🇺🇸🎖️⚖️🗽 😇 R.I.P. — PETER SCHEY (1947-2024) — Legendary Litigator, Human Rights Advocate, Champion Of Equal Justice For All, Founded National Immigration Law Center, Center For Human Rights & Constitutional Law

 

Tribute by Juan Jose Gutierrez* in LA Education:

https://laeducacion.us/fallecio-peter-schey-apostol-legal-de-millones-de-inmigrantes-mexicanos-y-latinoamericanos/

Attorney Peter Schey (1947-2024)
Attorney Peter Schey (1947-2024)

The Angels.

Today [April 2] at 1:15 in the afternoon the heart of a giant of jurisprudence stopped beating. He alludes to the lawyer defending human rights, civil rights and constitutional law, the great friend of Mexico and Latin American immigrants, lawyer Peter Schey. He was 77 years old.

Schey was born in the Republic of South Africa, on March 23, 1947. He came with his parents, who emigrated to the United States. Upon graduating from high school in 1966, he applied for and was admitted to pursue a bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, where he graduated in 1970. Additionally, in 1973 he completed his studies in law school at the California Western School. of Law.

His career as a jurist began in 1973. He practiced law at the Legal Aid Society of San Diego, where he had legal representation of low-income immigrants, until 1978, when he moved to the City of Los Angeles, where he founded the National Immigration Law Center.

Desire for justice motivated him to move from San Diego to LA

The main reason that prompted him to leave the City of San Diego was related to the arrest of Mexican activist José Jacques Medina. He had been arrested and imprisoned by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Due to his undocumented status, the FBI handed him over to the Department of Immigration and Naturalization (INS) to immediately deport him to Mexico. Jacques Medina’s wife, Rosario Moreno, traveled from Los Angeles to San Diego to ask Schey to assume the legal defense of her husband.

He immediately accepted and took on the defense with passion and professionalism, which would last for a dozen years until in 1989 or 1990 his case was closed because Jacques Medina requested and obtained his immigration regularization through the “Amnesty Law” of 1986. During that period, the defense stopped his deportation under consideration of the defendant’s right to asylum. He argued that if he were returned to Mexico his life was in danger.

Founded legal institution of historical significance

In 1980, Schey founded and became president and CEO of the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law. He remained at the head of this important institution for 44 years and 4 months.

In these four decades, Schey filed Class Action lawsuits in favor of the constitutional rights of millions of immigrants from various parts of the world, but especially Mexicans and Latin Americans. I will mention three examples:

1.- In 1994, the Californian political extreme right adopted a fascist, racist and cruel policy against undocumented immigrants and created Proposition 187, which was approved by a majority of the state electorate in November of that year. This resolution denied medical care, social services and education to people suspected of having entered California irregularly.

However, the day after its approval, this ordinance was stopped in court by a lawsuit led by Peter Schey and known as League of United Latin American Citizens v. Wilson. After a severe legal battle, this very important lawsuit prevented said proposal from being implemented, which meant a major offense to the migrant community. In July 1999, Democratic Governor Gray Davis reached an agreement with leaders of pro-immigrant organizations and his lawyers and gave up appealing the decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that had declared it unconstitutional. And therefore, this disastrous Proposition was canceled without it ever being able to be implemented.

2.- Another legal case, known under the title Flores v. Reno established a minimum standard of quality of life for undocumented immigrant children detained in the United States and recognized the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law as the only nongovernmental organization authorized to certify that detention centers housing any undocumented minor met the agreed minimum standards and also established the prompt release of the minors and that they could be delivered to relatives residing in the United States as soon as possible.

3.- I cannot close this remembrance of Schey without mentioning the case known as Plyler v. Doe. Schey participated in this lawsuit and it was filed because in 1977 the State of Texas ordered that in the public school system, children who did not provide proof of being citizens of the United States would have to pay the school district, to which their school belonged, one thousand dollars. or would not be allowed access to the instruction.

In 1982, the US Supreme Court ruled that ‘a state cannot prevent the children of undocumented immigrants from attending public school.’

With these three examples, among many others that could be cited, it is clear that millions of undocumented girls and boys and workers must be eternally grateful to benefactor Peter Schey because thanks to his efforts in the courts, today they enjoy legal protections.

In short, thanks to his social education, his effort, persistence and tenacity as a general of immigration laws and constitutional law, as our great colleague Peter Schey undoubtedly was, countless immigrants can enjoy a decent life.

