A New Attack on Immigrants?

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We may be seeing one of the effects of placing the Immigration Service and Border Patrol under Homeland Security. The Border Patrol is being given broad new authority to directly deport undocumented immigrants rather than holding them and have the courts decide whether they have a valid claim (such as asylum) for entering the US. The due process aspect of deportation was already being stretched to invisibility along the Mexico - US border when judges started having group hearings over a year ago. Thirty to 300 immigrants at a time were brought before immigration judges. However, the new Homeland Security rules avoid the courts all together, and allow border patrol officers to directly deport those stopped.

The focus of Border Patrol deportation will purportedly not be either Mexicans or Canadians, and will apply to any undocumented person caught within 100 miles of either border within 14 days of crossing. The hardening of the southern border has already driven undocumented immigrants far into the desert and resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of deaths.

There is a certain irony here as the controls on the border with Mexico were originally put in place to keep Chinese contract workers from reentering the US in the late 1800s. Mexicans could, and did, freely cross the border.

However, the implementation of another policy does directly effect a broader group of immigrants. The federal government has set up a $1 billion fund to reimburse hospitals for care received by undocumented immigrants. This was originally hailed as a great step forward by hospitals, human rights groups, and organizations that work with immigrants. The devil is in the details, and to receive the grants hospitals need to provide immigrant status information. It is feared that this stipulation will keep undocumented immigrants from seeking needed medical attention.

Some people would argue that undocumented patients should have to provide information as to their illegal presence in the US. The problem is that this is not just a money issue, but a public health issue. People may have contagious diseases that pose a significant public health threat, but not seek treatment for themselves or their loved ones for fear of deportation. This scenario is actually more likely among undocumented immigrants due to the poverty that generally drives them into the US in the first place. That poverty significantly lowers the likelihood that they will have had common vaccines or treatment for existing conditions. (Of course, lack of access to medical care raises similar problems for both citizens and non-citizens of the US who do not have access to medical care, but the government has not been motivated to address that health care crisis).

The deepening abridgements of due process and common protections for immigrants is troubling. Certainly all nations have the right to control their borders, but doing so in a way that is consistent with our established laws and values is part of being the nation the US sees itself as being. Various aspects of Homeland Security legislation and laws, and portions of the U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act, challenge that at the deepest levels. The implications of the multitude of policy changes go beyond the ideals of who we see ourselves to be, to posing real threats to national health and security.

The granting of power to border patrol officers that belonged to the courts, makes those officers judge and jury, and opens the door to abuse, and to potential arbitrary implementation. The screening of patients raises dramatic public health issues, as well as humanitarian ones. Both of these policies raise another issue - proving your status. If I were stopped and asked to prove my status, I would have a very difficult time doing so. I don't have a passport, and I do not carry my birth certificate in my pocket. I don't even have a legal (certified) copy of my birth certificate. My guess is that most citizens in the US are in the same boat.

The "get tough" policy is effecting many people. I had a student last year who came to the US with his parents (who had legitimate visas) when he as 3. He had no idea that his status was in question until he was told that immigration was going to deport him if he did not provide his visa. Both his parents were dead and he had no idea of whether those records even existed. Others, who have become naturalized citizens (frequently as children) are also under scrutiny and being asked to provide documentation which they may not have, nor even know that they needed.

Such problems may, and do, effect even documented immigrants to (and citizens in) the US. People may not seek needed medical care, or services, or legal requirements, because of the fear of being deported if they can't provide necessary proof. Their children will suffer the same problems. This in turn, can effect everybody dramatically.

New Strains and New Rules for Agents Along Mexican Border, Blumenthal, 8/12/04 NYT

U.S. to Give Border Patrol Agents the Power to Deport Illegal Aliens, Swarns, NYT, 8/11/04

U.S. Is Linking Immigrant Patients' Status to Hospital Aid, Pear, NYT, 8/10/04

The Department of Health and Human Services wants hospitals seeking reimbursement to ask patients these questions, among others:

"Are you a United States citizen?''

"Are you a lawful permanent resident, an alien with a valid current employment authorization card or other qualified alien?''

"Are you in the United States on a nonimmigrant visa'' of the type issued to students, tourists and business travelers?

"Are you a foreign citizen who has been admitted to the United States with a 72-hour border crossing card?''

Posted by rowan at August 11, 2004 10:43 PM | TrackBack | Printable Version | [eMail this article!] |