The Immigrant’s Journal - Vol. 122

The Immigrant’s Journal Vol. 122

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Court Orders ICE to End Its Practice of Unlawfully Detaining Immigrant Youth

BY KATE GOETTEL

I

mmigrant children who arrive in the United States without a parent are placed in shelters or foster care while their guardianship and immigration process play out. But all too often, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) takes them away as soon as they turn 18 and locks them in an adult detention facility. However, a federal court just ruled that ICE has been systemically failing to follow the law by transferring thousands of teenagers to their facilities.

In the court’s July 2 ruling in Garcia Ramirez, et. al. v. ICE, Judge Rudolph Contreras of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia criticized the agency’s lack of oversight and appropri-

ate legal training, which lead to highly localized practices. The Court also criticized ICE for using misleading technology that never recommends release and doctoring documentation purportedly

used to show compliance with the statute.

Under the laws governing unaccompanied immigrant children, ICE must consider the “least restrictive setting” for continued on page 2

Federal Court Strikes Down Trump’s Asylum Transit Ban in Momentous Victory including Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights (CAIR) Coalition, Human Rights First, Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), and Tahirih Justice Center, alongside twenty-two individual asylum seekers, brought the lawsuit to block implementation of the asylum transit ban which took effect on July 16, 2019.

The rule disqualified people arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border from receiving asylum unless they had unsuccess-

BY KATIE SHEPHERD

O

n June 30, a federal judge in the District of Columbia struck down the Trump administration’s asylum transit ban, ending a sweeping policy that had shut down asylum for most people entering the United States at the southern border.

The court’s decisive action could not have come soon enough, as the rule has been in effect for almost a year, impacting thousands of asylum seekers.

Several immigrants’ rights groups,

Editorial credit: LifetimeStock Shutterstock.com

continued on page 6

USCIS Hasn’t Approved a Single Person for Liberian Legalization Program

BY WALTER EWING program created in late 2019 to allow certain Liberian noncitizens in the United States to become lawful permanent residents (LPRs) is falling far short of its potential, according to a new report.

The program in question is Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness (LRIF), a

Call for NYC Leadership to Divest from NYPD, Invest in Community Resources

Editorial credit: SteAck / Shutterstock.com

How to Identify An Emotional Affair ... page 19

A

July 09, 2020

provision of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 enacted on December 20, 2019. Eligible Liberian nationals who have been physically present in the United States since November 20, 2014, as well as their spouses and unmarried children, can apply or a green card under LRIF. However, U.S. Citizenship and continued on page 2

Editorial credit: Renata Apanaviciene / Shutterstock.com

J

uly 2, 2020, New York: In response to the New York City budget that was passed by the City Council July 1, the Center for Constitutional Rights released the following statement: It is unconscionable that in a city with a $9 billion dollar deficit, the burden of the mismanagement of public resources should continue to fall on the shoulders of its Black, Brown, immigrant, and lowincome communities. Year after year, city officials have caved to pressure from a bloated and overreaching police department. In the midst of twin pandemics — coronavirus and racist police brutality — the NYPD has failed to prioritize the needs of all New Yorkers and demonstrated a fundamental indifference to the plight of the city’s most vulnerable residents. This latest smoke-and-mirrors budgeting, shuffling $1 billion dollars from the NYPD to school policing, is a disturbing reminder of the city’s commitment to criminalizing its Black and Brown youth, further legitimizing the school-to-prison pipeline.

We continue to support calls to defund and dissolve the NYPD and to invest in community needs, such as public education, robust municipal and social services, citywide infrastructure, free access to public transportation, affordable housing, fully-funded healthcare systems, and bolstered community-controlled resources. The needs of marginalized communities, many of whom are frontline workers, must be central in any legitimate discussion of distribution of public wealth. We know that our communities are safe not when our neighborhoods are violently policed by armed occupying forces, but when people are properly supported, when needs are met, and when historical inequities are addressed. l

IMMIGRATION MATTERS Liberian Legalization/

2 Court Orders ICE to End Its Practice /from page 1

continued from page 1 Immigration Services (USCIS) has yet to approve a single application under the program which launched four months ago according to a report from CLINIC and African Communities Together.

Data from USCIS reveal that only 1,177 Liberians had applied for relief under LRIF as of April 17. This amounts to only 12 percent of eligible applicants.

One can assume that the risks and hardships related to the coronavirus pandemic are distracting and obstructing more people from applying at this time.

The report also found that: nThe top three states of residency for applicants so far are Minnesota (18%), Pennsylvania (16%), and Maryland (9%). nJust over half of applicants (54%) are over the age of 45. n58% of applicants are female.

Moreover, recent estimates indicate that far more people are eligible for the program than previously thought. The report found that 10,000 Liberians, plus 300 of their family members, are eligible to apply for LPR status under the program.

This is far more than a widely cited previous estimate that only 4,000 people were eligible to apply.

The situation is unlikely to improve given the severe budget problems currently being experienced by USCIS,

which is requesting $1.2 billion in emergency funding from Congress and may soon furlough two-thirds of its workforce.

From 1991 to 2019, Liberia was continuously designated for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) due to unsafe country conditions. However, Liberians in the United States who were protected from deportation under these temporary relief programs had no opportunity to acquire a more permanent status. LRIF was supposed to change that.

Currently, the deadline for eligible Liberians to apply for relief under LRIF is December 20, 2020. As the report correctly concludes, given USCIS adjudication delays, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the much larger number of potential applicants than previously anticipated, the December 2020 deadline should be extended for at least one additional year.l

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children who turn 18 and can no longer stay in shelters for children, which are run by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). The statute requires ICE to consider a placement other than detention, such as releasing the teens to live with a family member or friend or placing the child in a group home or shelter.

The case was filed on behalf of Wilmer Garcia Ramirez who left Guatemala alone when he was 17 years old. Wilmer was initially placed in a shelter for unaccompanied immigrant children and was transferred to an immigration detention center on his eighteenth birthday in handcuffs.

ICE had the discretion to release Wilmer while his application for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status was processed. However, the agency chose to jail him in an adult detention center in Arizona–where he sat for the next eight months.

ICE was routinely sending 18-yearolds to immigration detention centers when it could have released them Wilmer’s case is not unique. In 2018, the D.C. District Court certified a nationwide class of teens transferred to ICE custody to examine whether the agency was violating the laws Congress enacted to protect them.

In March 2018 when the case was filed, 75% of so-called “age-outs” were being sent to ICE detention. That detention rate continued to rise to an all-time high of 83% in July 2018.

That meant eight out of ten 18-year-olds were carted off to a county jail or ICE detention center on their 18th birthdays, oftentimes in restraints and shackles. ICE would arrive early in the morning or shortly before midnight, leaving little time for the teens to celebrate turning 18.

