In the midst of the 2024 election cycle, the subject of immigration with regards to candidate Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party have been a particular vulnerability. When reviewing her record, it is quite difficult to describe in the short sound bytes common of the election news cycle. Her stance has been largely overshadowed by her predecessor President Biden’s policies, focused on border security and restricting asylum claims. Given her involvement with these policies, her record is mixed, to say the least. Under Biden’s policies, she has tried to encourage investment from American multinational corporations into Latin America, particularly Central America, in order to curb immigration into the United States.
Setting aside her involvement in undertaking policies set out by the Biden Administration, her record is best understood in the context of her background as a prosecutor. As District Attorney in San Francisco, she supported a policy to turn migrant juveniles suspected of felonies over to immigration authorities, admitting in 2019 that the “policy could have been applied more fairly.” By the same token, in 2014, Harris raised millions of dollars to assure that unaccompanied minors going into immigration court alone had lawyers.
During her 2019 presidential run, her stance was markedly more left-leaning, with plans including a path to citizenship for DACA recipients. She was also among several Democrats to reintroduce the REUNITE Act to “expedite the reunification of separated immigrant families and promote humane alternatives for asylum-seeking immigrant families.” During this time, she criticized Title 42, which turned away migrants without offering an opportunity to ask for protection in the US, and once expressed support for decriminalizing border crossing and mentioning that ICE might need an overhaul.
This stance has since changed. In her current run for president, she has moved to the right on this issue, emphasizing border security and saying that she would make asylum more difficult to obtain. Though some immigrant rights groups are hopeful that she will consider the issue with humanity, that much remains to be seen.
¡mucho cuidado!
Cuídese de los notarios, consultores en inmigración o cualquier persona no calificada y preparada en estos temas. Siempre busque la asesoría y los servicios de un abogado de inmigración para sus procesos y trámites migratorios.