Evaluating Immigration Policy Changes After 9/11 |
Our project
Immigration laws and policies change constantly, but since 9/11, these laws have been modified in specific ways to keep certain people out. The terrorist attacks of September 11th exposed serious weaknesses in the United States' immigration and visa systems. This study aims to analyze how U.S Immigration laws have developed since 9/11 and how their development further impacts immigrants in the U.S.
ObJECTIVE
Soon after gaining independence from Great Britain, the United States began restricting immigration, and the laws enacted since then have reflected the politics and migrant flows of the time. After the 9/11 attacks, immigration policies have been changed drastically. As a group, we aim to study the legal changes that have occurred since the 9/11 attacks and the impact they have had on immigrants. We plan to analyze the immigration policies of the Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations. With each administration changing laws on border control and protection service, we plan to consider the overall ethics of the situation.
This is an important topic to study because of the change in policies since the attacks, that affect each migrant family. Starting with each administration. President Bush’s plan for Comprehensive Immigration Reform proposed to increase security along the southern United States border with Mexico. President Obama chooses to reform Bush’s plan for Comprehensive Immigration Reform by continuing to strengthen US borders; crackdown on companies that hire undocumented workers and hold undocumented immigrants accountable before they can earn their citizenship and streamline the legal immigration system for families, workers, and employers. President Trump created the Zero-Tolerance Policy which made each and every migrant – including asylum seekers – attempting to cross the U.S. border illegally, was to be detained and criminally prosecuted. Biden is currently attempting to reverse President Trumps' policies by planning to boost refugee admissions and preserving deportation relief for unauthorized immigrants. However, this project solely focuses on the Bush, Obama and Trump Administration and will provide a comprehensive overview of how these policies have changed. Every time there is a new president, the administration changes its policies and so it constantly affects immigrants coming to America and immigrants who are already within America.
This is an important topic to study because of the change in policies since the attacks, that affect each migrant family. Starting with each administration. President Bush’s plan for Comprehensive Immigration Reform proposed to increase security along the southern United States border with Mexico. President Obama chooses to reform Bush’s plan for Comprehensive Immigration Reform by continuing to strengthen US borders; crackdown on companies that hire undocumented workers and hold undocumented immigrants accountable before they can earn their citizenship and streamline the legal immigration system for families, workers, and employers. President Trump created the Zero-Tolerance Policy which made each and every migrant – including asylum seekers – attempting to cross the U.S. border illegally, was to be detained and criminally prosecuted. Biden is currently attempting to reverse President Trumps' policies by planning to boost refugee admissions and preserving deportation relief for unauthorized immigrants. However, this project solely focuses on the Bush, Obama and Trump Administration and will provide a comprehensive overview of how these policies have changed. Every time there is a new president, the administration changes its policies and so it constantly affects immigrants coming to America and immigrants who are already within America.
Before 9/11
Prior to the 9/11 attacks, Congress began focusing and implementing immigration policies that aimed to control and limit the increase of migrants who entered the country illegally. Laws like the Illegal Immigrant Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) and the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity (PRWOA) were put into place to impede the presence of undocumented immigrants. These series of laws reinforced the concept that illegal immigration was not welcomed inside the U.S targeting the infrastructure of immigrant proceedings. The legislation even made permanent residents tread lightly because any committed felony would directly lead them towards deportation without a trial.
However, in 2000, immigration stances among politicians shifted. Unemployment rates around the late nineties and early 2000s was at an average high of 4%. Employers needed workers (Amadeo)and one solution was to employ immigrants from the southern border and hire them to work in America. As the presence of immigrants grew, both Democrats and Republicans started easing on the harsh restrictions they had placed earlier, because they saw the benefits of influencing a new demographic group. There was even talks of giving amnesty to the undocumented immigrants in the U.S. The rapid change in immigration policy as seen, will be a common theme, which will be explored throughout the research. Nevertheless, future immigration policies seemed optimistic and favorable before the devastating attacks of 9/11. |
The PBS Documentary demonstrates a brief description of the sentiment Americans in California were having towards the presence of undocumented immigrants before the 9/11 attacks. It demonstrates the rise in opposition to illegal immigration and the rise of the Latino vote in California. It also demonstrates some of the legislation introduced in the mid-nineties that wished to target immigrants. While there may be modern and relevant discussions in the documentary, it is highly encouraged to prioritize the events that occurred before 2001.
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