*Juan José Gutiérrez is executive director of the Full Rights Coalition for Immigrants based in Los Angeles.

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Needless to say, I butted heads with Peter a number of times during my tenure in the Office of General Counsel at the “Legacy INS” (1976-87).  I always had the greatest respect for his legal talent, courage, dedication, and persistence! He will be missed! But, his contributions to the law and the organizations he founded live on.

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

04-04-24

🦃 TALKING TURKEY @ THANKSGIVING DINNER — Handy Facts About Immigration To Educate Those Who Bring Nativist Myths To The Dinner Table — An NILC Primer! — “[E]ach conversation contributes to building a more informed and compassionate society.“

 

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Paul, the holiday season is a time filled with joy, festivities, and yes, perhaps even a few challenging political discussions at the dinner table.

Most of us can relate to that moment when someone decides to bring up a political topic just as the turkey is being carved, or right before dessert. Our country is undeniably divided, and sometimes these divisive conversations can even make their way into our family gatherings.

The NILC-IJF team is committed to equipping you with the tools and information you may need to navigate tough conversations on immigration this holiday season.

Here are a few quick facts to keep in your back pocket:

  • When someone mentions the so-called “border crisis”…
    • There is not a “border crisis,” but rather a humanitarian crisis at our border.
    • This humanitarian crisis has worsened over the years because of an overwhelming backlog of cases, resources not being funneled to lawful and humane processing, and harmful policy choices, such as the implementation of the Title 42 expulsion order. These choices have decimated our asylum system, making it almost impossible for people fleeing violence and seeking safety to access their legal right to seek asylum.
  • When someone starts talking about DACA…
    • DACA recipients contribute so much to our communities — they are students, teachers, nurses, doctors, and loved ones who have lived in the U.S. for most of their lives.
    • Year after year, in poll after poll, a majority of Americans across party lines support Congress passing a pathway to citizenship for immigrant youth.
    • In fact, a survey from Pew Research Center found that 74% of Americans support a law that would provide permanent legal status for immigrant youth.
  • When someone mentions taxes or the economy…
    • Undocumented immigrants pay billions of dollars in federal, state, and local taxes nationwide (Source: Internal Revenue Service).
    • Immigrants play a crucial role in contributing to the U.S. economy, starting businesses, creating jobs, and driving innovation.
    • According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, immigrants were responsible for over half of the U.S. startup companies valued at $1 billion or more in 2020.

Engaging in difficult political conversations with family and friends is a crucial step in advocating for immigrants’ rights. Sometimes, it only takes one conversation to make a difference, while other times, it may take many more. But each conversation contributes to building a more informed and compassionate society.

Thank you for taking the time to read through the quick facts we shared above, and we hope they are helpful if someone brings up immigration this holiday season.

Sincerely,

— NILC Immigrant Justice Fund

DONATE
Paid for by NILC Immigrant Justice Fund, immigrantjusticefund.org, not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.

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Yes, I know that the “rule of thumb” is to avoid politics, religion, and other potentially divisive topics at the Thanksgiving table. But, not everybody follows the rules. So, it’s always prudent to be prepared.

Sadly, according to this highly negative article by Aaron Blake in today’s WashPost, on immigration, the border, and human rights, truth is losing out to myth, even among some Dems. See, e.g., https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/11/21/democrats-border-problem-is-getting-real/.

Aaron gives a very one-sided report: No mention of the plight of migrants arriving at the border, what forces them to leave their homes, the largely artificially-created obstacles they face in presenting their legal claims, and the extraordinary efforts of many NGOs, religious groups, local governments, bar associations and other informed humanitarians to take up the slack left by the cruel stunts of GOP nativist governors and the lack of effective planning and coordination by the Federal Government. See, e.g., https://immigrationcourtside.com/2023/11/21/%F0%9F%87%BA%F0%9F%87%B8%F0%9F%97%BD%E2%9A%96%EF%B8%8F%F0%9F%98%87-the-story-the-mainstream-media-ignores-faith-commnities-in-chicago-continue-to-aid-forced-migrants-despite-gop-stu/. Unfortunately, for many, perception, no matter how distorted or inaccurate, becomes their reality!

