Chapter Five
The Changing Face of Immigration

The attacks of September 11 made many Americans fearful, but they also made people angry. Hearing that the terrorists were Middle Eastern immigrants who had legally obtained visas or other documentation to enter the United States only increased this outrage, for it showed how easily the nation had been duped, and how their own immigration system had been used against them. The INS was the target of much of the anger; but as Americans were told that there were most likely other terrorist cells operating within U.S. borders, immigrants themselves became targets.

"I Hated Everything About Them"

Some Americans became resentful or suspicious of those of Middle Eastern descent around them, even though they never had felt that way before. Although her anger was short-lived, one twenty-three-year-old hair dresser recalls the fury she felt at the time. "I was so outraged that people from another country, who didn't even know the people in those buildings, could do something like that—kill so many people and ruin so many lives," she says. "I hated them, I hated their religion, I hated everything about them."⁷⁵

She says that she surprised herself with the intensity of the anger she felt. "I'm not a quick-tempered person, but I

really learned what it felt like to have that kind of temper," she says. "My boss at the shop is from Egypt—she's a lovely woman, very fair, very smart. But I had trouble thinking of her in the same way for a while. It was like, I saw her and I thought of those terrorists. She's not even Muslim, but in my mind, she was Middle Eastern, and that's all I saw."⁷⁶

Many Muslims told reporters that they expected such backlash. In fact, some acknowledged that one of their first thoughts after learning of the September 11 attacks was that they hoped the hijackers were not Muslims. Their fears were well-founded, for in the days immediately after the terrorist attacks, there were a number of hate crimes against Muslim or Middle Eastern immigrants in the United States. One gas station owner in Arizona was gunned down as he worked in his garden. Although he was not Muslim, he wore a turban which evidently made him a target for an angry passerby.

There were scores of other crimes reported, too. Some people were shot at or beaten, including several Muslim women who were wearing traditional head scarves. Muslim temples were targets, too; windows were broken and hate slogans were spray painted on walls and doors.

Some Muslim immigrants attempted to explain that their religion is supposed to be a very peaceful one, and assured people that they, too, were horrified by the attacks. Other Muslim or Middle Eastern immigrants, nervous that they might be blamed, avoided the subject altogether, or even pretended that they were from an entirely different part of the world. One New York City taxi driver from Bangladesh says that he turned the license in his cab around so that passengers could not see that his first name was Mohammed. To protect himself, he says, he had a ready answer when people asked him about his nationality. "I tell them [Bangladesh] is in South America," he shrugs. "And then they sort of relax."⁷⁷

Keep the Borders Closed for a While

After the first emotional days after September 11, much of the violence against immigrants stopped. In fact, some Muslim immigrants reported that some people had apologized—either for their own rash behavior, or that of other Americans. "We had a lady who came in and didn't buy anything," says one Memphis gas station owner, a Pakistani immigrant. "She just wanted to check on us and see that we were okay. Another lady brought by a plant with a note that said she hoped that out of this we would all learn to live in peace."⁷⁸

However, another type of trouble was not as fleeting. Rather than acts of violence directed at Muslims or Middle Eastern immigrants, there were cries from citizens and lawmakers for a formal policy change that would limit the number of immigrants and refugees who could be allowed in the United States. Steve, a Minneapolis banker, says that he was astounded at the large volume of people going through border checkpoints each year. He agreed that there should be dramatic cuts in the numbers of immigrants allowed to enter the country. "I think it's that we've got too many people coming and going," he says. "I think we should just keep the borders closed for a while. It sounds mean, but why should the United States put itself at risk by being everybody's destination?"⁷⁹

But other Americans were not sure that limiting immigration was the answer. They pointed out that the United States had always been a welcoming country, a country made up primarily of immigrants. They wondered whether changing the way the United States viewed newcomers was the right thing to do. One Middle Eastern man who recently became a U.S. citizen insists that such a change would be a victory for al-Qaeda. "The greatest victory for Osama bin Laden, of course, would be if America lost faith in its openness," he says. "That is his goal."⁸⁰

"Enforcement Is the Primary Responsibility"

Although the government did not declare an intent to deter immigrants from entering the United States, it did make a bureaucratic change. The Department of Homeland Security replaced the INS in handling immigration issues. The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services became responsible for the welcoming aspects of immigration, while the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement dealt with problems such as managing those immigrants who have committed a crime, or tracking down the many thousands of immigrants who have overstayed their visas.

