Sam Nelson
@immlaw.bsky.social
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Author of "Immigration Law Explained"
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/
pinned post!
Latest post from Immigration Law Explained: "Shellacking a judge", a four-coat takedown of an immigration judge's attempt to find an asylum seeker "not credible."
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/shellackin...
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Shellacking a judge
Ninth circuit systematically demolishes IJ's "not credible" finding
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/shellacking-a-judge
10 days ago
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Coming tomorrow: part II of the series on credibility in asylum law.
4 days ago
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We just had our first community member assessed a $5,000 "alien apprehension fee". Anybody have experience with this? Recommendations?
7 days ago
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Inhospitable -- a report from UNITE HERE revealing how these White House immigration policies are creating a crisis in Americaās hospitality industry.
unitehere.org/inhospitable/
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Inhospitable: How U.S. Immigration Policy is Harming the Hospitality Sector
While the global tourism industry experiences unprecedented growth, the United States faces a deepening crisis characterized by military-style occupations, violent raids on immigrant communities, and ...
https://unitehere.org/inhospitable/
8 days ago
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Latest post from Immigration Law Explained: "Shellacking a judge", a four-coat takedown of an immigration judge's attempt to find an asylum seeker "not credible."
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/shellackin...
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Shellacking a judge
Ninth circuit systematically demolishes IJ's "not credible" finding
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/shellacking-a-judge
10 days ago
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Immigration appeal denied because the petitioner didn't say the magic words.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/whats-the-...
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What's the magic word?
"Prison mailbox rule" is enforced to the letter against a pro se petitioner
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/whats-the-magic-word
16 days ago
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"Mr. Aguilar wasnāt targeted because he was a business owner. He was only targeted because he owned a business." Sometimes the law is weird.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/law-is-weird
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Law is weird
Primary victim isn't eligible but secondary victim is
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/law-is-weird
23 days ago
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Seeing an absolute FLOOD of habeas wins in the district courts. Never get tired of reading this: āRespondents must immediately RELEASE Petitioner from custody immediately, and may not re-detain Petitioner without notice and an opportunity to be heard."
29 days ago
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This one opinion contains so much judicial misconduct that itās challenging to write about. Iāll do my best to break it down.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/a-judicial...
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A judicial lynching
Fifth circuit bends the law to deny asylum
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/a-judicial-lynching
about 1 month ago
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Wow, it's as cold outside as an inappropriate simile.
about 1 month ago
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Diaz arrived on August 27, 2005, heading for the Gulf Coast. Two days later, Hurricane Katrina made landfall. The levees failed. New Orleans was under water. 1,400 people died. Adjusted for inflation, the cost of the damage was almost 0.3 Musks.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/and-to-thi...
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And to think that it happened on Witchita St.
"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night"
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/and-to-think-that-it-happened-on
about 1 month ago
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In the U.S., informing on a gang would have been brave. In El Salvador, it was nothing short of heroic. Ms. Gonzalez defied the gang. She trusted the police, they betrayed her. Her family paid a terrible price.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/greater-an...
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Greater and lesser habits of a highly effective person
Confidential informants aren't members of a socially distinct PSG
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/greater-and-lesser-habits-of-a-highly
about 2 months ago
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Lots of organizations have been putting together KYR resources. Austin Kocher pulled them together into a single curated list.
austinkocher.substack.com/p/know-your-...
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Know Your Rights Resources for ICE and Border Patrol Encounters (2026 Update)
A comprehensive resource library of KYR information for immigration enforcement encounters at home, work, school, healthcare facilities, and public spaces. Updated for 2026.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/know-your-rights-resources-for-ice
about 2 months ago
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1/3: The last few years, I've worked on a lot of SIJS petitions. When I'm helping to draft the affidavit, I always ask the kid what they want to do when they grow up. It's become an unofficial, unscientific, and subjective poll. The results:
about 2 months ago
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Amazing story from an immigration attorney defending a DV survivor.
unfunnylawyer.substack.com/p/seeds-plan...
