400,000 undocumented Asian immigrants in California may be impacted by Supreme Court ruling

Journalist Jose Antonio Vargas,was among the hundreds of immigration activists demonstrating outside the Supreme Court as the justices heard arguments in the case challenging President Obama's executive actions on immigration.

LAST MONDAY (April 18) at the U.S. Supreme Court, the eight justices heard oral arguments for and against President Obama's executive actions on immigration: Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) and the expansion of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

Based on questions from the Supreme Court justices, it appears to court-watchers that the case will end in a 4-4 tie based on party lines. That would be bad news for the White House. The high court has been operating one justice short since the death of Antonin Scalia in February.

If SCOTUS remains deadlocked in the U.S. vs. Texas, the lower court ruling that said the president went too far in his executive actions would stand, voiding Obama's effort on  immigration reform.

“We know that DAPA and expanded DACA stand on the right side of the law,” said Stewart Kwoh, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles. “In the last five decades, Presidents from both sides of the aisle have taken executive action to shape immigration priorities.”

RELATED: Asians are part of the immigration debate

The decision could impact about 4 million undocumented immigrants; 400,000 of whom are from Asia. Asian immigrants have surpassed immigrants coming from Latin America.

In California, an estimated 15 percent of the state’s undocumented residents are Asian, comprising approximately 416,000 people. Of those, 130,000 are in Los Angeles County and 52,000 are in Orange County. Statewide, Advancing Justice-LA estimates that the largest groups of undocumented Asians are: Filipinos (143,000), Chinese (76,000), Koreans (71,000), Vietnamese (60,000), and Asian Indian (46,000).

RELATED: Dreaming with the American dreamers

"For the average person, what's at stake is: What are you going to do with all of these millions of undocumented people?" asked Jose Antonio Vargas in an interview with Rolling Stone. Vargas is a Filipino/American immigration advocate who himself is undocumented.

"It's been perpetual limbo for them. Nothing is getting done. Congress is saying the president is overreaching, but I would argue that Congress has been irresponsible in not doing anything," said Vargas.

RELATED: Jose Antonio Vargas - an undocumented American

“While the legal battle ensues and anti-immigrant campaigns on the state and national level continue, we must remember that these actions have a real human cost,” said Anthony Ng, immigrant rights policy advocate at Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles (Advancing Justice-LA). “A ruling against DAPA won’t just impact undocumented immigrants; it will impact their families, as well as our neighborhoods and communities.”

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For more news about Asian/Americans & Pacific Americans, read AsAm News.

President Obama speaks to new citizens, cautions against anti-immigration rhetoric

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA invoked the memory of WWII internment camps in his speech Tuesday  (Dec. 15) at a naturalization ceremony to counter the xenophobia promoted by some leaders of Congress and GOP presidential candidates.

In a moving 20-minute speech, the president compared the recent anti-immigration political climate to the “darkest chapters” of American history.

“In one of the darkest chapters in our history, Japanese immigrants, and even Japanese-American citizens, were forced from their homes and imprisoned in camps,” Obama told the new citizens in the National Archives. 

"We succumbed to fear. We betrayed not only our fellow Americans, but our values.

 “The biggest irony of course was that those who betrayed these (American) values were themselves the children of immigrants.

"How quickly we forget. One generation passes, two (generations pass) and suddenly we don't remember where we came from," he said. "And we somehow suggest that there is 'us' and there is 'them,' not remembering we used to be 'them.' On days like today, we need to resolve never to repeat mistakes like that again."

Although the name Donald Trump or any of the members of Congress were mentioned, the 20-minute speech was clearly responding to the fear-mongering propelled by the current rhetoric coming from the Republican party's leaders running for President regarding Congressional efforts to semi Syrian refugee resettlement, attempts to undo the president's executive orders on immigration and the recent calls to stop all Muslims from entering the U.S.

Although the president's remarks were broadcast live, the news media did not give them the same attention as given to the outrageous statement made by some of the Republican candidates.

