Events

New immigration policies have created urgent challenges for immigrants. This includes changes to the citizenship process.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is reviving neighborhood investigations of citizenship applicants, which may include interviews with neighbors, employers, coworkers, and others. This practice has not been done since 1991. USCIS has also changed the “good moral character” standard, which previously disqualified individuals who had committed serious crimes from becoming citizens. Now, an applicant must prove that they have had a positive influence in their community to meet this standard. Additionally, the current administration continues to pursue efforts to end birthright citizenship, despite the initial executive order being blocked by federal courts, and has started a denaturalization campaign.

These are a few of the changes that will be addressed during HIAS Pennsylvania’s virtual program, The State of Immigration in America: Citizenship Under Threat. This program will be held on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, at 7:00 PM EDT on Zoom. HIAS PA’s Citizenship and Family Unification Program Manager, Lori Alexander, MSW, and Executive Director, Cathryn Miller-Wilson, Esq., will discuss these policies and ways that community members can help local immigrants.

The State of Immigration in America is a series of programs with members of HIAS PA’s staff. The programs address the current challenges that immigrants are facing and what you can do to help your immigrant neighbors.