Sarah Pierce
Sarah Pierce was a Policy Analyst for the U.S. Immigration Policy Program at MPI, focusing on U.S. legal immigration processes and actors, the employment-based immigration system, and unaccompanied child migrants.
Prior to joining MPI, Ms. Pierce practiced immigration law with a Chicago-based law firm, appearing before the immigration court, Board of Immigration Appeals, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and U.S. consulate offices abroad. She also worked for and volunteered with a number of nonprofit organizations and government entities, including Human Rights Watch, the National Immigrant Justice Center, and the U.S. Department of Labor.
Ms. Pierce holds a master of arts in international affairs from the George Washington University, with a focus on migration and development. She also holds a J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law and a B.A. from Grinnell College.
Explore Content by Sarah Pierce
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Dismantling and Reconstructing the U.S. Immigration System: A Catalog of Changes under the Trump Presidency
The Trump administration took more than 400 immigration executive actions during its first term, curtailing legal and unauthorized immigration and dismantling humanitarian protections.
USCIS Budget Implosion Owes to Far More than the Pandemic
Citing coronavirus-related disruptions, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services urged Congress to provide $1.2 billion to address its severe budget shortfall. Without this emergency infusion, the agency warned it might have to furlough up to 80 percent of its staff by mid-July 2020. Yet a deeper look at USCIS operations shows it was facing serious budget problems long before the pandemic—ones that are the logical results of actions undertaken by the Trump administration.
The U.S. Stands Alone in Explicitly Basing Coronavirus-Linked Immigration Restrictions on Economic Grounds
The United States became the first country to restrict legal immigration on economic—not health—grounds during COVID-19, with uncertain but far-reaching implications.
Crisis within a Crisis: Immigration in the United States in a Time of COVID-19
COVID-19 forced dramatic U.S. immigration restrictions, including ending asylum at the border, halting benefit processing, and excluding some immigrants from pandemic relief.
Despite Trump Invitation to Stop Taking Refugees, Red and Blue States Alike Endorse Resettlement
Despite record-low refugee ceilings during the first Trump term and a presidential order inviting states to opt out of resettlement, 42 states and 100-plus mayors affirmed their support for refugees.
From Control to Crisis: Changing Trends and Policies Reshaping U.S.-Mexico Border Enforcement
Punitive enforcement-only measures failed to stem record flows of Central American families at the U.S.-Mexico border in 2019, underscoring the need for a new approach.
As the Trump Administration Seeks to Remove Families, Due-Process Questions over Rocket Dockets Abound
Accelerated "rocket" dockets for families yielded 80 percent in absentia removal orders by mid-2019, exposing due-process failures around court notice and access to counsel.
Spike in Unaccompanied Child Arrivals at U.S.-Mexico Border Proves Enduring Challenge; Citizenship Question on 2020 Census in Doubt
Approximately 11,500 unaccompanied children were apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border in May, putting this year on track to exceed 2014's surge. As the U.S. government struggles to care for these child migrants, with public outrage mounting over reports of unsafe, filthy conditions in initial Border Patrol custody, the failure of the executive branch and Congress to plan for increased shelter and care demands are increasingly apparent, as this article explores.
Immigration-Related Policy Changes in the First Two Years of the Trump Administration
During the first half of its first term, the Trump administration pursued a broad immigration agenda primarily through executive action.
Despite Flurry of Actions, Trump Administration Faces Constraints in Achieving Its Immigration Agenda
Court injunctions, local resistance, and resource constraints are blocking the Trump administration's immigration enforcement agenda at the border and in the interior in its first term.
