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Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC. On this final day of the Trump presidency, we remember what many people consider the original sin of his presidential campaign, writing scripted xenophobia to popularity with his proposed total ban on Muslims entering the country and, of course, it's slander about Mexicans on Day 1 in 2015. President-elect Biden has promised a new approach to immigration.

Today, Cities for Action, a coalition of over 200 US mayors and county executives who advocate for pro-immigrant policies, released a vision for immigration action report urging the Biden administration and the new Congress to push immigration reform that covers everything from a path to citizenship to immigrants being a part of COVID-19 recovery in a more explicit way. Joining me now to discuss the Cities for Action vision for immigration action plan is Bitta Mostofi, commissioner for the New York City Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs. Welcome back to WNYC, Commissioner.

Commissioner Bitta Mostofi: Thanks so much for having me, Brian.

Brian: First, on this last day of Trump, what impact do you think Donald Trump has had on immigrants and immigration? Most of all, beyond his bluster and the words that everybody can almost recite from memory to actual impact.

Commissioner Mostofi: I think that an impact can't be understated. We've seen firsthand on the ground the trauma inflicted upon communities, fearful that the next knock on their door or the next stroke of a pen for an executive order or proclamation will result in a separation of their families. We saw the horrifying images of children being separated from their parents at the border, and some brought right here to New York City through that process. I think that this is a stain on our country and our nation.

There will be a tremendous amount of healing that needs to happen, but I think that's only possible with not just a recognition of what has taken place, but an action towards a more inclusive and dignified approach to immigration in our country.

Brian: How much is your action plan? Let me ask it this way. How much does your action plan begin with a blueprint for undoing Trump?

Commissioner Mostofi: Some of that is certainly in there. We recognize the need to take away or roll back really horrific policies like the public charge rule which we have seen play out during a pandemic. People having fear accessing healthcare that they're perfectly eligible for that won't have impacts on their immigration status or food like snap resources because of this rule change. Some of that is there. We want that roll back. We want an end to the Muslim and African bands that we've seen and we've seen that promise to do that in the immediate aftermath of the inauguration, but we want more.

We want to, as I said, recognize that this is a moment to be bold, to take action and from our perspective, this is an agenda that's responsive to the needs of our communities. We need an inclusive and equitable pandemic response. We needed the establishment of a White House office for new Americans that looks intentionally at how you integrate and include people so they can reach their fullest potentials and help us grow our economies. We need a pathway to citizenship.

We have half a million undocumented residents in our community, another half a million that live in what we call mixed status homes where you have children who are citizens or one parent who may be, and we need our families to be whole and feel confident and safe being here. There's a positive bold agenda but certainly, a recognition that that includes reversing some of the egregious harms of the Trump administration.

Brian: Listeners, we can take some phone calls for Commissioner Mostofi on what your immigration action agenda items would be for the incoming Biden administration or if you want to do a brief oral history, we don't have time for long stories in this segment. If you want to just put something on the record and say out loud a way the Trump immigration policy affected you or your loved ones, 646-435-7280, 646-435-7280.

For New York City immigration commissioner Bitta Mostofi here representing today, not just herself or the City of New York, but a coalition of over 200 US mayors and county executives who've released a report for the Biden administration, targeted at the Biden administration called Vision for Immigration Action, 646-435-7280, 646-435-7280. Immigration reform and COVID-19 recovery, those aren't things that people always think of in the same sentence or the same breath. Why do you?

Commissioner Mostofi: It's been a fundamental part of certainly my office's response to this moment, but those of my counterparts across this country as well. We have seen how critical it is that every person in our community feels safe accessing COVID testing. Now, as we move into vaccinations, feeling confident and understanding that vaccines are available to everybody, that there will be no bearing on your immigration status. We can't move forward to the well-being of all of us, unless we are all a part of that effort, including those amongst us who may be undocumented or who may not be English-proficient.

We haven't seen a coordinated strategy around outreach or multi-lingual messaging that reaches all corners of this country and all the best and possible ways. We've seen the exclusion of essential workers from pandemic relief and here in our city, we actually know that foreign-born New Yorkers disproportionately make up our essential workers, our frontline workers who have kept us going through this pandemic.

When we think about response to COVID, when we think about our recovery, we know that it has to be one that's inclusive of everybody. I want to underscore that the greatest burden and hardship has been on communities of color. We know right here in New York that immigrant dumps communities in particular have had a greater citywide impact than the citywide average.

Brian: Allen in Atlanta, you're on WNYC. Hi, Allen. Thanks for calling.

Allen: Thank you, Brian. Just want to share my experience as a immigrants living in New York City for the last 11 years. I lived in the illegal immigrant community, mostly Irish people. Unfortunately, Trump is so powerful. Illegal, yes, illegal immigrants.

Brian: Illegal, okay.

Allen: That's right. Sorry. Just want to show that Trump is rhetoric, so powerful that my friends who have become legal immigrants who now have their green cards, they now follow Trump. They follow his rhetoric and they support him. They totally forget about what they experienced as undocumented immigrants. Also, just want to share that this rhetoric has really ingrained in the minds of the Irish people in Ireland where they are now empowered to give their voice to the xenophobic anti-European immigrants coming to Ireland. I'm so happy, today is his last day.

Brian: What do you attribute the pro-Trump attitudes to among the people you described legal Irish immigrants after they become citizens? Is it an idea of whiteness that they adopt, or how would you describe it?

