The Forum Daily | Friday, April 25, 2025https://immigrationforum.org/

**THE FORUM DAILY**New security restrictions are making it more difficult for migrant children and their families to reunite, reports Rachel Uranga of the Los Angeles Times [link removed]. 

New restrictions on sponsorships require families to provide proof of income, show a U.S. identification and sometimes take a DNA test. As a result, unaccompanied children could spend months in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. 

"These families are put in an impossible bind," said Molly Chew, project director at Vecina, a nonprofit that assists in family reunification. "They’re being asked to submit documents they legally can’t obtain, comply with procedures that expose them to immigration enforcement and wait indefinitely while their children remain in detention. They are being systematically set up to fail." 

In northern Texas, immigration authorities are doing check-ins on migrant children who entered the country unaccompanied, report Imelda García and Aarón Torres of The Dallas Morning News [link removed].  

Normally any welfare checks for migrant children would take place under the purview of the Department of Health and Human Services, not Immigration Customs and Enforcement. The visits are worrying families and advocates who believe they could lead to arrests and deportations. 

Speaking of which, the Trump administration has restarted family detention — the practice of detaining parents and children together, reports Maanvi Singh of The Guardian [link removed]. For more on immigration detention including family detention, see our fact sheet [link removed]. 

Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s VP of strategic communications, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Soledad Gassó Parker, Broc Murphy, Clara Villatoro and Becka Wall. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected] mailto:[email protected]. 

**CONCERNS FOR AFGHANS** — Changes in U.S. policies are affecting our Afghan allies, Deborah Becker reports on WBUR’s On Point [link removed]. Allies stuck in Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as U.S. military veterans and advocates, are among those disappointed by America’s unfulfilled promises. Meanwhile, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) has joined the call [link removed] on the Trump administration to stop the deportation of Afghan Christians, reports Lauren Irwin of The Hill [link removed].  

For more on the strains on Afghan welcome: 

* In Maryland, aid workers are still trying to get Afghan allies to safety. (Robert Stewart, Capital News Service [link removed]) 

* In Iowa, our Afghan allies are among those previously protected but now receiving emails telling them to leave the U.S. immediately. (Jason Clayworth, Axios Des Moines [link removed]) 

* What many Afghan allies would face if forced to return to Afghanistan is stark. (Will Selber, The xxxxxx [link removed]) 

**RWANDA** — The United States reportedly has deported a resettled Iraqi refugee to Rwanda, raising concerns about additional migrants being sent to the African country, Marisa Kabas of The Handbasket [link removed] reports. A State Department cable indicates that Rwanda has agreed to accept 10 other deportees, Kabas reports.  

**DESPITE A JUDGE’S ORDER** — The administration has sent a Venezuelan man from Pennsylvania to Texas for possible deportation, despite a federal judge’s order halting his removal, reports Luc Cohen of Reuters [link removed]. Meanwhile, Luis Ferré-Sadurní of The New York Times [link removed] zooms in on the story of Nascimento Blair, deported to Jamaica and trying to reintegrate there after living in the United States for more than two decades. 

**HELPERS** — In Iowa, local pastors are attempting to aid refugees who were cut off by recent federal funding cuts, reports F. Amanda Tugade of the Des Moines Register [link removed]. "We cannot leave them alone," said the Rev. Faustin Alobo, who is helping refugees to navigate life in the city. Meanwhile, Charles Watts shares his experiences carrying on his father’s legacy by assisting Vietnamese refugees in his op-ed for The Oklahoman [link removed]. 

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

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