Courtland Milloy
Courtland Milloy
Columnist
WashPost
PHOTO: WashPost

We can’t give up on advancing and advocating for truth, hope, and humanity over myths, fear, loathing, and misunderstanding! In that respect, this more hopeful article by local columnist Courtland Milloy in today’s WashPost illustrates how a diverse group of his “Gen Z” students are embracing rational dialogue and problem solving to build a better future! https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/11/21/courtland-milloy-northern-virginia-community-college/. Courtland observes:

Having access to a supportive community college such as NOVA, where an international student body tends to coalesce around a common struggle to make it against the odds, added to the students’ sense of optimism about their future.

Immigration, of all types, can and should be a source of optimism and dynamism for the future! But, it won’t happen unless we are willing to take on the myths and naysayers head-on with truth and reality!

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

11-22-23

🗽⚖️ RACIAL INJUSTICE IN AMERICA: RIGHTS GROUPS BLAST ADMINISTRATION’S INDIFFERENCE TO LIVES, LEGAL & HUMAN RIGHTS OF BLACK MIGRANTS!👎🏿  — “Despite your commitment to racial equity, your administration has continued and is poised to expand the discriminatory and anti-Black policies of the past. Your administration has the power to turn the page on these harmful and discriminatory policies.” 

Laura Lynch
Laura Lynch
Senior Policy Counsel
AILA

From Laura Lynch @ NILC:

Org. Sign-On Letter to the Admin re: Haitians in Guantánamo Bay or third country agreements

Hi everyone –

This morning, Haitian Bridge Alliance (HBA) along with 288 immigration, civil rights, human rights, and faith-based organizations, sent a letter to President Biden urging him to protect Haitian asylum seekers. In the letter, organizations urged the administration to not send Haitians seeking safety back to Haiti, third countries, or detain them in Guantánamo Bay.

Julia Ainsley from NBC news just published a story featuring this letter, Immigration and rights groups ask Biden administration not to send Haitian migrants to Guantanamo facility.

Julia Edwards Ainsley
Julia Edwards Ainsley
NBC News Correspondent

Immediate Asks:

1. Please use this HBA toolkit to amplify the (1) letter and the (2) NBC news article on social media.

2. Please share the letter with your media contacts using this organizational template letter release from HBA and NILC.

Thank you to everyone that contributed to this effort and to all the organizations that joined this critical letter!

Laura Lynch

Senior Immigration Policy Attorney

National Immigration Law Center

Phone: (202) 579-8163 I Email: lynch@nilc.org

Pronouns: She/Her

**********************

Read the letter at the  above  link.

Pretty much says it all! A Dem Administration abandons the values of racial justice and immigrant justice for some “strategy” that sure escapes me.

It’s not like continuing to “beat up” on Haitians and other migrants of color and threatening to inflict even more extreme violations of legal and  human rights than the Trump Administration has garnered ANY support or acceptance from the far right. They continue to characterize all Administration policies as “open borders,” although nothing could be further from the truth.

Additionally, failure to reinstitute and improve the rule of law at the border for legal asylum seekers has failed to create an orderly process for screening asylum seekers at ports of entry or for refugee status outside the U.S. and timely and generously processing valid claims for protection. The result has been a loss of an important group of  legal immigrants who could have helped reduce inflation and improved the economic outlook. At the same time, shifting asylum screening away from legal ports of entry has overburdened the Border Patrol by forcing everyone seeking protection to cross the border between ports of entry.

As a related point, I defy anyone to explain on what basis some asylum seekers apprehended at the border are allowed to enter and pursue claims and others similarly situated are orbited back into danger with no process whatsoever. It’s certainly NOT the result of the prompt screening by USCIS Asylum Officers that Congress mandated, but the Trump and Biden Administrations have ignored — to everyone’s detriment.

This resulting “disorder at the border” has NOT attracted independent voters to the Administration’s immigration stance. 

At the same time it has driven an unwise and entirely unnecessary wedge between the Administration and 1) Democrats who want “order at the border” and a reduction in extralegal entries; 2) Democrats who believe in strictly honoring our legal, Constitutional, treaty, and human rights obligations to asylum seekers regardless of race; and 3) Democrats who believe that both 1) and 2) are achievable!

I have no idea what the Biden Administration’s “vision” of border law and policy is. But, I can tell you for sure that it’s NOT working and that more, harsher, racially discriminatory enforcement without reinstating our refugee and asylum systems and reforming the totally dysfunctional Immigration Courts is NOT the answer!