White House

Immigrants sworn in as new Americans at ceremonies at the National Archives on Dec. 15.

"In the Mexican immigrant today, we see the Catholic immigrant of a century ago," he said, placing today's controversy into a historical perspective. "In the Syrian seeking refuge today, we should see the Jewish refugee of World War II."

"Down through the decades, Irish Catholics fleeing hunger, Italians fleeing poverty filled up our cities, rolled up their sleeves, built America. Chinese laborers jammed in steerage under the decks of steamships, making their way to California to build the Central Pacific Railroad that would transform the West ..."

Since the terrorist shootings in Paris and San Bernardino, the White House has been trying to temper the anti-Muslim rhetoric by visible signs of concern and remind Americans about the values that have made America the country it is today. Earlier this week members of the Muslim and Sikh communities met at the White House to receive assurances that this administration would continue to speak against the growing number of hate crimes and racist speech targeting them.

"You are men and women from more than 25 countries, from Brazil to Uganda, from Iraq to the Philippines," he told the new Americans today. "You may come from teeming cities or rural villages. You don’t look alike. You don’t worship the same way. But here, surrounded by the very documents whose values bind us together as one people, you’ve raised your hand and sworn a sacred oath. I’m proud to be among the first to greet you as 'my fellow Americans.'”

To those who opposed taking in refugees and those who criticize his executive actions on immigration, he reminded the newly-sworn in Americans, that asylum of offering safe harbor from persecution is also part of the American story. "Just as so many have come here in search of a dream, others sought shelter from nightmares. Survivors of the Holocaust. Soviet Refuseniks. Refugees from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia. Iraqis and Afghans fleeing war. Mexicans, Cubans, Iranians leaving behind deadly revolutions. Central American teenagers running from gang violence. The Lost Boys of Sudan escaping civil war."

"We are Americans," said the president. "Standing up for each other is what the values enshrined in the documents in this room compels us to do. Especially when it's hard. Especially when it's not convenient. That's when it counts. That's when it matters. Not when things are easy, but when things are hard."

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Anti-immigrant rhetoric denounced by new ad campaign and Latino musicians

Why were the images of Donald Trump, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz on the Latin Grammy Awards?

YESTERDAY evening (Thursday, Nov. 19) on television, the Latin Grammy Awards was moving at a pretty good pace, lots of good music from attractive entertainers. Interspersed between the catchy latin rhythms and can-keep-still dancing beats were some serious messages.

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and iAmerica Action aired a commercial as part of their national television advertising campaign that denounces 2016 GOP presidential hopefuls for using "hateful" rhetoric on the campaign trail, reports USA Today.

"We won't forget; in fact, we will remind them that we are more than 30 million eligible Latino and (American Asian Pacific Islanders) voters in 2016," said Rocio Saenz, executive vice president of SEIU International and president of iAmerica Action. "That's not a swing vote, that's a warning."

The six-figure ad buy will run in Spanish on Univision and Telemundo from yesterday to Sunday, including during the Latin Grammy Awards, reports The New York Times. The ads will also air in Nevada, Florida, Colorado and Texas, while the English version of the ad has been uploaded online.

"We will not accept hate," a voiceover says in the ad. "We will not allow anti-immigrant attacks. We will not support the status quo. Because if they win, we lose."

The ad specifically targets GOP contenders Donald Trump, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who have all promised to end the president's executive orders on immigration if they succeed in winning the White House next year.

"These candidates may be different, but their messages are all the same," the narrator says, after clips of Rubio, Cruz, Bush and Trump are played. "We will not accept hate. We will not allow anti-immigrant attacks."The ad was released on the anniversary of President Barack Obama's executive actions, which aim to protect up to 5 million undocumented residents from deportation and allow them to work in the country legally. However, Republican leaders have turned to the courts to stop the orders from taking effect.

