A Note from the Editors:

The most read articles for the month of March were:

• House Passes Flawed 245(i) Extension by Cyrus D. Mehta
• The ABCs of Immigration - The Visa Waiver Program by Greg Siskind and Amy Ballentine
• Change in Automatic Visa Revalidation Creates Risk for Third Country Nationals Traveling to a US Consulate in Canada or Mexico to Apply for a Visa by George N. Lester

Articles

The ABCs of Immigration - Finding the Right Immigration Lawyer
Greg Siskind and Amy Ballentine present an overview of why it is important for aliens to hire an immigration lawyer and list factors to consider when hiring a lawyer.

Debunking Anti-Immigrationists
Writing in the Washington Post, Ben Wattenberg of the American Enterprise Institute lists many arguments for the U.S. to welcome immigration.

Aircraft Owners' and Pilots' Association (AOPA): "If INS Can't Stop Terrorists, How Can Flight Schools?!"
Jose Latour, an immigration attorney and a pilot says that politicians across the country are proposing absurd legislation to try and show their local communities that they're doing something about September 11th.

New ECFMG Rules Make Obtaining J Visas More Difficult
Greg Siskind and Amy Ballentine, write that the Educational Commission on Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), which is the only organization that can sponsor a foreign medical graduate seeking clinical training the US on a J-1 visa, has, over the past few months, made a number of changes that seem to be resulting in a decrease in the number of international medical residents.

Marriage office gets tough on immigrants
A report on Phidelphia Marriage License Bureau refusing marriage licenses for people it thinks are undocumented.

Action Alert to Advocates: Department of Justice to Release Legal Opinion Giving Green Light to Local Police Enforcement of Immigration Laws
The National Immigration Forum writes that if immigrant communities are to be subject to immigration enforcement by local police agencies, those agencies will find it impossible to gain the trust of immigrant communities in their public safety efforts and that the entire community will be less safe.

U.S. Begins Crackdown on Muslims Who Defy Orders to Leave Country
New York Times reports that Federal law enforcement agents have started to hunt down and arrest Muslim immigrants who failed to comply with pre-Sept. 11 deportation orders.

Agents Tracking Fake Social Security Cards
Los Angeles Times writes about Federal investigators hunting for potential terrorists poring over fraudulent Social Security numbers generated by a California ring that catered mostly to Middle Eastern immigrants.

ILW Highlights

Discussion Board

"I just found that they approved my f2b i-130(245i),now what ? is this gone help me to stay here until my priority date is coming?".

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Letters to Editor

To write to Editors, send emails to weeklyeditor@ilw.com.

Dear Editor:

I'm writing to say that I appreciate the editor's comments in the 4/3/02 edition of the "Daily". As a retired BP (Border Patrol) Agent and a present union representative for the NBPC (National Border Patrol Council), I believe that my views are quite different from those of your organization, but I appreciate your willingness to allow the "other side" to speak.

I certainly won't defend INS management, but they don't deserve all the blame for the mess at INS. Their biggest fault, as a group, is that they lack courage. For at least the 41 years since I joined the BP, they have done exactly what Congress and the administration wanted. They knew there were problems, and they probably knew what should be done to fix them; they just didn't have the will to tell their political bosses. (At INS, you're not a "team player" if you call attention to a problem.) As you and Mr. Jose Latour have noted, the employees at INS who actually provide services, do inspections, enforce the laws, etc., are willing to do the job. But the higher up the "food chain" you go, the more politicized the process becomes and the less reality is involved.

I would humbly disagree with the editor on a couple points. First, I would not "continue to welcome" as many immigrants as we do at present. Second, it seems to me that "the problem" is exactly one of "immigration enforcement and policy". If, after a national debate, the "policy" is to admit more or fewer immigrants, that policy should be "enforced". INS, with proper oversight, should be given the mandate and resources to provide the necessary services and to enforce the laws.

John H. Frecker
Baileyville, ME
BP (ret.)

Immigrant Life

File US Taxes

".....Gather the pertinent materials. You will need: 1) Your W-2 Forms. These forms should have arrived in the mail from your employer. The W-2 lists how much money you made at your job during the past tax year. If you had more than one job during the past year, you will get a W-2 for each job you held......" (Cont'd).

This week's chat schedule

When Attorney Monday, April 8 9:00 pm Eastern Time Shari Moidel, Esq. Wednesday, April 10 9:00 pm Eastern Time Chris Musillo, Esq.

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