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

11-05-22

GARLAND/MAYORKAS UNILATERAL “IN YOUR FACE” 🤮 ASYLUM POLICIES CONTINUE TO INFLAME, OUTRAGE, PROGRESSIVE OPPOSITION! — More Haste Makes Waste “Special Asylum Dockets,” Continuation Of “Miller Lite” Racist/Misogynist Anti-Asylum Policies, Unqualified Judges, Likely To Deny Due Process, Create Aimless Docket Reshuffling, Increase Backlogs — Congress Needs To Remove Immigration Courts From Garland’s Dysfunctional DOJ — Now!


Miller Lite
“Miller Lite” – Garland’s Vision of “Justice @ Justice” for Communities of Color

Here’s yet another  “big middle finger” 🖕 to progressives and experts from Garland and Mayorkas:

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Office of Public Affairs
DHS and DOJ Announce Dedicated Docket Process for More Efficient Immigration Hearings
WASHINGTON – Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas and Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a new Dedicated Docket process to more expeditiously and fairly make decisions in immigration cases of families who arrive between ports of entry at the Southwest Border.  This new process should significantly decrease the amount of time it takes for migrants to have their cases adjudicated while still providing fair hearings for families seeking asylum at the border.

“Families arriving at the border who are placed in immigration proceedings should have their cases decided in an orderly, efficient, and fair manner,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas.  “Families who have recently arrived should not languish in a multi-year backlog; today’s announcement is an important step for both justice and border security.”

“The mission of the Department of Justice’s immigration courts is to decide the cases that come before them promptly and fairly,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland.  “This new program for certain newly arriving families will help achieve that critically important goal.”

Under this new process, certain recently arrived families may be placed on the Dedicated Docket.  Families may qualify if they are apprehended between ports of entry on or after Friday, May 28, 2021, placed in removal proceedings, and enrolled in Alternatives to Detention (ATD).  DHS, in partnership with the Department of Justice (DOJ) Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), will make available information services to help families understand the immigration system and refer families to pro bono legal service providers for possible representation.

EOIR has identified immigration courts in 10 cities with established communities of legal services providers and available judges to handle the cases.  The designated cities are Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York City, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle.

Under the Dedicated Docket, EOIR’s immigration judges will work generally to issue a decision within 300 days of the initial master calendar hearing, subject to the unique circumstances of each case including allowing time for families to seek representation where needed.  While the goal of this process is to decide cases expeditiously, fairness will not be compromised.

# # #

U.S. Department of Homeland Security
www.dhs.gov

Here are “statements in opposition” from the National Immigrant Justice Center and Human Rights First:

https://immigrantjustice.org/press-releases/bidens-return-failed-immigration-court-rocket-docket-will-deprive-asylum-seekers

https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/press-release/human-rights-first-concerned-biden-plan-risks-new-rocket-dockets-when-it-should-end#.YLEQ7NuEm7k.twitter

Here’s the “statement of outrage and solidarity in opposition from the experts at the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies at Hastings Law:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Brianna Krong, (415) 581-8835, krongbrianna@uchastings.edu

CGRS Concerned Biden Policies Will Undermine Fairness, Endanger Refugee Families
San Francisco, CA (May 28, 2021) – The Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS) is deeply concerned by today’s announcement that the Biden administration will begin fast-tracking asylum cases for certain families seeking refuge. By establishing a “dedicated docket” for asylum-seeking families, the administration will sacrifice fairness in the name of speed, adopting a misguided approach that under both the Obama and Trumpadministrations contributed to record backlogs in the immigration system, eroded due process, and endangered lives. Instead of reviving the failed policies of past administrations, the Biden administration should swiftly end cruel and illegal Trump-era policies and fully restore safe asylum processing at the southern border.
Today’s announcement arrives at a time when families seeking asylum face enormous roadblocks to safety and justice. Over four months into its first term, the Biden administration has failed to end myriad Trump-era policies that continue to place refugees at risk of grave violence, and even death. It is shameful that the administration is prioritizing fast-tracked adjudications while continuing to illegally expel asylum seekers to danger under the widelydebunked pretext of the pandemic. So long as the Title 42 policy remains in place, there can be no safe or fair process for asylum seekers.
The Biden administration also has yet to address Trump policies that have gutted protections for people escaping domestic violence and gang brutality, including many of the families impacted by this new policy. Until Attorney General Garlandtakes action to reverse these policies, the asylum system will remain rigged against families fleeing violence in their homes and communities, who will be wrongly denied protection and ordered deported to the very dangers they’ve fled. Rushing adjudications will make it even more difficult for these families to find safety, further undermining any semblance of fairness in the asylum process.
“CGRS and our partners have set forth a clearroadmap for the Biden administration to adjudicate asylum cases in a timely manner and mitigate backlogs, all while improving fairness and protecting due process,” CGRS Legal Director Blaine Bookey said today. “As advocates, we’ve been down this road before. We know policies that rush asylum adjudications fail to keep families and children safe. We implore the administration not to make the mistake of putting speed above justice.”’
Advocates, asylum seekers, and communities are coming together to demand an asylum system that provides every person a safe and fair opportunity to seek protection, with full access to legal representation and community-based support. The Biden administration should put humanity first, reject the cruel policies of the past, and welcome people seeking asylum with dignity.
Brianna Krong | Communications and Advocacy Coordinator
(415) 581-8835 (Phone) | (415) 581-8824 (Fax)
krongbrianna@uchastings.edu
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Request Assistance or Report an Outcome in Your Asylum Case
Woman Tortured
“She struggled madly in the torturing Ray” — At DOJ, Garland, Lisa Monaco, Vanita Gupta, and Kristen Clarke appear to regard refugee women applying for asylum at the Southern Border as “less than human.” Human dignity is a bad joke in Garland’s “Star Chambers.”
Amazing StoriesArtist Unknown, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Here are other initial comments from asylum experts:

