, and integrating into campus life. She also talks about the leadership of undocumented and “DACAmented” students and why the university adopted a Sanctuary Campus Covenant in 2017. Carroll describes the university’s efforts to support immigrant students during the “triple pandemics” of COVID-19, racism, and economic injustice — all of which have been exacerbated by restrictionist immigration policies.

Leading a Sanctuary Campus through Multiple Pandemics

In recent years, many Catholic grade schools have had to shut their doors due to funding issues. This trend has accelerated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Partnership Schools, a network of nine elementary and middle schools in urban areas of New York and Cleveland, is trying to stem the tide of Catholic school closings. Their network is taking a unique approach to funding, relying heavily on philanthropic support and keeping costs down, while maintaining high-quality education. In this episode, we hear from Jill Kafka, the executive director of Partnerships Schools, and Abigail Akano, principal of Sacred Heart School in the Bronx, one of the schools in the Partnership network. They describe how the network works, how they seek to include immigrant students and their parents, and why they created an emergency COVID-19 assistance fund to support families in their network.

Staying Connected to Urban Students and Their Parents

Sister Gabriela Ramírez, MGSpS, is the Director of Hispanic Catholic Social Services (or “La Casita” as it’s known to community members) in the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama. In “normal times,” La Casita provides low-cost immigration legal services, language assistance, adult education, and religious formation. Since the start of the pandemic, La Casita has shifted many of its regular services to remote platforms and sent food boxes to community members. Sr. Gabriela has also been instrumental in making COVID-19 testing available to immigrants at local parishes.

CMSOnAir | COVID-19 Testing Where Immigrants Feel Safe

The mission of the Scalabrinian order is to accompany people on the move. In the COVID-19 era, it is harder than ever to live out that mission. In this episode, we hear from Rev. José Juan Cervantes González, c.s., a Scalabrini priest who runs the Casa Scalabrini – Centro de Pastoral Migratoria in Guadalajara, Mexico. He is working to get the permission of the Mexican government to reopen the organization’s shelter and has stepped up advocacy efforts on behalf of migrants during the pandemic. We’ll also hear from Rev. Peter Ciallella, a Scalabrini priest by training who has settled in the Diocese of Hamilton in Canada. He has found new ways to reach out to migrant farmworkers during the pandemic, and like Rev. José Juan, he has become a stronger advocate since the start of the pandemic. Despite the challenges of this moment, Rev. José Juan and Rev. Peter are finding new ways to strengthen their ministries and cooperating with health officials to ensure safety.

Serving People on the Move Under Stay at Home Orders

This episode of CMSOnAir features an interview with Anna Gallagher, the executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC). She explains how CLINIC supports lawyers across the country as they adapt to the fast-paced policy changes of the current administration. She also discusses her concerns about access to asylum on the US-Mexico border and CLINIC’s Estamos Unidos Asylum Project in Ciudad Juarez — a response to the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) or “Remain in Mexico” program. *** Photo by Max Böhme on Unsplash

Anna Gallagher on Supporting Immigrants and Their Lawyers

This episode of CMSOnAir features an interview with Josiah Heyman, Professor of Anthropology, Endowed Professor of Border Trade Issues, and Director of the University of Texas, El Paso’s Center for Interamerican and Border Studies. CMS’s communications coordinator Emma Winters asks Josiah Heyman about a CMS Essay he authored with Jeremy Slack and Daniel E. Martínez. The essay, titled “Why Border Patrol Agents and CBP Officers Should Not Serve as Asylum Officers,” examines findings from the Migrant Border Crossing Survey and concludes that US Border Patrol agents and other CBP officers should not serve as asylum officers because they “abuse migrants, physically and verbally, with significant frequency.” In the episode, Josiah Heyman also presents a positive vision of the US-Mexico border and lifts up Annunciation House as an example of the openness and generosity of border communities. Related Publications: Why Border Patrol Agents and CBP Officers Should Not Serve as Asylum Officers https://cmsny.org/publications/heyman-slack-martinez-062119/ A Voice of the US Southwestern Border: The 2012 “We the Border: Envisioning a Narrative for Our Future” Conference https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/233150241300100201 Does the United States Need to Invest More in Border Enforcement? https://cmsny.org/publications/essay-kerwin-warren-051619/

