New York Times: "After Outcry, Britain Bars ‘Pickup Artist’ From Entering"

Julien Blanc, a "pickup artist" who leads dating boot camps around the world and whose advice he claims will "make girls beg to sleep with you," has been denied entry to the United Kingdom, The New York Times reports, becoming "possibly the first man ever denied a visa on grounds of sexism."

Home Secretary Theresa May made the decision to bar Mr. Blanc following international criticism over his dating seminars and a petition, signed by more than 150,000, that stated: “To allow this man into the UK legitimises sexual assault and predation, and sends a message that women are playthings or objects without agency.”

A Home Office spokesman said that the "'home secretary has the power to exclude an individual if she considers that his or her presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good or if their exclusion is justified on public policy grounds[.]'"

Mr. Blanc's methods and advice have been described as sexist and abusive, and earlier this year he was forced to leave Australia after protests and a social media campaign (#TakeDownJulienBlanc) raised awareness about his aggressive, offensive, and misogynistic tactics.

Other figures who have been denied entry to the UK include controversial anti-semitic French comedian Dieudonné M'bala M'bala, anti-Islam American bloggers Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer, and far-right Dutch MP Geert Wilders. 

As for the US, prominent figures denied visas or entry to the US include Boy George, after being charged with false imprisonment in the UK, singer Cat Stevens, whose plane was diverted to Maine and he was denied entry on "'national security grounds,'" and, until recently, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose visa had been denied after allegations that he stood by or even encouraged religious riots in which over 1000 people, mostly Muslim, were killed. Mr. Modi denied and was eventually cleared of these charges, and now he's up for TIME's Person of the Year, which is unlikely to happen for Mr. Blanc.

Immigrant vs. Exile

"I don’t think of myself as a dissident, and I’m more of an immigrant than an exile. An exile has a significant past: he often lives in the past, and has to define himself within the context of political power. But an immigrant gets to start from scratch. The past is not essential. He formulates his own frame of reference."

- Ha Jin, Writer

Ashley and Immigration Reform

As we celebrated Ashley's birthday last night (happy birthday, Ashley!), we awaited news on President Obama's executive action on immigration reform.

President Obama’s Executive Action on Immigration Reform

Last night President Obama made a long-awaited major announcement to the nation regarding the administration of the immigration system. Though short, the announcement will have an enormous impact on millions of people living in the United States without legal status. US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) today published a summary of the impending changes which provides a few more details but highlights the fact that there is much to be done to put these changes into effect. 

While all the details are yet to be released, the key piece of the announcement is a deferral of deportation for the millions of law-abiding undocumented immigrants who can prove that they were present in the US for at least five years, have US citizen or legal resident children, pass a background security check, and are willing to pay their “fair share” of taxes.

The President also announced some changes to the business immigration system designed to improve the chances for entrepreneurs and other business creators to remain in and enter the country in the future.

Before the announcement, the White House held a briefing with more details about each element of this plan. They include the expansion of the DACA program by eliminating the age limit (currently thirty-one years) for applicants who were brought to the US as children as well as expanding the period of validity of the deferred action to three years (currently two).

The plan also includes important tweaks to the enforcement priorities of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE, the enforcement wing of immigration), clarifying that priority must be placed on the apprehension and removal of non-citizens who present a risk to national security and public safety.  In addition, individuals who are the beneficiaries of approved immigrant petitions filed by their employers, but whose cases are held up in the severe immigrant visa backlogs, will be able to apply for adjustment of status. While this will not necessarily result in their Green Card being issued any faster, it may give them more flexibility in their career advancement.

While the details of each component of the President’s plan have not yet been fully released or digested by immigration lawyers and advocates (we are in the process of reviewing all the finer points of the President’s plan), it is clear that the announcement will have a significant effect on millions of people—authorized and undocumented immigrants alike. It is also clear that there will be a considerable pushback from Congress in January, when the Republicans take control of both chambers.

We will be tracking the President’s plan and its implementation, and will continue to post updates as they are available.

National Visa Center No Longer Collecting Original Civil Documents

Effective November 12, the National Visa Center (NVC) has discontinued collecting original civil documents in support of immigrant visa (IV) applications in an effort to "maintain the integrity of the IV process, reduce customer wait times, and improve the customer experience overall."

The National Visa Center is the US State Department agency tasked with processing immigrant visa applications (i.e., applications for Green Cards) after they have been initially approved by US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS). Once the National Visa Center processes the application, they send the paperwork to the appropriate US Embassy or Consulate abroad where the final immigrant visa interview will take place.

