In this series, we interview new immigrants to the US to hear their stories, struggles, and dreams. Here, we speak with Hu Yang (his name has been changed), from China. Hu Yang, from China Hu Yang comes from the city of Tai Shan in Guangdong Province, China. After graduating from college, he began working as an intern at the Bank of China. He remained at the bank for 17 years, rising to the position of Loan Officer Manager. Hu Yang […]
With the nation bogged down in partisan, polarized debate surrounding immigration, the DIGNIDAD Act provides the first bipartisan effort at reform effectively transcends party lines with seemingly practical solutions and works to address security, documentation, and humanitarian aid. The system currently faces a backlog of 1.6 million cases and unprecedented humanitarian displacement in Latin America. The situation shows no signs of slowing. The evenly divided Congress could prove a barrier to this bill’s eventual enactment. For now, the results remain very uncertain, […]
Title 42 expired last Thursday, May 11th, at 11:59 pm EDT. As new migrants flooded the US-Mexico border following this development, many questions have been raised about Title 42, its provisions, and the consequences its expiration could have nationally and in the greater Boston area. Here is a look at the new immigration legislation developments. What was Title 42? The restrictions known as Title 42 derive their name and authority from Title 42 of a 1944 public health law. […]
America has long been known as a country of immigrants. In 1958, Senator John F. Kennedy (who became President in 1961) wrote a book about the USA titled, “A Nation of Immigrants”. Kennedy writes that immigration is important to America and points out “that every American who ever lived, with the exception of one group [Native Americans], was either an immigrant himself or a descendant of immigrants.” The immigrants of today Who are the people who immigrate to America today? Where […]
The pandemic has impacted many aspects of the US economy. We are struggling with some huge labor shortages. Studies have clearly identified the lack of immigrant workers as a major drain on the labor force. Immigrants have been contributing significantly to the US long before and since Covid in every field, but they are projected to be even more valuable as U.S. born workers move into retirement ages in the next few years and as other US born workers continue […]
There are two types of human trafficking: sex trafficking and labor trafficking. When a commercial sex act is forced, obtained by fraud, or coerced, or when the individual is encouraged to do such an act and is under the age of 18, this is called sex trafficking. Labor trafficking is also common with H2A visas (agricultural) and H2B visas (temporary). A victim may not be paid for his or her work or may not be allowed to leave until additional payments […]
Government policies and mission statements are always driven by terms and phrases. Whether they exist beyond looking good on paper and sounding strong in stump speeches is the dream that isn’t always realized. For Boston’s MOIA (Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Advancement), the driving motivation rests in that final word: advancement. What does it mean? How is it measured? Can immigrants advance without successfully integrating themselves within the social fabric of their chosen land? What measures need to be taken in […]
Abortion rights in the United States are under threat. At the beginning of this month a draft of a majority opinion written by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito leaked to Politico. The draft suggests that the Supreme Court will overturn the decisions it made in Roe vs. Wade nearly fifty years ago and in Planned Parenthood vs. Casey thirty years ago. In 1973, the Supreme Court decided that criminal abortion statutes, which excepted from criminality only those procedures that would […]
Low-Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITC) assist low-income individuals who have a tax dispute with the IRS and the Mass Dept of Revenue and provide education and outreach to individuals who speak English as a second language (ESL). According to the 2021 LITC Program Report from Taxpayer Advocacy Services, LITC represented 19,413 Taxpayers, brought 2,398 taxpayers into filing compliance, provided consultation or advice to 17,792 Taxpayers, and brought 2,990 taxpayers into collection compliance. The Asian American Civic Association (AACA) has launched the […]
For first-wave Chinese immigrants in the mid-1800’s, laundries were a primary source of income and a significant part of Chinese-American labor history. Along with construction of the railroads, the laundry business was a mainstay of the Chinese immigrant economy. The Chinese needed to survive in an English-speaking world in which they did not have access to most employment opportunities. The laundries remain a point of shared connection between many Chinese American families today. Thomas Chin’s family worked in their hand […]
