That’s according to experts who spoke at a March 11 Fordham event. Governments are increasingly relying on AI and machine learning to handle visa applications, refugee claims, naturalization requests, and the like—raising concerns that citizenship could become commodified, said Kevin Jackson, Ph.D., professor of law and ethics in the Gabelli School of Business. 

AI Could Make Immigration More Transactional 

AI-based systems tend to be transactional and “prioritize applicants who can maximize economic utility for a nation-state,” he said. “Are we seeing a fundamental shift in the meaning of citizenship and the moral worth of individuals due to the rise of AI?”

He and his research assistant, Emma Foley, a Gabelli School graduate student, presented two ethics case studies: In the United Kingdom, an AI system for screening visa applicants reflected past pro-Western bias and discriminated against people from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, reinforcing racial and economic disparities in global mobility, Foley said. That system was suspended about five years ago after legal challenges. 

And an AI-powered initiative of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), proposed in 2017, drew criticism for its “extreme vetting” of immigrants in America, monitoring everything from social media use and employment records to religious affiliations, Jackson said. 

The project, also dropped following legal challenges, “highlights how AI-driven immigration systems can redefine the moral worth of migrants by preemptively classifying them as threats on one hand or as assets on the other hand,” he said. “Making AI immigration decisions open to public scrutiny and to legal appeal are important.” (Today, DHS says it uses AI responsibly across a variety of functions.)

AI, Immigration, and Social Justice

Jackson and Foley spoke at Fordham’s International Conference on Im/migration, AI, and Social Justice, organized in concert with Sophia University in Japan and held at Fordham.

Faculty and graduate students, as well as alumni experts and others, spoke about how AI can enhance immigration processes but also about the potential perils.

Communication professor Gregory Donovan, Ph.D., suggested that AI might be used to provide legal assistance for migrants as they negotiate immigration processes, given the lack of enough lawyers to serve them. But even then, “It actually demands more human involvement.” 

“You’re going to need humans who are understanding of how trauma works, who are able to be there culturally and emotionally for someone as they interact with a chatbot to figure out their legal fate,” he said.

Retaining the Human Touch

Another presenter, Sarah Blackmore, LAW ’14, is a senior associate with Fragomen, an immigration services firm. She noted that AI can be helpful in immigration by streamlining administrative work and repetitive tasks like processing immigration applications, freeing up staffers to focus on “the more complex cases that need a human touch.”

That human touch is needed when, for instance, someone’s asylum case could hinge on fine nuances of translation and emotion and context, she said. “With AI, it’s really important, especially for sensitive things, that there is always this human oversight,” she said. 

She was answering a question by Carey Kasten, Ph.D., professor of Spanish, who noted that “so much of immigration law and asylum laws … have to do with the way you tell your story.” 

‘I Am Afraid’

A key element in those stories is fear—particularly, fear of gender-based violence, “one of the main factors pushing people out of their countries,” said Marciana Popescu, Ph.D., professor in the Graduate School of Social Service and co-director of Her Migrant Hub, an online information hub for women seeking asylum. Women are nearly half the population of globally displaced people, and 40% to 46% are under 18, she said during her own presentation. 

In her own work with migrants, the three most common words she has heard, she said, are “I am afraid.” She ended with a plea: “I am asking you, dear colleagues, that are looking into AI—think of AI as a tool that can expand sanctuary. This comes from the voices of the women, because it is [their stories that matter]most.”

A Presidential Management Fellow takes a broad view of social work

What does a social worker’s job look like? Those outside the field might picture someone who meets one-on-one with clients, or works at a hospital, school, or nonprofit. Hannah Babiss is proof that there is no one answer to that question.

Now in the midst of a prestigious Presidential Management Fellowship, a two-year training and leadership development program administered by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management that places advanced degree holders in U.S. government agencies, Babiss is using her studies in macro social work to impact federal policy.

“I felt like I wanted to have a greater impact to help support individuals and communities that might be experiencing challenges or barriers,” says Babiss, who earned an M.S.W. at Fordham’s Graduate School of Social Service (GSS) in 2021. She had already gained experience in direct social work service before arriving at GSS. And although she considered master’s programs in public policy and international affairs, she was drawn to the field placements available through social work programs—and specifically to the small class sizes and electives at Fordham.

Policymaking to Make Lives Easier

During her time at Fordham, Babiss became involved in the GSS Student Congress, which she says not only helped her land the fellowship but also gave her experience in organizational structuring and leadership—skills she also developed as a research assistant for Professor Marciana Popescu, Ph.D., director of Her Migrant Hub, a website that helps women gain access to health care services and other resources in New York City.

Babiss began the fellowship in August 2022 as a budget analyst in the U.S. Department of Transportation, where she assessed the distribution of money for federal transportation projects and wrote budget justifications to clarify why line items were included as funds. She says the work has helped her understand how money ties into specific policies.

