Intermission is a new mural by artist Tristan Eaton at Houston and Bowery in New York City. Eaton's piece on the Bowery Wall "recalls memories of beauty, joy and escapism." Not easy, but Eaton accomplishes it with guns, dames, and a well-placed grapefruit. “This piece is meant to be a break from the daily horror of global events, a momentary pause to let your mind wander and escape the collective anxiety felt in the United States today,” Eaton explains on his Instagram. “I was compelled to paint something intentionally apolitical. A literal INTERMISSION from the noise and madness - nothing more.”
Intermission
USCIS Updates Policy Guidance for When Adjudicators Can Deny Applications and Petitions
Last Friday, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) published a policy memorandum that provides updated guidance to USCIS adjudicators regarding their “discretion to deny an application, petition, or request without first issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) when required initial evidence was not submitted or the evidence of record fails to establish eligibility,” a move that makes it easier for USCIS officers to deny applications and petitions.
Read moreCNN: “Trump: Immigration is ‘changing the culture’ of Europe”
Last week during President Trump’s trip to Europe for a NATO summit and to England—where he was met with hundreds of thousands of protestors—for talks with Prime Minister Theresa May, the president spoke out against immigration in Europe and the United States. At a news conference, Trump claimed that immigration was a "negative thing" and that it was hurting Germany and other parts of Europe, seemingly referring to refugees who have fled to Europe from Syria and other parts of the Middle East and North Africa.
Read moreSomething of Ourselves
Eureka
Artist Brian Tolle’s Eureka pays homage to Dutch history in New York City. The forty-foot-high sculpture in Federal Hall in downtown New York is reminiscent of the gabled “canal houses” of 18th century New York prevalent after forty years of Dutch rule. Instead of showing the façade of a canal house itself, the sculpture is meant to evoke the façade’s wavy reflection in a flowing waterway. As the exhibition description explains: "Its display in Federal Hall is intended to evoke a reflecting hall of mirrors that suggests this site’s architectural and political history." The sculpture is on display through September 8, 2018, and visitors can also admire and learn about the history of Federal Hall, where the Bill of Rights was enacted and George Washington was sworn in as our nation's first president.
Nithya Swaminathan: The DLG-Proust-Actors Studio Questionnaire
Nithya moved to the United States on a whim. While attending high school in Singapore, the day before she had to send her list of the colleges where she planned to apply to her counselor, she had one space left. She Googled “liberal arts colleges” and Swarthmore came up. “I didn’t do any research,” she says. “I just put it down—I hadn’t visited—and it was the first school I got into.” To be fair, after she was accepted, she did do a little more research, but she showed up on campus ready to start having never visited. But the decision paid off. “I loved it,” she says. “Swarthmore is really great, such a great experience. I mean, it was really stressful as well. But now when I look back, all I had to do was read books and write about books. Why did I complain about that?”
Read moreTime: “Children ‘Don’t Need Jail.’ Immigration Advocates Say President Trump’s Executive Order Creates Even More Problems”
Last month President Trump signed an executive order that ends the separation of children from their parents under the zero-tolerance policy, which criminally prosecutes immigrants that cross the border without documentation. While President Trump made it clear that the zero-tolerance policy will remain in effect, the executive order states that it is now the administration’s intention to keep immigrant families together throughout the criminal proceedings process. “I didn’t like the sight or the feeling of families being separated,” Trump said at the signing. “At the same time, we are keeping a very powerful border, but continue to be zero tolerance.”
Read moreUSCIS Updates Notice to Appear Policy Guidance to Support DHS Enforcement Priorities
US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) issued updated guidance that changes when individuals can be put in removal proceedings. The updated guidance aligns USCIS policy for issuing Form I-862, Notice to Appear—a document given to foreign nationals that instructs them to appear before an immigration judge on a specific date and commences removal proceedings against them—with the immigration enforcement priorities of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
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