© 2024 MICHIGAN PUBLIC
91.7 Ann Arbor/Detroit 104.1 Grand Rapids 91.3 Port Huron 89.7 Lansing 91.1 Flint
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Michigan immigration advocates say "don't panic"

Sarah Lawson, pictured right, went to cosmetology school after high school but is now getting her bachelor's degree in social work. She hopes to help students overcome issues with the immigration system.
Sarah Kerson
/
Michigan Radio
Sarah Lawson, pictured right, went to cosmetology school after high school but is now getting her bachelor's degree in social work. She hopes to help students overcome issues with the immigration system.

Stay calm, and keep getting your paperwork in order.

That's the advice from immigration advocates in Michigan today, to families who were planning to apply for deportation protections starting tomorrow. Now that a federal judge in Texas has temporarily blocked those new immigration programs, they'll have to wait to see how this plays out in court. 

"The most important thing for immigrant families to know is that they should not panic. This is a temporary setback," says advocate Theresa Tran.  

The first program was set to go online tomorrow. It's for people over 30 who were brought to the U.S. as kids. 

The second program was scheduled for later this spring, and is for people who have been in the country for at least five years, with clean records, and have children who are US citizens. 

There are an estimated 100,000 undocumented people living in Michigan.  

Kate Wells is a Peabody Award-winning journalist currently covering public health. She was a 2023 Pulitzer Prize finalist for her abortion coverage.
Related Content