Also, during the show, Mexican rockers Maná took the stage and sang the immigrant anthem "Somos Más Americanos" ("We Are More American"), for which they were joined by norteño legends Los Tigres del Norte. At the end of the rousing performance, the two groups hoisted a sign that read, "Latinos unidos no voten por los racistas" — "Latinos united, don't vote for racists." 

"It’s a privilege to vote," Maná drummer Alex González told the L.A. Times after the show. "In the United States, your vote counts. So Latinos need to vote for the candidate that will promote opportunities for Latinos, a candidate who will push for immigration reform, and fight for all the Latinos who works so hard."

Both bands have teamed up with the voter registration group Voto Latino to launch a voter registration effort called SomosMas2016.com.

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Dispelling some myths about immigrants with facts

Economist Robert Reich

RONALD REICH, former Secretary of Labor under President Clinton and major irritant of the top 1% and Wall Street, has been involved in what sometimes may seem like a hopeless crusade: Saving America's middle class.

He is currently the Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. (Full disclosure: my alma mater.) He's taking advantage of social media to get his views aired and is a frequent guest on television talk shows.

Not surprisingly, he has been taking on some of the anti-immigrant statements made by Republican candidates for the Presidency.

Self-professed "self-made" man (through a million-dollar loan from his father) Donald Trump has been drawing the most attention for trying to turn immigrants into this campaign season's bogeyman.

From Reich's blog dispelling some myths (and out-and-out lies) surrounding immigrants:

Donald Trump has opened the floodgates to lies about immigration. Here are the myths, and the facts:

MYTH: Immigrants take away American jobs. 

Wrong. Immigrants add to economic demand, and thereby push firms to create more jobs.

MYTH: We don’t need any more immigrants.

Baloney. The U.S. population is aging. Twenty-five years ago, each retiree in America was matched by 5 workers. Now for each retiree there are only 3 workers. Without more immigration, in 15 years the ratio will fall to 2 workers for every retiree, not nearly enough to sustain our retiree population.

MYTH: Immigrants are a drain on public budgets.

Bull. Immigrants pay taxes! The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy released a report this year showing undocumented immigrants paid $11.8 billion in state and local taxes in 2012 and their combined nationwide state and local tax contributions would increase by $2.2 billion under comprehensive immigration reform. MYTH: Legal and illegal immigration is increasing.

Wrong again. The net rate of illegal immigration into the U.S. is less than zero. The number of undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. has declined from 12.2 million in 2007 to 11.3 million now, according to Pew Research Center.

Don’t listen to the demagogues who want to blame the economic problems of the middle class and poor on new immigrants, whether here legally or illegally. The real problem is the economic game is rigged in favor of a handful at the top, who are doing the rigging.

We need to pass comprehensive immigration reform, giving those who are undocumented a path to citizenship.

Scapegoating them and other immigrants is shameful. And it’s just plain wrong. 

Reich also wrote in a more recent blog musing the difference between leaders and demagogues:

A leader brings out the best in his followers. A demagogue brings out the worst.
Leaders inspire tolerance. Demagogues incite hate.

Leaders empower the powerless; they give them voice and respect.

Demagogues scapegoat the powerless; they use scapegoating as a means to fortify their power.

Leaders calm peoples’ irrational fears. Demagogues exploit them.

There's a lot of hateful speech going on the last few months - a lot of it directed at immigrants, documented and undocumented. 

The fearful thing about hate-talk in the public square is that it acts like a cancer infecting the rest of society. Some people think it makes it OK to start repeating the same kind of ideas and intolerance without the filter of civility and just plain respect. This is what happened with the extremists who claim to speak for Islam. This is what is happening in our own country for those who claim to speak for God and those who want to "take back America," or return us back to the "good old days."

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POPE FRANCIS: Words of wisdom and compassion

Pope Francis is the first Pope to address Congress.

POPE FRANCIS said it better than I can write it. Herein are excerpts of some of the words he said on a variety of issues during the Washington D.C. portion of his visit to the United States. After reading these quotes, it would be hard to argue that the Holy Father is not an astute politician; he is not a man not relegated to the pulpit, but well aware of the ways of the real world. Click here for the entire speech.