Applicants will now be required to submit either electronically or via mail photocopies of supporting documents, including birth, marriage, and police certificates, and subsequently bring the original documents to their consular interview; however, this new procedures does not apply to the Affidavit of Support forms, which still must be submitted to NVC in original.

State Department: US and China To Extend Visas for Short-term Business Travelers, Tourists, and Students

The United States and the People’s Republic of China reciprocally increased the validity of short-term business, tourist, and student visas effective November 12, a move which coincided with President Obama's trip to China.

Secretary John Kerry, in remarks at the US Embassy in Beijing, said that with this change the US and China are "making an important investment in our relationship" which will "pay huge dividends for American and Chinese citizens, and it will strengthen both of our economies."

Chinese applicants may now be issued multiple-entry B visas for up to ten years—the longest visa validity possible under US law—for business and tourist travel, and Chinese students and exchange visitors who qualify are now eligible for F, M, or J-category multiple-entry visas valid for up to five years or the length of the school program.

In turn, US citizens are now eligible for multiple-entry, short-term business and tourist visas valid for up to ten years, while US students may receive student residency permits valid up to five years, depending on the length of the educational program.

The State Department says that in addition to the convenience and decreased cost for travelers, these visa changes will foster more international travel and exchange, enhance mutual understanding between China and the US, and increase the ease of trade and investment.

Since more nonimmigrant visas are processed in China than in any other country (with more than 1.95 million applications for Chinese nationals in fiscal year 2014) and student and exchange visitor visas issued to Chinese applicants represent thirty percent of all such visas issued globally, these changes will very likely have a significant impact for many Chinese nationals, not to mention frequent US travelers to China.

Business and tourist visa eligibility requirements as well as student visa requirements remain unchanged. For those curious, the State Department publishes visa reciprocity rules and tables for China and other countries.

With these visa changes, many anticipate more Chinese tourists to the US—at least in California, where Chinese nationals spent $2 billion last year—and possible long delays in visa processing at US Embassies or Consulates in China or other consular posts issuing visas to Chinese nationals.

Amnesty International on US-Mexico Border

"Many thousands of Mexicans (in particular) leave their homeland due to economic and social pressures and go in search of a better livelihood north of the border. Amnesty International does not take issue with the sovereign right of the United States to police its international borders in order to determine whether individuals have the legal right to enter the country. But it must do so in a manner which complies with its international human rights obligations."

- United States of America: Human Rights Concerns in the Border Region with Mexico

Springtime in Buenos Aires

Jacaranda trees on the Plaza Intendente Seeber on the corner of Avenida Sarmiento and Avenida del Libertador in Palermo, Buenos Aires. As it turns out, the Plaza is in front of the US Embassy...I guess I was just magnetically drawn to the area.

USCIS to Honor Veterans During Naturalization Ceremonies

In honor of Veterans Day, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) is celebrating service members, military spouses, and veterans becoming US citizens by taking the Oath of Allegiance at naturalization ceremonies across the country from November 7th through the 14th. More than 3,000 will become new citizens at nearly forty naturalization ceremonies. USCIS reports that since September 2002 more than 102,000 service members, including those serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, South Korea, and Germany, have naturalized.

USCIS Director León Rodríguez, who yesterday administered the Oath of Allegiance and presented candidates for naturalization at a ceremony at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Virginia, stated: “'On Veterans Day, we honor the men and women who have pledged to defend our nation, as we cherish the freedoms we enjoy because of the sacrifices of our service members, and their families...Today, we honor those who pledged to defend our nation before they were even citizens of our nation.'”

The USCIS fact sheet explains that special provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) authorize USCIS to expedite the naturalization process for current members of the US armed forces and recently discharged members as well as spouses. 

Immigrants generally must be US citizens or Green Card holders to enlist in the military, but last year Representative Jeff Denham proposed under the ENLIST Act to amend the US military code to allow young undocumented immigrants who arrived in this country by age fifteen to serve in the armed forces in exchange for legal status and a path to citizenship. When he tried earlier this year to introduce †his measure as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, it was struck down.

Most recently, after announcing the military would allow young immigrants in the US under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) to join through the specialized program called Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MANVI), the Pentagon has put this program on hold.

It's unclear if President Obama's long-promised executive action on immigration reform will include a path to citizenship through the military for the undocumented.

USCIS has invited users to share photos of new citizens on Twitter under the hashtag #newUScitizen (which along with today's new citizens includes a photo of actor Jonny Lee Miller becoming a citizen as well as an one-hundred-year-old woman who become a citizen earlier this year).