How Biden changed the lives of New York immigrants

During the early hours of his presidency, Joe Biden embarked on actions that would have a broad impact on new immigrants, illegal immigrants, and mixed-immigration families throughout New York City. Edition Gothamist identified three major innovations of the head of the White House that will change the lives of immigrants.

Removal of the travel ban for citizens of several countries with a predominantly Muslim population

On the evening of January 20, Biden signed a decree ending the so-called "Muslim ban", which was introduced by Trump's 2017 decree. It banned citizens and residents of 13 countries from entering the United States, most of which are Muslim.

Biden's new decree says the secretary of state must instruct all embassies and consulates to resume visa processing in those countries and advise within 45 days of a plan to “expedite” these applications. He also called for a review of visa applications that were rejected during the Trump years.

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Linda Sarsour, a Brooklyn-based Palestinian-American activist and co-founder of the MPower group, said the previous administration had denied 41 visas. But as COVID-000 continues to hinder international travel, she said lawyers are awaiting details.

“How quickly we can begin to implement the lifting of this ban is not yet clear. All Joe Biden did was sign a piece of paper, ”she said.

New York City Immigrant Affairs head Bitta Mostofi said she knows students whose studies have been interrupted and families that have been torn apart by the ban, damaging the city's economy. She stressed that it is critical that the plan to re-screen people who have previously been denied visas is “impartial and fair”.

(Almost) no deportations within 100 days and fewer immigration arrests

A Department of Homeland Security memorandum issued on Biden's first day in office bans most deportations for 100 days while immigration and customs policies are revised.

The ban applies to almost all immigrants with final deportation orders, with the exception of those who arrived in the United States after November 1, 2020 and those who are suspected of terrorism.

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At the same time, ICE is re-prioritizing arrests. The Biden administration canceled a 2017 memorandum from the Trump administration that allowed the arrest and deportation of all illegal immigrants. Now the agency will focus on those who are considered a threat to national security or have been convicted of serious crimes.

About 500 immigrants from New York and New Jersey are currently held in county prisons and private detention centers. The number of prisoners across the country is currently at an all-time low due to the pandemic: many have been released to protect their health, new arrests have been reduced to almost zero.

"Dreamers" are no longer in limbo

The DACA program was created during the Obama administration and reaches more than 650 illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States by children. They are often called "dreamers". There are approximately 000 DACA recipients and eligible people in the metropolitan area, according to the New York City City Hall Immigrants Office.

DACA provides recipients with work permits and deportation protection. The US Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration's attempts to reverse the program. But, nevertheless, while the consideration of Trump's claims lasted, many "dreamers" were in limbo.

One of Biden's decrees states that DACA immigrants “should not be a priority for expulsion from the United States for humanitarian reasons; a work permit will allow them to support themselves and their families and contribute to the US economy. "