Browse Research and Commentary

[The Boston bombings] complicate an already complicated upcoming debate. Some people will use it as an issue to try to derail [immigration reform]. The bottom line is that there are a lot of people that want to do harm to this country. Some of them come from abroad, some of them live here and some of them have lived here for a while. It may or may not impede immigration reform, but at this point I think it’s important to be very careful not to conflate the issues.

April 22, 2013, Audrey Singer, The Fiscal Times

Immigration Reform’s Bold First Step

April 17, 2013, Audrey Singer

The question is, can we come up with a mechanism [for immigration] that allows us to have a more adjustable system over time and have more flexibility?

April 13, 2013, Audrey Singer, Los Angeles Times

Migration and the Metropolis

April 2013, Audrey Singer

Metropolitan Washington: A New Immigrant Gateway

April 2, 2013, Audrey Singer

It seems like the stars are aligning and that this is best chance that we've seen in years [for immigration reform]. In particular, the signaling comes from people and places where there has been resistance before: Top Republican leaders are talking about legalization for people who are in the United States without status for the first time. Many businesses, labor, religious, and political leaders are voicing their concerns about not fixing our immigration and the harm that would do. I see this as a very ripe time.

February 23, 2013, Audrey Singer, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty

Toward a Fair, Flexible and Forward-Looking Immigration Policy

February 22, 2013, Audrey Singer

What we haven’t really achieved in our system after decades of thinking about [immigration policy] is how to adjust the admissions policy to better suit our economic needs in something closer to real time. That is going to be part of the discussion in the next couple of months. Do we make changes based on some market demand, and how do we measure that? Do we set out knowing what we want and then adjust our policies?

February 19, 2013, Audrey Singer, Bloomberg

It’s always been a really contentious issue—what to do about people who are here without legal status. There are a lot of people who have really well-formulated opinions about the border and illegal immigration, and it’s really hard to change their points of view, and so [legalization] is seen as contributing to the problem rather than contributing to a solution.

February 4, 2013, Audrey Singer, The Town Talk

Metros on the Front Lines of Immigration Reform

January 30, 2013, Jill H. Wilson, Audrey Singer, Nicole Prchal Svajlenka and Neil Ruiz

[The Obama Administration's new visa policy is] a potentially significant feature of immigration law going forward because it removes this Catch-22 that people were subject to before.

January 3, 2013, Audrey Singer, Washington Post

What's good about the Dayton program [which works to help integrate immigrants] is the way that leaders in those communities talk about immigrants and talk about them as a positive force and contributing.

December 22, 2012, Audrey Singer, National Public Radio

Metropolitan Washington: A New Immigrant Gateway

December 5, 2012, Audrey Singer

A New Starting Point for Immigration Reform

November 16, 2012, Audrey Singer

[Obama's DREAM Act alternative] was a huge deal. Of course, it’s significant because it’s an election year. But it’s also significant in people’s lives. These individuals can move forward with the hope that this "deferred action" programme turns into something more permanent, like the DREAM Act.

November 5, 2012, Audrey Singer, France 24

Opinion: Why the U.S. Needs to Invest in Building and Unlocking Immigrant Skills

September 20, 2012, Audrey Singer

Building and Unlocking Immigrant Skills

September 20, 2012

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Investing in the Human Capital of Immigrants, Strengthening Regional Economies

September 20, 2012, Audrey Singer

In a regional or local context, [the EB-5 program] can be very meaningful.  A lot of people are looking at this now with new eyes, even though it’s been around for years.

September 11, 2012, Audrey Singer, Bloomberg

[Cities] that are the most forward-looking, that have the most pragmatic view on immigrants, are the ones that are reaching out and creating environments that immigrants can not only survive in but thrive in. I think that is definitely the future of this country.

September 1, 2012, Audrey Singer, Governing

Immigrant Workers in the U.S. Labor Force

August 7, 2012, Audrey Singer

The Immigrant Workforce and the Future of U.S. Immigration Policy

July 31, 2012

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Immigration Reform and the Supreme Court

June 27, 2012

Legal Status for Undocumented Young Immigrants Makes Sense

June 20, 2012, Audrey Singer

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More Than Just "Administrative Relief" for the Immigration Dreamers

June 18, 2012, Audrey Singer