200-300 people protest outside the White House, seeking changes to green card-linked rules

A group of mostly Indians on H-1B visas held a rally outside the White House on Sunday afternoon, demanding immigration law reforms to benefit those in the country legally. The rally, organised by the Republican Hindu Coalition (RHC), involved some 200-300 people.

Among the demands of the group was that the green card backlog be cleared with a waiting period of 1-5 years. The wait time, at present, can run into decades for employment-based green cards for Indians.

‘Dreamer’ benefits

The group is also pushing for legal childhood arrivals (’LCAs’) to receive any benefits that individuals brought illegally to the U.S. as minors ( a group often referred to as ‘Dreamers’) might receive. Nearly 7,00,000 such individuals have been protected by a Barack Obama-era programme called for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

“Age 21 is a fear factor for H-1B parents whose kids are on an H4,” said Jyotsna Sharma, a tech worker and TV host and one of those leading the rally on Sunday.

H-1B visa holders, whose children and spouses get H4-dependent visas, are asking that H4 children be given green cards straight away, so that they can remain in the U.S. after they turn 21 without having to switch to another visa category or having to self-deport.

Placards at Sunday’s rally included ones that read, “DALCA [DACA for LCAs] kids deserve better”, “Stop Abusing Legal Immigrants” and “We are Not Displacing American Jobs”. One placard even said $25 billion could be raised from green card fees to build U.S. President Donald Trump’s controversial border wall. “What we are suggesting to them [lawmakers and the Trump administration] is to include DALCA in DACA. We have nothing against DACA, that’s fine, but just because you came here legally you should not be prohibited from DACA benefits,” Shalabh Kumar, founder of RHC and donor to Mr. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, said.

“Being on an H4 means, if I cannot obtain a green card by the time I turn 21, I will be kicked out of the country... In addition to being separated from my family, I will be made to feel like an outcast or a misfit, in a country that I grew up in for my whole life [sic],” Akshita, a high-school student, told the assembled crowd over a megaphone.

The third demand of those rallying was to remove the country caps for green card allotments. Currently, no country may be allocated more than 7% (around 9,800) of the total number of green cards granted each year. India, which sends a relatively large number of skilled workers to the U.S. each year — over 70% of all H-1B visas in fiscal year 2018 went to Indians — inevitably uses up all the green cards allocated to it. China, Vietnam and the Philippines are other examples, though the excess demand for immigrant visas is far less in these countries.

Green card cap

Just under 3,07,000 Indians were waiting for green cards in May 2018, according to U.S. Citizenship and Information Services (USCIS) data. These numbers do not include dependent spouses and children whose green cards, when granted, also count against the overall cap.

In 2017, H.R. 392, a Bill introduced in the 115th Congress sought to end the per-country cap. Several groups, including the American Hospital Association, National Iranian American Council and Canadian Bar Association, had raised objections to this, concerned that it would crowd out applications from other countries.

Nevertheless, similar Bills have been introduced in the 116th Congress this year. Democratic Senator Kamala Harris and Republican Senator Mike Lee introduced the Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act of 2019 which will eliminate country caps for employment-based green cards and increase the caps from 7% to 15% for family- based green cards. A similar Bill has been introduced by Zoe Lofgren, a Representative from California in the House of Representatives.

The struggle for H-1B workers and families may go on for a while yet. Hours before Sunday’s rally, news had broken that the discussions between lawmakers and the President to avert another shutdown had broken down over disagreements over border security funding.

Being on H4 means that if I don’t obtain a green card by the age of 21, I can be kicked out

Akshita

High school student