One named plaintiff was taken by ICE to a county jail at 5 a.m., separating her from her two-year-old child who stayed behind at the ORR shelter.

Following a four-week trial, ICE argued that the statute only required the agency

to consider the least restrictive setting but did not mandate placement in the least restrictive setting. The Court rejected that argument, finding that “a permissive statute is not a blank check for an agency.”

The decision to transfer teenagers to ICE facilities differed depending on geography Evidence from trial showed that whether an 18-year-old was detained or released was largely dependent on where in the country the child was located. If a teen was in New York, Houston, Miami, or El Paso, they had a more than a 90% chance of being detained by ICE. In Miami, for example, ICE even detained teenagers who presented no clear flight risk or danger and who had a parent or immediate relative able to house them.

Conversely, officers in at least two ICE field offices – San Antonio and Harlingen, Texas – were able to release nearly all 18-year-olds. The difference, the Court found, was that those field offices put effort into finding housing for these teens. Failing to put in that minimal effort constituted a failure to consider the least restrictive setting, according to the Court.

The short and long-term impacts of the order Unsurprisingly, whether a child is detained or released affects the teen’s short- and long-term health. “Placement in community settings” is “markedly better” for teenagers’ health and well-being, testified Dr. Julie Linton, pediatrician and assistant dean at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine.

Teenagers like Wilmer will no longer face a presumption of detention because of this ruling. Most will not experience the trauma of being carted off to jail on their birthday and will no longer suffer those short and long-term effects of detention. Instead, ICE will now be held accountable for its failure to follow the law.l

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TIME FOR ACTION

3

Amid Pandemic, Poultry Workers Must Be Protected

BY CARMEN MARTINEZ, SPLC

TEAM Publisher I.Q. INC. Legal Advisor Brian Figeroux, Esq. Managing Editor & Editor-in-Chief Pearl Phillip

R

ecently, there has been an outpouring of praise for essential workers on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic.

I, like many others, have watched communities come together to applaud medical staff leaving a shift at hospitals.

Similarly, labor and immigrant rights organizations have praised the workers keeping grocery store shelves stocked for a nation where residents have been locked away in their homes.

One group of people on the front line who have not received such attention for their important work is poultry plant workers. The spotlight is only on them now due to President Trump signing an executive order to keep meat processing plants operating during the pandemic.

While safety guidelines for people working in the industry during the pandemic have been issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, they are not binding, and the guidance itself is inadequate. If we are going to force workers into the processing plants, the best way we can show our appreciation to them is by ensuring that they are able to safely do their jobs – or take a break if they get sick. A recent CDC report noted that 20 meatpacking workers have died from the virus and almost 5,000 have been infected with the coronavirus.

As an outreach paralegal for the Southern Poverty Law Center, I have spoken to hundreds of people working in poultry plants in the Deep South. Long before COVID-19 became a safety issue, poultry workers frequently spent their workday in processing plants where hazardous conditions – and a lack of safety precautions – are frequently the norm.

COVID-19 has only made things worse.

Poultry workers have spoken out about the inadequate coronavirus safety measures. At the SPLC, we have heard reports of supervisors being provided personal protective equipment while processing line workers have had to go without.

Also, employers have failed to put social distancing measures in place; people still work the processing line shoulder to shoulder with their coworkers.

For plants that have confirmed cases among their workforce, poultry workers

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are demanding that the plants be sanitized before they return to work. Other poultry workers are asking for paid leave, so that they may take time to care for themselves or their loved ones if they become ill – something they traditionally have not had in this industry.

In fact, we know that in the past some poultry plants have disciplined workers for taking a day for a routine medical appointment by placing a “point” on their attendance record, ultimately firing workers who accumulate a certain number of “points” under this harsh attendance system. Some poultry plants, rather than offer paid leave during the pandemic, have offered a modest bonus in exchange for working three months without missing a day.

In other words, instead of providing worktime flexibility and compensated time off, the processing plants are enacting policies that discourage taking time off and ultimately put workers and their families at risk.

To make matters worse, it was just last month that 15 poultry plants received waivers from the federal government to increase their processing line speed, putting output and profit over worker safety.

The SPLC has long documented and reported on the injuries workers endure in poultry processing plants in the South, where line speeds can reach the maximum speed of 140 birds per minute.

Since then, the poultry industry has lobbied the federal government for these waivers allowing them to increase line speeds up to 175 birds per minute.

Even without an employer turning up the line speeds or the threat of a pandemic, these workers have frequently

endured a workplace where they face retaliation for taking leave for medical reasons; discrimination or harassment from management; and even a lack of bathroom breaks.

Overall, poultry work continues to be one of the most dangerous jobs available, which is why we’ve worked closely with the people who endure these conditions to reform this industry. And it’s one of the reasons why we’ve urged members of Congress to support workers with basic safety measures and time off if they become ill during this pandemic.

We must support poultry workers, not just because they help bring food to our tables, but because they are members of our communities who deserve to go home safely to their loved ones – even if there isn’t applause as they leave work.l

Carmen Martinez is a paralegal at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC).

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The Immigrant's Journal Volunteer Intern Program was introduced to give our volunteers the opportunity to work in an immigrant friendly environment while developing the necessary skills for college or law school. They assist our staff in resolving immigration and other legal concerns through personal interviews, radio, email and telephone contact. They also assist the public with citizenship applications and in researching whether or not children of naturalized U.S. citizens have derived citizenship from their parents. Some of our volunteers assist our legal staff by engaging in legal research and writing letters on other legal issues. Volunteer interns are also assigned various other jobs in our Youth Programs.

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AMERICAN DREAM

4

What the Supreme Court’s DACA Ruling Means for Undocumented Students and the Colleges and Universities They Attend

BY SAYIL CAMACHO THE CONVERSATION

E

ditor’s note: The Supreme Court voted, 5-4, on June 18, 2020 that the Trump administration can’t immediately end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as DACA. Sayil Camacho, a Vanderbilt University postdoctoral fellow who studies immigrants, answers four questions about how the decision will affect undocumented students and higher education.

1. What’s DACA, and what did the majority say in its ruling?

President Barack Obama signed the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals executive memorandum on June 15, 2012 to provide 1.2 million undocumented young people with two-year work permits and temporary relief from deportation. Since this program went into effect, approximately 800,000 undocumented immigrants have obtained DACA status, including about 643,000 with it today.

The permits are renewable 120 days before the expiration date as long as the

Editorial credit: Sheila Fitzgerald / Shutterstock.com

DACA program is in place.

Studies have shown that DACA has improved the chances for undocumented people to complete high school, go to college, attend grad school and get higher-paying jobs.

On Sept. 5, 2017, President Donald Trump declared that his administration would phase the DACA program out.

Subsequently, several lawsuits were filed challenging DACA’s termination. On

June 28, 2019 the Supreme Court agreed to consolidate and consider three of these cases.

