What have farm workers ever done for me?

[Posted By Maricela Gutierrez]

Tighter license rules hit illegal immigrants

(Updated 11 a.m. EDT, Friday, Aug. 24)  Even where it’s legal, it’s getting tougher for illegal immigrants to get driver’s licenses.

 

The handful of states that issue licenses to illegal immigrants are stepping up efforts to combat fraud and identity theft. That means stricter rules for ensuring immigrants live in-state and are who they say they are.

 

In the last year, North Carolina and Tennessee stopped issuing licenses to illegal immigrants altogether. Meanwhile, New Mexico’s motor vehicle agency enlisted the Mexican government to help the state check the identity of would-be drivers. Maine is working to start limiting licenses to in-state residents, after decades of resisting.

 

Only seven states – Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, New Mexico,Oregon, Utah and Washington – allow undocumented immigrants to get driver’s licenses.

http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=234828

[Posted by Maricela Gutierrez]

Haiti: TPS and the Coming Negativity

Martha St JeanA New Yorker through and through
Posted: January 18, 2010 11:52 AM

My friends and I worried about the negativity that would emerge when the Department of Homeland Security granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Haitian nationals, allowing them to remain in the U.S for 18 months while conditions at home improve.

Rush Limbaugh's hostile comments regarding aid for Haiti, "Besides, we've already donated to Haiti. It's called the U.S. income tax," I fear are only the tip of the iceberg.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/martha-st-jean/haiti-tps-and-the-coming_b_425579.html

[Posted by: Kimberly Figueroa]

Vows to Move Fast for Haitian Immigrants in U.S.

By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
Published: January 20, 2010

MIAMI — Clutching their passports and well-thumbed documents, hundreds of illegal Haitian immigrants crowded into a Roman Catholic church here on Wednesday to seek help in applying for a program that would allow them to stay and work legally in the United States for 18 months.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/21/us/21immig.html

[Posted by: Kimberly Figueroa]