Joaquin Jay Gonzalez III - Immigration and Americas Cities: A Handbook on Evolving Services

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Jefferson, North Carolina

Also of Interest and from McFarland:Urban Transportation Innovations Worldwide: A Handbook of Best Practices Outside the United States, edited by Roger L. Kemp and Carl J. Stephani (2015); Global Models of Urban Planning: Best Practices Outside the United States, edited by Roger L. Kemp and Carl J. Stephani (2014); Town and Gown Relations: A Handbook of Best Practices, Roger L. Kemp (2013); The Municipal Budget Crunch: A Handbook for Professionals, edited by Roger L. Kemp (2012); Cities Going Green: A Handbook of Best Practices, edited by Roger L. Kemp and Carl J. Stephani (2011); Cities and Adult Businesses: A Handbook for Regulatory Planning, edited by Roger L. Kemp (2010); Documents of American Democracy: A Collection of Essential Works, edited by Roger L. Kemp (2010); Cities and Sports Stadiums: A Planning Handbook, edited by Roger L. Kemp (2009); Cities and Water: A Handbook for Planning, edited by Roger L. Kemp (2009); Cities and Growth: A Policy Handbook, edited by Roger L. Kemp (2008); Museums, Libraries and Urban Vitality: A Handbook, edited by Roger L. Kemp and Marcia Trotta (2008)

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e-ISBN: 978-1-4766-2379-5

2016 Joaquin Jay Gonzalez III and Roger L. Kemp. All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Front cover images 2016 iStock

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com

To Michelle, Coral, and Elise
Joaquin Jay Gonzalez III

To my granddaughter, Anika
Roger L. Kemp

We are grateful for the financial support of the Mayor George Christopher Professorship and the Russell T. Sharpe Professorship at Golden Gate University. We appreciate the encouragement from Dean Paul Fouts and our wonderful colleagues at the GGU Edward S. Ageno School of Business, the Department of Public Administration, and the EMPA Program. Thank you Bibbero Trust and Adrianna Boursalian.

Our heartfelt Thanks! goes to the contributors listed at the back of the book and the organizations and publishers below for granting permission to reprint the material in this volume. Most waived or reduced fees as an expression of their solidarity with America and its immigrant communities.

American Planning Association

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Center for Popular Democracy

Clark Consulting and Training

Educational Leadership

Governing

International Association of Chiefs of Police

International City/County Management Association

Internet Journal of HealthcareAdministration

ispub.com

Kaiser Health News

Los Angeles Times

Maryland Municipal League

Migration Policy Institute

Municipal Action Guild

Municipal Maryland

NACo County News

National Association of Counties Research Foundation

National Conference of State Legislatures

National League of Cities

New York Times

Planning

PM Magazine

Police Chief

Population Reference Bureau

REFORMA

San Francisco Chronicle

State Legislatures

Texas Library Journal

Todays Research on Aging

Tucson Weekly

Urban Land Institute

U.S. Conference of Mayors

USA Today

Washington Post

Generations ago, droves of immigrant populations came to the U.S. from Europe and Africa. Now they are arriving mainly from Latin America and Asia. Most are authorized, but there is a large number who are not.

While the Congress, federal, and most state governments, have done little to directly confront pressing immigration and immigrant issues, except for U.S. border areas and ports of entry, public officials and community-based organizations in cities, towns, counties, and other local jurisdictions, have been busily delivering commonsense and pragmatic services to accommodate and incorporate these new members of American society.

As professors who witnessed changes unfold during our tenure in public service, we felt that it was our responsibility to compile the lessons from the trends, practices, and experiences to help concerned citizens and public officials in municipalities who are in search of possibilities, inspiration, or concrete examples.

Part I delves into the intersections between immigration as a national issue and a local concern. Our chosen pieces discuss the social, political, economic, and demographic realities of immigration in the United States to understand the how and why cities crafted immigrant services even though immigration is under federal law.

They elaborate on the complexity of building a nation by and for immigrants, including the issues that divided citizens, communities, and Congress. Starting with an eye-opening USA Today piece which discusses the relative size and magnitude of the current wave of immigrants and how they are changing Americas diversity. This is followed by equally stirring Governing, LA Times, Tucson Weekly, NACo County News, Washington Post, and National League of Cities write-ups on the real-time trends facing citizens and cities. The section ends with a Population Reference Bureau research team report on the issues of elderly immigrants.

Faced with growing numbers and Washington gridlock, many cities have had no choice but to act on their own. Thus, the collection of practices and experiences we gathered for this main section of the book shows no national one size fits all fix for Americas cities. Mayors, local councils, citizen committees, and city departments developed homegrown programs and services. There are patterns of similarities but most are different depending on each of their contexts and capacities.

We grouped together best practices and good experiences on creating immigrant policies and services under the section headings: safe havens and open doors, language accessibility, identification card and drivers licensing, employment, business and investment, English language learners, education and literacy, library services, civic engagement and voting, policing and public safety, legal assistance, as well as seniors and health care.

These practices and experiences reflect the thoughts and actions of Republicans, Democrats, U.S. Conference of Mayors, National League of Cities, National Association of Counties, International Association of Chiefs of Police, and Maryland Municipal League members. Moreover, this section includes reporting from influential publications like the