In this single ruling nearly a year later, a majority of the justices deemed the legal process Trump used in his attempt to end DACA to be “arbitrary and capricious.” They ruled that his administration lacked a clear rationale for ending the DACA program.

2. What does this mean for undocumented students?

This ruling means that undocumented young people who have obtained permission to stay in the country through DACA – often called Dreamers – can keep their DACA benefits – including temporary work permits and relief from deportation. For undocumented students, this means that they can continue to work, stay in school, pursue careers and remain with relatives who live in the United States.

Today, an estimated 1.1 million undocumented children live in the United States, according to data drawn from the Census Bureau. This number includes about 100,000 undocumented students who graduate from high school every year. The most recent estimates indicate that approximately 450,000 undocumented immigrants are enrolled in colleges and universities, including some 45,000 pursuing advanced degrees.

The court battle over whether Trump had the power to end DACA in the way that he attempted to do it also discouraged many undocumented people from applying.

But the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency is still accepting and approving DACA applications from anyone who needs to renew their status or is seeking protection from deportation.

3. How has higher ed dealt with DACA? Many colleges and universities have special resource offices or designated staff trained to support undocumented students. Some schools are seeking to

address issues that prevent them from affording college.

Targeted policies, such as letting undocumented residents pay in-state tuition, giving the undocumented access to financial aid and ensuring that undocumented applicants may apply for scholarships, can make a big difference.

4. Does this mean undocumented students no longer have to fear deportation?

No. Regardless of their immigration status, undocumented students have to wake up every morning not knowing whether they can stay in this country. Trump and other officials in his administration have signaled that they intend to renew their efforts to end this program. For undocumented immigrants, obtaining DACA status has always involved trusting the U.S. government not to deport them when they came out of the shadows and officially acknowledged their status.

The precise numbers are unclear, but studies indicate that there are between 11 and 22 million undocumented people in the United States. Without comprehensive immigration reform, they will continue to live in fear.

I hope that many colleges and universities will keep trying to meet the growing needs of their undocumented students, even if Trump keeps trying to end DACA. Some of the ways schools can do that is by paying DACA application and renewal fees, providing free on-campus legal aid and offering access to mental health counselors.

The DACA program was always intended as a temporary policy that might allow young people who arrived in the United States as children the opportunity to stay and build their adult lives here.

Eventually, the undocumented – and everyone else in the United States – will need a longer-term solution.l

Sayil Camacho is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Peabody College of Education and Human Development, Vanderbilt University

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CIVIL RIGHTS

5

The Fight for LGBTQ Human Rights and Equality is Far From Over

BY ERIK OLIVERA THE SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER

W

e’re celebrating three historic moments in the fight for LGBTQ equality this month.

Five years ago, on June 26, 2015, a group of LGBTQ plaintiffs who argued that their states’ refusal to recognize marriage equality violated their constitutional rights took their case to the U.S. Supreme Court and won.

Just after the victory in Obergefell v.

Hodges, members of the LGBTQ community rejoiced on the steps of the nation’s highest court, couples were wed in mass marriage ceremonies and the White House was lit with the rainbow colors of the LGBTQ pride flag. The national recognition of marriage equality was a momentous step that opened the door to a brighter future for LGBTQ families by granting important legal rights and protections to all married couples, no matter where they live or who they love.

This Sunday also marks the 51st anniversary of the Stonewall uprising.

On June 28, 1969, the LGBTQ residents of New York City’s Greenwich Village resoundingly rejected police violence

against their community and rose up in protest of institutional anti-LGTBQ oppression. Their marches for equality erupted into a nationwide push for acceptance that became the basis for Pride Month.

Just this month, more than 50 years after Stonewall and decades in the making, the Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision allowing LGBTQ people across the country to work without fear of being fired simply for being themselves.

These powerful victories were, however, met with a backlash of hate. The radical right wasted no time responding to

the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell. After the historic expansion of LGBTQ rights, they retaliated by organizing an onslaught of state-level anti-LGBTQ legislation.

The transgender community was the target of most of these laws — laws that claimed to be about public safety or religious liberty, but were designed to allow blatant discrimination without consequences.

Seventeen bills banning transgender people, including children, from entering a bathroom that didn’t match the gender on their birth certificate were introduced in 2015, and at least a dozen more have

been introduced since. And the challenges continue to this day, with Idaho legislators passing a ban on allowing transgender women athletes to participate in sports at public schools, colleges and universities.

These laws are a symptom of a much deeper problem: Although marriage equality, equal employment rights and the establishment of LGBTQ Pride Month were watershed victories for the LGBTQ community, the push for LGBTQ rights and equality is far from over.

Today, we continue the fight to ensure members of the LGBTQ community can embrace their authentic selves without fear of violence or retaliation. That means wiping discriminatory laws from the books in all 50 states and replacing them with legislation that protects and affirms LGBTQ rights. It also means we must confront the reality of anti-transgender hate in our country.

Transgender people of color led the Stonewall uprising. They raised their voices not only in the name of equality, but in defense of their own right to live.

Today, transgender lives, especially

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continued on page 6

LEGISLATIVE NEWS

6

Federal Court Strikes Down/

Fight for LGBT Human Rights and Equality/continued from page 5

continued from page 1 fully requested similar protection in another country en route to the U.S. But many of the countries that people typically travel through, like Guatemala, have virtually non-existent asylum systems or ways to keep asylum seekers safe. On its face, the policy applied to anyone who passed through another country before arriving to the United States, but in practice, it disproportionately impacted people from Central America.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, appointed by President Trump in 2017, held that the rule should end immediately. The court found that the government had failed to comply with the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), which provides that the American public must have sufficient opportunity to comment on a new regulation before its implementation. The government argued that advance notice was not necessary in this case as it would have led to huge numbers of migrants attempting to enter the United States before the rule took effect.

The government only pointed to one article from October 2018 to show good cause to sidestep the notice-and-comment period. The article suggested in part that the number of asylum-seeking families who traveled to the United States after the U.S. government stopped systematically separating families may

have increased.

The court didn’t buy it. According to Judge Kelly: “[T]he article does little if anything to support Defendants’ prediction that undertaking notice-and-comment rulemaking would have led to a dramatic, immediate surge of asylum applicants at the border that would have had the impact they suggest.”

It remains to be seen what will happen to the thousands of people who received negative decisions over the past year as a result of the asylum transit ban. This is particularly true for those in detention facilities who may not have access to an attorney to assist them in asking for a second chance at asylum. And it is hard to know how many people with valid asylum claims have been deported to harm or worse.

The government is expected to appeal

the court’s decision, though the advocacy groups that brought the challenge have made clear they are willing to battle it out in the courts.