I don’t think there was any consultation w/ private bar. NGOs are very upset. Biden administration just held a q and a about two hours ago to answer NGO questions but there’s a lot of unknowns remaining.

Lots of NGOs are off today because of the long weekend but many are working to respond to this and the President’s budget.

See NGO press release in response to President’s budget:

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For Immediate Release: May 28, 2021

Contact: press@wearehome.us

We Are Home Campaign Deeply Disappointed by Biden’s DHS Budget Request

Calls on Congress to Do Better

 

Washington, DC —President Biden’s FY 2022 budget, released today, requests $2.7 billion from Congress for ICE detention – almost the same amount enacted by Congress last year under the Trump Administration. It includes funds for 2,500 family detention beds. Alongside recent increases in the number of people jailed by ICE, this budget request is an alarming signal that DHS and the President are not heeding the call of the immigrant justice movement to reduce and ultimately end the federal government’s harmful and unnecessary reliance on incarceration for immigration processing.

 

In response to the news, Bridgette Gomez, Director of the We Are Home campaign, said:

 

“We are deeply disappointed to see that DHS plans to continue Trump-era levels of ICE detention. Candidate Biden promised an immigration policy that reflects our highest values as a nation. As president, Biden has repeatedly emphasized his commitment to racial equity. Any plan that doesn’t dramatically shrink ICE’s incarceration system – which mostly jails Black and Brown people – betrays those commitments. We’ll be looking to Congress to do better and cut ICE’s budget significantly.”

 

In March, We Are Home joined the Defund Hate coalition in calling on Congress to cut funding for ICE and CBP by at least 50 percent.

 

In February, the campaign sent comprehensive recommendations to DHS to overhaul enforcement and begin to dismantle the detention and deportation machinery that has devastated millions of families, mostly Black and Brown, and squandered billions of taxpayer dollars. These recommendations included policies to cut detention, including 1) a comprehensive file review of all people in ICE custody, with a presumption of release, and 2) an end to the use of private prisons and state and local jails for ICE detention. The urgency to reduce the detained population is even greater during the pandemic, since people in jails and prisons face particular risk of contracting COVID. ICE has no centralized plan to provide vaccines for people in its custody.”

We Are Home is a nationwide campaign to fight for immigrant communities on three fronts: prioritizing and demanding a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in America; a moratorium and overhaul of interior enforcement; and broad affirmative relief from deportation. We Are Home is co-chaired by Community Change/Community Change Action; National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA)/Care in Action; Service Employees International Union (SEIU); United Farm Workers/UFW Foundation; and United We Dream.

###

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The NGOs are quite upset.Note that this comes days after the Fourth Circuit enforced an IJ’s duty to fully develop the record even in represented cases.And yet here is the administration speeding up the assembly line.

In my view, this will lead to more pro se I-589s being filed.And as Sessions vacated Matter of E-F-H-L-, there is now no safeguard in either case law or regs preventing IJs from summarily denying those I-589s for e.g. failing to correctly delineate a PSG.

I can’t for the life of me understand this administration’s determination topreserveTrump’s policies.

