Richard Gonzales
Richard Gonzales is NPR's National Desk Correspondent based in San Francisco. Along with covering the daily news of region, Gonzales' reporting has included medical marijuana, gay marriage, drive-by shootings, Jerry Brown, Willie Brown, the U.S. Ninth Circuit, the California State Supreme Court and any other legal, political, or social development occurring in Northern California relevant to the rest of the country.
Gonzales joined NPR in May 1986. He covered the U.S. State Department during the Iran-Contra Affair and the fall of apartheid in South Africa. Four years later, he assumed the post of White House Correspondent and reported on the prelude to the Gulf War and President George W. Bush's unsuccessful re-election bid. Gonzales covered the U.S. Congress for NPR from 1993-94, focusing on NAFTA and immigration and welfare reform.
In September 1995, Gonzales moved to his current position after spending a year as a John S. Knight Fellow Journalism at Stanford University.
In 2009, Gonzales won the Broadcast Journalism Award from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. He also received the PASS Award in 2004 and 2005 from the National Council on Crime and Delinquency for reports on California's juvenile and adult criminal justice systems.
Prior to NPR, Gonzales was a freelance producer at public television station KQED in San Francisco. From 1979 to 1985, he held positions as a reporter, producer, and later, public affairs director at KPFA, a radio station in Berkeley, CA.
Gonzales graduated from Harvard College with a bachelor's degree in psychology and social relations. He is a co-founder of Familias Unidas, a bi-lingual social services program in his hometown of Richmond, California.
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Immigrant advocates claim the Trump administration is building a "second wall" to keep immigrants out of this country. That wall is the lengthy and time-consuming process to become a U.S. citizen.
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Texas and nine other states are asking a Texas court to force the government to reject renewals for young people currently enrolled in DACA and stop accepting new applications.
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A federal judge rules that the Trump administration may not indefinitely detain asylum-seekers who have proven a credible fear of persecution in their homelands.
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At issue: How should cases proceed and what should happen to the more than 2,000 immigrant minors already detained in light of the president's executive order?
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The Trump administration Wednesday reversed a policy of separating families at the border, which had meant children were held at detention facilities and moved to shelters. What comes next is unclear.
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Casa Padre is a former Walmart Super Center converted into living, recreation and dining quarters for 1,469 immigrant boys ages 10 to 17.
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Federal and state authorities are investigating the shooting death of a young immigrant along the U.S.-Mexico border. Few details about the incident have been released.
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In an interview with NPR, the White House chief of staff also praised the president's decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal and said Trump's eyes are "wide open" on North Korea.
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In a wide-ranging interview with NPR, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said the administration is merely following the law.
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The administration says there has been a surge of illegal border crossings, especially by families. Immigrant advocates say the people are seeking asylum under international law.