Challenges remain for asylum seekers fleeing to the United States. According to one report, only two people seeking humanitarian relief at the U.S.-Mexico border between March 21 and May 13, 2020 have been permitted to stay.

Restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic have largely shut down the U.S.-Mexico border, causing tens of thousands of men, women and children to be “expelled” back to Mexico in light of public safety concerns.

Even so, the decision is a huge win for countless asylum seekers, and a blow to an administration that has repeatedly attempted to bypass Congress where the lives of so many are at stake. l

Black lives, remain under constant threat.

In 2019, 27 transgender or gender nonconforming people, 23 of whom were women and 19 of whom were Black, were murdered. Fifteen transgender people or gender non-conforming people have been killed so far this year.

It is our responsibility to be outspoken and inclusive in our advocacy for LGBTQ equality, and to uplift transgender people who — half a century after Stonewall — are still fighting for their liberation.

As we commemorate this historic month, the SPLC remains committed to protecting and advancing the rights of all members of the LGBTQ community.

Thank you for joining us.

Erik Olvera is the Chief Communications Officer at The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). The SPLC is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of our society. The SPLC works toward the day when the ideals of equal justice and equal opportunity will be a reality. Article published on June 26, 2020.

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7

HOW TO GET A GREEN CARD

Court-Ordered Release of Children May Lead to Family Separation

BY KATY MURDZA

F

ederal Judge Dolly Gee has ordered that children held for more than 20 days at U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) family detention centers must be released. The order was the latest development in Judge Gee’s oversight of the Flores Settlement, a decades-old binding decree governing the detention and treatment of immigrant children in government custody.

Judge Gee wrote in her order that the family detention centers “are ‘on fire’ and there is no more time for half measures.” She referenced “non-compliance or spotty compliance with masking and social distancing rules.”

As of June 8, 124 children were detained with one or both parents at family detention centers in Dilley, TX; Karnes City, TX; and Berks County, PA. Judge Gee does not have jurisdiction over whether the parents are released.

ICE has the option to use its discretion to release the children with their parents, or to release them alone to another sponsor with the parent’s consent. The agency must do so by July 17.

Eighty House Democrats have demanded that ICE release the families together.

Another judge for a similar lawsuit covering the parents of the children also has the ability to order the families released together.

The court order allows for several exceptions under which ICE can continue to detain the children. According to the judge, ICE can continue detaining children if they lack a suitable sponsor, if they have failed to appear at a scheduled court hearing in the past without explanation, or if their parent waives their rights under the Flores Settlement in order to prevent separation.

Advocates fear that ICE will use the order as an excuse to reimplement a policy known as binary choice. In May, ICE

officers ordered parents at all three facilities to choose whether their child would be separated from them and released or remain detained with them indefinitely.

Most, if not all, parents refused to separate from their children. That same month, House Democrats signed a letter demanding that ICE cease implementation and provide an explanation of this policy.

Experts say that both separation and detention lead to long-term emotional damage in children. Some of the children have been detained for almost a year and many have serious physical or mental health conditions.

Detention can also be physically dan-

gerous, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. As of June 28, ICE had confirmed an aggregate total of 2,675 positive cases among all people in immigration detention. Several men and women in ICE custody have already died from COVID-19-related complications.

Eleven children and parents have tested positive for COVID-19 at the Karnes facility.

At Dilley, some mothers and children have been placed in isolation after at least three staff tested positive for COVID-19. Three members of Congress may have also been exposed after a recent visit to the facility, which they called “a petri dish.” Mothers detained in Dilley have reported having to insert swabs into their own noses and that of their children to perform COVID tests themselves.

ICE has not commented on whether they will release families together by the July deadline or attempt to separate them. The children and parents held in family detention are not a flight risk or a danger to the communities where they plan to live with sponsors. They should be released together promptly to shelter in place at home and continue their asylum process in a non-detained setting.l

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KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

8

"Tenant Safe Harbor Act" Sponsored By Senator Brad Hoylman Signed Into Law

L

ccording to a blog entry by the NYU Furman Center, job losses from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic are unprecedented, and unemployment filings have reached historic levels. In a previous analysis, they showed that job losses were likely to impact Black and *Hispanic households disproportionately, noting they were over-represented among households earning income from occupations highly vulnerable to pandemic-related income loss. Policymakers, advocates, and property owners have grown increasingly concerned that mounting job losses are affecting the ability of households to pay their rent. In response, many have put forth proposals for providing short-term rental assistance during the COVID-19 crisis, but the magnitude of the rental shortfall remains unclear.

On June 30, the Tenant Safe Harbor Act—sponsored by Senator Brad Hoylman and Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz—was signed into law by Governor Cuomo.

Senator Hoylman issued the following statement in response: “There’s tidal wave of evictions looming over New York. No one should be

Senator Hoylman

forced onto the street during a pandemic.

We have a moral obligation to do everything possible to keep New Yorkers in their homes.

“Now that the Tenant Safe Harbor Act has been signed into law, those New Yorkers most affected financially during this pandemic will have immediate protection from eviction. No single law can single-handedly solve the eviction crisis—but the Tenant Safe Harbor Act is one crucial step to address the looming tidal wave of evictions.

“I’m grateful to Governor Cuomo for signing the Tenant Safe Harbor Act into

law today, and for his leadership throughout the COVID-19 crisis. I also want to thank my colleagues, Assembly Sponsor Jeffrey Dinowitz and Senate Co-Prime Sponsor Liz Krueger who were instrumental in helping craft this legislation.”

The Tenant Safe Harbor Act (S.8192B (Hoylman)/A.10290B (Dinowitz)) provides protection from eviction for renters who have experienced financial hardship during the COVID-19 State of Emergency. The legislation prohibits courts from ever evicting residential tenants who experienced financial hardship for non-payment of rent that accrues or becomes due during the COVID-19 period. It would apply to any unpaid rent accrued between March 7 and the yet-tobe-determined date on which all COVID-related restrictions on nonessential gatherings and businesses are lifted.

This legislation builds upon the protections of the current eviction moratorium.

Prior to the Tenant Safe Harbor Act, a tenant who was unable to pay rent during the COVID-19 crisis could be evicted for non-payment as soon as the moratorium ended. Now, because of the Tenant Safe Harbor Act, a court can never use unpaid

rent that accrued during the COVID-19 period as the basis for a non-payment eviction of a financially burdened tenant; however, a court could impose a money judgment.

According to the NYU Furman Center, an estimated 1,156,800 renter households in New York State have at least one worker who lost a job due to COVID-19.

Of those households, an estimated 327,000 workers have lost their jobs but are not claiming unemployment insurance benefits; many are ineligible due to their immigration status.

