Facts About Migrants Don’t Always Match What The Headlines Say
A new report by a commission empaneled by University College London and the
Lancet medical journal offers a thorough look at the medical and economic
impacts of immigration.
Twenty public health researchers from 13 countries worked on the project for two
years, reviewing nearly 300 studies, primarily from this decade but going back as
far as 1994.
Populist leaders, they say, have painted a picture of migration today as primarily
hordes of destitute people flooding into rich countries, carrying diseases and
sucking up resources. That’s an idea put forth by opponents of migration, most
recently with claims that the migrant caravan in Mexico is carrying leprosy,
tuberculosis and smallpox, which was declared eradicated in 1980.
The truth, the report says, is far different and there’s not evidence of a big
problem.
The commissioners list several possible factors for the survival advantage,
including the possibility that healthier people are more likely to migrate than
sicker ones, so the migrant population might be healthier in the first place.
A research study accompanying the report that migration has a mental health
impact on family members who are left behind. They are also more likely to have
anxiety and suicidal thoughts and to use drugs.
The commissioners found that migrants have fewer children than locals – barely
replacing themselves at 2.1 births per woman.
For a copy of the full report go to www.thelancet.com, “The UCL–Lancet
Commission on Migration and Health: the health of a world on the move”.
ILC in Opposition of the Public Charge Proposal
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the public charge
proposal in the Federal Register, on October 10, with the opportunity for the
public to submit comments.
For immigrants, if the government determines that the individual is likely to
become a “public charge,” it can deny the individual from entering the United
States or obtaining lawful permanent residence. Currently, the only benefits
considered under the public charge test are: – Cash assistance programs such as
Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF) and comparable state or local programs; – Government-funded long-term
institutional care.
The administration’s public charge proposal to change this policy by substantially
expanding the forms of public assistance benefits and programs would make it
more difficult for immigrants to maintain or obtain legal permanent residence in
the U.S. The current public charge policy remains unchanged until public
commenting is collected and reviewed. This will take several months until the
final rule is published.
Immigrant Legal Center, located at 4223 Center Street, Omaha, encourages all
our supporters and partners to submit a comment in opposition of this proposal.
For more information, go to www.immigrantlc.org.
Henry Doorly Zoo would receive 2.4 million
Mayor Jean Stothert wants to continue Omaha government’s longstanding
support of the Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium, to the tune of $30.6 million over a
decade.
Under a new agreement, the city would give the nonprofit that runs the zoo $2.4
million in 2021, increasing 5.5 percent a year to $3.8 million in 2030.
During a recent public hearing before the Omaha City Council, zoo officials
touted the zoo’s economic impact, which according to a study was $228 million to
the City of Omaha in 2017 when considering what visitors to the city spend on
hotels, meals and other things connected to their trips to the zoo.
For a complete copy of Emily Nohr’s article, published on December 8, by The
Omaha World-Herald, go to www.omaha.com.
Briefs
