NYC Mayor Welcomes Biden’s Executive Order Providing Work Authorization to Longtime Undocumented Immigrants

NEW YORK, New York – New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday welcomed United States President Joe Biden’s executive order expanding work authorization for longtime undocumented immigrants. 

On Tuesday, Biden announced new actions that would support the ability of undocumented other immigrants to work and remain in the United States with their families without fear of deportation, while they pursue a pathway to legal status.  

Last month, Adams and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson led a coalition of 40 Cities for Action mayors in calling for expanded work authorization for long-term undocumented immigrants. 

The letter argued that extending work authorization would be an economic benefit to the entire nation. 

On Wednesday, Adams thanked and congratulated Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and the Biden administration as a whole for the “bold, compassionate leadership they have shown over the past few weeks.”

“New York City is a city of immigrants, and, over the past two centuries, millions have come to our city, and our country, in pursuit of the American Dream. They didn’t expect it to be handed to them — they came to work for it,” said Adams, stating that Biden has “brought that dream a step closer to reality for so many once again. 

“The executive orders the president has issued over the past few weeks will bring order to the border, relief to cities across the country, and opportunity to millions who have had to work under-the-table, far too often in dangerous jobs that don’t pay living wages because the employees were not able to work legally,” he added. 

Adams said immigrants helped by Biden’s executive order on Tuesday are “our neighbors, our community leaders and our parents. 

“They have been in the United States for years, paying taxes and enriching the fabric of our country,” he said. 

But the mayor said while President Biden’s executive orders over the past weeks will be “a tremendous help, the fact remains that extreme Republicans in Congress have refused to pass any form of comprehensive immigration reform or appropriate the funding that cities like New York need. 

“The time for Congress to put politics aside and reform our immigration system is now,” he said. “Millions of immigrants, thousands of businesses, and a nation built by those who came to our shores ready to work for a better life demand it.” 

In the coming months, Adams said he will “continue our conversation with President Biden and his administration to extend access to work authorization for the more than 200,000 migrants and asylum seekers who have come to New York City in the past two years asking us for support — more than 65,000 of whom are still in our care.” 

Many of the migrants arriving in New York and other major cities, such as Chicago, after crossing the southern border of the United States, are nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Honduras. 

Adams said legal, authorized work leads to “higher wages and reduced exploitation, enhancing workplace safety and dignity.”

By extending work authorizations to millions, he said the Biden-Harris administration is taking “a significant step towards supporting these valuable community members that contribute extensively to the US workforce and economy.”

Adams said Tuesday’s initiative is supported by more than 80 members of the US Congress; the American Business Immigration Coalition’s more than 300 employers, chief executive officers and associations; and labor organizations, such as UNITE HERE, the Teamsters and SEIU. 

On Tuesday, immigration advocates in New York and Caribbean-American Democratic Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke welcomed what they describe as Biden’s “commonsense actions” to support long-standing undocumented  immigrants.

“We commend President Biden and Vice President Harris for taking welcome action to address the needs of immigrant communities and keep families together,” Murad Awawdeh, president and chief executive officer of the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), an umbrella policy and advocacy organization that represents over 200 immigrant and refugee rights groups throughout New York, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).

“Common sense use of existing law to provide solutions is the sort of positive leadership we need to reform our immigration system,” he added. “Increasing access to work authorization and legal status is a smart investment in creating a stronger America and a robust workforce.

“It’s also the right thing to do to keep families united and equip people to support themselves and thrive with dignity,” Awawdeh continued. “A balanced approach to fixing our immigration system ensures a fair, humane and orderly system for managing the border and access to safe and lawful pathways for immigration – as well as citizenship for DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival) recipients, Dreamers and long-settled immigrant families who have long called America home.”

He said Biden’s actions are “a step in the right direction to building a future that unites us all,” calling, at the same time, on the Biden administration to “build on this historic announcement in the coming weeks.”

Building off existing authorities, Awawdeh said a process for “Parole in Place” will apply to undocumented spouses of United States citizens. who have resided in the US for at least 10 years and meet other eligibility.

He said this new process could benefit up to 500,000 immigrants, and 50,000 of their children under the age of 21.

Additionally, Awawdeh noted that the updated policy for the immigration waiver will help remove barriers to employment authorization for DACA recipients and Dreamers who hold a degree from a US university and have a job offer from a US employer related to their degree.

Natalia Aristizabal, deputy director of Make the Road New York, another immigration advocacy organization, also said Biden’s action is “a step in the right direction for the nearly half a million people living in the United States, who may benefit from today’s announcement.”

“For years, we have been calling on the president to pass immigration reform,” she told CMC. “In the absence of congressional action on a comprehensive and humane bill, we are glad to see Biden announce this today.

“This victory comes after years of pushing the administration to provide solutions for the immigrant community,” Aristizabal added. “While immigrants in the United States have been under tremendous threat from extremists, we have shown that we will not back down and will continue to hold leaders accountable for delivering for our families.”

She said the potential impact of Tuesday’s action on families will be “far-reaching.”

