New law supplies Liberian immigrants pathway to citizenship, but number of are applying
Although a lot of Liberian immigrants are now suitable for environmentally friendly playing cards below a new regulation that provides them a pathway to citizenship, just a miniscule portion of purposes have been accredited.
A legislation passed in late 2019 and signed by then-President Donald Trump offers immigrants from the West African place who’ve been in the United States beneath short-term position the likelihood to come to be permanent citizens. Federal officials extended the deadline to apply to December of this yr.
But in Minnesota, residence to just one of the nation’s greatest Liberian communities, relatively number of have taken gain of the Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness provision, and federal officers have been sluggish to course of action petitions that have been turned in.
Abena Abraham, co-founder of the advocacy group Black Immigrant Collective, explained local community customers did not belief the Trump administration to actually present a pathway to citizenship.
“It was that worry that we had been less than these an anti-immigrant administration,” she reported. “And had been they definitely heading to be granted a inexperienced card or was this an opportunity for them to potentially be deported?”
According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Solutions, Liberian immigrants filed 2,310 programs for inexperienced playing cards in 2020. But just 91 have been authorised, 5 ended up denied and much more than 95 p.c are even now pending.
Sizi Goyah danced at a group celebration for the passage of a bill that will allow Liberians with momentary position to be in the place permanently in Brooklyn Park, Minn., in January 2020.
Evan Frost | MPR Information 2020
A spokesperson for USCIS reported the agency does not have particular info on processing times, but that it has skilled delays in scheduling interviews because of to the COVID-19 pandemic. She included that processing occasions are also impacted by desire and potential at area offices.
“USCIS is committed to the timely and correct adjudication of all petitions,” the spokesperson stated in a assertion. “Each case varies in the total of time it requires to adjudicate, and each scenario is adjudicated primarily based on its have advantage and in accordance with immigration legislation.”
Also, given that they reopened in June of very last 12 months, industry offices have prioritized naturalization ceremonies and now are commencing to prioritize interviews for naturalization and adjustment of standing conditions that had been postponed.
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