Before this law, a tenant who was unable to pay rent during the coronavirus crisis could be evicted for nonpayment as soon as the moratorium ended on Aug. 20. Governor Andrew Cuomo first issued an executive order banning evictions in March. In May, he extended the eviction moratorium until Aug. 20 for residential and commercial tenants in the state who are facing financial hardships due to the Covid-19 pandemic. l *The term Hispanic was used by the NYU Furman Center because of the way American Community Survey data are described by the US Census.

26 Court Street, Suite 701, Downtown Brooklyn

9

IMMIGRANTS’ HEALTH

Gestational Diabetes and a Healthy Baby? Yes. nOne hour after a meal–140 mg/dl or less nTwo hours after a meal–120 mg/dl or less Always remember that this is treatable—and working with your health care team can help ensure a healthy pregnancy.

N

early 10 percent of pregnancies in the U.S. are affected by gestational diabetes every year. So know that you’re not alone. And know that it doesn’t mean that you had diabetes before you conceived or that you will have diabetes after you give birth. It means that, by working with your doctor, you can have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. No matter what, you have all the support you need for both you and your baby.

We don’t know what causes gestational diabetes But we know that you are not alone. It happens to millions of women. We do know that the placenta supports the baby as it grows. Sometimes, these hormones also block the action of the mother’s insulin to her body and it causes a problem called insulin resistance. This insulin resistance makes it hard for the mother’s body to use insulin. And this means that she may need up to three times as much insulin to compensate.

Gestational diabetes can also start when the mother’s body is not able to make and use all the insulin it needs for pregnancy. Without enough insulin, glucose can’t leave the blood and be changed into

energy. When glucose builds up in the blood, it’s called hyperglycemia.

Whatever the cause, you can work with your doctor to come up with a plan and maintain a healthy pregnancy through birth. Ask questions. Ask for help. There are many ways to combat gestational diabetes.

How you can treat it The key is to act quickly. As treatable as

it is, gestational diabetes can hurt you and your baby.

Treatment aims to keep your blood sugar levels normal. It can include special meal plans and regular physical activity.

It can also include daily blood sugar testing and insulin injections.

We suggest the following target for woman testing blood sugar levels during pregnancy: nBefore a meal– 95 mg/dl or less

Diet and exercise are your friends As with all forms of diabetes, diet and exercise can help you gain the upper hand. With gestational diabetes, maintaining a balanced diet is integral to your success. Your doctor can help you develop a meal plan that makes sense for you, helping you identify the best foods and quick meal ideas that can help you stay healthy and strong.

Exercise is critical, as well. Work with your doctor to determine the level of activity that’s safe for you and your baby throughout your pregnancy. Use our resources as well to stay in touch with ideas for daily activity. The important thing to remember is to take action as quickly as you can, to stay with it, and to stay on top of your condition. It’s treatable. It’s manageable. And it’s a fight that you can win. l —Diabetes.org

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10

FAMILY MATTERS

NYC’s Homeschooling Option: Any Family Can Choose Full-Time Remote Learning This Fall

BY REEMA AMIN, CHALKBEAT AND CHRISTINA VEIGA, CHALKBEAT

F

amilies are spending more time together than ever before, making it challenging for parents and caregivers to balance their personal needs with that of a child's. For those families that include a child with ADHD, maintaining mental, physical and emotional wellness is particularly crucial for all members.

New York City families will be able to keep their children home this fall and opt for a full remote school schedule regardless of medical need, education department officials said Thursday.

Mayor Bill de Blasio had previously indicated such an accommodation would be allowed, though he had not announced concrete plans.

Allowing a full-time remote option is welcome news for families who are nervous about sending students back to buildings in the fall as parts of the United States are beginning to see a surge of new coronavirus cases.

But it could also exacerbate inequalities already rampant in the public school system, with more affluent families hiring tutors or otherwise supplementing

New York City Department of Education Chancellor Richard Carranza speaks at City Hall, March 7, 2019. Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY

schoolwork for children remaining home.

For younger children, at least, families who can continue working from home or may have more access to childcare may be more likely to opt for full-time remote learning. For older students, who may be working jobs themselves to help their families, however, it could provide needed flexibility.

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ule would receive more information “in the coming weeks” on how to register, according to the department. Officials did not release other details on how fulltime remote learning would work, including who would teach the courses.

Staffing Hurdles Seen Mark Cannizzaro, head of the union that represents principals and other school leaders, said “there’s been no discussion” of schools losing students from their rosters, and therefore, funding, if students opt for fully remote learning. He added that students will have multiple opportunities to opt back into in-person instruction.

Opting out of in-person learning could potentially help schools as they face major staffing hurdles. The education department recently issued preliminary spaces estimates to schools, and told many they could only have about a third of their students in the building at a given time to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention social distancing guidelines. For example, a classroom typically holding 27 students might only be allowed to host nine.

“We know there will be sheer logistical challenges,” de Blasio said during a press conference Thursday. “We’re going to work with the scheduling realities to find a way, and we’re going to hope and pray in the meantime that the scientific community makes progress on this disease because that’s what will really open up the ability to get back 100%.”

The mayor, who has provided few details about reopening plans, also said that all staff and students would be required to wear masks in school buildings in the fall.

De Blasio said the city’s reopening proposal — which must eventually win approval from the state — isn’t expected for at least a few weeks.

The city education department is working with the state and the Board of Regents as it plans for September, Chancellor Richard Carranza said during Thursday’s press conference. The state has not yet requested a plan from the city to review, he said.

Cuomo Stakes Territory Hours after the mayor’s press conference, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office warned that building reopenings could be out of the question completely, come fall.

The decision to reopen the state’s roughly 700 school districts will fall on the governor’s office, Cuomo has said.

“The Governor hopes schools will reopen but will not endanger the health of students or teachers, and will make the determination once we have more current information,” wrote Dani Lever, a spokesperson for Cuomo, in a statement.

Individual schools will likely grapple for weeks on what next year will look like. At the same time they will need more teachers to cover smaller classes for in-person learning, schools must also allow staff apply for medical accommodations to work from home.

Education department officials have estimated that up to 20% of teachers could choose that option because they are at high risk of severe coronavirus complications. School leaders can also request accommodations to stay home.

Cannizzaro said determining staffing levels will be one of the biggest challenges for principals in the coming year.

“If, in fact, we’re going to try to use all the available space in a school building to get as many students in as possible, there is going to be a real need to get staff in the building,” he said. “I actually don’t think it will be as realistic as people think it’s going to be.”

Officials declined to say Thursday whether staff with high-risk family members will be accommodated, too.

Additional information will be sent to staffers by July 15, according to education department spokesperson Miranda Barbot.

Union Rips Mayor Officials also have yet to outline a child care plan for teachers, many of whom have young children at home.

Teachers union president Michael Mulgrew ripped de Blasio for not announcing such a plan yet for both school families and educators alike and fears the responsibility will fall on the education department, which he says is knee deep in school planning for the fall.

