Day 4 – Immigration Q & A

Today we look at some of the basics of immigration such as:

Who is an immigrant?
According to U.S. law, an immigrant is a foreign-born individual who has been admitted to reside permanently in the United States as a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR).

Who is a refugee?
A refugee is a person outside of the United States who seeks protection on the grounds that he or she fears persecution in his or her homeland. To obtain refugee status, a person must prove that he or she has a "wellfounded fear of persecution" on the basis of at least one of five specifically-enumerated and internationally recognized grounds.

What public benefits do immigrants and refugees receive?
Most benefits programs are open only to long-term, lawful immigrants. A small number of programs (such as school lunch programs and emergency medical services) are open to all people in need.

Longer answers to these and other questions can be found at
http://www.justiceforimmigrants.org/immigration-basics.shtml