“My first year was a lot of training because I don’t have a background in finance or budgeting in particular,” Babiss says. “It was a lot of learning the ropes, but I learned a lot about the congressional budgeting process.”

When the fellowship ends next August, she plans to apply for jobs across various federal agencies. And while she has a particular passion for immigration, education, and mental health policy, she’s open to working in any area in which she can make a positive impact.

“I would love to see more efficient policymaking that helps make people’s lives easier,” she says. “I think that’s really what it boils down to—how can you improve the quality of people’s lives, while also making a policy that’s realistic and efficient and a good use of taxpayer dollars?”

Read more “20 in Their 20s” profiles.

Students and faculty in Fordham’s Graduate School of Social Service are supporting women asylum seekers, one of the most vulnerable populations in New York City, by working with them to increase access to health care and mental health services and advocate for the protection of migrants’ rights.

On Nov. 10, they convened with activists who work in academia, city government, the law—and women asylum seekers themselves—to talk about future work and solutions. 

‘The Solutions Will Come From People’s Voices’ 

Over the past year and a half, more than 130,600 migrants arrived in New York City from countries like Venezuela and Senegal, seeking asylum from violence, persecution, and other traumas in their homelands. The city provides temporary shelter and helps migrants to apply for legal status, work authorization, and permanent housing, but it’s not easy to address every single need. In fact, the city just announced that it is limiting shelter stays for migrant families with children to 60 days in its housing system. 

“The city is doing the best that they can. But the solutions to what’s happening right now are not going to be coming from the city,” said Anne Williams-Isom, FCLC ’86, New York City deputy mayor for health and human services, at the symposium, which was held at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus. “The solutions will come from people’s voices who have experienced this and who are sharing their stories with us, and hoping that academia and government and others will listen.” 

Her Migrant Hub

Those in academia are listening. Through Her Migrant Hub, a website created by Fordham faculty, students, and women asylum seekers, migrants in New York City are able to better understand their rights in the U.S. and easily access services with a direct impact on women’s well-being, such as health care, housing, and mental health. Perhaps most uniquely, they are taught how to tell their own stories and to advocate for themselves and their loved ones. 

Her Migrant Hub has greatly expanded since its inception in 2021. The community-driven program, which primarily receives funding from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation and is supported by additional funding from organizations like World Education Services Mariam Assefa Fund, is revamping its web platform based on suggestions from women migrants, students, scholars, and service providers. The website was updated this November with several new additions, including direct mental health support via phone, text, or video on the platform itself. 

In addition, Her Migrant Hub now has an advisory board that includes eight women asylum seekers who have become activists. Six of them are from the initial core Her Migrant Hub group; one is a representative for newly arrived women asylum seekers, and another is a representative of the community of indigenous Garifuna women asylum seekers. The board also includes two service providers who are able to listen to the women and develop solutions based on their feedback. They now meet in a dedicated space at the Lincoln Center campus that the activists and GSS students will decorate to reflect the different cultures and shared stories of the community. 

The Her Migrant Hub team, led by GSS professors Marciana Popescu, Ph.D., and Dana Alonzo, Ph.D., is also planning a series of trainings on trauma-informed care, migration-related trauma, and vicarious trauma for service providers who work with this population in New York City. Women asylum seekers will also receive training on how to educate migrant communities, employers, and service providers about forced migration and the challenges faced by their community.

Students Engaging with Migrants in Crisis 

GSS students are engaged in all of these efforts. Two sit on the advisory board alongside the asylum seekers. Eight are interning at organizations such as the New York City Mayor’s Office’s new Asylum Application Support Center and Emma’s Torch. Others are participating in Forced Migration and Social Work Policy and Practice, a new course co-developed by GSS professors and Her Migrant Hub’s women activists. This course is part of a project funded by New York Community Trust, which aims to develop best practices for social workers who work with migrant populations and engage students in specialized internships. 

Most recently, in October, clinical social work students under the supervision of Alonzo began providing one-on-one mental health support to migrants through the Her Migrant Hub website. 

Among the students involved in this collective work is Luisa Fernanda Sandoval Cortes, a Ph.D. student who serves as a case manager coordinator for a program for asylum seekers at Catholic Charities of New York. For Her Migrant Hub, she is a project coordinator, facilitating a mental health group for new women asylum seekers. She shared some key takeaways from her experiences at the Nov. 10 symposium.

“Social workers and professionals should be trained in assisting asylum seekers from an intersectionality perspective to be able to understand gender, race, language, and cultural differences among this population,” said Cortes, who also emphasized the importance of providing fast and extended work permits to migrants. “And I would add empathy.” 

Read more about the symposium.