Though DHS officials said that the responsibility of servicing new immigrants was an important one, they admitted that fighting terrorism was their primary concern. "Yes, enforcement is the primary responsibility of this department," one spokesman says. "But this is a welcoming country that was created by immigrants. And we are going to do as much as we possibly can to make services more efficient and helpful to the immigrant community."⁸¹

However, many immigration advocates in the United States disapproved of the DHS's emphasis on enforcement. These advocates predicted that merely the act of incorporating the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services into the DHS would send the wrong message to immigrants—especially recent arrivals who must struggle with 475 pages of new immigration rules, put into effect after September 11. "I think there's going to be total confusion," says an immigration attorney in Washington, D.C. "Our members are getting a lot of calls from immigrants who feel that they are the ones being isolated, not the terrorists."⁸²

Delays

One of the new rules inspired by the terrorist attacks requires much more detailed background checks for anyone seeking to move to the United States. The goal, of course, is to

prevent suspected terrorists and criminals from entering the country. To accomplish this, U.S. officials overseas are required to run the names of every immigrant applicant against FBI databases, to fingerprint them, and to do more extensive interviews than ever before.

Although the number of people applying for immigration status did not drop after September 11, the speed at which the applications are processed has slowed considerably. Officials say that the additional requirements of "support documents"—various identification documents, such as birth and wedding certificates, for example—are slowing the processing time from a few months to well over a year. "I think there's just great pressure on immigration officials to check everything very thoroughly," says one immigration official, "and that slows down the whole process."⁸³

Refugees, too, are facing long delays. For them the waiting can be very dangerous, for many face torture or death in their own countries. Many say that because of the violence or unrest in their countries, the documents now required by immigration officials are very hard to get. There has been a dramatic decrease in the number of refugees granted asylum since September 11. In 2002, there were 80 percent fewer arrivals of refugees.

Immigration authorities say that the decrease is due only to the shortage of U.S. personnel to interview and run document checks on the applicants, but some immigration advocates suspect there is a more devious explanation. One immigration counselor says, "According to my sources, with the new merger in immigration offices and all this security, things have become very tough for immigrants. Sometimes you think [the slowdown] is intentional because they don't want immigrants in the U.S."⁸⁴

A Frayed Welcome Mat

There are also some questions about the new rules that apply to immigrants already in the United States. One law that has been very controversial was passed very soon after the terrorist attacks. Called the USA Patriot Act, it gives sweeping powers to the government to investigate and prevent terrorism. Under the Patriot Act, law enforcement agencies can detain any immigrant for as long as six months without a trial if he or she is suspected of being a terrorist. Under the act, the person does not automatically have attorney-client privileges, nor does any evidence against the person need to be explained or revealed.

In many cases, the FBI would do large sweeps of an area—almost always one that is heavily Muslim or Middle Eastern—and arrest and question hundreds or even thousands of immigrants. Many Americans have criticized the extensive new powers of the government, and expressed shock that the civil liberties of so many people were being ignored. Immigration advocates complained that the United States was quickly turning into a place where all people entering as immigrants were suspected of being terrorists.