After the fiery rhetoric spewing out of the presidential campaign it was refreshing to listen to the Holy Father's softly-spoken words reminding the lawmakers of America's potential as a beacon of hope to the rest of the world. Without pointing fingers, he challenged Congress to live up to America's lofty ideals.

He carefully talks about controversial issues without bringing along all the rancor that can arise with the less artful use of words. He doesn't mention words like abortion, gay marriage, racism or immigration reform, but he talks about these hot-button issues in away that is less judgmental, less threatening and less objectionable.

RELATED: Interfaith service will include Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists & Jews

If there is a common theme, it is the need to help the impoverished from various fronts - whether you're making laws, making money, saving the environment, or saving souls.

ON CLIMATE CHANGE
“I call for a courageous and responsible effort to ‘redirect our steps,’ and to avert the most serious effects of the environmental deterioration caused by human activity. I am convinced that we can make a difference – I’m sure.” 

“And I have no doubt that the United States – and this Congress – have an important role to play. Now is the time for courageous actions and strategies, aimed at implementing a culture of care and an integrated approach to combating poverty, restoring dignity to the excluded, and at the same time protecting nature.”

Philippine Embassy, Washington DC

A group of Filipino children greeted Pope Francis during his visit to Washington, DC on 24 September 2015. The children were Beatrice Olivares, Zacharie Aguila Famoso, Angelo Magalong, Abram Elijah Moses Caasi, Joelle Marie T. Bustamante, Lorenz Alacbay, Priscilla Saldana, Precious Phan, Maurine Ysabel Suarez, Anton Jordan, Christian Gio Catu, Danica Regalario, and Alyssa Laluces. The 13 children were selected out of 137 through a lottery system. The names were drawn by Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr.

ON CAPITALISM
"It goes without saying that part of this great effort is the creation and distribution of wealth. The right use of natural resources, the proper application of technology and the harnessing of the spirit of enterprise are essential elements of an economy which seeks to be modern, inclusive and sustainable. Business is a noble vocation, directed to producing wealth and improving the world. It can be a fruitful source of prosperity for the area in which it operates, especially if it sees the creation of jobs as an essential part of its service to the common good."

"This common good also includes the earth, a central theme of the encyclical which I recently wrote in order to enter into dialogue with all people about our common home. We need a conversation which includes everyone, since the environmental challenge we are undergoing, and its human roots, concern and affect us all."

ON FUNDAMENTALISM
"Our world is increasingly a place of violent conflict, hatred and brutal atrocities, committed even in the name of God and of religion. We know that no religion is immune from forms of individual delusion or ideological extremism. This means that we must be especially attentive to every type of fundamentalism, whether religious or of any other kind."

ON 'SIMPLISTIC' VIEWS
"A delicate balance is required to combat violence perpetrated in the name of a religion, an ideology or an economic system, while also safeguarding religious freedom, intellectual freedom and individual freedoms. But there is another temptation which we must especially guard against: the simplistic reductionism which sees only good or evil; or, if you will, the righteous and sinners," Pope Francis said. "The contemporary world, with its open wounds which affect so many of our brothers and sisters, demands that we confront every form of polarization which would divide it into these two camps."

ON HOMELESSNESS

“I want to be very clear. We can’t find any social or moral justification, no justification whatsoever for lack of housing. We know that Jesus wanted to show solidarity with every person. He wanted everyone to experience his companionship, his help and his love. He identified with all those who suffer, who weep, who suffer any kind of injustice. He tells us this clearly, ‘I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’"

ON BLACK LIVES MATTER
"All political activity must serve and promote the good of the human person and be based on respect for his or her dignity. Here too I think of the march which Martin Luther King led from Selma to Montgomery 50 years ago as part of the campaign to fulfill his dream of full civil and political rights for African Americans. That dream continues to inspire us all. I am happy that America continues to be, for many, a land of dreams -- dreams which lead to action, to participation, to commitment. Dreams which awaken what is deepest and truest in the life of a people."