“That’s the mayor’s responsibility,” Mulgrew said in an interview Thursday.

“He knows his school system cannot accommodate every child every day.”

About 75% of families and 80% of students said they have some degree of comfort with sending students back in school buildings if virus precautions are taken, according to survey results education department officials released Thursday.

Drilling down deeper, however, just 28% of families said they are “very” comfortable with children returning to classrooms, while the same was true for 25% of the student respondents.

VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.IJLEF.ORG FOR MORE IMMIGRATION NEWS & UPDATES

continued on page 11

11

FAMILY MATTERS

of responses came from Staten Island (37%), followed by Manhattan and Queens (each at 32%). At 26%, most student responses came from Queens, followed by Staten Island and Brooklyn at 21% each.

Homeschooling Option/ continued from page 10

More than 300,000 families responded, along with about 118,000 students in grades 6-12.

About a quarter of families and students said they would prefer learning at home full time in the fall. That rings true for Fatema Aktar, a South Ozone Park parent of two children, one in pre-K and another in first grade.

“We commute using public bus and subway,” Akter wrote to Chalkbeat. “I do not feel safe to be in the public transportation with so many unknowns about COVID-19’s effects. So, I am OK with just having remote learning for the coming year, at least for the beginning.”

Schools will have to prove to families like Akter’s that they can safely welcome students into buildings. That includes having a nurse in every building, he said, and providing some regular reports about any positive cases that may turn up.

“I’m assuming our goal would be to allow children, after some period of time, ‘Hey, you wanna come back?

Look, everything’s worked out,’” Mulgrew said.

Working Parents Challenged Many working families, of course, won’t have the option to keep kids home from school buildings, and even a hybrid model of at-home and in-person learning will be a challenge.

The Department of Education was providing iPads for remote learning during the coronavirus outbreak. Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY

More than half of parents with children in pre-K through second grade — 52% — said they would need childcare if inperson classes do not resume full-time.

The number was 44% for parents of children in grades 3 through 5.

Students and parents said that they prefer to attend classes on alternating days — 48% and 53%, respectively — rather than every other week.

There were some differences in the ways that students and their families want to see school re-start, and what they consider most important. For example, 58% of parents said they prefer live instruction at least once a day, while only

36% of students said so.

Live instruction, which can be difficult for teachers to pull off while juggling their own responsibilities at home, was mandated for summer school. The education department has not tracked how many schools offered live lessons since school buildings were shut down in midMarch.

Students also were more likely to want classes like art and physical education to be prioritized next fall, with 69% saying it was one of the top three most important factors — compared with only 48% of parents.

Among parents, the highest percentage

Space Race Carranza planned to meet with principals Thursday to further discuss how many students they believe their schools could accommodate at once.

After department officials sent preliminary estimates of how many students could fit inside their individual buildings, based on the school’s size and the CDC’s guidance that children needed 65square-feet, they asked principals to walk through their schools and confirm those numbers.

Buildings will also be deep-cleaned regularly every night using electrostatic sprayers that “dispense disinfectant so that it adheres to surfaces without the need to physically touch them.”

The education department plans to order 11,000 cases of hand sanitizer and 100,000 cases of disinfectant wipes, as well as “other cleaning supplies.”

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news organization covering public education.

This story was published on July 02, 2020 by THE CITY.

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JOBS & RECESSION

12

Government Takes Surprising Position to Preserve H-4 Work Permits – For Now

BY LESLIE DELLON

A

long-running lawsuit over a rule allowing certain spouses of highly educated H-1B workers to work in the United States took an interesting twist. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which has threatened to take away work authorization for this group of people since the start of the Trump administration, opposed the latest attempt to stop them from working.

The Years-Long Battle Over Work Permits for Certain Spouses of H-1B Workers The litigation over H-4 employment authorization has a long history. Save Jobs USA—an organization of IT workers who claimed they lost their jobs to H1B workers—filed its lawsuit in 2015. At that time, the Obama administration had published a new regulation—the H-4 rule—allowing an H-4 spouse to apply for work authorization where the H-1B spouse is already in the green card process.

Save Jobs claimed that the H-4 rule increased the competition its members

faced for jobs, from H-1Bs and now from their H-4 spouses.

The district court ruled that Save Jobs had not shown that its members were actually injured by the H-4 rule. After Save Jobs appealed to the D.C. Circuit, DHS repeatedly asked the court not to proceed because the agency was going to issue a proposed rule to eliminate H-4 work authorization.

The appellate court allowed Immigration Voice—a nonprofit that advocates to remove employment restrictions on highly-skilled foreign workers—and two of its members with H-4 work authorization to intervene to

defend the rule. The court allowed this since DHS had said its plan was to remove the H-4 rule.

In November 2019, after refusing another DHS delay request, the D.C. Circuit reversed the judgment and sent the case back to the district court. When the intervenors asked the district court not to proceed until a decision was reached in another case, Save Jobs opposed the intervenors’ motion and asked the court to enjoin (stop) the H-4 rule while the lawsuit continued. To much surprise, DHS opposed Save Jobs’ request.

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Why DHS Told a Federal Court to Keep the H-4 Rule for Now In its opposition, DHS did not attack the current rule but instead argued that Save Jobs did not meet the legal standard for an injunction. According to DHS, since the court previously thought the agency could reasonably interpret the law as giving it the authority to issue the H-4 rule, Save Jobs would not win its case now.

But DHS raised a broader principle— that stopping the enforcement of regulations concerning employment-based visa classifications stunts U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ authority to make regulatory determinations about eligibility for those classifications.

DHS argued that stopping the rule pending the court’s decision would be substituting the court’s judgment for the agency’s. DHS also said that Save Jobs had not shown its members would suffer immediate actual harm from H-4s continuing to work as their sworn statements were five years old.

Despite these positions taken by DHS, the agency’s position should not be viewed as an endorsement of the current H-4 rule. In its filing, DHS said the proposed rule “will substantially amend and potentially rescind” the current rule.

DHS may frame its proposed rule as a reconsideration of agency policy—that the authority on which the Obama administration based the program should not be used to provide employment authorization to anyone in H-4 status.

The agency has taken a similar approach in a proposed rulemaking to remove another Obama-era regulation under which certain international entrepreneurs may apply for temporary work authorization.

As of May 13, the proposed rule to rescind H-4 employment authorization remains pending review at the Office of Management and Budget. It has been nearly two years since DHS told the D.C. Circuit that the proposed rule was in “final DHS clearance.”

While the future of H-4s being allowed to work remains uncertain, forbidding them from doing so is a loss for families and businesses in America.

