28 April 2021 – by Caroline Foley
With over 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States (US), and the undebatable reality that they have been essential during the pandemic, President Biden has made immigration reform one of his administration’s top priorities. The statistics of undocumented people living in the US have featured in the headlines for quite some time. “We have to stop the flow first,” is the recurring reason given for failing to expand immigration law for the protection of those living in the shadows. The same reasoning was provided in dismissal of Biden’s immigration bill which was introduced in Congress.
Despite contentions that due to the new administration, the border is now ‘open’, the vast majority of migrants are still being turned away at the Southern border. Some politicians associate the increase of people at the border with Biden’s promise of legalization. However, the issue of legalization and a surge of migrants at the border should not be grouped together, because these groups of people are facing very different problems.
As of 2017, most undocumented immigrants have been living in the U.S. for an average of 15 years. They comprise part of the fabric of the American economy and well as society, as parents, community leaders, business owners, and essential workers. However, their humanity is undermined when they face discrimination from the very same society, when their rights as workers and individuals are violated, and when they live in constant fear of deportation.
On the other hand, a large proportion of recent migrants to the US from Central America are fleeing a lack of basic resources in their countries due to the effects of climate change. The use of law enforcement at the border does not address the lack of water and food being experienced in the ‘Dry Corridor’, or the destruction caused by Iota and Eta last year. It would be beneficial to address this major root cause of migration, and to demilitarize the border and instead invest these funds into sustainability efforts in the US, and climate resilience in Central America. The US should be playing a role in funding the latter as a neighboring country that has very much impacted polices and climate change in Central America.
Climate Migrants
Experts predict that migration will continue to increase when natural disasters intensify as a result of climate change. Currently, approximately 8 million people suffer from food insecurity due to the effects of climate change in Central America, and during 2020, the region endured the formation of 30 cyclones which devastated many areas.
In Honduras specifically, hurricane Eta evolved from tropical depression to Category 4 hurricanes in less than 36 hours. Entire villages were destroyed and buried with mud. The impact of the storm is ongoing as many houses remain destroyed, and people remain unemployed after losing their jobs when plantations were destroyed. This is directly linked to the rise in the surface temperature of the sea.
To address the root cause of migration from neighboring countries, or the so-called “border crisis”, President Biden signed an executive order on February 4, 2021, dubbed ‘Rebuilding and Enhancing Programs to Resettle Refugees and Planning for the Impact of Climate Change on Migration’. In section 6 of the order, entitled ‘Climate Change and Migration’, the President ordered the submission of a report within 180 days on climate change and its effect on migration. Specifically, the report should include options for protection and resettlement of individuals displaced directly by climate change, how to identify these migrants, how the US can mitigate the negative impacts of climate change, and how to collaborate with other countries in doing so.
This is a first step in recognizing and addressing the complex situation at the US Southern border. Acknowledging that climate change is directly linked to the displacement of people arriving to the US should be followed by further action, for instance, an expansion of the definition of a ‘refugee’ to include climate migrants, or collaborative work with Central American governments to mitigate the effects of climate change, to which the US is a top contributor.
Undocumented and Essential Workers
It is crucial to humanize immigrants and acknowledge that people are more than a “crisis” that comes in “waves”. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it has been estimated that 5 million undocumented workers (or 3 in 4 undocumented immigrants in the workforce) are essential workers. They play a critical role the food chain as farmworkers and food processors, and working in health care as food servers and in nursing homes. As a result, a bill to provide permanent residence for over 5 million undocumented essential workers who played a role in the COVID-19 response has been introduced. The House of Representatives also passed the Farm Workforce Modernization Act to make temporary farm workers eligible to become permanent residents. These are some initial measures that benefit those immigrants who are not just living in, but contributing to American society.
The issues faced by immigrants living in the shadows in the U.S need to be addressed separately from those at the border. Though these issues are intertwined, the reality of the millions that are living undocumented in the US and alienated from the rest of society requires a solution that is geared towards integration. The evidence that undocumented immigrants have contributed to the coronavirus response and economic recovery shows that they consider the US to be their home, and are working alongside their neighbors in the best interest of recovery. We can no longer ignore just how essential undocumented workers are to their communities and the country at large. Holding them hostage in limbo because of an inability to deal with the root causes of migration is inhumane and immoral.
Caroline Miranda Foley is a law student at Western New England, Massachusetts. She has worked in immigration law for the past ten years and is passionate about access to justice, especially in the immigrant community. She has been an immigrant in the United States for over 15 years, and is very tied to the Brazilian and other Latino community where she resides.
