To: Trump's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Tell Trump: Reverse changes to the green card process!
Just before Memorial Day, Trump's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced changes to the process of applying for green cards, creating mass confusion before the holiday weekend.
The USCIS announcement says that most green card applicants will need to return to their countries of origin to apply through consular offices and wait for approval—a serious upheaval of a decades-long precedent that has allowed immigrants to live in the United States while applying for a green card.
This chaotic policy shows how Trump's immigration agenda was never about immigrants coming to the U.S. "the right way." Trump wants to curb all immigration, even legal pathways.
This is the latest attempt by the Trump administration to attack our immigrant communities, sowing widespread chaos and fear. Tell the USCIS to reverse this decision NOW! >>
Why is this important?
Roughly one million people become green card holders every year, and about 500,000 of them apply while living in the U.S. These are people deeply embedded in their communities, sometimes living with family members who are U.S. citizens, and contributing to the economy through work and taxes.
Trump and the USCIS have offered very few details about who will be directly impacted by these changes, sharing only vague language that some people who have an “economic benefit or otherwise are in the national interest” might be allowed to remain in the U.S.
But experts are already concerned about how these exceptions might lead to even more discrimination, especially for immigrants from countries on Trump's “travel ban” list—like Brazil, Colombia, and Thailand—who cannot seek consular services in their home countries.
This policy is already causing mass confusion among immigrants and their lawyers. The UCIS should reverse these unnecessary changes NOW and allow green card applicants to continue residing in the U.S.