Cubans In, Central Americans Out: Is It Fair?
Julia Preston of the New York Times reminds us of one of the seeming inconsistencies in contemporary U.S. immigration policy. Cubans are coming to this country by the hundreds each day, approved by the U.S. government in a matter of hours. They start applying for work permits and federal benefits like food stamps and Medicaid, available by law to Cubans immediately after their arrival. There is a stark contrast in treatment of Central American families fleeing violence in their countries. “And it is creating tensions in this predominantly Mexican-American city [of Laredo, Texas, along the U.S./Mexico border], where residents saw how Central American migrants, who came in an influx in 2014, were detained by the Border Patrol and ordered to appear in immigration courts.”
The Los Angeles Times offers similar insights about the disparate immigration treatment of Cubans and Central Americans and the increase on Cuban migrants crossing the southern border of the United States.
KJ