South Asians and Deportations in a Post-9/11 America

Found a good article on New American Media on the detention and deportation of South Asians in relation to "terrorism" concerns. Unlike some of the stereotypes of South Asian immigrants as being rich and getting jobs in the high tech and medical fields there are many South Asians struggle just to get by while working low wage jobs (especially in California) and these deportations hit many families hard.

The fear of possible detention and eventual deportation looms large in the minds of many immigrants in America today. For South Asians in America, the experiences of detention and deportation, exacerbated in the wake of Sept. 11, continue to take a significant toll on families.

South Asians in America are still experiencing the impact of government policies implemented after Sept. 11 that led to an unprecedented number of detentions and deportations. The names and descriptions of these post-9/11 policies differed -- the Alien Absconder initiative; “voluntary” interviews of 3,000 immigrant men from certain countries; and special registration – but their impact was alarmingly similar in nature.

Detentions and deportations of South Asians, predominantly men, have resulted in broken families and displacement of homes and businesses. In the post-9/11 environment, the largest number of detainees were from Pakistan. After special registration (the policy that required nonimmigrant males 16 years and older from certain countries to register with immigration authorities) ended, 13,000 of the nearly 83,000 men who complied were set to be deported, and 35 percent of those were of Pakistani descent...(Read More)