Introduction

1) What are “Gateway Cities”? What are “New Destinations” for Latino immigrants in the US? What is the difference?

• Use this interactive map from the Pew Hispanic Research Center to visualize Hispanic growth in “new” and “gateway” destinations over time.
  
  

2) Is your community a “New Destination”? Has your community experienced significant demographic change in the past few decades?

• You can use the American Fact Finder tool from the US Census to find out information about demographics in your town. 
  
  

3) What sorts of tensions commonly arise in “New Destinations”?

• You can read about tensions in Prince William County, Virginia here: "Immigrants, Politics and Local Response in Suburban Washington" by A. Singer, J. Wilson and B. Derenzis. 
• Further resources about the rise of "New Destination" communities are available from the Migration Policy Institute: 

• "Immigrants in New Destination States," by A. Terrazas.
• "Twenty-First Century Gateways: Immigrants in Suburban America," by A.Singer, S. Hardwick and C. Brettell. 

4) The tensions and conflicts that arise in New Destinations have also attracted the attention of documentary film makers.

• Farmingville is a 2004 PBS documentary recounting similar tensions in a small town in Long Island, NY. You can find information about Farmingville by looking at the PBS page, and the Farmingville Movie page (www.farmingvillethemovie.com). 
  
• Brother Towns (2010) is a documentary about the transnational community that exists between Jupiter and Jacaltenango, Guatemala. The film’s accompanying website (http://brothertowns.com/) has informational links, and study guides for watching and discussing the film.
• 9500 Liberty (2009) recounts the events surrounding the local efforts to control immigration and day-labor in Prince William County. You can find information about 9500 Liberty here by visiting the film's accompanying website (www.9500liberty.com).
  

5) In some cases the legitimate complaints and issues raised in New Destinations have been exploited by extremist groups. To learn more about the rise of anti-immigrant hate groups and hate crimes read: "Extremists Highjack Immigration Debate," a report by the Immigration Policy Center

6) What is Secure Communities?

• Explore the official United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) site about secure communities http://www.ice.gov/secure_communities/  
• Lean more about Secure Communities by reading "The Secure Communities Program: Unanswered Questions," by M. Waslin. 

7) What is 287(g)?

• Explore the official USCIS site about 287(g) http://www.ice.gov/news/library/factsheets/287g.htm 
• Review "Delegation and Divergence: A Study of 287(g) State and Local Immigration Enforcement."  This report from the Migration Policy Institute that “assesses the implementation, enforcement outcomes, costs and community impacts” of this program.

8) Who are “criminal aliens”?

• You can learn more by reading this  brief report about Secure Communities from the National Immigration Forum.

9) Both the Bush and Obama administrations stated their intentions to introduce immigration reform. Both administrations have also adhered to the enforcement-first doctrine; in other words, both administrations subscribe to the belief that we cannot discuss a path to citizenship until we have "regained control of the border."

• Look at this report: "A Decade of Rising Immigration Enforcement" from the Immigration Policy Center detailing immigration enforcement efforts in the past 10 years.
  
• What enforcement strategies have these administrations deployed?
• How effective has the enforcement-first strategy been?
• Do you think we have we “regained control” of the border? Why? Why not?
• Have we moved forward in terms of immigration reform? Why? Why not?

10) In the absence of federal immigration reform, how have local and state governments addressed the issue of immigration?

• You can learn more in "Hazleton and Beyond: Why Communities Try to Restrict Immigration" by K. O'Neil. This report has about local immigration policy initiatives.

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We have done our best to provide you with good links, but just in case: if the report we reference above is available as PDF, you can find the file below:

"Immigrants, Politics and Local Response in Suburban Washington"
"Extremists Highjack the Immigration Debate"
"The Secure Communities Program: Unanswered Questions"
"Delegation and Divergence: A Study of 287(g) and Local Immigration Enforcement"
"Secure Communities" from the National Immigration Forum
"A Decade of Rising Immigration Enforcement"