I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]
An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.
Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.
Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.
After nearly a year of confrontational advocacy, a controversial immigration reform bill has passed the U.S. House.
The DREAM Act — the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act — passed the House by a 216-198 margin. CNN reports the vote was mostly along partisan lines.
If approved by the Senate, the legislation would create a pathway to citizenship for youth brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents. Under the proposal, a youth would have to have been brought to the U.S. before age 16, spent at least five years in country and obtained a high school diploma or a GED. If a youth meets those requirements he or she then would have six years to complete two years of college or university studies or a tour in the U.S. military. They will also have to pass a background check.
President Barack Obama, who supports the legislation, issued a statement praising the House vote:
I also congratulate the House for moving past the tired sound bites and false debates that have pushed immigration rhetoric into the extremes for far too long. The DREAM Act is not amnesty; it’s about accountability, and about tapping into a pool of talent we’ve already invested in. The DREAM Act is a piece of a larger debate that is needed to restore responsibility and accountability to our broken immigration system broadly. My administration will continue to do everything we can to move forward on immigration reform; today’s House vote is an important step in this vital effort.
Youth advocates have been engaged in a full court pressure campaign to push for passage of the legislation. The pressure was ratcheted up last spring when a group of undocumented youth staged a sit-in protest in the Arizona offices of Sen. John McCain. They were arrested and later released. But upon release they were seized by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.
One of the youth arrested in the Arizona protest was Mohammad Abdollahi. Abdollahi is a resident of Ann Arbor. He faces deportation to his native Iran, but as an openly gay man he could face abuse at the hands of authorities, up to and including execution.
Opponents of the measure claim it is amnesty and will open the door to legalizing millions of undocumented residents.
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