USAfrica: OBAMA’S IMMIGRATION ACTION: WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR UNDOCUMENTED PERSONS IN THE U.S?

OBAMA’S IMMIGRATION ACTION: WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS CURRENTLY IN THE U.S?

By Ijeoma Opara, Attorney at Law, and legal affairs columnist for USAfricaonline.com and CLASSmagazine (Houston).

Special to USAfricaonline.com, CLASSmagazine,  and USAfrica multimedia networks, Houston. Follow USAfrica at Facebook.com/USAfricaChido , Facebook.com/USAfrica247 and Twitter.com/Chido247

On November 20, 2014, President Barrack Obama issued an executive order that will bring sweeping changes in the immigration law and change the lives of an estimated 5.7 million undocumented immigrants in the United

States today.

Obama, like his predecessor George W. Bush, made it categorically clear that anyone who thinks or believes that all illegal immigrants would be deported is not being realistic. What with the cost per person alone, resources are being wasted, not to talk about separation of families. This executive action is about the deportation of felons and not families as President Obama rightly stated.

What are the criteria? To qualify, you must:
Have continuously Lived in the United States for more than five years;
Entered without inspection or lawful immigration status expired or have a deportation or removal order;
Have not been convicted of a felony offense or significant criminal offense;
Have paid taxes and of good moral character;
Have a child who is a permanent resident or United States Citizen;
Be brought to the United States when you were under 16 years regardless of your age now.

The full criteria is not yet formulated as this action was just unveiled last night, November 20, 2014
Who qualifies?
Parents, Children, Sisters, Brothers and Grand Parents.

It looks like this applies to anyone who has lived in the United States for over five years with no criminal history and pays taxes.

When does this begin?: It is believed that the effective date is January 1, 2015 but we are waiting on USCIS to come up with the application form and filing fees.
For How Long: Just as President Obama stated in his speech, it a temporary fix. It is speculated that the work permit will be good for three years, it is not clear if it is renewable but it is hoped that congress would have done the right thing before the end of the three year term.

What Barrack Obama’s executive order is all about:
Promoting family unification

Promoting accountability for those already within our borders

Discouraging illegal migration by requiring that you be in the United States for more than five years

Promoting the deportation of felons and criminals by requiring that you have no criminal history

Grow the economy by allowing high skilled worker to stay and put back into the system legally

Reinforcing border protection by adding additional resources to the United States border.

Ultimately, we need immigration reform and congress still need to act. What President Obama has done with this new deferred action like the other deferred action is to buy time for undocumented immigrants while we all wait for congress to Act.

What President Obama is offering in essence is legal status in exchange for accountability. It is estimated that about 11.7 million undocumented immigrants are in the shadows, if an estimated 5.7 million is brought out from the shadows with this order, imagine the resources and revenue that can be generated.

Tell the American people the facts and let them judge. This is not about encouraging illegal immigration. Just as stated by President Obama, we are a country of immigrants and we were all once strangers to this land at one point or the other. Let us see if this motivates congress to Act. Take action right now if you are in this category as soon as the application from is released by USCIS. This may all go away come election 2016 if we get in a new president.

Remember it is an executive order and another executive can undo it but those who are already in the system in reliance of the order will not be cut off. We need the backing of Congress to get these into law so that families can stay together instead of these personal attacks on President Obama. That is the American Dream. We’ll watch and see.

#Achebe USAfrica Founder Dr. Chido Nwangwu gets award for his works on#ThingsFallApart author Chinua Achebe from ASA-USA Dallas. Chido is completing the book on Mandela & Achebe: Footprints of Greatness. by Chido Nwangwu ISBN 978-0-9893970-0-1. www.MandelaAchebeChido.com

VIDEO of the CNN International broadcast/profile of USAfrica and CLASSmagazine Publisher Chido Nwangwu.   http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/international/2010/07/29/mpa.african.media.bk.a.cnn  

 and friendship hold lessons for humanity and Africans, USAfrica Founder Chido Nwangwu takes a measure of their works and consequence to write that Mandela and Achebe have left “footprints of greatness.”

He chronicles, movingly, his 1998 reporting from the Robben Island jail room in South Africa where Mandela was held for decades through his 20 years of being close to Achebe. He moderated the 2012 Achebe Colloquium at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.“I’ll forever remember having walked inside and peeped through that historic Mandela jail cell (where he was held for most of his 27 years in unjust imprisonment) at the dreaded Robben Island, on March 27, 1998, alongside then Editor-in-chief of TIME magazine and later news chief executive of the CNN, Walter Isaacson (and others) when President Bill Clinton made his first official trip to South Africa and came to Robben Island. Come to this island of scourge and you will understand, in part, the simple greatness and towering grace of Nelson Mandela”, notes  Chido Nwangwu, award-winning writer, multimedia specialist and founder of USAfricaonline.com, the first African-owned U.S-based newspaper published on the internet, in his first book; he writes movingly from his 1998 reporting from South Africa on Mandela. http://www.mandelaachebechido.com/

IF any of the Nigerian President’s 100 advisers has the polite courage for the extraordinary task of reminding His Excellency of his foremost, sworn, constitutional obligation to the national interest about security and safety of Nigerians and all who sojourn in Nigeria, please whisper clearly to Mr. President that I said, respectfully: Nigerians, at home and abroad, are still concerned and afraid for living in what I call Nigeria’s Federal Republic of Insecurity. FULL text of commentary, exclusively, at USAfricaonline.com https://usafricaonline.com/2011/12/17/nigeria-federal-republic-of-insecurity-by-chido-nwangwu/

USAfrica: BOKO HARAM’s latest killings sharpen divide for security team at Nigeria’s presidency. By Chido Nwangwu
https://usafricaonline.com/2013/10/21/usafrica-boko-harams-latest-killings-sharpen-divide-for-security-team-at-nigerias-presidency-by-chido-nwangwu/

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Dancing with “ghosts” of BOKO HARAM, President Jonathan, Sultan Abubakar and Nigeria’s national security. By Dr. Chido Nwangwu
https://usafricaonline.com/2013/04/05/dancing-with-ghosts-of-boko-haram-president-jonathan-sultan-abubakar-and-nigerias-national-security-by-chido-nwangwu/