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Consular Service Shutdowns Overturn Immigrants’ Lives

New York City consular operations for immigrants, such as passport renewals, have still not returned to their regular schedules.

This summary was featured in Documented’s Early Arrival newsletter. You can subscribe to receive it in your inbox three times per week here.

Periodic consular operations, such as passport renewals and notary services, have still not returned to their regular schedules for the immigrant community in New York City. The COVID-19 pandemic shut down consulates and embassies for months, and online appointments haven’t yet closed the gap. Juliana Vera, an Ecuadorian immigrant, said she visited her country’s consulate in Long Island City to renew an identification document needed for traveling. She preferred to fix the problem in person rather than online, but the earliest appointment that was offered was April 2022. Carlos Martínez, Consul General of Ecuador in New York told El Diario that “unfortunately” there are delays with services, but added that it should be understood “the pandemic is still happening.” City Limits 

In other local immigration news…

Immigrant Labor in New York Under the Pandemic

Documented will be hosting a panel discussion Wednesday, March 31, to talk about how the pandemic has affected low wage jobs and the City’s immigrant essential workers. Amir Khafagy, a freelance journalist who covers labor issues for Documented, will moderate the panel. Panelists are:

Nelson Mar, President of Local 318 Restaurant Workers Union, who represents workers from the infamous Jing Fong restaurant located in Manhattan’s Chinatown. 

Sarah Ahn of the Flushing Workers Center 

Rosanna Aran of the Laundry Workers Center
Register here to join our free Zoom event on Wednesday, March 31 at 4:30 PM.

The Future of Dominicans in Political Field in New York

Even though no Dominican Americans are running for New York City mayor in this year’s election, the community still has hope for the future of its role in city politics. “I think that there is a great crop of young leaders that are emerging now, and I think they want to take it to another level. And I’m really happy to see that,” said Rep. Adriano Espaillat, a Dominican-born Democrat who represents upper Manhattan. Like many other immigrant communities in the U.S., the Dominican community’s cultural and economic influence grew ahead of its anticipated its rise as an electoral entity. Gotham Gazette

The History of Anti-Asian Bigotry in the U.S. 

Amy Chin is a writer, producer and advocate for Chinese American issues. Her family’s history was included in a 2014-2015 exhibit at the New-York Historical Society called “Chinese American Exclusion/Inclusion.” Chin’s great grandfather migrated to the U.S. in the mid-1800s and worked building the transcontinental railroad; He was paid less than white workers. When the railroad was complete, he and other Chinese workers “became the enemy,” Chin said. In the 1960s, her parents tried to buy a house in Parkchester, but the neighborhood had an all-white policy. “If you look in the history books, you’ll see there are local town ordinances or policies where Chinese were not allowed housing or they were paid less than other workers,” Chin said. Pix11 

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