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Seeds planted in 2018
Seven years ago today, I was transformed by this job.
https://unfunnylawyer.substack.com/p/seeds-planted-in-2018
about 2 months ago
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After ten years of litigation, the Circuit Court rebuffs the BIA and grants asylum.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/the-saga-o...
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The Saga of Suazo
Tenth Circuit rebukes the BIA and grants asylum
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/the-saga-of-suazo
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Aaron Parnas
about 2 months ago
ICE is furious because the Hilton cancelled their reservation because of ICEās immigration enforcement activities.
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The first genuinely nuanced view of the Venezuela strikes that I've found:
behindtheborder.substack.com/p/listening-...
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Listening to Venezuelans After The Abduction of Maduro
Some Venezuelans are very happy that President Trump ordered the abduction of President NicolƔs Maduro.
https://behindtheborder.substack.com/p/listening-to-venezuelans-after-the
about 2 months ago
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A big win on "cancellation of removal", with commentary from Shanta Driver of the United for Equality and Affirmative Action Legal Defense Fund (UEAALDF).
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/justice-de...
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Justice delayed
For cancellation, age of qualifying children fixed at time of IJ's decision
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/justice-delayed
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Joe Gordon
about 2 months ago
A client was released and will sleep in his own bed tonight. Everything Is Terrible etc but I am grateful for the great writ of Habeas Corpus and federal judges who apply the law and smart lawyers I can rely on and learn from. May the coming year be better than 2025. Have a peaceful one, yāall.
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Snowy hike up Mt. Abe this morning.
2 months ago
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Your kid invites an undocumented friend over for a sleepover. Are you guilty of "alien harboring"? Legal guidance for churches, nonprofits, individuals, and anybody else who interacts with or provides services to an immigrant community.
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/harboring-...
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Harboring in Cahokia
Seventh circuit clarifies the definition of "harboring"
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/harboring-in-cahokia
2 months ago
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Merry Christmas. The court concludes that his continued detention offends due process. Accordingly, the court grants the petition, and orders the respondents to provide him with a constitutionally adequate bond hearing in Immigration Court as soon as possible.
scholar.google.com/scholar_case...
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https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=14605704767800652410
2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Adam Sawyer
2 months ago
DetentionReports.com
has been updated. Detention trends for a total of 233 facilities can be found on the website. Of those, the 216 facilities that ICE identified on the most recent list have data updated through December 11.
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Sam Nelson
Orin Kerr
2 months ago
Warrant needed to enter defendant's room at transitional homeless center to arrest him, NY trial court rules. It's not a traditional home, but Payton still applies, so physical fruits of search suppressed.
www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3ds...
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Coming tomorrow -- "Harboring in Cahokia", an exploration of the harboring law, with guidance for churches and nonprofits which serve undocumented communities. Subscribe for free and get a post every week.
samsramblingss.substack.com
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Immigration Law Explained | Sam Nelson | Substack
Real-world explanations of recent Circuit Court decisions on immigration law. Click to read Immigration Law Explained, by Sam Nelson, a Substack publication. Launched 6 months ago.
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/
2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Samantha Michaels
2 months ago
I've been reporting on the criminal justice system for over a decade and have lived in an authoritarian country overseas, but I've never seen anything like the police presence in ICE-occupied Memphis. Here's my dispatch:
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
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I'm a veteran criminal justice reporter. I've never seen anything like ICE-occupied Memphis.
āItās about as sad as you can possibly imagine."
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/12/memphis-safe-task-force-trump-ice-crime-immigration-mass-deportations-287g/
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Sam Nelson
Vera Institute of Justice
2 months ago
Veraās ICE Detention Trends dashboard offers additional insight into the vast immigration detention network. Without data transparency, ICEās operationsāand their harmsāwill continue behind closed doors. Explore the tool:
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ICE Detention Trends | Vera Institute of Justice
https://www.vera.org/ice-detention-trends
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Great piece from the Times on the recent crackdown on Sikh long-haul truckers in the United States (gift link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/b...
