American Roots in the Immigrant Experience

Immigrants and Children of Immigrants Comprise Nearly One-Quarter of the U.S. Population

October 19, 2009

Washington D.C. - The U.S. Census Bureau recently released data on the Latino population of the United States that underscores the extent to which the immigrant experience is embedded in the social (and political) fabric of the United States in three important ways:

* Nearly one out of every four people in the United States in 2008 was either an immigrant or the child of an immigrant.

* Immigrants who are naturalized U.S. citizens (and entitled to vote) accounted for 5 percent of the total U.S. population in 2008.

* Two-in-five immigrants came to this country before 1990 and therefore have deep U.S. roots. More than one-third of Latino immigrants came to the United States prior to 1990.

The political significance of these statistics should be apparent. Latinos comprise the fastest-growing group of voters in the United States. The number of naturalized U.S. citizens is increasing rapidly. And the electoral clout of "New American" voters who share a direct, personal connection to the immigrant experience-that is, naturalized citizens and the U.S.-born children of immigrants-is on the rise. Successful politicians will pay close attention to these demographic trends.

Read the fact check in its entirety:

* American Roots in the Immigrant Experience (IPC Fact Check, October 19, 2009)

INEFFECTIVE ASSISTANCE OF COUNSEL

Strickland, Superintendent, Florida State Prison, v. Washington
Citations for Prior History
466 U.S. 668 (more)466 U.S. 668; 104 S. Ct. 2052; 80 L. Ed. 2d 674 (1984)
Prior history
Writ of habeas corpus denied by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida; reversed by the Eleventh Circuit, 693 F.2d 1243 (11th Cir. 1982); cert. granted, 462 U.S. 1105 (1983)

The United States Supreme court has ruled on the issue of ineffective assistance of counsel in criminal cases involving immigration consequences to the defendant. A frivolous claim of ineffective assistance will not suffice and to obtain relief due to ineffective assistance of counsel, a criminal defendant must show that counsel's performance fell below an objective standard of reasonableness and that counsel's deficient performance gives rise to a reasonable probability that, if counsel had performed adequately, the result of the proceeding would have been different. There is no substitute for good counsel and the inception of the case is the time to hire the very best possible representation.

Serious criminals are not the aliens being removed says Warren Institute at Berkely

Over the past several years, ICE has increased the number of partnerships with state and local police. There has also been a new emphasis on identifying “criminal aliens” who are detained in jails and prisons, and deporting them once they finish their sentences. However, many concerns have been raised about how these programs are being implemented. In fact, various reports have shown that while ICE claims they are targeting serious criminals, the majority of persons ICE identifies and deports do not actually have any serious criminal records.A new report by the Warren Institute on Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity at the University of California, Berkeley documents how ICE’s Criminal Alien Program (CAP) has failed to target serious criminal immigrants for deportation, and how profiling and pretextual arrests have increased as a result of CAP’s expansion. Source: AILF

Naturalization Test Fully Implemented October 1, 2009

October 1 NEWS RELEASE
The Naturealization Test must be taken by all applicants regardless of when the application was filed. The revised naturaliztion test will help strengthen integration efforts by emphasizing fundamental concepts of American Democracy, basic US history, and the Rights and Responsibilities of United States Citizenship.

For more information, log on to www.uscis.gov/citizenship