Josiah Heyman on Border Patrol Culture and a Positive Vision of the Borderlands

This episode of CMSOnAir features an interview with Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso Texas. CMS’s communications coordinator Emma Winters asks Bishop Seitz about his recent pastoral letter, “Night Will Be No More.” The letter, a direct response to the August 3 [2019] Walmart massacre, condemns racism and white supremacy, examines the legacy of hate in the borderlands, and says to all: “Tú vales, you count.” Bishop Seitz also discusses the 2019 Border Mass, the El Paso Diocese fund to aid asylum seekers stuck in Ciudad Juarez, and why families should be at the heart of our immigration system. For more information and a transcript of this episode, visit: https://cmsny.org/multimedia/bishop-seitz Further Reading Border Spirituality: ‘Tu eres mi otro yo’ https://cmsny.org/publications/tomasilecture2019/ A Catholic Reflection on Host Communities https://cmsny.org/publications/fernandez-reflection-host-communities/

Bishop Mark J. Seitz on “Night Will Be No More” and What It Means to Be a Border City

This episode of CMSOnAir features an interview with David FitzGerald, Theodore E. Gildred Chair in US-Mexican Relations, Professor of Sociology, and Co-Director of the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at the University of California, San Diego. CMS’s researcher Mike Nicholson asks FitzGerald about the concept of “remote controls,” new constraints on asylum seekers, and the impact of wealthy democracies closing their doors to migrants. FitzGerald’s book, Refuge Beyond Reach: How Rich Democracies Repel Asylum Seekers, is now available from Oxford University Press. To keep up with FitzGerald’s work, you can follow him on Twitter, @FitzGeraldUCSD, or check out the website of the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies. FURTHER READING Deterrence without Protection of Asylum Seekers https://cmsny.org/martin-7-24-19/ What’s Less Patriotic Than Abandonment of the US Refugee Protection Program? https://cmsny.org/publications/kerwin071919/ Refugees Have Few Options, We Have a Lot More https://cmsny.org/publications/al-muqdad-053019/ The Impact of Externalization of Migration Controls on the Rights of Asylum Seekers and Other Migrants https://cmsny.org/publications/jmhs-impact-of-externalization/ The End of the Deterrence Paradigm? Future Directions for Global Refugee Policy https://cmsny.org/publications/jmhs-sc-globalrefugee/

David FitzGerald on the Shrinking Avenues for Asylum

The Khmer Rouge led by Marxist leader Pol Pot came to power in Cambodia in 1975. For four years, the regime emptied cities and forced virtually all of Cambodia’s population into labor camps where people were starved, overworked, tortured, and executed. It is estimated that nearly two million people died. This two-part CMSOnAir series features an interview with author, chef, and manufacturer of Cambodian foods, Channy Chhi Laux. In her memoir, Short Hair Detention, Chhi Laux chronicles the suffering her and her family endured under the Khmer Rouge. Only 13 years old when the Communists took over, Chhi Laux was torn away from her family and forced to work in a remote labor camp. She and her family were eventually resettled in Lincoln, Nebraska. Despite not knowing a word of English when she arrived in the United States at the age of 17, Chhi Laux quickly flourished, graduating high school, obtaining undergraduate degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and earning a Master of Science in Applied Mathematics from Santa Clara University. She worked in Silicon Valley as an engineer in the aerospace and biotech industries for 30 years before starting her own business, Angkor Cambodian Food, and publishing her memoir. In the first episode, Chhi Laux discusses her memoir and surviving under the Khmer Rouge. In the second episode, Chhi Laux shares her experiences of being resettled in Nebraska as a refugee and adjusting to life in the United States. For more information on Channy Chhi Laux visit her at channychhilaux.com. Chhi Laux’s memoir, Short Hair Detention, is available for purchase on Amazon. For more information on CMS's research, publications, and events, visit cmsny.org

Channy Chhi Laux (Part Two)

Channy Chhi Laux (Part One)

CMSOnAir is a podcast produced by the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS). CMS is an educational institute/think tank devoted to the study of international migration, to the promotion of understanding between immigrants and receiving communities, and to public policies that safeguard the dignity and rights of migrants, refugees and newcomers. For more information, visit us at www.cmsny.org. Follow @cmsnewyork on Twitter and Facebook.

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