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Long-Haul Trucking Was a Refuge for Sikh Immigrants. Until Now.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/business/sikhs-truckers-trump-crackdown.html?unlocked_article_code=1.-k8.TH11.CFpcCSxsh5Wd&smid=url-share
2 months ago
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More on Sikh persecution in Punjab here:
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/hell-be-fi...
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2 months ago
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Loving these habeas petitions. Wish they weren't necessary. The Court GRANTS the Petition. Respondents shall release Petitioner immediately, and shall not re-detain Petitioner without first providing a pre-deprivation hearing before a neutral decisionmaker.
scholar.google.com/scholar_case...
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https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=15056792198388752647
2 months ago
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Solstice sunrise from the top of Beacon Mountain.
2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Asylumist
2 months ago
Fight or Flight? The first decision in nearly every removal case is whether to do the case at all.
#asylum
#immigration
www.asylumist.com/2025/12/17/f...
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Fight or Flight?
I recently met with the family of a man from El Salvador who weāll call Jorge. Jorge was detained by ICE and is facing imminent deportation. He has been in the United States for more than 10 ā¦
https://www.asylumist.com/2025/12/17/fight-or-flight/
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
SF Boswell
2 months ago
As someone on the ground, I cannot emphasize how horrific this is. 90% of the cases I witnessed yesterday were pretermissions. Parents with their children being told they needed to defend against being deported to a third country. Trans asylum-seekers threatened with deportation to Uganda.
add a skeleton here at some point
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In Nigeria, Ozurumba was kidnapped, held prisoner, and coerced into serving as a cook for a terrorist group. After escaping, he was hunted across the country until he fled to the United States. ... and had his claim denied for "providing material support"
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/where-do-t...
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Where do terrorists drink?
De minimis and duress exceptions to the terrorism bar
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/where-do-terrorists-drink
2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal
2 months ago
āLucy did not know where she was, nor did she understand the words being spoken around her⦠and yet, under the system we have built, she was the one required to answer." I witnessed the kids docket at immigration court. Itās cruel and inhumane beyond belief.
www.latimes.com/opinion/stor...
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Contributor: How does a 3-year-old hire an immigration attorney?
Lucy couldn't understand the words being spoken around her or the dangers she fled. Yet under the system we've built, she's the one required to answer to a judge.
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2025-12-18/united-states-vs-lucy
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Joe Gordon
2 months ago
Lots of immigration news feels bad. This is about one of the brightest areas in a dark moment: habeas is working well for many, if they can get access. Good series, good reporting. How a āHabeas Machineā Reunited One Family That Was Pulled Apart by ICEĀ
talkingpointsmemo.com/news/how-a-h...
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How a āHabeas Machineā Reunited One Family That Was Pulled Apart by ICE
The agents were on the hunt, but as they staked out the...
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/how-a-habeas-machine-reunited-one-family-that-was-pulled-apart-by-ice
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Sam Nelson
Chris Maggio
3 months ago
This is probably an unpopular position at various points in the political spectrum, but I donāt think someoneās right to migrate and live in this country should be determined by a calculation of their economic contribution
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Sam Biddle
2 months ago
NEW: ICE has hired the infamous for-profit prison company GEO Group to help its immigrant bounty hunter program. GEO Group now stands to make money both tracking down immigrants and imprisoning them.
theintercept.com/2025/12/19/i...
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ICE Hires Immigrant Bounty Hunters From Private Prison Company GEO Group
BI Incorporated, a subsidiary of for-profit prison company GEO Group, will help ICE pinpoint the locations of immigrants.
https://theintercept.com/2025/12/19/ice-bounty-hunters-location-surveillance-geo-group/
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Sam Nelson
Michael D. Baker
2 months ago
BIA in Matter of L-T-A-, 29 I&N Dec. 362 (BIA 2025), held that having a legal right to enter, live, work, and own property indefinitely in a third country shows āsome other type of permanent resettlementā and triggers the firm resettlement bar.
www.justice.gov/eoir/media/1...
