¡HICA! is outraged by the current USCIS memo regarding new DACA applications

¡HICA! is outraged by the current USCIS memo stating that they will “reject all pending and future initial requests for DACA, reject all pending and future applications for advance parole absent exceptional circumstances, and shorten DACA renewals.” This memo is in defiance of the Supreme Court and is unconstitutional. USCIS must accept new DACA applications and extend legal protection for two full years, in accordance with SCOTUS and the U.S. District Court in Maryland.

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Development HICA
¡HICA! response to Census memo

Last week, President Trump released a memorandum, demanding that undocumented immigrants not be counted in the 2020 Census, thus, not being counted towards congressional apportionment. This action is unconstitutional. Under Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, “representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed.”

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Development HICA
Remembering Congressman John Lewis

Today, the world lost a superhero. Congressman John Lewis was my hero. When we met for the first time in Montgomery, Alabama in 2012, we were gathered at the Civil Rights Memorial for the annual Wreath Laying Ceremony. I chose to go that weekend because the year before, Alabama passed the most hateful immigration law in the country, HB56, which encouraged immigrants to “self-deport themselves.”

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Development HICA
DACA recipient praises Supreme Court decision; more permanent status needed

For the first time since my family immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico when I was five, I could enjoy some of the privileges that my American-born peers took for granted. Having that sense of security made me all the more eager to invest in my future here. And I have. As the office coordinator at HICA in Birmingham, which champions economic equality, civic engagement and social justice for the Latinx population, I help community members access the resources they need to be successful.

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Development HICA
A MESSAGE FROM ¡HICA!

The past few weeks have weighed heavily on our hearts. As we work to combat the health disparities of COVID-19, the high profile murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd have brought to the forefront of our collective consciousness the brutality that our black brothers and sisters encounter in their lives.

Las últimas semanas han pesado mucho en nuestros corazones. Mientras trabajamos para combatir las disparidades de salud del COVID-19, los asesinatos de alto perfil de Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor y George Floyd han llevado a la vanguardia de nuestra conciencia colectiva, la brutalidad que enfrentan nuestros hermanos y hermanas negros en sus vidas.

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Development HICA
ACTUALIZACIÓN: REPROGRAMACION DE CITAS CON USCIS UPDATE: RESCHEDULING USCIS APPOINTMENTS

If you have a renewal application for a work permit, USCIS will use your prints and photos on file. This means, as an example, if a DACA beneficiary applied for the renewal of their benefit and work permit and did not receive an appointment for their fingerprints before the Application Support Centers closed or if their appointment was canceled due to the closure of the public of these centers, your request will still be processed.

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Development HICA
COVID-19 and Public Charge

“USCIS encourages all those with symptoms that resemble Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (fever, cough, shortness of breath) to seek necessary medical treatment or preventive services.  Such treatment or preventive services will NOT negatively affect anyone as part of a future Public Charge analysis.”

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Development HICA
¡HICA! responds to COVID-19

Due to COVID-19 outbreak and the growing number of cases in the state of Alabama, ¡HICA!’s office will be closed for in-person assistance until April 6th.

¡HICA! staff are available by telephone and email. Call us at 205.942.5505. Use “our team” directory under the “who we are” tab for staff email contact information.

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Development HICA
Mayor Woodfin Opposes Trump Administration Fee Hike Proposal

Proposed Rule Would Price out Working Class and Low-Income Immigrants who Already Struggle with High Cost of Application Fees for Citizenship, DACA, Asylum, and Other Immigration Benefits [Birmingham, AL] – Today, Mayor Randall L. Woodfin joined over 50 mayors in sending the Trump administration a letter in opposition to a proposed regulation that would increase immigration application fees, eliminate most fee waivers, and transfer funds from application fees to immigration enforcement.

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Development HICA
ICE presence in Bessemer, AL

Early this morning, the Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama (¡HICA!) and the Alabama Coalition of Immigration Justice (ACIJ) were notified by members of the community that there was Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) activity in Bessemer, AL.

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Cayenne CreativeICE
¡HICA!, ACIJ, and NPNA Encourage Eligible Immigrants to Apply for Citizenship and Take a Stand Against Second Wall

The Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama (¡HICA!)​ ​and the Alabama Coalition of Immigrant Justice (ACIJ) call on eligible lawful permanent residents (LPRs) to apply for citizenship and demand that the Trump Administration undo the bureaucratic bottleneck that is keeping hundreds of thousands of eligible LPRs from becoming citizens and voting in the 2020 presidential elections. ¡HICA!, ACIJ, and NPNA partners’ goal is to reach one million eligible lawful permanent residents by 2020. 

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