ATTORNEY GENERAL Maura Healey, in the wake of a report by her office on a May 1 confrontation at the Bristol County Jail, is seeking to prohibit Sheriff Thomas Hodgson from using his facility to detain immigrants for the federal government. Healey, whose office found the civil rights of detainees were violated during the May […]
Immigration
Posted inUncategorized
Healey: Civil rights of ICE detainees violated
ATTORNEY GENERAL Maura Healey issued a report on Tuesday concluding that the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office violated the civil rights of immigrant detainees on May 1 when it engaged in an “unnecessary use of force” that left three of the detainees hospitalized and several others in solitary confinement when they should have received medical treatment. […]
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Senate bill would aid crime victims and witnesses with visas
THE STATE SENATE on Monday advanced a bill that would require state agencies and local law enforcement offices to assist immigrants who testify in criminal cases or are victims of human trafficking and domestic violence with documentation they need to pursue visa applications. The legislation, filed by Sen. Mark Montigny, would impact undocumented immigrants who apply for U and T visas. Those […]
Posted inArts and Culture
Elite artists face challenges on green cards
EVEN ELITE ARTISTS are having difficulty getting green cards for permanent residency in the United States. The federal government is on pace to issue 32 percent fewer green cards this year to those with “extraordinary artistic ability.” Part of the downturn is the result of a slowdown in processing applications for the visas due to […]
Posted inEducation
Pandemic has compounded challenges for English learners
TWELVE WEEKS INTO our school year, I received notification that I would have a new student in my virtual ESL classroom. Amira, a fifth grader, was from Morocco and spoke French and Arabic. Over the next few days, many Google-translated emails and text messages later, I was still trying my best to communicate schedules and […]
Posted inUncategorized
ICE arrests man in East Boston park
This story has been updated. FOUR AGENTS with Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested a man in an East Boston park on Tuesday morning. A video from a passerby shows ICE agents searching the man’s wallet, frisking him, and then taking him into custody. According to the passerby, one of the agents said “ICE had a warrant for his [the […]
Posted inOpinion
Let undocumented immigrants obtain driver’s licenses
SIXTEEN OTHER STATES and the District of Columbia now provide undocumented residents with the ability to legally obtain driver’s licenses. Allowing immigrants to apply for proper identification and purchase insurance coverage is a benefit to families, communities, and businesses. Police chiefs in Massachusetts understand that this is about public safety. Absent long-awaited federal action on […]
Posted inPolitics
Trump and Biden differ sharply on immigration policy
PRESIDENT TRUMP has significantly altered almost every corner of the US immigration system, beginning with his Muslim travel ban days after his inauguration and ending with a recent effort to tailor which immigrants can apply for work visas. A second Trump term, say Massachusetts immigration advocates, would bring more of the same, while a win in […]
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ICE questions, then releases, undocumented Lynn resident
AN UNDOCUMENTED Lynn resident reported voluntarily to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials on Friday and, to the surprise of his attorney, was allowed to leave. “I am so pleased. I’m giving thanks to God and all the people who have helped me,” said Rogelio Gonzalez in a Spanish-language phone interview just minutes after his release. […]
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ICE calls stop of black Boston resident ‘standard practice’
FEDERAL IMMIGRATION officials say they were searching for a deported Haitian man with multiple criminal convictions when they stopped and questioned a black jogger in West Roxbury on Tuesday, calling the stop “standard practice.” The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s enforcement arm said it was searching for Friendy Grandoit, a Haitian national who has pending […]