U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday revoked a Trump-era ban on authorized immigration for members of the family of U.S. residents and residents, in addition to range visa lottery recipients.
In a press release, Biden mentioned former President Donald Trump’s order blocking inexperienced card candidates and non permanent overseas employees “doesn’t advance the pursuits of the USA.”
“On the contrary, it harms the USA, together with by stopping sure members of the family of United States residents and lawful everlasting residents from becoming a member of their households right here,” Biden’s assertion mentioned. “It additionally harms industries in the USA that make the most of expertise from all over the world. And it harms people who have been chosen to obtain the chance to use for, and people who have likewise obtained, immigrant visas by means of the Fiscal Yr 2020 Variety Visa Lottery.”
A slew of anti-immigrant and anti-refugee policies were put in place by the administration of his predecessor, Donald Trump: the travel ban on people from several Muslim-majority and African countries.
Trump’s travel ban was commonly known as the “Muslim ban” because the original version stemmed from anti-Muslim animus. The ban, which Trump authorized via executive order just days after his inauguration, evolved in response to court challenges and public outrage, but the intent to restrict immigration from nonwhite, Muslim, and low-income countries remained the same. It was the first, and unfortunately not the last, action of an administration that repeatedly categorized large swaths of non-citizens as dangerous because of their nationality, ethnicity, or religion. As a result, many were separated from their families.
Announcing the reversal of the Trump policy, USCIS said the 2020 civics test development process, content, testing procedures, and implementation schedule “may inadvertently create potential barriers to the naturalization process”.
“This action is consistent with the framework of the Executive Order on Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems, which directs a comprehensive review of the naturalization process to eliminate barriers and make the process more accessible to all eligible individuals,” it said.
The federal agency asserted that the 2008 civics test was “thoroughly developed over a multi-year period with the input of more than 150 organisations, which included English as second language experts, educators, and historians, and was piloted before its implementation”.
USCIS aspires to make the process as accessible as possible as directed by President Joe Biden’s request to review the process thoroughly, it said.
The decision to naturalise demonstrates an investment in and commitment to the US, USCIS said, adding that it is committed to administering a test that is an instrument of civic learning and fosters civic integration as part of the test preparation process.
Applicants who filed their application for naturalisation on or after December 1, 2020, and before March 1, 2021, likely have been studying for the 2020 test; therefore, USCIS will give these applicants the option to take either the 2020 civics test or the 2008 civics test, it said.
“There will be a transition period where both tests are being offered. The 2020 test will be phased out on April 19, 2021, for initial test takers. Applicants filing on or after March 1, 2021, will take the 2008 civics test,” USCIS said.
Although some say that Biden’s administration and Congress will have to do a great deal more than repeal the travel ban to create an immigration system that truly honours the dignity of the people, who seek protection and a better life in the US, and the American families and communities who long to welcome them.
It seems to be an important and necessary step to reversing the Trump administration’s abusive policies.
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