Citizenship // Current

Could you pass the new US citizenship test?

"Others, including Ethiopia native Anteneh Workneh, addressed an issue that immigrant advocates have raised: Conceptual... more

jennatar
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1 month ago

New HPV Vaccination requirement for immigrants raises concerns

Federal immigration authorities now require immunization against human papillomavirus for female immigrants ages 11 to 26 who are seeking permanent residence.

The mandate by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services went into effect July 1, but advocacy groups were largely left in the dark about the new requirements, said Priscilla Huang, Reproductive Justice Project director and women's law fellow at the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum.

The vaccine cost tacks on about $375 to the status change fee of $1,410. It is also gender specific and the only vaccine for a sexually transmitted disease, leading some women's rights groups to believe the mandate is discriminatory.

The vaccine has been controversial since it was introduced to market two years ago. In February 2007, Gov. Rick Perry wanted to make the shot mandatory for all sixth-grade girls in Texas. The executive order was shot down.

Maria Elena Garcia-Upson, spokeswoman for Citizenship and Immigration Services in Dallas, said the vaccines are in no way meant to deny or deter people from the application process.

She said Citizenship and Immigration Services is simply following recommendations given by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There is funding for the vaccine through the CDC's Vaccines for Children program, but adult women may find it harder to pay for the shots.

"I think the public would agree that people who are coming into this country to adjust their status, if they have a contagious disease, we don't want that disease to be spread around," Ms. Garcia-Upson said.

Ana Correa, executive director of the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, said the cost of the vaccine will be another barrier for women seeking legal status. She said that application fees for immigrants have recently risen.

"What we have noticed is that applying for citizenship decreases as the fees go up," she said. "I don't think it's a coincidence that they're pushing for a policy that would provide a burden on immigrants."

Members of the U.S. Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices confirmed that they recommend the vaccine for women, but the recommendation was not necessarily for a particular group.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is a CDC committee. Vaccine requirements are part of the Immigration and Nationality Act last amended by Congress in 1996, according to the CDC.

"ACIP makes vaccine recommendations based on scientific information using criteria such as burden of disease, efficacy, safety and cost effectiveness," said Dr. Dale Morse, the committee's chairman. "However, ACIP does not mandate the use of vaccines."

Nearly half of all sexually active men and women acquire HPV, according to the CDC. There are about 20 million Americans infected, and about 6.2 million people become newly infected yearly.Federal immigration authorities now require immunization against human papillomavirus for female immigrants ages 11 to 26 who are... more

TravG73
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1 month ago

Mail-order-bride threatened with deportation after husband's death

For Manniecar Dagpin Senillo, marrying "a Western man" was a transaction, a tool to improve her life and that of her... more

GrandKnow2
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10 responses

2 months ago

Court bans British girl from leaving Russia for 7 years

A British girl of 11 has been told she may not be able to leave Russia for seven years after she went to visit relatives there. ... more

Moopak
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2 responses

2 months ago

TRO Denied, Obama Can Still Run (For Now)

The Obama campaign is probably breathing a sigh of relief now that the motion for temporary restraining order sought by Philip J.... more

KylieStone
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2 responses

3 months ago

"Big Brother IS watching - RFID tags could be used to track you!"

"Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags are embedded in a growing number of personal items and identity documents.... more

DeliaTheArtist
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18 responses

3 months ago

NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW! Yet Rove deems to clarify his refusal to appear...

Write or call your congressional representatives and tell them this is UNACCEPTABLE. Our Constitution was founded on the rule of... more

notonourwatch
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3 months ago

Freed Thai Slave Laborers Become U.S. Citizens

Maliwan Clinton recalls her first taste of America with a shudder. In this fabled land of the free, she was enslaved behind razor... more

aswift1
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2 responses

3 months ago

Legal, born in the U.S. residents denied citizenship!!

WESLACO, Texas -- In the archives of local institutions, Juan Aranda's life is firmly rooted in this small south Texas town.

His birth certificate says he was delivered unto Weslaco 38 years ago, and church records say he was baptized here soon after. School files list him as a student in the local district from kindergarten through high school, and voter rolls show he votes for president here.

But to the U.S. State Department, all that black and white looks a lot like gray. It recently refused to issue Mr. Aranda a passport; the government isn't sure he's an American.

"I never imagined my U.S. citizenship would be questioned," says the manager at a water company. "I've lived here since the day I was born."

The problem is that Mr. Aranda was delivered by a midwife at a private home. Parteras, Spanish for midwives, have been part of life in Hidalgo and Cameron counties along the border with Mexico from the time of the Texas Republic and before. But in the early 1990s, dozens of midwives were convicted of forging U.S. birth certificates for about 15,000 children born in Mexico as far back as the 1960s.

As a result, the U.S. government no longer trusts that anyone in this region delivered by a midwife is an American citizen. In those cases, the government demands additional proof -- a demand that has applicants scouring school warehouses and church offices to document their pasts.

That has caused a panic in south Texas, where locals need a valid passport more than ever. A new law that goes into effect next year requires Americans to use a passport, rather than just a birth certificate or driver's license, to visit Mexico and Canada. The situation threatens to isolate thousands of people in the Rio Grande Valley who regularly travel back and forth to Mexico for work or family reasons.

"Usually a state-issued birth certificate is sufficient to establish U.S. nationality," says Michael Kirby, a senior official for consular affairs at the State Department. But, given the fraud committed by some south Texas midwives, "we want to be careful that we issue passports to everybody who is eligible and not to anyone who isn't," he says, acknowledging that thousands of passport applicants could be affected.

