SM and the new immigration policy
President Donald J. Trump began his second term on Jan. 20th and subsequently has major plans to revamp the current federal immigration policy. Many of these changes will directly impact citizens nationwide and even Samo students, as immigrants make up 23.2 percent of the population in Santa Monica.
Following his inauguration, Trump has fully sealed off the US-Mexico border. He has also planned to carry out many mass deportations in Chicago starting next week. Minutes after Trump was sworn in, the app CBP One, which provides immigrants with the opportunity to legally plan appointments for naturalization into the U.S. was eliminated. Almost one million people have used this app to enter the US and after the inauguration, thousands of appointments were cancelled. Trump also signed an executive order on Inauguration Day suspending asylum law until what he called the “invasion at the southern border” ceases.
This is the mural at 2200 Pico Ave., depicting folklorico dancers, and the historically diverse Santa Monica population at large.
Santa Monica Public Art Archive/Contributor
Recently on Jan. 26, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made 956 arrests in Chicago, as well as numerous arrests in LA. This is a preview for how Trump’s administration plans to crackdown on immigrants.
In his previous term, Trump tried to crack down on immigration and turn migrants away by utilizing Title 42 during the pandemic. Title 42 states that there can be curbs on immigration in favor of public health. The president-elect’s advisors have spent months trying to find a disease that will justify his case for closing the border in his second term. The plan is to invoke border restrictions based on sporadic cases of illnesses or even the fear of an illness.
Immigrants account for half of all doctoral-level STEM workers in the U.S. however Trump's new policies on visas, particularly the H-1B [the most commonly given visa for skilled immigrants], could change this. Soon into his first term, he issued numerous executive orders restricting H-1B visas and in 2020 he completely suspended them. Trump’s position on H-1B visas is currently unknown and many publications have reported on a conflict in his administration between more traditional factions of the MAGA movement and influential tech figures such as Elon Musk, who support immigration for high-skilled individuals.
Trump plans to install officials such as Samo alum Stephen Miller (’03) and Thomas Homan, both of whom backed his push for crackdowns on immigration in his first term.
In an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press”, Trump said he “absolutely” plans to cease birthright citizenship. Birthright citizenship means that anyone born in the United States has automatic citizenship. Trump argues that there should be a more rigid process to become an American citizen. He said executive action may need to be used to get around the 14th Amendment which states that, “All persons born on naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
Hannah Margulis (’28) a politically active student explained her reservations towards this perspective, citing opposition towards the initiatives in question.
“I am definitely against Trump’s new immigration policies because I mean these people have made lives in America, so why should they have to leave now?”
In lieu of these new laws, CASA, an immigrant protection program, has been holding “know your rights” seminars to help migrants in the case of ICE raids or mass deportations. Samo also offers resources for immigrants such as the Welcome Immigrants Club! who Alice Jane-Lambert (’26) is the co-president of. Lambert, who immigrated from France explained why she thinks immigrants are integral to the US and the Samo community in particular.
“In LA there are so many people from everywhere,” Lambert said “Everyone’s trying to welcome everyone and it's very nice. People can find a community that speaks the same language as them and, at least in LA, it’s a place where immigrants can go and feel welcomed.”
With almost a quarter of Santa Monica’s population being immigrants, the federal policies of the new administration regarding immigration will be a continuously relevant topic in the community in the years to come.