Low-income and Undocumented Immigrants Struggle Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

KQED's Forum

KQED

News Commentary, News, Politics

4.2 • 727 Ratings

🗓️ 6 July 2020

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In a state where more than a quarter of residents are foreign-born, many low-income and undocumented immigrants have dealt with heavy burdens during the coronavirus pandemic. The biggest challenges involve high infection rates, loss of income, and feeling forced to continue working in high-risk environments. Many programs designed to give financial assistance to undocumented workers are running dry as the pandemic persists. Meanwhile, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the federal agency that processes immigration applications, plans to furlough more than two-thirds of its staff in coming months due to budget cuts. That move could significantly delay citizenship and green card applications as well as asylum cases. We discuss how low-income and undocumented immigrants in California are faring during the coronavirus pandemic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for Forum comes from Rancho La Puerta, boated the number one wellness resort and spa by readers of travel and leisure magazine in 2024.
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1:46.6	Four months into shelter and place restrictions in California, low-income and undocumented people continue struggling to avoid coronavirus and stay financially afloat. While workers want to provide for their families, they know they are taking a serious health risk. And many immigrants, even if they want to stay away from work, can't afford to. Many immigrants and undocumented people don't qualify for government benefits,
1:49.1	and private resources are starting to dry up.
1:50.9	We'll discuss the mounting challenges.
1:54.4	Vulnerable immigrant communities are facing amid the coronavirus pandemic, and that's next after this news. Welcome to Forum. I'm Michael Krasny.
2:12.2	In California, where more than a quarter of residents or foreign-born, many low-income and undocumented immigrants
2:19.0	have dealt with heavy burdens during the coronavirus pandemic. The biggest challenges involve
2:23.8	high infection rates, loss of income, and feeling forced to continue working in a high-risk
2:29.1	environments. Many programs designed to give financial assistance to undocumented workers
2:33.9	are running dry as the pandemic persists.
	...

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