Allen: I think they came from, let's say, maybe a little bit more impoverished lifestyle and finding when they come to America, they can step up and might have that chip on her shoulder and just really empowers them to be a level up and look down then on people who they feel are lowered and undocumented.

Brian: Allen, thank you for your call. We appreciate it. Rosie in Queens, you're on WNYC. Hi, Rosie.

Rosie: Hey, good morning. I wanted to summarize a few things. One being how traumatizing it's been for the country to see the faith of the children at the border who are separated from their parents and held in those concentration camps. Also, the fact that being labeled illegal is so absurd because when we look at the history of this country, the pilgrims were illegal. We have lost so much track of humanity, of seeing that this is a country that is made up of people from everywhere on earth and that if we don't learn to live together, we are just going to sink as a country.

Brian: Rosie, thank you so very much. Commissioner Mostofi, how much work is there still to be done? Because I think president-elect Biden has indicated that he feels there is in reuniting families. That story has fallen out of the news since the height of the controversies over separating families at the border, but it's not over, right?

Commissioner Mostofi: It's not over. We've seen an incredible commitment from the incoming president-elect's team in establishing a task force or commission that would be responsible for reunifying these families. I think I would go even further to say, and we need to make sure it can't ever happen again, we need to ensure that the parts of our system that can be weaponized in a way that could literally take a child from their parents is one that we never see happen again and that's eradicated from our laws and our policies forever.

I just want to appreciate your callers and in particular, your first caller. When we talk about undocumented immigrants, I think that there's an image, particularly because of the strength of the rhetoric of the Trump administration these last four years that's been designed to divide us, to exacerbate a racial divide and feed on that in a way that's so negative to our humanity as people in our country. Recognizing that we actually have a lot of undocumented Irish immigrants in our city and that the history of our country is one where we come from all over and we're so proud we're here in New York, a city of immigrants.

This action plan that we present is one that is representative of our heartland, Boise, Dodge City, the West Coast, Denver, Seattle, Tucson, the border El Paso, LA, and the East Coast. I think it shows that localities are clear when people are in our backyards, that it's about the people. That's what makes us strong. That's what makes us better and we want to center that in this moment.

Brian: I want to make sure to mention in this segment another category of immigrant, and that is refugees. According to the UN Refugee Agency, and we've covered this on the show, but it doesn't get that much national attention, the 2020 fiscal year cap for resettled refugees was 18,000 down from 2019's 30,000, a record low as it was in the history of the resettlement program, which has had an average of 95,000 refugees per year. Your group, Cities for Action has called on the Biden administration to raise that ceiling. How many refugees do you think should be admitted to the United States annually and what's your rationale for that?

Commissioner Mostofi: I want to start again by saying that part of what we're hopeful for and what our promise with the new administration is a return to our place in the international community and our commitments to be a place of refuge for those fleeing persecution and needing safety. We saw that completely decimated by the Trump administration with the latest cap set at 15,000. The Biden administration has committed to raising the cap to levels even higher than the end of the Obama administration to 125,000. I think that's a tremendous start.

We recognize the challenges they face going in with a refugee system that has been really gutted with refugee officers being transferred off of those portfolios, with resettlement agencies that are responsible for ensuring opportunity and integration in the best way for refugees, losing their staff, in some cases, by 80% and more. We know it will take time to rebuild that effort and to make it stronger, and we think that this commitment by the Biden administration is a good start.

Brian: Where's the biggest need now as you see it for refugee admissions from, I think when Trump came in and he was trying to cut it down mostly among people from Syria in their civil war?

Commissioner Mostofi: We're at historically high levels of displacement worldwide. I think recent estimates are at about 80 million people globally that have been displaced. So much of that is as you rightly know from just horrific conflicts that we've seen in places like Syria. We've seen the double-edged sword with the Muslim ban as well as with the refugee caps and a decrease in admissions from Syria, Yemen, many of the places that we saw refugees coming from by 90-plus %.

I think that remains true in terms of where there's just tremendous humanitarian need, but it's so pervasive. Again, 80 million displaced folks globally and certainly what we've seen at our own border with conditions in central America, with families trying to seek safety, trying to flee violence. These are places or situations where we need commitments to support countries in strengthening the conditions there. We need our climate efforts. We know some of the challenges in central America include climate change and economic challenges that people are facing. We need commitments regionally. We also need commitments to uphold and reclaim a leadership mantle and caring for people who are seeking safety.

Brian: One more call. Nina in Somerset, we've got about 20 seconds for you, so right to the point. Hi, Nina.

Nina: Hi, Brian. My point is we are facing the worst economic crisis. There's a pandemic and I think that maybe the Biden administration should focus on America. You see that 74 million people voted for Trump's policies. I think there should be some measure of moderation here. I'm an immigrant, but I understand that there are people hurting and I think they should be given first priority first and the tax dollars should be spent on them. I do feel sorry.

Brian: I'm going to jump in only for time and we have 30 seconds left in the show. Commissioner Mostofi, you'll get the last word.

Commissioner Mostofi: Thank you for that. I think and what we need to do is recognize that immigration has played a role in our communities of increasing employment, of contributing to our economies, of strengthening our families. When we talk about pro-immigration actions, we're actually talking about actions that will be for the betterment of every single person in our community and will make our countries stronger.

Brian: New York City immigration commissioner Bitta Mostofi is now part of the 200 US mayor and county executive-strong vision for immigration action. Thank you so much for joining us.

Commissioner Mostofi: Thank you so much for having me, Brian. Always a fan.

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