Under a 1996 law, US citizens who try to sponsor their undocumented spouses would require the spouses to endure a minimum 10-year exile from the United States. With kids in tow, US citizens are visiting Congress to plead for help.
It’s been a big year, to say the least, for immigrants and immigration policy in the United States. Here are 10 moments that stand out.
The killings of two Honduran teenagers this week are a sobering reminder of the dangers asylum-seekers may face while waiting in violent Mexican border regions as the Trump administration rolls out a new plan to keep migrants in Mexico until their asylum claims are decided.
Trump has demanded $5 billion to put toward building a wall on the US border with Mexico that he argues is needed to keep out unauthorized immigrants and drugs, a downpayment on a massive project which Democrats have rejected as ineffective and wasteful.
A federal judge ruled against Trump administration policies that said asylum-seekers could not base claims on domestic and gang violence.
US officials say a 7-year-old’s death is an example of risks migrants take when crossing the US border. But the girl died in US custody.
Under the Trump administration, America is closing its doors to refugees. US refugee caps have been steadily slashed from 110,000 per year under the Obama administration to 30,000 next year. That would be the lowest number of refugees admitted since 1980.
Applying for asylum at a US land border can take months, so if migrants enter illegally and present themselves to authorities, their cases could be heard quicker.
The Haskell Free Library and Opera House straddles the US-Canada border as a historical anomaly and thrust into an unlikely role as the site of emotional reunions between people separated by the Trump administration's immigration policies.
US District Judge Jon Tigar in San Francisco issued a temporary restraining order against the asylum rules. Tigar's order takes effect immediately, applies nationwide, and lasts until at least Dec. 19.
A series of divisive campaigns marked by fierce clashes over race, immigration and culture have defined 2018 US midterm elections.