Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law 53 (2021)
Ghosts in America: Working Towards Building a Legal Framework for
Stateless Individuals in the United States
bill when it was first introduced to Congress in 2013. 360 However, the
political attitude towards immigrants and immigration has changed
dramatically for the worse since 2013. 361 The current administration is
unabashedly hostile towards immigrants. 362 They have sharply cut legal
immigration, tried to build a “wall” across the entire U.S.-Mexico
border, increased arrests and removals of unauthorized immigrants,
banned nationals from eight countries from entering the U.S., tried to
cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program,
and reduced refugee admissions to the lowest number since the statute
guiding refugee resettlement was enacted in 1980. 363 Additionally,
political anti-immigrant and anti-immigration rhetoric has strongly
impacted how many Americans view immigrants. 364 Nearly a quarter of
Americans call immigration a “problem.” 365 That is “more than double
the percentage who characterized it that way in 2015, and the highest
share since Gallup began asking that question a quarter-century ago.”366
The sharp decline in immigration’s popularity makes it unlikely that
we will see comprehensive legislation that expands the United States’
legal immigration framework.
D)
A Needs-Focused Solution
Stateless individuals have immediate needs, which legislative
solutions will not work quickly enough to meet. Therefore, the most
desirable policy recommendation is one that is cognizant of the
immediate needs of stateless individuals that is practical and capable
360. Philip E. Wolgin, 2 Years Later, Immigrants Are Still Waiting on
Immigration Reform, CTR. FOR AM. PROGRESS (June 24, 2015, 9:05
AM),
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2015/06/2
4/115835/2-years-later-immigrants-are-still-waiting-on-immigrationreform/ [https://perma.cc/CM8Y-JYNT].
361. See generally SARAH PIERCE & ANDREW SELEE, MIGRATION INST.,
IMMIGRATION UNDER TRUMP: A REVIEW OF POLICY IN THE YEAR
SINCE THE ELECTION 1 (2017).
362. Id.
363. Id.
364. Tyler Anbinder, Trump has Spread More Hatred of Immigrants than any
American in History, THE WASH. POST (Nov. 7, 2019 10:03 AM),
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/trump-has-spread-morehatred-of-immigrants-than-any-american-inhistory/2019/11/07/7e253236-ff54-11e9-8bab-0fc209e065a8_story.html
[https://perma.cc/Z2EK-B2BL].
365. Id.
366. Id.
396