Immigration and Disability: The "Public Charge" Rule
Friday, June 1, 2018
3:00 - 3:45pm
Immigration and Disability: The "Public Charge" Rule
Katherine Perez & Anne Dunkelberg
Disability has been used as a justification to exclude historically in U.S. immigration policy. The 1882 Act to Regulate Immigration prohibited any “lunatic, idiot, or any person unable to take care of himself or herself without becoming a public charge.” In 1907, immigration law denied entry to the “mental or physically defective…” and to anyone with “any mental abnormality whatever…” and provided power to inspectors who could justify the exclusion of “defective races.” (Baynton, 2005). This exclusion at the border was part of the national project of eugenics, an effort to create a “superior national race”. (Hirschmann & Linker, 2015).
Immigration law today explicitly maintains the “public charge” language. Though in practice it has not been strictly enforced, it has demonstrated the latent commitment in the U.S. to a historical and cultural value of an abled, white norm. Under Section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), an individual seeking admission to the United States or seeking to adjust status to that of an individual lawfully admitted for permanent residence (green card) is inadmissible if the individual, "at the time of application for admission or adjustment of status, is likely at any time to become a public charge." (“Public Charge” Department of Homeland Security). The law also explicitly prohibits individuals with “physical and mental disorders” who have “harmful behaviors” that pose a threat to oneself or others. (Immigration and Nationality Act 8 U.S.C. 1182 § 212(a)(2)(A)(iii).)
It was leaked early this year that new DHS rules will be enacted (after public comment) that will penalize documented immigrants (immigrants applying for citizenship or adjustment of status) who use non-cash benefit social welfare programs (i.e. Medicaid, SNAP) by making them a priority for deportation. (Department of Homeland Security, 8 CFR Parts 103, 212, 213, 214, [237], and 248 [CIS No. 2499-10; DHS Docket No. USCIS-2010-0012]). Immigrants with disabilities’ and their families' lives are at stake.
Panelists will explain "public charge" and address the advocacy efforts that are being put into place (namely a concerted effort to flood DHS with comments on the proposed rule in order to slow or shut the process down).
Katherine Perez & Anne Dunkelberg
Disability has been used as a justification to exclude historically in U.S. immigration policy. The 1882 Act to Regulate Immigration prohibited any “lunatic, idiot, or any person unable to take care of himself or herself without becoming a public charge.” In 1907, immigration law denied entry to the “mental or physically defective…” and to anyone with “any mental abnormality whatever…” and provided power to inspectors who could justify the exclusion of “defective races.” (Baynton, 2005). This exclusion at the border was part of the national project of eugenics, an effort to create a “superior national race”. (Hirschmann & Linker, 2015).
Immigration law today explicitly maintains the “public charge” language. Though in practice it has not been strictly enforced, it has demonstrated the latent commitment in the U.S. to a historical and cultural value of an abled, white norm. Under Section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), an individual seeking admission to the United States or seeking to adjust status to that of an individual lawfully admitted for permanent residence (green card) is inadmissible if the individual, "at the time of application for admission or adjustment of status, is likely at any time to become a public charge." (“Public Charge” Department of Homeland Security). The law also explicitly prohibits individuals with “physical and mental disorders” who have “harmful behaviors” that pose a threat to oneself or others. (Immigration and Nationality Act 8 U.S.C. 1182 § 212(a)(2)(A)(iii).)
It was leaked early this year that new DHS rules will be enacted (after public comment) that will penalize documented immigrants (immigrants applying for citizenship or adjustment of status) who use non-cash benefit social welfare programs (i.e. Medicaid, SNAP) by making them a priority for deportation. (Department of Homeland Security, 8 CFR Parts 103, 212, 213, 214, [237], and 248 [CIS No. 2499-10; DHS Docket No. USCIS-2010-0012]). Immigrants with disabilities’ and their families' lives are at stake.
Panelists will explain "public charge" and address the advocacy efforts that are being put into place (namely a concerted effort to flood DHS with comments on the proposed rule in order to slow or shut the process down).
Katherine Perez
Katherine Perez is a co-founder of the National Coalition for Latinxs with Disabilities (CNLD). In 2016, Katherine was awarded the University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Diversity (UCEDD) Fellowship. Through this nine month fellowship, she helped develop and execute the beginning of what is now CNLD. Katherine draws on her experiences in the disability and Latinx policy, academic, and legal realms as well as on her identity as a disabled Latina. As a leader in the #DisabledLatinx movement, she has worked with her colleagues to grow CNLD into a nationally recognized organization that contributes to disability and Latinx activism, policy, and research. In 2017, the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) honored Katherine with the Paul G. Hearne Leadership Award for her work in building CNLD. Katherine Perez is currently completing a Ph.D. in Disability Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) where she plans to defend her dissertation, which examines how individuals’ lives are affected by race/ethnicity, disability status, and citizenship status, and how all three interact with immigration laws and the lived experiences of non-normative subjects in the United States. Katherine engages with interdisciplinary conversations in Critical Legal Studies, Disability Studies (DS), and Critical Race Theory (CRT). She is intentional in connecting her work to practice. Katherine holds a JD from the UCLA School of Law with specializations in Law and Philosophy, Critical Race Theory, and Public Interest Law and Policy. She is a member of the California Bar. Katherine was a Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Fellow in Washington D.C. (2006-2007) and a Peace Corps volunteer in Peru (2008-2010). Katherine hails from La Mirada, California. |
Anne Dunkelberg
Anne Dunkelberg is Associate Director for the Center for Public Policy Priorities in Austin, Texas, where she focuses on policy and budget issues related to health care access, as well as general issues related to immigrants’ access to public benefits. She joined the Center in 1994, coming from the State Medicaid Director’s Office at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Anne is a founding member of the statewide Children’s Health Coverage Coalition (formerly the Texas CHIP Coalition) and the Cover Texas Now Coalition. She has been recognized by Families USA in Washington D.C. as an outstanding Consumer Health Advocate, and by the LBJ School of Public Affairs Alumni Association as a Distinguished Public Servant. She was the primary author of the first edition of Texas Medicaid in Perspective (“the Pink Book”), and currently serves on the Texas Medicaid Managed Care Statewide advisory committee and the Texas Healthcare Transformation Waiver Executive Waiver Committee. Anne is a native Texan, and received her B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin, and her M.P.A. from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at U.T. Austin. |
