Commentary

Hear from NILC experts, advocates, and community members on timely immigration issues.

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    Birthright Citizenship is Part of Black History

    Birthright Citizenship is Part of Black History

    Cassandra Charles

    Published Jan 21, 2026 Birthright citizenship is often framed as solely an immigration issue, but that framing is...

    Five Things You Should Know About the Insurrection Act

    Five Things You Should Know About the Insurrection Act

    Raha Wala

    Published Jan 21, 2026 Since January 7, protests have broken out across Minnesota in response to the current...

    Amidst ICE and CBP’s brutal violence, Congress is planning to give them even more money

    Amidst ICE and CBP’s brutal violence, Congress is planning to give them even more money

    Published Jan 21, 2026 Here’s what you need to know about the FY2026 DHS Funding Bill and what we must do to stop it.

    Congress Can Curb ICE & CBP’s Reign of Terror This Month — Here’s How

    Congress Can Curb ICE & CBP’s Reign of Terror This Month — Here’s How

    Amrit Cheng

    Published Jan 13, 2026 Congress needs to use its Article I power to limit these out-of-control agencies.

    The 2025 Reconciliation Bill Allows Private Prison Execs to Cash In on Cruelty

    The 2025 Reconciliation Bill Allows Private Prison Execs to Cash In on Cruelty

    Isobel Mohyeddin

    Published Dec 18, 2025 Following months of rhetoric around mass deportations and detention, President Trump’s win...

    Why You Should Care About the Public Charge Rule and Its Racist Goals

    Why You Should Care About the Public Charge Rule and Its Racist Goals

    Matthew Lopas

    Published Dec 18, 2025 When the Department of Homeland Security released its proposed change to the public charge regulations last month, it was one more piece of the administration's broader agenda: racism. This vision is at the core of a presidential ideology that...

    Trump’s Words Aren’t Just Insults—They’re Policy Signals

    Trump’s Words Aren’t Just Insults—They’re Policy Signals

    Sheila Miller

    Published Dec 12, 2025 On December 2, 2025, President Donald Trump held a cabinet meeting wherein he verbally attacked Rep. Ilhan Omar, calling her “garbage,” and Somalia, the nation she came from, “barely a country.” These words reflect a continued effort to...

    The Abuse in America’s Immigration System Upends the International Human Rights Mandate We Helped Create

    The Abuse in America’s Immigration System Upends the International Human Rights Mandate We Helped Create

    Published Dec 10, 2025 As we commemorate the 75th declaration of International Human Rights Day, which was established in December of 1950, it’s worth coming back to the question that’s been haunting our political landscape: what made America great? ...

    Can Undocumented Immigrants Access Health Care?

    Can Undocumented Immigrants Access Health Care?

    Ben D’Avanzo

    Published Dec 5, 2025 Setting the record straight about immigrants and public benefits.

    Tell the Government You Don’t Want to Get Rid of the Current “Public Charge” Rule

    Tell the Government You Don’t Want to Get Rid of the Current “Public Charge” Rule

    Published Nov 21, 2025 On November 19, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security published a proposed change in regulation that would alter the impact of “public charge.” This is a long-standing concept in the immigration system, but the Trump administration...

    Clarifying Access: What New Federal SNAP Restrictions and Guidance Mean for Immigrant Communities

    Clarifying Access: What New Federal SNAP Restrictions and Guidance Mean for Immigrant Communities

    Ben D’Avanzo and Sarah Krieger

    Published Nov 12, 2025 The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a lifeline that prevents millions of families from going hungry. The devastating budget bill passed last summer dramatically restricted eligibility for this program for many immigrants....

    300,000 Lawfully Present Immigrants Will Be Newly Ineligible for Health Care Help in This Open Enrollment Period

    300,000 Lawfully Present Immigrants Will Be Newly Ineligible for Health Care Help in This Open Enrollment Period

    Ben D’Avanzo

    Published Oct 23, 2025 The 2025 reconciliation law enacted this summer imposed new restrictions on access to health...

    ICE is detaining indiscriminately. And releasing almost no one.

    ICE is detaining indiscriminately. And releasing almost no one.

    Heidi Altman

    Published Oct 21, 2025 Immigrants in detention and their loved ones and legal representatives are facing desperation...

    Past is Precedent: When the U.S. Detained American Families in South Texas

    Past is Precedent: When the U.S. Detained American Families in South Texas

    Jennifer Whitlock

    Published Oct 17, 2025 From 1942 to 1948, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) operated an internment camp for...

    They Traded Care for Cages: Documenting the Harm of the 2025 Reconciliation Act

    They Traded Care for Cages: Documenting the Harm of the 2025 Reconciliation Act

    Isobel Mohyeddin

    Published Oct 15, 2025 This is the first of a blog series that will examine how the 2025 reconciliation act funding...