"Residency and Employment in the U.S. Are Privileges, Not Rights"
USCIS Issues New Guidelines for Screening Social Media and Moral Character of Applicants
The Donald Trump administration, which has been pursuing stricter immigration control policies, has now announced plans to screen the social networking service (SNS) accounts of long-term residency applicants.
As immigration enforcement by the Donald Trump administration intensifies, on the 19th (local time), armed officers in an apartment complex in the Petworth area of northwest Washington DC are handcuffing a Black man who is reaching his hand out of the apartment window. Photo by AP
On August 19 (local time), international media outlets including AFP reported that the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), under the Department of Homeland Security, revised the "USCIS Policy Manual" and issued new guidelines to its adjudicators. The USCIS will now review SNS posts of applicants seeking to live in the United States or obtain citizenship, in order to identify any "anti-America" ideology.
Matthew Tragesser, a spokesperson for USCIS, stated, "Those who hate America and hold anti-America ideologies should not receive the privileges of America," emphasizing, "Immigration benefits in the United States, including residency and employment, are not rights but should remain privileges." However, the USCIS did not specify what constitutes anti-America views.
Foreign media pointed out that the legal basis for this move is the Immigration and Nationality Act enacted in 1952, noting that the concept of "anti-America ideology" originally targeted communists. Additionally, on August 15, USCIS significantly expanded the "moral character" verification criteria required for citizenship. As a result, applicants will now be screened for ▲ educational background ▲ tax payment status ▲ history of habitual traffic violations, among other factors.
President Trump, at the start of his second term, intensified the crackdown on illegal immigration under the "America First" policy. In addition, regulatory policies were expanded to include international students and short-term residents. In particular, student visas have been revoked for those expressing opposition to Israel in connection with the war in the Gaza Strip, citing their public statements.
As of August 18, the number of student visas canceled by the State Department this year has exceeded 6,000, with 200 to 300 of these cancellations made on the grounds of "supporting terrorism," including support for the Palestinian armed group Hamas.
Including student visas, the total number of visas canceled this year is about 40,000. During the same period under the previous Joe Biden administration, approximately 16,000 visas were canceled, representing an increase of about 2.5 times.
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