And while some immigrants say that they understood why the government was anxious to interrogate Muslims and Middle Eastern people, they also were uncomfortable at being suspected of terrorism. "Many of us left our homes to begin with because of terrorism," says one Palestinian woman who has lived in the United States for eight years. "The last thing we want to have here is the kind of terrorism that our relatives see almost daily," she says. "That would be horrible."⁸⁵

"None of Us Knows Where That Line Is"

When the arrests and detentions first began, few immigrants complained, however. They worried that to protest being targeted might further anger intelligence or law enforcement officers. An official of the American Muslim Council agreed that complaints to the authorities were rare. While civil rights are important, few Muslims want to appear unsympathetic with the nation's need to be safe. "There's a line between our desire for security and for civil liberties," he said. "Right now none of us knows where that line is."⁸⁶

But some Americans say they know exactly where that line is. They insist that any time a certain ethnic or religious group is profiled for such treatment, the government is overstepping its bounds. "I read a newspaper article about people being 'detained,'" says Susan, a special education teacher. "I remember the word sounds so polite, as though 'detaining' was simply an unavoidable little mix-up or something. But it sounded so premeditated. I wonder if Americans in the Middle East would be willing to be detained if officials there ordered it."⁸⁷

Newsweek editor Fareed Zakaria, an immigrant from India, disagrees with the method of interrogation—not

because of its violation of civil rights, but because it alienates the immigrant community when the intelligence agencies most need their cooperation. He tells about an Arab artist who was detained by the FBI. After putting him in a cell and interrogating him for three hours, the man was insulted by agents who called him names. He slept on the concrete floor with two other detainees, not knowing how long he would be kept in the cell. The following morning, however, the FBI agents had changed their approach. They told him that they believed him, and would like him to work with the FBI, helping them translate when they did other such interviews. "Guess what?" Zakaria asks. "He declined."⁸⁸

Agreeing that they found the provisions of the new laws to be excessive, some town councils passed resolutions calling the USA Patriot Act a threat to immigrants in their communities. In Cambridge, Massachusetts, for example, the resolution stated, "We believe these civil liberties [freedom of speech, assembly, and privacy; equality before the law; due process; and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures] are now threatened by the U.S.A. Patriot Act."⁸⁹

Attorney General John Ashcroft, however, insists that the uncertain times warrant extra suspicion of Middle Eastern and Muslim people, especially young men. Ashcroft has warned U.S. citizens against even discussing the violations of civil liberty, insisting that such talk would merely cloud what he says is the most important issue—fighting terrorists.

"I Can See People Frown"

Some immigrants and their advocates say that it is hardly surprising that people are rarely open to helping law enforcement after they have received poor treatment themselves based on their ethnicity, religion, or race. Some feel that while terrorism is abhorrent, the idea of helping police officers who clearly do not respect immigrants is also unpleasant. Others feel that the United States has provided them with freedoms they never would have had in their native countries. For that reason, they say that they owe a debt of cooperation to police and intelligence agencies—whether they are treated well or not.

Mustafa, an immigrant from Ethiopia, says that he feels indebted, though he also feels that the United States needs to be more trustful of people. "I came here from a refugee camp nine years ago," he says. "A church here in the city sponsored me, and different people helped me when I got here. And before the terrorist hijackers, no one treated me like a criminal. But they do now. I look like a black American man, but the minute I start talking, I can see people frown. They never did that before. I can tell they are thinking, 'I wonder where this one, this man, is from?'"⁹⁰

Registering

While various government agencies have worked to locate other terrorists among immigrant communities, the newly formed Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been dealing with one of the INS's biggest problems—the hundreds of thousands of immigrants whose visas have run out, but who have remained in the country.

Once a student or work visa expires, immigrants are sent a letter notifying them that they must leave the country, for they are no longer here legally. However, approximately 355,000 people over the years have simply ignored these letters, or have moved without telling authorities (a violation of immigration rules) and have not received their letters. Before September 11, the INS had neither the manpower nor the motivation to track them down. Since the attacks, however, the government is very interested in those immigrants—especially those from countries that support terrorism.

Early in December 2002, the government announced a massive effort to register immigrants from such countries. By December 16, 2002, all immigrant men and boys from Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, or Libya were required to register at an immigration office. Those from an additional thirteen nations were given a later deadline, and other immigrants from other nations have been gradually added to the list. Those who did not comply faced deportation.

