“[They] cannot understand or even worse accept that the Latino kid from Union City and Hudson County can grow up to be a United States.”

New rules announced by President Joe Biden and a new bill introduced by Sens. Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) look to eliminate the high costs and enduring stigma that keep many Latinos from seeking mental health care.

More than 50 of the world’s top economists have slammed Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) for recent remarks he made about Cuba and Venezuela, asking that he “stop spreading the false narrative” that there is no connection between the crises in those countries and the U.S. sanctions against them.

U.S. and Mexican officials have agreed on new immigration policies meant to deter illegal border crossings while also opening up other pathways ahead of an expected increase in migrants following the end of pandemic restrictions next week.

Brazilian authorities vowed Monday to protect democracy and punish thousands of supporters of ex-President Jair Bolsonaro who stormed and trashed the nation’s highest seats of power in chaos with striking similarities to the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Senate Democrats introduced a bill on Wednesday that would provide a simple, sturdy pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have waited decades for relief, alongside millions of documented immigrants languishing in backlogs.

As fuel in Puerto Rico grows scarcer after Hurricane Fiona, an oil tanker loaded with much-needed diesel fuel is treading water off the coast of Puerto Rico, unable to dock because a 1920 law, known as the Jones Act, requires ships to be U.S.-owned if they want to load or unload.

Fallout has begun over the decision by six Democratic senators to vote for a failed messaging amendment to preserve Title 42 restrictions on immigration, with Salvadoran-born state Rep. Maria Perez posting a video to express her indignation over Sen. Hassan’s vote in favor of the amendment.

Shortly after 2 a.m. on Sunday, an anti-immigrant amendment by Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) was rejected by a 50-50 vote. Lankford’s amendment called for the use of Obamacare money to fund Title 42, the Trump-era policy that bars immigrants from entering the United States based on public health concerns. 

After voters in Kansas, one of the most conservative states in the country, rejected a ballot measure Tuesday that would have allowed state lawmakers to ban abortion, Latino Rebels asked senators if the issue of abortion rights could cost Republicans seats in November’s midterm elections.

House Democrats introduced a new bill on Wednesday that would provide a simple, sturdy pathway to citizenship for millions of documented immigrants languishing in backlogs and undocumented immigrants who have waited decades for relief.

Latino Rebels asked Latino lawmakers about a new amendment to the House appropriations bill, submitted by Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), that would prevent the executive branch of the federal government from referring to Latinos as “Latinx” in public documents.

At least eight immigrant relief amendments have been offered by House members for inclusion in the NDAA, including one that would protect so-called “documented DREAMers” who age out of their parents’ visa protection when they turn 21.

As reported by McClatchy and the Miami Herald on Tuesday, the existence of an unofficial “challenge coin” with an engraved image of a Border Patrol agent apparently chasing a Haitian migrant on horseback has led to promises of an investigation by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

While movement this week from the House Committee on Natural Resources is likely focusing on a consensus Puerto Rico Status Act for a hearing before the August recess that could get the draft bill past committee and onto the House floor, Illinois’ two Senators have added their name to a growing list of upper chamber co-sponsors of a current self-determination bill that contains no consensus provisions with the island-colony’s statehood proponents.

Latino Rebels asked Senators this week if the upper chamber of Congress will implement a minimum salary, or “pay floor,” for Senate staffers.

The Puerto Rico Status Act brings together two competing bills in the House: the Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act and the Puerto Rico Statehood Admission Act. Here’s a quick breakdown of what’s in it.

Following a press conference on Thursday, members of the House negotiating team behind a potential consensus bill on Puerto Rico’s status released what is likely a messaging bill meant to act as a framework for further negotiations and their outcome.

The United States government is moving to ease a few economic sanctions on Venezuela in a gesture meant to encourage resumed negotiations between the U.S.-backed opposition and the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

A consensus bill to determine the future of Puerto Rico’s status is imminent, Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) said, but sources close to the matter tell Latino Rebels that no draft has been circulated to the key stakeholders in the process and that the tense negotiations over the bill’s language have hit a series of dead ends.

As a national labor shortage is contributing to higher prices on consumer goods and increased inflation, some senators tell Latino Rebels that increasing legal immigration can help undermine these economic pressures on the American economy, while others are not so convinced.