In order to attract the high-skilled talent they need to thrive, employers must ensure that their employees’ spouses can continue to advance in their own careers and contribute to their household income. Roughly 90% of H-4s are women and 60% have graduate degrees, so we must not underestimate the disproportionate impact of taking away their ability to contribute to the American workplace.l

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MONEY MATTERS

Filing for Bankruptcy Will Not Prevent You from Going to Heaven

BY JANET HOWARD

D

erek and his wife were doing pretty good: two-family house with a mortgage, two vehicles, two credit cards, decent jobs, two kids in college.

Then the pandemic hit, and his wife, Joyce, lost her supervisor job at a hotel in Manhattan. Suddenly, they were no longer doing pretty good. Derek still had his job with the MTA, but the loss of his wife’s income, coupled with the uncertainty and the bills again coming in regularly like the sun rising, had financial difficulty set in.

Derek, with his family’s financial situation looking bleak, has started the process to file for bankruptcy. What is the average Joe and Jane to do? What is the legal bailout? It just makes sense that anyone who was already having or starting to have difficulty meeting their financial commitments would strongly consider and file for bankruptcy. It just makes sense; logical.

Bankruptcy Experts And the bankruptcy experts agree that bankruptcy is the logical direction in this current bleak financial situation.

Considering a new spike in unemployment and remembering how the Great

Recession caused a wave of bankruptcy cases, consumers were seeking a reset after getting too far behind on debt. “We think business filings will see an uptick in April with consumer filings to surge in May and June,” said Amy Quackenboss, executive director at the American Bankruptcy Institute, a professional association comprised of lawyers for debtors and creditors, judges and other bankruptcy specialists.

The increase could take a bit longer because, in times of crisis, “people don’t normally race off to file bankruptcy,” said John Rao, a National Consumer Law Center staff attorney specializing in consumer bankruptcy. Still, “there is no question that given the effect of this pandemic, there will be an increase of bankruptcies.

It’s really a question of when that rise will occur.”

What is Bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor.

The two most common types of personal bankruptcies are chapter 7 and chapter 13.

The Stimulus Bill and Bankruptcy The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act made changes to the bankruptcy code. It says: •The direct checks, dubbed “recovery rebates,” do not count as income that would get factored into a “means test” that determines if someone can file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case.

•The recovery rebates also do not count as “disposable income” that could be applied

to things like credit card debts in Chapter 13 cases.

•People who are already in Chapter 13 repayment plans and now experiencing financial hardship because of the outbreak have a one-year window to change repayment terms. They can extend their repayment time-frame up to two years longer.

•The bankruptcy-related provisions expire on March 27, one year after being signed the bill into law.

Right for You Bottom-line is life throws us many twists and turns. And, sometimes filing for bankruptcy is inevitable. If you can’t find a clear financial direction through the coronavirus outbreak after your layoff, bankruptcy might be your best option. Filing for bankruptcy will affect your credit score, but it will improve with time—and often far sooner than most filers expect. In fact, many people find that filing for bankruptcy repairs credit faster than would be possible otherwise. Remember, the quicker you file, the sooner you will be able to rebuild your credit and get back on your feet, free of debt. l

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ELDER CARE

15

Pulling Back from the Breaking Point Three Tips to Help People Caring for a Loved One with Alzheimer’s Disease Find Additional Support During COVID-19

O

ne of the most significant challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic for the more than 5 million American families affected by Alzheimer’s disease has been the major disruption to in-person caregiving support services. With the increased pressure of caring for a loved one without having access to these services driving caregivers closer to the breaking point, the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA) is letting caregivers know about steps they can take to find additional support.

“The impacts of COVID-19 added a tremendous amount of stress on caregivers for individuals with Alzheimer’s—there is minimal access to services like respite care and adult day programs, and friends and relatives cannot visit. All of these provide sources of support and opportunities for the caregivers to take a moment for themselves,” said Jennifer Reeder, LCSW, AFA’s Director of Educational and Social Services. “Weeks of being confined at home, with fewer opportunities to recharge, is accelerating caregiver burnout, but we want caregivers to know there are steps they can take to make things a little better and help them con-

tinue to move forward.”

AFA offers the following tips to individuals caring for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease: “Look for the helpers” Other family members or close friends who are part of the care team can still be helpful from afar. They can make phone calls/arrangements, help with bill-paying or other financial and legal matters.

Additionally, trusted members of the care team can assist the primary caregiver in making decisions and give a helpful “outside perspective.” Don’t be afraid to ask them for help.

Expand your support network A strong support system is essential for family caregivers. Adding a few more “helping hands” can make a difference.

For example, some nonprofits and religious congregations offer services like grocery shopping or meal delivery.

Neighbors who are not part of the regular “care team” but are friendly with you and your loved one could spend a little time with your loved one in the backyard (while practicing appropriate social distancing) so that you can focus on something else. The larger your network, the stronger it becomes.

Express your feelings Emotional support is just as important as physical and logistical support. Having a trusted loved one or friend to “vent” to is important. Speaking with professionals can also be helpful—AFA’s Helpline is staffed entirely by licensed social workers who can be reached seven days a week by calling 866-232-8484 or web chatting through AFA’s website, www.alzfdn.org. Bottling up your emotions only adds to stress levels, so be sure to find constructive ways to “let it out.”l

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ELECTIONS 2020

16

Viewpoint: What Donald Trump Gets Wrong About Somalia offered to buy a plane ticket for the "ungrateful" Omar to go to Somalia. He suggested she should return to get a better appreciation for the United States.

BY ISMAIL EINASHE, BBC WORLD NEWS

P

resident Donald Trump is making Somali-American congresswoman Ilhan Omar one of the bogeywomen of his campaign for re-election to the White House in November — and by proxy her country of birth, Somalia.

In his most recent attack, at a campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he tore into the 37-year-old alleging that she wanted to bring the "anarchy" of Somalia to the US. "She would like to make the government of our country just like the country from where she came — Somalia. No government, no safety, no police, no nothing, just anarchy. And now, she's telling us how to run our country. No, thank-you."

Omar, who arrived in the US as a child refugee in 1995, is a congressional representative for Minnesota, which includes the city of Minneapolis where AfricanAmerican George Floyd was killed by police in May, reigniting Black Lives Matter protests.

But it was Omar's Somali heritage the president chose to focus on in Tulsa, per-

Congresswoman Omar. Editorial credit: Phil Pasquini / Shutterstock.com

haps to distract from all the turmoil and unrest closer to home.

In response Omar said his remarks were "racist". She added that his anger came out of a recent poll that had shown him trailing his rival, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, in her state, which is home to a large Somali-American community.

The president described Omar as a "hate-filled, American-bashing socialist", warning she would have a role in shaping the country if Biden were to win.

This is despite the fact that the pair are on opposite ends of the Democratic Party —

Omar had been a prominent supporter of Bernie Sanders to win the Democratic ticket.

It echoed the "lock her up" phrase adopted by his supporters against his rival Hillary Clinton in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.