"The Bottom Line"

Since the program began in December 2002, over 130,000 immigrants have been registered—a process that involves fingerprinting, an extensive interview, and the entering of all the information into a computer system. Officials say that in the process of registering immigrants, they have caught 11 men suspected of having terrorist connections, as well as 9,000 illegal aliens. In addition, they say that the information they have been given has helped them in fighting terrorism.

Government authorities have been happy about the program and its results so far, and acknowledge that it took a tragedy such as September 11 to show how vulnerable the United States has been because of a lack of effective immigration enforcement. "The bottom line is to protect the safety of the American people," says one Justice Department official. "This program has already showed us how effective we can be at maintaining an adequate system of border control."⁹¹

It has been criticized by others as discriminatory because the vast majority of immigrants ordered to register are Muslims. "This is clearly tarring a whole commuity with indelible ink," says one immigration advocate, "and it will make them much less likely to come forward with intelligence information we need from them." The Council on American-Islamic Relations likened the move to "asking Muslims to don star-and-crescent [a symbol of Islam] armbands, just as the Nazis required Jews to wear Stars of David during World War II."⁹²

One twenty-three-year-old Pakistani immigrant worries that, by registering, he might be in danger of losing his student visa. "If I go to register, what if they arrest me?" he wonders. "I hear they are trying to arrest people, and I'm just scared that they will frame people. I'm scared for my life… My college career is probably ruined. If they deport me, my life is in even bigger danger."⁹³

"They're Using Us as an Example"

Those immigrants found to be absconders—those who have moved and ignored the government's letters to return to their native country—are arrested. One Sudanese immigrant who was taken into custody was surprised, for like many immigrants whose visas have expired, he believed that the government bureaucracy would not catch up with him. A judge told him in 1996 that he must return to Sudan, but he says that he ignored the order.

"I came to New York City," he admits. "I didn't give them my address." Immigration officials found him, however, and arrested him recently. "They knocked on the door," he says. "They said, 'Nobody move.' They handcuffed me, put me in a car. They said, 'You have a deport order on you.'"⁹⁴

Many of the absconders have been in the United States for many years, and have children who were born here. Safouh Hamoui, a Syrian immigrant, runs a grocery store in Seattle. He and his wife and three children were arrested at gunpoint at their suburban Seattle home in March 2003. Hamoui's twenty-year-old daughter was furious. "It seems we were caught up in a 9/11 mixup," she says, "but it's not fair. Who are they going after—a 52-year-old man who's trying to make a living for his family? They're using us as an example just because of the religion we practice."⁹⁵

North to Canada

Some immigrants may apply for asylum, allowing them to remain in the United States. Others may ask for time to seek an extension of their visas. However, many immigrants whose visas have lapsed have been frightened to register. In increasing numbers, they have been fleeing to Canada where they are seeking refugee status.

Interestingly, not all of those fleeing to Canada are in the United States illegally. Many are nervous about registering for other reasons. For instance, one young man says that his father works for a news service at the United Nations, and has been publicly critical of the U.S. position in the Middle East. He worries that even though his student visa is current, the government will deport him as a way of retaliation.

Another says that the attitude of Americans toward immigrants since September 11 has changed, and he feels unsafe taking a chance by registering. "It's too dangerous to stay," he says. "I'm too frightened by the mood in the U.S. Until 9/11, Americans had a tolerance for people who work hard. Even if [we] were technically breaking some law of immigration or legal residency, no one cared. But now, I am too afraid of arrest and deportation. America is so full of hatred and vengeance toward Muslims. So I come to Canada, a more humanitarian place."⁹⁶

But while Canada has been less stringent in the past about its requirements for new immigrants, a new agreement between the United States and Canada will change that. Early in 2003, the two nations agreed that Canada would soon begin to send immigrants back to the United States for registration. But until that process starts, they are flocking to the border by the hundreds.

"When we came [to America] the congratulations didn't stop for two months," says one Middle Eastern immigrant sadly. He understands why the United States is being careful, but feels that his dream of raising his two small children in America has been dashed. His visa is up for renewal, but he knows that because he is Muslim there is little chance, saying, "This is a very bad and very terrible finish."⁹⁷