‘Qué Pasa’ in Immigration: Permanent Status for Salvadorans?; “Arpaio, Obstructionist”

America's Voice Blog

Posted 09/07/10 at 10:27am

In the Spanish-language press this morning, the president of El Salvador suggests that after extending Temporary Protected Status for Salvadorans in the U.S. for the seventh time, the federal government might consider giving them a path to permanent status. Meanwhile, La Opinión (Los Angeles) calls out Sheriff Joe Arpaio for obstructing the Department of Justice's investigation against him while continuing to receive federal funds.

Permanent status for Salvadorans? News agency EFE and La Opinión report that the President of El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, is requesting that the United States consider granting a path to permanent status for Salvadorans who obtained Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for the seventh time when it was last extended for another 18 months in July.

According to Funes, the idea is that:

“as a first step toward (immigration) reform, those who have renewed their TPS for the seventh time could acquire a more permanent form of immigration status. This depends on internal politics and whether Congress is inclined (to pass the measure), but it’s our responsibility to make the effort.”

According to AFP, Funes added:

“it’s necessary that we seek a regionwide commitment across Latin America to deal with the issue of our immigrants. Nobody wants people to emigrate, at any price, from countries that don’t offer them opportunities to stay.”

"Arpaio, obstructionist." That's the title of a La Opinión editorial which addresses the Department of Justice’s lawsuit against Sheriff Joe Arpaio to force him to comply with an investigation of his office. The editorial concludes that if Arpaio wants to continue to receive federal funds:

“he has to open his books and facilities to any investigation. We hope this lawsuit marks the beginning of the end of such inexplicable impunity and unlawful conduct.”

Pew study debunks "birth tourism." The AP reports that despite the attempts by some Republicans to propose amending the Constitution to deny birthright citizenship to babies born in the United States to undocumented parents, a Pew Hispanic Center report reveals that the overwhelming majority of these undocumented immigrants do not come to the United States solely to have children, but rather to live here permanently. From the article:

“Out of 340,000 babies born to undocumented immigrants in the United States in 2008, 85 percent of the parents had been in the country for more than a year, and more than half for at least five years.”

In other news...The AP covers violent protests in Los Angeles in the wake of the death of a Guatemalan immigrant at the hands of a police officer.

America's Voice has started a new series, “‘Qué Pasa’ in Immigration,” to bring Spanish-language coverage of immigration and politics to a wider audience. Look for daily roundups (in English) of some of the best Spanish-language news.

The latest Spanish-language reporting and analysis on immigration can now be found at AmericasVoiceEspanol.com. Check it out!