“For many parents who have worried about not seeing their children grow up, or spouses who have feared being taken away from their loved ones, ‘Parole in Place’ will provide welcome relief,” Aristizabal said.

At the same time, she also called on Biden to implement “more commonsense immigration measures that will make a real impact in our communities.”

“While extremists in the Republican Party continue to push xenophobic policies, it is more important than ever for President Biden to use his executive power—not to cave to anti-immigrant sentiment, like he has done in limiting asylum—but to push forward policies that will truly benefit all Americans, like humane immigration reform, expediting work permits, and expanding Temporary Protected Status and Deferred Enforced Departure,” Aristizabal said.

“We deserve more, and we won’t stop fighting for it,” she stressed.

Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, noted that, as America, over the weekend, “commemorated 12 years of being uplifted and bettered by DACA, we were each reminded of the vast contributions undocumented individuals continue to bring to our communities through their determination, talents and devotion to an often-ungrateful nation.

“Undocumented Americans have come to represent an irreplaceable element of our social and economic fabric,” said the representative for the predominantly Caribbean 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn. “Yet, far too many have remained plagued by uncertainty surrounding their status. Thankfully, through the Biden-Harris administration’s historic action today, we are on the humanitarian path forward.”

Clarke said this policy change “stands among the most significant steps to protect immigrants and their families since President Obama first announced DACA.

“For undocumented spouses of US citizens. whose future in our nation is now secured, the many children living in mixed-status households who were at risk of losing a parent to deportation, and the countless other Americans who are proud to hold an undocumented person close to their hearts, the immediate and meaningful impact of this moment cannot be overstated,” the congresswoman emphasized to CMC.

“President Biden’s announcement is an essential step in our fight to provide undocumented Americans the lives they deserve, and the stability we are each entitled to,” she added. “Moreover, it upholds the truth that our first priority is, and must always be, to keep families together.

“But make no mistake, despite today’s landmark announcement, we must not lose sight of the road ahead,” Clarke warned. “Securing a pathway to citizenship is as necessary now as ever before.

“With this administration’s dedication to supporting immigrant families of every background and within every community, I am optimistic that we will reach the progress undocumented individuals have long awaited,” she, however, continued.

In making the announcement on Tuesday, Biden said this new process will help certain noncitizen spouses and children apply for lawful permanent residence – “status that they are already eligible for – without leaving the country.”

“These actions will promote family unity and strengthen our economy, providing a significant benefit to the country and helping US citizens and their noncitizen family members stay together,” he said.

In order to be eligible, Biden said noncitizens must – as of June 17, 2024 – have resided in the United States for 10 or more years and be legally married to a US citizen, while satisfying all applicable legal requirements.

On average, he said those who are eligible for this process have resided in the US for 23 years.

The president said those who are approved after Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) case-by-case assessment of their application will be afforded a three-year period to apply for permanent residency.

“They will be allowed to remain with their families in the United States and be eligible for work authorization for up to three years,” Biden said. “This will apply to all married couples who are eligible.”

He said this action will protect about half a million spouses of US citizens, and about 50,000 noncitizen children under the age of 21 whose parent is married to a US citizen.

Biden said the new policy will allow immigrants, including DACA recipients and other Dreamers, young people who were brought to America as children, who have earned a degree at an accredited US institution of higher education, and who have received an offer of employment from a US employer in a field related to their degree, to more quickly receive work visas.

“Recognizing that it is in our national interest to ensure that individuals who are educated in the US are able to use their skills and education to benefit our country, the administration is taking action to facilitate the employment visa process for those who have graduated from college and have a high-skilled job offer, including DACA recipients and other Dreamers,” he said.

Biden noted that, 12 years ago, he, as vice president, and President Barack Obama announced the DACA program “to allow our young people to live and work in the only country they’ve called home.”

Since then, he said DACA has provided more than 800,000 Dreamers with the ability to “work lawfully, pursue an education, open businesses, and contribute their enormous talents to make our communities better and stronger.”

“On Day One of my administration, I sent a comprehensive immigration reform plan to Congress to protect Dreamers and their families,” Biden said. “While Vice President (Kamala) Harris and I will continue fighting for our Dreamers, only Congress can provide permanent and lasting stability for them and their families. Congress must still act.”

On Biden’s new policy announcement on Tuesday, Harris, the daughter of Jamaican-born economist Dr. Donald Harris, said that, “from Day One of our administration, President Joe Biden and I have worked to protect immigrants, keep families together and expand lawful pathways to citizenship.

“Working with advocates and organizers from across the nation, we have rejected hateful attacks on immigrants, preserved and fortified DACA, increased access to affordable health care, and expanded economic opportunity,” she said. “Today, we are building on that work by taking bold action to bring relief to an estimated half a million spouses of American citizens who have been here in the country for a decade or more and their children.

“They deserve our protection, and should be allowed to remain with their families and contribute to our communities, while they apply for a green card,” she said. “While today’s actions are a significant step forward, there is more work to be done to fix our broken immigration system. That includes the need for a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers.

“President Biden and I continue to call on the United States Congress to join us in acting by passing permanent protections for Dreamers,” Harris added.