Omar, who is a fierce critic of the president, had been in hot water at the time censured by both Democrats and Republicans — for stoking stereotypes about Jews and had apologized for tweets implying US lawmakers only support Israel because of lobby money.

Republican Senator Rand Paul had

Somalia 'not a Hobbesian nightmare' It seems Trump's view of Somalia stems from the aftermath of the overthrow of Siad Barre in 1991, since when it has popularly been considered one of the world's most failed states.

This label has stubbornly stuck even as the situation has improved in the country.

While Trump imagines that Somalia has no laws, no police, and no government, this is far from the reality on the ground.

While al-Shabab does still stage attacks in Mogadishu, it is not the Hobbesian nightmare of a country that President Trump describes.

The impressive new National Theatre was unveiled just last week — there are fancy hotels, cafes and beach-side restaurants in Mogadishu and the city even has a literary festival, the annual Mogadishu Book Fair.

Hargeisa, capital of the self-declared republic of Somaliland, is one of the continued on page 18

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18

ELECTIONS 2020 What Trump Gets Wrong/ continued from page 16

most peaceful cities in the Horn of Africa, with libraries, the Hargeisa Cultural Centre while the Hargeisa Book Fair, which has been taking place for more than a decade, draws in thousands every year.

And even though it has not been recognized internationally, Somaliland has held successive free and fair elections, making it the strongest democracy in the Horn of Africa.

On the economic front, while there are lots of challenges made worse by drought, coronavirus and a locust infestation, there is also good news.

Dahabshill and World Remit, two of the largest money transfer companies in Africa, were founded by Somalis and the country is virtually a cashless society with everything paid by mobile money.

An UN-backed government is making small steps in rebuilding the country and tackling Islamist militants — helped by the many Somalis in the diaspora returning home.

A one-time Republican runs Somalia The returnees include current President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, popularly known as "Farmajo," who was a registered Republican in Buffalo and gave up his US citizenship to run the country in 2017.

The scenes of the soldiers being dragged through the streets s h o c k e d Americans and had a significant impact on US foreign policy in the region.

But under President Trump the US has been engaged in a secret war in Somalia against the Islamist militant group alShabab, using drones and special forces, something few President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed Americans know about.

Some Somalis find Perhaps the view of Somalia for Trump Trump's view of their country disconand his supporters is still tarnished by certing, arguing that it is in part his polievents in 1993 — one of the most imporcy that has made the country more dantant American foreign interventions in gerous — and saying Somali civilians, Africa, when US troops launched a disnot militants, are often the casualties of astrous raid in the Somali capital, US drone attacks that have increased Mogadishu, to capture a powerful warunder his presidency. lord.

Two US Black Hawk helicopters were Proud Hijab-wearing Muslim shot down, and 18 US soldiers and more Somalia's collapse, nearly three decades than 500 Somalis were killed in the batago, dispersed Somalis around the world tle.

from the arctic circle to New Zealand.

In the US, Minneapolis is home to one of the largest Somali diaspora populations in the world — a visibly black and Muslim community.

Since 9/11 there have been fraught conversations over the place of Muslims in America. Trump often uses anti-Muslim rhetoric in his portrayal of good versus bad migrants, playing into these fears.

For the president, Omar does not fit into his idea of a "good migrant". The proud Hijab-wearing politician fought for her right to wear headwear in the House of Representatives, overturning a 181-year ban.

She is not afraid of being Muslim — something that differentiates her from another prominent American-Somali woman Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a former Dutch politician, who is a vocal critic of Islam.

Last year, Tucker Carlson, a host on Fox News — Trump's favorite news channel, contrasted Hirsi Ali and Omar, saying: "Two Somali immigrants, one among the most impressive people in America. The other, among the least."

As the US campaign drama unfolds over the next five months, you can expect more of these culture wars to be played out at Trump's rallies.l

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LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS

19

How to Identify an Emotional Affair teasing and arousing sext-messages and photos. This inappropriate behavior is not something that you would share with your spouse, and it leads you one step further to entering into a physical affair. It’s also something that would be very emotionally traumatic for your partner if he found out about it.

BY JENNINE ESTES

A

quite innocent friendship of sharing and opening up to one another quickly grew stronger than you have ever imagined. It can start with a friendly text message, a flirty comment, and WHAMO! The chemistry simply takes over and emotions began to grow. Emotional affairs aren't intentional. They often happen when the "love tank" has been depleted and the reserve tank is empty as well. Once chemistry hits with a new person, our body releases Dopamine and Epinephrin (a natural chemical high).

If you are not sure if you are having an emotional affair, here are some clues that the answer is “Yes.” 1. You’re Hiding the Relationship: If you no longer want to share this relationship, and it becomes secretive, it’s a problem. You might find ways to meet alone, without others, and your text messaging, phone calls, and interactions become hidden from your partner. When you have a secretive relationship, it might be an emotional affair.

2. Obsession with Your Phone: Another sign of an emotional affair is when you’re constantly checking your phone, anxiously waiting for your special someone to call, text message, or make con-

tact through a social network. Not only do you get obsessed with it, but also you might get disappointed if they haven’t made contact for a while.

3. They Become Your Go-To-Person: A few years back you may have gone to your partner for emotional support or to share your daily stories. Now you no longer turn to your partner first when you have something important to share. Your special friend gets to hear the news first and gets to hear more details than you share with your spouse.

4. Your Grooming Changes: When you’re having an emotional affair outside of your marriage, you may put more energy into your physical appearance.

This includes how you do your hair, apply your make-up, and generally take care of yourself. You might be more inclined to work out so that you look

good for your special friend.

5. Shopping for New Underwear: A very common element is when we purchase new underwear, lingerie, and/or bras. There is some part in your brain that sees the possibility that a relationship may become physical, even if it’s just emotional right now. You might think about your friend while shopping, considering what he would like, instead of thinking about your spouse.

6. New Clothing: Just like buying new underwear, you can find yourself at the mall shopping for new clothes and nicer outfits. Again, if you are thinking of your friend and not your spouse when you buy new clothing, this is a sign that you are leading down the path to a physical affair.

7. Sexting: In an emotional affair, your friendly and flirty text messages turn into

8. Your Feelings Get Stronger: When in an emotional affair, you will feel more and more connected to your friend, so much so that you start bringing them up in conversation. When you start to think of them as more than just a platonic friend, it will come out by you talking about him more often.

9. Crossing the Line: Another sign of having an emotional affair is when you cross the line by sharing appropriate information. Crossing the line with information is opening up and sharing intimate things with this person, when your partner used to be the only one you do this with.

10. Dreams: During an emotional affair, you dream more of this person and the dreams have crossed into more intimate dreams where you are getting closer either emotionally, physically…or both.l Article compliments Estes Therapy (www.estestherapy.com). Reprinted with permission.

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