WESLACO, Texas -- In the archives of local institutions, Juan Aranda's life is firmly rooted in this small south Texas town.... more

riffhard98
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3 months ago

Muslim Woman Seeking French Citizenship Gets Bad Press

Faiza Silmi, 32, moved to France from Morocco in 2000 after marrying her French husband Karim, who is of Moroccan descent. French law allows non-native spouses of French nationals to acquire citizenship two years after marriage and in 2004, Faiza petitioned for nationality. She didn’t give it a second thought; it seemed only natural that her request would be granted. After all, she was married to a Frenchman, spoke perfect French and had already given birth to French children. Besides, her brothers and sister, who also lived in France, had obtained French nationality with no problem.

However in 2005, the government denied her petition. In disbelief, the family appealed to the Conseil d’Etat (the Council of State – a judicial body that has final say on disputes between individuals and the public administration), which three years and many interviews later confirmed the ruling on June 27, which was then disclosed by a report in French daily Le Monde. According to the report, Silmi had “adopted a radical practice of her religion, incompatible with the essential values of the French community, and particularly with the principle of sexual equality”.

Faiza says that had she known her petition would create such uproar she would never have appealed.

“I mean, it’s just a bit of paper. We live our lives and we are very peaceful people. We didn’t want this fuss.”

But what was most upsetting to the couple were the lies printed about them in the French press.

“We don’t know where the lies originated – whether they were in the original report or whether it’s all been manipulated in the press. They made so many errors – they said I had three children. I have four. They said I was treated by a male gynecologist – as if that had any importance. I wasn’t. I was treated by a female gynecologist. Like lots of women, I prefer to consult a woman. But the last time I went into hospital to give birth I was attended to by a male doctor. I didn’t care. I’m not going to put my baby’s life at risk.”

More damaging for Silmi, however, were what she claims to be the inaccuracies compiled in the formal report by Emmanuelle Prada-Bordenave, based on interviews carried out with Faiza by the social services and submitted to the Conseil d’Etat.

“She has no idea about the secular state or the right to vote. She lives in total submission to her male relatives. She seems to find this normal and the idea of challenging it has never crossed her mind,” stated the report. It added that Faiza did not wear the burqa when she lived in Morocco, but adopted it at her husband’s request. She wore the veil out of habit, rather than conviction.

“She lives virtually as a recluse, disconnected from French society,” continued the report. “She has no concept of laïcité (the secular state) nor the right to vote. She lives in total subservience to the men in her family.”

Her husband says she was very depressed after she learned about the decision and realized the consequences it held. But today she is indignant.

Faiza Silmi, 32, moved to France from Morocco in 2000 after marrying her French husband Karim, who is of Moroccan descent. French... more

TravG73
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3 months ago

Whales in Danger from Naval Sonar testing - STILL

If you have not already - here' a good and important thing to do. Sign the petition at the National Resource Defence Council... more

notonourwatch
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3 responses

4 months ago

Proof of citizenship now mandatory to enter the US

"It looks like any Southern California traffic jam — except you can buy a cappuccino and a 4-foot statue of Jesus from... more

jade_azul16
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85 responses

4 months ago

Quiz: could you pass the US citizenship test?

Ever wonder how difficult it is to become a US citizen? Here are 10 questions among 100 currently used in US citizenship tests.... more

KylieStone
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10 responses

4 months ago

A Muslim woman too orthodox for France

When Faiza Silmi applied for French citizenship she was worried that her fluent French was not quite perfect enough or that her... more

kushan
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4 months ago

Are You Smart Enough to Be German? - Take the Citizenship Test

SPIEGEL ONLINE has compiled a quiz based on the citizenship test soon to be introduced in Germany. If you think you know what... more

unclepete
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3 responses

4 months ago

Muslim woman refused French citizenship for her 'submissive' views

France has refused to grant citizenship to a burqa-wearing Moroccan woman on the grounds that her "radical" interpretation of Islam is incompatible with its values.

The legal ruling, which has just been published, is the first time a Muslim applicant had been rejected by France due to their religious practices.

The unnamed 32-year-old woman is married to a French national. She arrived in the country in 2000, speaks good French and her three children were born in the country.

She wears a black burqa that covers all her body except her eyes, which are visible through a narrow slit, and lives in "total submission" to her husband and male relatives, according to reports by social services.

The case will reignite debate about how to reconcile freedom of religion, which is guaranteed by the French constitution, and other fundamental rights which many in France feel are being challenged by the way of life of some Muslims.

"She has adopted a radical practice of her religion, incompatible with essential values of the French community, particularly the principle of equality of the sexes," said a ruling by the Council of State seen by Le Monde newspaper.

The Council of State is a judicial body which has the final say on disputes between individuals and the public administration.

The woman's application for French nationality was rejected in 2005 on grounds of "insufficient assimilation". She appealed to the Council of State, which last month approved the rejection.

In the past, nationality was denied to Muslims who were known to have links with extremist circles or who had publicly advocated radicalism, which is not the case in this instance.

The ruling comes weeks after a heated debate over whether traditional Muslim views were creeping into French law, prompted by a court's annulment of the marriage of two Muslims because the husband said the wife was not a virgin as she had claimed to be.

In the case of the Moroccan woman, Le Monde suggested the Council of State had gone to the opposite extreme by rejecting the woman's beliefs and way of life rather than accommodating them.

Emmanuelle Prada-Bordenave, the legal expert who provided a report on the case to the Council of State, wrote that the woman's interviews with social services revealed that "she lives almost as a recluse, isolated from French society".

"She has no idea about the secular state or the right to vote. She lives in total submission to her male relatives. She seems to find this normal and the idea of challenging it has never crossed her mind," she wrote. France has refused to grant citizenship to a burqa-wearing Moroccan woman on the grounds that her "radical"... more