Status Pending

While waiting to obtain legal status, immigrants can spend more than two decades negotiating the muddled mess of the U.S. immigration system. Starting the process as single, young adults, some might be grandparents before they finally recite the Pledge of Allegiance at their naturalization ceremony. Already arduous to navigate, the process became shockingly more difficult during the Trump administration. How do the passionate, selfless immigration lawyers cope with incessant defeat, heartbreak and the constant strain of negotiating policies that can change daily? In Status Pending, we meet five frontline Mexican-American attorneys who are doing their best to avoid burnout by aiding and supporting each other.