Shining in the sun, a massive, metal globe stands beside a silver jack, from the children’s game jacks, with crossed arms attached to the center spoke. The sculpture forms a giant “XO” in front of One World Trade Center. The sculpture by Daniel Anderson, called “XO World,” is part of the XO World Project, an initiative that aims to “encourage people of all ages to lend their voice and take action to advance the causes of peace, love and inclusion worldwide.” The artist says that he was inspired by “children and their open acceptance of others. A child’s mind and heart are free of prejudice regardless of race, gender, or religion,” an attitude that Anderson hopes will spread. Standing on the site of the tragedy of 9/11, the placement of the sculpture is evocative, adding an extra layer of pathos to the statue promoting peace and understanding. The shining sculpture sends a powerful message to anyone who sees it.
DHS Designates Ukraine for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 Months
On March 3, 2022, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) announced the designation of Ukraine for temporary protected status (“TPS”) for eighteen months. This decision comes as a result of the escalating violence and the development of a humanitarian crisis in the wake of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine. Earlier in the week, bipartisan Senators urged President Biden to designate Ukraine for TPS.
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Gay Liberation Monument
Located in Christopher Park, a small park in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, stands a permanent monument to the gay rights movement in the United States. Known as the Gay Liberation Monument, the small group of statues by artist George Segal sit and stand in couples, seeming to relax and enjoy the park, “showing the public comfort and freedom to which the gay liberation movement aspired.” The monument is positioned in front of the historic Stonewall Inn, a bar and dance hall which has catered to the LGBTQ+ community since 1966, and which was the site of the famous Stonewall Riots in the summer of 1969. The riots, led by heroes like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, began when police raided the bar and arrested many of the patrons. The Stonewall Riots are widely acknowledged as a major galvanizing force in the fight for gay rights in the United States. The figures placed in the park outside are a poignant tribute to the LGBTQ+ community, and the people who fought for acceptance and visibility.
Combined Filing Fees for H-1B and H-1B1 Petitions and Related Forms will No Longer be Accepted by USCIS
Effective April 1, 2022, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) will no longer accept “single combined joint fees when Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status, Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, or Form I-824, Application for Action on an Approved Application or Petition” which are filed together with an H-1B or H-1B1 Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker.
Read moreUSCIS Reached H-1B Visa Cap for FY2022
As we start the processing for the new US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) fiscal year (“FY 2023”), US Citizen and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) has confirmed that it has received a sufficient number of petitions needed to reach the H-1B cap limit for fiscal year 2022 (“FY 2022”). This applies to both the 65,000 regular H-1B cap limit as well as the 20,000 advanced degree (masters) cap exemptions. FY2022 runs from Oct. 1, 2021 and ends Sept. 30, 2022. USCIS conducted three rounds of selections from the registrations submitted in March 2021 to reach the FY2022 annual limit and the Service has “completed sending non-selection notifications to registrants’ online accounts.”
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USCIS Urges Eligible Adjustment of Status Applicants to Interfile
After the release of the March 2022 Adjustment of Status Filing Charts from the Visa Bulletin, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) issued an alert urging eligible adjustment of status (“AOS”) applicants to consider filing a request to transfer the underlying basis of their adjustment of status application. According to USCIS, eligible applicants should request to transfer to “the first (priority workers) or second (noncitizens in professions with advanced degrees or with exceptional ability) employment-based preference categories, because there is an exceptionally high number of employment-based immigrant visas available in these categories during this fiscal year (October 2021 through September 2022).” USCIS noted that the overall number of visas available for the first and second preference employment-based categories is almost “twice as high as usual, because that limit includes all unused family-sponsored visa numbers from fiscal year 2021, which was approximately 140,000.”
Read moreNYC Parks Renaming Project: Celebrating Black Leaders
In June 2020, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent national dialogue about race and justice, NYC Parks “pledged to demonstrate how it stands in solidarity with the Black community in its fight to combat systemic racism.” Since making this pledge, the Parks agency has named twenty-eight parks spaces to honor the Black community. Many of them are named after prominent Black Americans, including civil rights leaders, artists, activists, educators, athletes, local community leaders, and more. The project aims to “encourage discourse about their contributions, and work to make the park system more diverse and reflective of the people it serves.” For this year’s Black History Month, NYC Parks put together an exhibition at the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park featuring highlights from this expansive project. Historical photos sourced from the Municipal and National Archives, the New York Public Library, the NYC Parks Photo Archive, and several other sources are on display in the gallery alongside contemporary photos. These photos are contextualized by wall plaques giving information on the park locations and the Black leaders for whom the spaces are named.