ON THE WEAPONS TRADE
“Why are deadly weapons being sold to those who plan to inflict untold suffering on individuals? The answer, as we all know, is simply for money. Money that is drenched in blood, often innocent blood. In the face of this shameful and culpable silence, it is our duty to confront the problem and to stop the arms trade.”

ON IMMIGRATION

Of all the topics the Pope brought up, he had plenty to say about immigration and then plight of refugees:

"The people of this continent are not fearful of foreigners, because most of us were once foreigners," 

“On this continent too, thousands of persons are led to travel north in search of a better life for themselves and for their loved ones, in search of greater opportunities. Is this not what we want for our own children?”

"When the stranger in our midst appeals to us, we must not repeat the sins and the errors of the past. We must resolve now to live as nobly and as justly as possible, as we educate new generations not to turn their back on our neighbors and everything around us. Building a nation calls us to recognize that we must constantly relate to others, rejecting a mindset of hostility in order to adopt one of reciprocal subsidiarity, in a constant effort to do our best. I am confident that we can do this."

Did Congress hear the Pope's words? Let's pray they did.

(More to come tomorrow.)

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Undocumented Americans urged to open up and tell their stories online

Jose Antionio Vargas, seated in front, and some of the participants who told their stories to Define American. 

JUST IN TIME for the July 4th weekend when Americans will celebrate our nation's birthday, Jose Antonio Vargas, perhaps one of the best well-known undocumented Americans, is calling for all of the undocumented, their friends and families to tell their stories - borrowing the parlance of the LGBT community - to come out.

In an unprecedented national effort to improve the perception of undocumented immigrants, Define American launched its Coming Out campaign yesterday - calling on undocumented immigrants to empower themselves by publicly announcing their immigration status to friends, family and their communities.

Define American is a media and culture campaign using the power of story to transcend politics and shift conversation around immigration, identity, and citizenship in America.

Whatever your background or beliefs, the campaign is about asking how we define what it means to be American, and elevating the conversation about how we engage as citizens, says Vargas, who came to the United States from the Philippines when he was 12-years old.

To start, the conversation is about immigration.

Our immigration system is broken, and fixing it requires a conversation that's bigger and more effective than the one that we've become accustomed to.

"I've come out twice in my life - first, as a teenager, to tell my classmates that I am gay; second, as an adult, to tell the country I grew up in that I am an undocumented American. While both risky in their own ways, each resulted in a kind of personal liberation that changed the perceptions of my friends, co-workers, and those close to me. We ‘come out’ to let people in,” said Vargas, Define American founder and a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist.

On the heels of last week’s landmark ruling on marriage equality, the campaign draws inspiration from Harvey Milk’s call on closeted LGBT Americans to come out, as well as the courageous coming out of undocumented youth (also known as DREAMers) across the country in the past few years. The effort aims to empower undocumented Americans by joining a broad online community and owning their immigration stories. 

The campaign will be centered around an innovative online platform that gives those coming out the opportunity to record their personal story and share it through Define American’s website. For those concerned about the risks of coming out, the site includes legal resources provided by the National Immigration Law Center. 

In addition to the storytelling tool, Define American has created a video featuring undocumented Americans of diverse ages and ethnic backgrounds declaring their immigration status publicly.

RELATED: Jose Antonio Vargas: An undocumented American  

Asians are part of the immigration debate

Define American is a media and culture campaign using the power of story to transcend politics and shift conversation around immigration, identity, and citizenship in America.

Whatever your background or beliefs, our campaign is about asking how we define what it means to be American, and elevating the conversation about how we engage as citizens.

To start, the conversation is about immigration.

Our immigration system is broken, and fixing it requires a conversation that's bigger and more effective than the one that we've become accustomed to.

Learn more about the Define American team.
The request from Define American is simple: Let's talk

For more stories, click here.

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