Need to say something about how this @NickMiroff @mariasacchetti article is written. In a big scoop about ICE arrest and deportation policy, the article focuses on ICE AGENTS as the affected people, not immigrants who might be arrested and deported. 1/x

washingtonpost.com/national/new-b…
The first response is from “one distraught [ICE] official.” After a few paragraphs describing the evolution of the Biden policies, the article describes “ICE officials chafing at the new rules.” It’s clear in this narrative: ICE agents are the center of the story. 2/x
In the article, we hear from Biden and former Obama officials praising the policy, former Trump officials opposing, and, at the very end, an advocate for immigrant rights (but not an affected immigrant, so far as I know). 3/x
There isn’t anything wrong with reporting on the frustrations of disgruntled ICE officials resisting the new policies. It’s part of the story, and important to the policy. But they should not be portrayed as the only affected people with human emotions. 4/x
More to the point: Immigrants should not be in the background, as inanimate objects. Immigrants should be at the center of articles about immigration policy. 5/end

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Michael Kagan

Michael Kagan Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @MichaelGKagan

5 Feb
There is a lot good in Pres. Biden’s order restoring the US refugee program today. Let me note a few items that stand out to me (possibly esoteric.) 1/x
The call to make the program accessible to victims of gender violence is important. As I am sure the WH knows, this will require further action by the AG to revoke and revise the Sessions/Barr mutilations of asylum and refugee law. 2/x
The interest in climate change migration is interesting, just in the sense of it being put on the agenda. I would note that there are many victims of violence who have also been excluded from refugee law. Biden should look at that, too. 3/x Image
Read 6 tweets
27 Nov 20
The @ClarkCountySch, @SuptJaraCCSD and @CCSD_Trustees have not yet withdrawn their proposed regulation to silence teachers from talking about their jobs. They should. But they won't be able to take back the authoritarian impulse that they have revealed. (THREAD 1/x)
If enacted, the regulation would be unconstitutional. I won't focus on that (@AriCohn has already done a great job at it). We should worry that @ClarkCountySch is not getting good legal advice. But my concern is what this says about district leadership, not its lawyers. (2/x)
The proposal would ban teachers and school staff from expressing opinions on school issues "that arise directly from their work," especially issues related to the person's specific job. Breathtaking. (3/x) Image
Read 8 tweets
4 Nov 20
Six broad, initial thoughts about how to defend immigrant rights in concrete law & policy, as it appears likely that Biden will be president and Rs will control the Senate. (Thread)
1. Trump’s electoral defeat is a true victory against racism and fear, but it is a defensive victory. It stems the bleeding, and maybe only temporarily. A very big battle, but not the war. Immigrants will remain under threat.
2. The Democrats’ failure to take the Senate means that hoping for large scale immigration reform legislation is, yet again, likely going to be fruitless. Worthy as it is, it may sap scarce political capital from achievable and also urgent goals.
Read 7 tweets
28 Oct 20
It's getting harder and harder to win asylum in Immigration Court in the United States (and that's no accident) -- Updated data from @TRACReports.

Short thread to follow on Las Vegas data from the report. 1/

trac.syr.edu/immigration/re…
In Las Vegas, it is now plausible for a person with a strong case to hope to win asylum. That's new. Here's what I wrote about applying for asylum in Las Vegas in my book, THE BATTLE TO STAY IN AMERICA. I wrote this in 2019. 2/
Now, the two judges with 95+% denial rates (Sharda and Romig) have both left Las Vegas, and 3 of the 4 with the highest denial rates have left. BUT the Las Vegas Immigration Court is hardly a haven for refugees. (See next tweet.) 3/
Read 4 tweets
20 Oct 20
In Oct 2019, the Las Vegas Sheriff, threatened with litigation and pressured by the community, agreed to limit his jail's cooperation with ICE. We now have some data hinting that this likely slowed deportations and kept families together in Las Vegas. (THREAD) 1/
My book, THE BATTLE TO STAY IN AMERICA focuses on this fight, a microcosm of a struggle that has taken place across the country to cut the jail-to-deportation pipeline. This report from @TRACReports - albeit with incomplete data - indicates that these fights were worth it. 2/
Some caveats. The data - the number of detainers issued by ICE to local jails - is only a part of a larger, complex deportation pipeline. I wish we could see more, but ICE has been refusing to release some of the more revealing data to @TRACReports. 3/
Read 14 tweets
3 Sep 20
Yesterday, ICE announced - with great pride - 2000 arrests of people it wants to deport. It's significant ... and also a distraction. They want media, activists, and immigrant communities to focus on these arrests, the proverbial knock on the door. They're not the main attack. 1/
In 2018, only about 1 in 5 deportations from inside the U.S. started with a direct arrest by ICE. The vast, vast majority (apprx 80%) begin with a largely hidden system by which local police hand people over to ICE. (Excerpt from The Battle to Stay in America.) 2/
The data comes rom @TRACReports. As their report shows, there is good reason to think that local communities can reduce the chances of their neighbors being deported by limiting cooperation with ICE. 3/ trac.syr.edu/immigration/re…
Read 5 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!