Obama Administration to Halt 300,000 Deportations

U.S. Department of Homeland Security head Janet Napolitano revealed August 18 that the United States will review 300,000 pending deportation cases for people living in the country for several years who have not committed serious crimes. The Houston Chronicle reports that Napolitano submitted a letter to 22 senators saying “it makes no sense to expend our enforcement resources on low-priority cases, such as individuals...who were brought into this country as young children and know no other home.” Given that the move will affect undocumented immigrant students, supporters of the long-stalled DREAM Act heralded the decision.

The Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog outlines who might qualify to remain in the United States under the new Obama immigration policy, with factors for staying deportation including an individual’s length of residence, age at the time of arrival, educational pursuit or military service, age, and role as primary caretaker.

Learn more about immigration issues at AS/COA's Hispanic Integration Hub.

Cancer Claims Canadian Opposition Leader

Jack Layton, who led Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP) to Official Opposition status for the first time in May’s federal vote, lost his battle with cancer this week. His passing came as a surprise, given his late-July announcement that he would step down from his position temporarily to seek treatment. In a letter penned in the final days before his death, Layton—known for his tendency to avoid political mudslinging—addressed Canadians by saying: “My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic.”

Layton’s passing leaves Canada’s two main opposition parties, the NDP and the Liberal Party, with interim leaders at a time when the governing Conservative Party holds a parliamentary majority.

Rousseff Ranked World’s Third-most Powerful Woman

The Brazilian president took the number three spot in Forbes.com’s list of the 100 most powerful women in the world, behind German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner took spot number 17.

From the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online's news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup.

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Waiting for the WikiLeaks Shoe to Drop in Latin America

WikiLeaks continues to reveal U.S. government cables, which The Miami Herald says are “fueling a wave of rumors and resentment in Latin America.” A few hundred of the 251,287 confidential cables have been released so far, leaving many countries waiting for the other shoe to drop. For example, 2,836 of the cables are relevant to Mexico, but it’s not clear yet when the records will go public.

Still, news relevant to the hemisphere has been trickling out , with some of the latest documents revealed on December 1 showing that the “United States saw big opportunities in helping Brazil boost its military capabilities as a way of ‘supporting U.S. interests,’” according to AFP. Other leaks range from topics such as Bolivian President Evo Morales purported sinus tumor to a description of the interim government that led Honduras after the 2009 coup as “totally illegitimate” to Cuban spies advising the Venezuelan government in what one diplomat called an “Axis of Mischief.” Global Voices looks at blog coverage of a range of leaked cables relevant to the Americas.

Speaking to The Christian Science Monitor, AS/COA Senior Policy Director Chris Sabatini said “I think most of what is going to be found will embarrass other leaders but will not do much to embarrass U.S. leaders.”

From the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online's news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup.

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Counting Numbers in Record-breaking Coverage of the Chilean Miner Rescue

More than 4 million page views per minute. Roughly 5.5 million live video streams on CNN. Approximately 412,000 social media mentions of “Chile” on October 13. Mashable Media reports on the record-breaking television and online viewership of the Chilean miner rescue.

Access an AS/COA Online resource guide to media coverage of the rescue.

In an op-ed for CNN, Americas Society’s Daniel Shapiro reflects on the fact that two of the Chilean miners rescued were identified as poets. "Chilean culture is steeped in poetry; poetry has become a life-blood of that country, ingrained in the bedrock as it were, over time," writes Shapiro.

From the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online's news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup.

Sign up to receive the Weekly Roundup via email.

Swine Flu Strikes

An outbreak of Type A/H1N1 influenza in Mexico has rung alarm bells around the world over the possibility of a swine flu pandemic. More than 150 people have died in Mexico, there has been one fatality in the United States, and cases have been confirmed in seven other countries. BBC offers multimedia coverage of the outbreak, including maps and country-by-country updates on cases and precautionary measures taken. The World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention are seeking out answers about the disease and the “rapidly evolving situation.” Much remains unknown, with arguably the most nagging question being why death rates have been so high in Mexico while cases appear to be milder in other countries.

From the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online's news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup.

Sign up to get the Weekly Roundup in your email box each Wednesday.

After the Summit

The Summit of the Americas took place over the weekend, featuring high-profile handshakes, star treatment of U.S. President Barack Obama, and much discussion of an absent Cuba. The summit concluded without unanimity on the declaration, but ended with “hope,” said Barbados’ Caribbean360. Voice of America reports that the summit gave Washington a “fresh start” with the 33 other countries in attendance. The Miami Herald asks readers to consider “the genuine progress that was achieved in healing the breach between the United States and its neighbors.”

From the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online's news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup.

Thirty-Four Leaders to Gather for Fifth Summit

Trinidad and Tobago hosts leaders for the Fifth Summit of the Americas this weekend. The conference will serve as President Barack Obama’s introduction to a majority of the leaders in the Western Hemisphere. Although Washington’s Cuba policy has been in the spotlight ahead of the meeting, it’s far from the only big issue facing leaders. The National Journal reports that “Obama will have to walk the line between Latin America's heightened expectations and domestic political considerations.” But an editorial in La Opinión takes a sunnier view, saying that what’s most important is the “tone set in the relations between the U.S. and the rest of the hemisphere.”