“The truth is, immigrants tend to be more American than people born here.”
26.2 Miles!
As one often hears from women who just gave birth, the pain of labor is all worth it in the end when the baby is born, and the same sentiment is true of the marathon. The numerous months of grueling training, the sore muscles, the blisters, the runs done in the dark after a long day at the office, the skipping of social events to get in a long run, the heat stroke, the blackened toenails, and the time suck—my God, the time suck—all suddenly seem worth it.
Running across the Verrazano Bridge as the race begins with throngs of other runners, hearing boats in the harbor tooting their horns is very exciting. This year, however, there is a new challenge—the wind. With gusts of forty miles per hour, it feels like running in a wind tunnel. I actually have an image of a Sesame Street episode where all the characters were trying to walk against a head wind. Going over the bridge my fellow runners fling aside their garments, which take flight and smack others in the face before flying off the bridge into the water far below. I’m blown around like a rag doll for the first mile. Trying to draft off of others, I finally make it to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.
Read moreO-2s in America
There is the old adage, “It takes a village to raise a child,” and the same is true (well, the village part, not the child part) for many artists and athletes working in the US on an O-1 visa. Indeed, behind many leading photographers, directors, athletes, actors, make-up artists, and other O-1 holders here in the US, there is often an individual or team of qualified, experienced, and essential support personnel in O-2 status who have worked extensively with the O-1 beneficiary over the years and who ensure every project runs smoothly.
Who can use the O-2?
The O-2 classification is for essential support personnel of an O-1 artist or athlete. A photographer’s assistant or retoucher, members of a graphic design team, members of a film crew, actors, or other such personnel, may qualify for the O-2 visa. There is no enumerated list of qualified positions. Moreover, more than one support personnel member can apply for O-2 classification with the same O-1.
NPR: "Dozens Of Countries Take In More Immigrants Per Capita Than The U.S."
Despite America's reputation as a nation of immigrants and melting pot for the world's ethnicities, the US ranks 65th worldwide in terms of the percentage of population that is foreign born, NPR reports, citing a UN report "Trends in International Migrant Stock."
While the US is home to the most foreign-born people (45.7 million in 2013), immigrants in Australia make up more than a fourth (27.7 percent) of the population, and New Zealand and Canada come in at over 20 percent, still beating out the US, which is at 14.3 percent of its population. Sweden, Croatia, and Estonia also beat out the US in terms of the percentage of foreign-born immigrants, and Portugal, Spain, Italy, Norway, and the UK have larger net migration inflow than the US. This is not to mention Monaco (64.2 percent foreign-born), Andorra (56.9 percent), Luxembourg (43.3 percent), and Singapore (42.9 percent).
That said, a Gallup poll back in 2009 showed the US as the most desirable immigrant destination (with Canada coming in second) of the 700 million people worldwide who wished to immigrate permanently. Despite this, America "is just average" for immigrants, the Daily Beast argues. So where to go? Business Week says Switzerland and Germany (though they give an appropriate shout-out to the USA). But wait: migration hurts the homeland, this New York Times op-ed argues, which is perhaps unlikely to dissuade those seeking to immigrate because of war, political instability, or for economic reasons.
Immigration Guys
"Whenever I start feeling too arrogant about myself, I always take a trip to America. The immigration guys kick the star out of stardom."
- Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan (who is an excellent dancer and a Yale Chubb Fellow)
Happy Halloween from New Orleans
Just casually dancing in the streets of the French Quarter to celebrate Halloween. As people do.
Travel Report: VSC at Essex Junction
“So Ashley, what surprised you most about today's visit to VSC?” I ask.
We’ve just ended the annual stakeholder’s event at the new location of the Vermont Service Center (VSC) of US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS), where we get to meet officers of the VSC face-to-face and ask them, “What the heck were you thinking when you issued a request for evidence on my last case?” (Just joking.) Rather, it’s a time for those with a vested interest or who are significantly impacted by the decisions that come out of the VSC (i.e., the “stakeholders,” which includes immigration lawyers) to visit the VSC and participate in informational sessions. Jen reported about last year’s event.
“I think it would have to be the five million pieces of mail that they reported were sent out last year…”
Read moreGreat Immigrants: Oscar de la Renta
Iconic fashion designer Oscar de la Renta, known for dressing such women as Nancy Reagan, Hillary Clinton, Sarah Jessica Parker, and, most recently, George Clooney's bride Amal Alamuddin, and who was the "classic immigrant success story," died last week. Born in Santo Domingo, he got his start in Spain with Cristóbal Balenciaga but soon immigrated to the US to work for Elizabeth Arden. In two years he had his own fashion house, which grew to include fragrances and boutiques in the US and abroad, and soon he became a US citizen.
When asked why first ladies feel so comfortable with him, Mr. de la Renta joked, "'I hope it’s not my age'" and then explained that "much like himself, the First Lady is the ultimate outsider turned insider."
As one of the most famous Dominican immigrants to the US, Mr. de la Renta served as an inspiration and mentor to many Dominican designers, and he was active in many philanthropic ventures in his homeland—which is not uncommon for many immigrants in the US.
He was declared an "America icon," a title which he humbly disputed.
Biography, a site by A&E Television Networks of "true stories about people that matter," profiles Mr. de la Renta and also other notable immigrants to the US, and the Carnegie Corporation also celebrates notable immigrants from all walks of life who, as Mr. de la Renta did, have come to the US to pursue their own American dream.
To Name Oneself
“To name oneself is the first act of both the poet and the revolutionary. When we take away the right to an individual name, we symbolically take away the right to be an individual. Immigration officials did this to refugees; husbands routinely do it to wives...”
Indian New Year in Iceland
Imagine Peace Tower in Reykjavík, Iceland.
Since I am traveling and wasn't able to properly celebrate Diwali, the Indian New Year and festival of lights, I decided to visit the Imagine Peace Tower on Viðey Island in Reykjavík, Iceland.
The artistic vision of Yoko Ono and a tribute to her late husband, John Lennon, the "tower" is made up of fifteen individual beams of light and was envisioned as a way to "give light to the strong wishes of World Peace from all corners of the planet."
In that spirit, we wish you all peace and happiness for the new year.