Canadian Immigrants Lead World In Illegal U.S. Visa Overstays, According To First-Ever DHS Estimates

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Latin Times

Canadian Immigrants Lead World In Illegal U.S. Visa Overstays, According To First-Ever DHS Estimates

By Cedar Attanasio | Feb 04 2016, 04:33PM EST

Canadians lead U.S. immigrants in unauthorized visa overstays, according to first-ever estimates from the Department of Homeland Security. Just under half of all immigrants in the country illegally are Mexican nationals, according to Pew Research. That share may decrease in the coming years, as Central American migrants to outpace Mexican in unauthorized land-based border crossings. But what about immigrants who come to the U.S. legally with a business, tourist or student visa? Most are from Canada, not Mexico, and more are from Germany than all Central American countries combined.

DHS now estimates 93,000 Canadian overstays, more than double the amount of Mexican overstays (42,000) and about the same as the combined total of South America America. Canada has a smaller population that Mexico and Latin America, so its citizens also have a higher rate of overstays in addition to just raw figures.

Those numbers irritated some, who reacted to the figures by suggesting an ethnic or nation-based hypocrisy in immigration enforcement. Canadians and Europeans make up only a fraction of the estimated 10.9 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

“ICE could fill #immigration prisons with Canadian or European migrants, but it doesn’t,” wrote immigration lawyer and blogger César Cuauhtémoc in a tweet.


Read more: http://www.latintimes.com/canadian-immigrants-lead-world-illegal-us-visa-overstays-according-first-ever-dhs-367906

[FailureToCommunicate]

1. Outrageous. Trump should demand that we round up any polite person and send 'em back North

where they belong!

[left-of-center2012]

17. Eh?

[Odin2005]

2. One one of them is running for president!

[rurallib]

3. make him build a fence and pay for it

[YOHABLO]

16. fence ..oh no!

Oh give me the land, lots of land
Under starry skies above
Don't fence me in
Let me ride through the wide open
Country that I love
Don't fence me in
Let me be by myself in the evening breeze
Listen to the murmur of the cottonwood trees
Send me off forever but I ask you please
Don't fence me in

Just turn me loose let me straddle my old saddle
Underneath the western skies
On my cayuse let me wander over yonder
Till I see the mountain rise
I want to ride to the ridge where the west commences
Gaze at the moon till I lose my senses
I can't look at the hobels and I can't stand the fences
Don't fence me in

[treestar]

4. lol

that sort of goes against common wisdom!

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

5. Well, you actually have to get a visa

to overstay it!

Most folks I know here in Texas never got a visa - they just crossed and came over.

[Recursion]

6. But overstays are the majority of illegal immigrants in a given year

If we stopped literally all illegal border crossings it would cut illegal immigration by about one third. (Now, border crossers tend to stay longer than overstayers, so of the standing population illegal crossers outnumber overstays, true.)

Part of the problem is that we're just about the only industrialized country that doesn't do passport verification on exit, so we literally have no idea at a given moment who is or isn't still in the country legally...

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

8. There are millions of undocumented immigrants

that have come to the U.S. over the last couple of decades. Looking at the numbers in the article, I don't think that overstaying one's visa is the issue.

[Recursion]

9. But, it is the issue: it's the majority of illegal immigrants

I get that that's not really the case in Texas, but nationwide it is. That's the majority of illegal immigrants in a given year.

Also, since 2008 the net illegal immigration from Mexico has been negative (more migrants are crossing south than north).

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

10. It's been negative for a while now

but I didn't realize it was that long! I thought the negative trend started around 2011.

[knightmaar]

11. Most Canadians don't end up in Texas anyway

It's far away and, truth be told, we find the place rather frightening.

[kentauros]

14. My Newfie wife of eight years didn't.

Sure, her family were frightened as all they knew were incredulous stereotypes about us (they were afraid she'd get killed by axe-murderers or shot; neither came true.)

Now, I will admit most of the Canadians I've known here didn't do well in the summers (i.e., 90% of the year.) Other than that, they've all liked Texas. Everyone's different. No two experiences in (our most-hated state of) Texas will be the same

[knightmaar]

25. I'm not saying it's an accurate perception

But, as you say, most people in Canada would be afraid of getting shot or whatever, and we *do* have to at least pretend to hate warm weather. It's how we cope.

[kentauros]

29. It seems you're selling your compatriots short.

To say that most Canadians are prejudiced and base their perceptions of various states here on stereotypes isn't a representative opinion of Canadians I've known, nor of the ones I've seen post here.

Also, to address your comment further down of "I'm sure there are very nice people in Texas."

While this seems sincere, it comes across as dismissive. Why, you may wonder? Because it's used around here by all of the members of the Haters of Texas group so they can appear to be accepting of us liberals in Texas while continuing to insult us. So far, in conversing with the ones that will reply, they base their hate on negative news reports and stereotypes. A handful have visited here, or even lived here, and their accounts of said visits have always come across to me as starting with their less-that-polite attitude. The reaction Texans then give them fuels their negative impressions of us all the more.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

19. Too bad.

Great barbecue. Great international cuisine. Great folks. Great liberal cities like Houston and Austin.

Thankfully, the folks I met in Vancouver were a lot more open and tolerant than you.

[knightmaar]

22. Tolerant?

I'm sure there are very nice people in Texas.

Generally speaking though, it's not well thought of by Canadians because of climate, guns, racism etc. Whether or not the perception is accurate, whether or not (for example) racial minorities are more likely to be refused service at a rural diner, isn't relevant to what I said, which reflected the perception most Canadians have.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

30. Stereotypes

You'll find a lot more racism in northern cities than you will here. I live in the most diverse county in the United States. We aren't nearly as segregated as northern cities.

Guns? Never saw anyone with a gun. None of my friends have ever seen anyone with a gun. I do know people who hunt and have shotguns, however, but I have never actually seen then carry them. I have seen my brothers' shotguns in their homes in another state, however, and my dad had one for shooting snakes.

Seriously, if you're afraid of gun violence, you would have a lot more to fear in New Orleans, Detroit, St. Louis or some other cities in the U.S.

The summer heat is horrible, though, so if people stay away that's just fine with me. And we're likely to get the Zika carrying mosquitoes pretty soon, so you have another reason to stay in Canada.

[knightmaar]

7. And we're very, very, very Sorry

Really.

Sorry.

We're NUMBER ONE. We're NUMBER ONE.

[daleo]

12. Give us back the Stanley Cup and we promise to go

[kentauros]

13. TV Nation covered this topic over 20 years ago:

[PatrynXX]

15. hmmm Ted Cruz!!!

oops

[tclambert]

18. It's understandable with all those Canadian refugees fleeing from the poutine.

We must stay vigilant lest some of them try to introduce poutine into this country. It would doubtless cost many lives if they succeeded.

[OrwellwasRight]

20. This has been long known.

No surprise that DHS number confirm what is so clearly obvious.

Ireland is another hotbed of "illegal immigration." But who cares if they are white? Only POC are a problem.

[brooklynite]

21. ...and they LOOK JUST LIKE US...

...I think we need another wall.

[Monk06]

23. Just doing the Comedy and News Anchor work that Americans don't want to do

On the other hand NICKELBACK !!!!

[dbackjon]

24. And Justin Bieber

[Monk06]

28. Our hippie kids are more spoiled than your hippie kids

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

26. Not what I expected.

I thought they were going to say US citizens were overstaying their welcome in Canada.

[thereismore]

27. Have ICE raided any Canadian households in the US? This is pure institutional racism. nt