LEWISTON — Federal policies designed to shield undocumented immigrants from deportation will have little impact in Lewiston, according to city officials.
President Barack Obama’s immigration plan, unveiled Thursday night, is aimed at immigrants who have slipped across the border illegally.
“But that’s not the kind of ‘undocumented immigrant’ situation we have in Lewiston,” said Phil Nadeau, deputy city administrator. “What we mean when we talk about ‘undocumenteds’ has nothing to do with the message of last night. Our people are filing for political asylum. They are undocumented because their documents, in many cases, have expired and they are in this community working to get recognition in the federal refugee program.”
The president’s actions would protect parents of naturalized children from deportation for up to three years at a time if they register with the federal government, pass background checks and pay fees. The policy also sets up a path to citizenship for those who came to the U.S. illegally as young children and for skilled workers and entrepreneurs hoping to get permanent legal status in the United States.
“Generally, they are identified as coming from countries that are not recognized by the refugee resettlement program,” Nadeau said. “They are not from countries where people can apply for refugee status.”
Those countries include Mexico and many Central and South American countries.
“That’s not a population we see in this community,” Nadeau said. “We just don’t have data that shows that.”
Lewiston is home to an estimated 5,000 recent immigrants and refugees, many from African countries.
“In the early years, obviously, they were coming from eastern Africa — Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti,” Nadeau said. “But that has shifted now. The more dominant populations now are from western and central Africa.”
In the 2013-14 fiscal year, Lewiston handled financial General Assistance applications for 212 refugees and people seeking asylum. So far this fiscal year, the city has handled applications from 42 individual asylum-seekers, including 30 in September and October.
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