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https://www.justice.gov/eoir/media/1421286/dl?inline
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Harboring law: "Mr. Garcia burned his hand and wrist in a hot oil spill in the Tokyo Dragon kitchen, and Ms. Yan took him to the hospital. A nurse became suspicious and alerted authorities. The government began investigating Tokyo Dragon."
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/they-play-...
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Harboring in the Dragon's den
"Tends to" vs "with the intent to"
https://samsramblingss.substack.com/p/they-play-games-with-words-sometimes
2 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick
2 months ago
Total victory on this issue; members of Congress will again have the right to conduct surprise inspections of ICE detention centers.
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Third Circuit too -- Paul Matey is big on this line of "reasoning".
samsramblingss.substack.com/p/un-persons
add a skeleton here at some point
2 months ago
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Sam Nelson
SF Boswell
3 months ago
I was in a tribunal a week ago where DHS moved to pretermit every single asylum case on "safe third country grounds." Every. single. one. At one point, a judge scheduled a second master for a man to prove he would be in danger in Honduras. Confused, he said "No, Peru. I'm from Peru."
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Sam Nelson
Sam Fisher 90 šāļøš
3 months ago
ICE Accidentally Publishes A 'Watch List' Of Immigration Lawyers, Which Is Definitely A Normal Thing For The Government To Do - Above the Law
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ICE Accidentally Publishes A 'Watch List' Of Immigration Lawyers, Which Is Definitely A Normal Thing For The Government To Do - Above the Law
ICE Accidentally Publishes A 'Watch List' Of Immigration Lawyers, Which Is Definitely A Normal Thing For The Government To DoĀ Ā Above the Law
http://dlvr.it/TPr1GW
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Congratulations to
@russcontreras.bsky.social
for being featured on the White House Recommended Reading List. He was featured for his reporting on how the administration has gutted major pillars of Americaās civil rights protections.
www.whitehouse.gov/media-bias-r...
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Russell Contreras Archives
https://www.whitehouse.gov/media-bias-reporter/russell-contreras/
3 months ago
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Congratulations to
@kendilanian-nbc.bsky.social
for being featured on the White House Recommended Reading List. He was featured for his reporting on Patel's use of FBI resources for a private security detail. Thanks to Trump for elevating this important story.
www.whitehouse.gov/media-bias-r...
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https://www.whitehouse.gov/media-bias-reporter/carol-leonnig/@kendilanian-nbc.bsky.social
3 months ago
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Congratulations to
@carolleonnig.bsky.social
for being featured on the White House Recommended Reading List. She was featured for her reporting on Patel's use of FBI resources for a private security detail. Thanks to Trump for elevating this important story.
www.whitehouse.gov/media-bias-r...
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Carol Leonnig Archives
https://www.whitehouse.gov/media-bias-reporter/carol-leonnig/
3 months ago
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reposted by
Sam Nelson
American Immigration Council
3 months ago
Are you waiting to hear back from the U.S. government about an immigration application? USCIS is putting a significant number of applications on hold and even threatening to reopen some applications it's approved in the past few years.
@daralind.bsky.social
explains what you need to know.
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No biometrics = no way to apply āIf a person is incarcerated and only has a USCIS benefit pending (and not an EOIR application), USCIS will not send officers to the detention facility to collect biometrics, even if requested by family members or an attorneyā
migrantinsider.com/p/scoop-sile...
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SCOOP: Silent Policy Shift Dooms Detainee Applications
USCIS quietly scraps jailhouse biometrics, guaranteeing āabandonmentā denials for detained immigrants who canāt leave to keep their appointments.
https://migrantinsider.com/p/scoop-silent-policy-shift-dooms-detainee
3 months ago
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Great post from Emily K. Abel re. the public charge rule from a public health context. "The proposal is cruel but not surprising."
andreasankar1.substack.com/p/another-ex...
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Another excuse for stigmatizing immigrants: Expanding the public charge rule
Emily K. Abel
https://andreasankar1.substack.com/p/another-excuse-for-stigmatizing-immigrants
3 months ago
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