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Quick takes:

  • Because the system would depend almost entirely on NGOs and pro bono groups to provide counsel, developing policies without consulting those groups or providing grants to increase representation is totally inappropriate, not to mention stupid and insulting;
  • Special expedited asylum dockets have failed in the last two Administrations, so why try a “proven failure” once again?
  • Assigning certain Immigration Judges to these “priority dockets” –  without first removing non-priority cases from the docket, will result in more “Aimless Docket Reshuffling” and increased backlogs;
  • As a recent article by respected experts Professor Karen Musalo and Professor Stephen Legomsky shows, the current system has been “gamed against asylum seekers” by both EOIR and DHS;  https://www.justsecurity.org/76671/asylum-and-the-three-little-words-that-can-spell-life-or-death/; without radical progressive changes, the new policy will just produce more unfairness;
Karen Musalo
Professor Karen Musalo
Director, Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, Hastings Law
Stephen Legomsky
Professor Stephen H. Legomsky
Emeritus Professor of Law. & Former USG Senior Executive
Washington U. Law
PHOTO: Washington U. Law website
  • The 10 Immigration Courts selected for this project have widely varying asylum denial rates. For example, for the period 2015-20, according to TRAC, El Paso (an “Asylum Free Zone”) had a denial rate of 90% and New York a denial rate of 32%. How can a system including such extremes be “fair?”
  • As recent litigation has pointed out, Garland’s Immigration Judges are making basic mistakes and failing to develop records in their rush to screw asylum seekers. Without bringing in expert judges and emphasizing fairness, scholarship, record development, and quality above bureaucratic, enforcement related goals, this proposal is going to increase the due process disaster in Garland’s broken “courts;” https://immigrationcourtside.com/2021/05/26/%e2%9a%96%ef%b8%8f%f0%9f%97%bd4th-circuit-blasts-garland-eoirs-indolent-haste-make-waste-denial-centric-asylum-adjudication-in-another-victory-for-round-table-due-proces/
  • In just a short time, Garland’s outrageous mishandling of the Immigration Courts, and his disdain for expert progressive advice and appointments, shows exactly why Congress must remove these “courts” from the incompetent and biased administration of the DOJ and create an independent U.S. Immigration Court;
  • Until that happens, progressives and advocates will have to deal with Garland’s “in your face arrogance and ignorance” the same way they dealt with Sessions and Barr — with massive resistance and unending litigation until Garland’s corrupt, incompetent, biased system grinds to a halt.

Turning potential powerful and helpful friends into motivated and committed enemies! Seems pretty stupid to me. 

Stephen Miller rightfully made lots of enemies with his racist, neo-Nazi shenanigans. But, he did please and energize his nativist, White Nationalist supporters!

By contrast, Garland has rapidly turned progressive supporters into enemies. But, he won’t get one iota of appreciation or support from Miller and his White Nationalist nativist supporters in the GOP.

Creating policies that are universally opposed or panned. That takes some impressive negative leadership and political idiocy! 

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

05-29-21

🏴‍☠️🤮INJUSTICE @ JUSTICE: MORE PROGRESSIVE NGOS JOIN PROTEST OF CONTINUATION OF “MILLER LITE” REGULATIONS, BAD PRECEDENTS, FAILURE TO REPLACE TRUMP HOLDOVER MANAGERS, JUDGES @ EOIR — 100 Organizations Send Letter To Garland, Monaco, Gupta Requesting Action To Repeal Outrageous, Anti-Due-Process Fee Increases — Stakeholders & Individuals Face Newly Bloated Fees 💸 For The Worst Level Of “Customer Service” 🤡 In American Justice Today!

Stephen Miller Monster
Still on “our” public payroll, still in charge of immigration and racial justice policy @ the Department of “Justice.” Attribution: Stephen Miller Monster by Peter Kuper, PoliticalCartoons.com
Judge Merrick Garland
Attorney General, Hon. Merrick B. Garland — Exactly what does this guy and the rest of his “team” do to earn their pay over at “Justice?” Not much, from a progressive’s point of view! Can’t even seem to work up the initiative to repeal an outrageous “Stephen Miller Special” fee regulation @ EOIR! Official White House Photo
Public Realm

 

May 21, 2021

The Honorable Merrick Garland Attorney General of the United States United States Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530-0001

The Honorable Vanita Gupta Associate Attorney General

United States Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530-0001

The Honorable Lisa Monaco

Deputy Attorney General of the United States United States Department of Justice

950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20530-0001

The Honorable Jean King

Acting Director

Executive Office for Immigration Review 5107 Leesburg Pike, 18th Floor

Falls Church, Virginia 22041

Re: Request to Repeal EOIR Rule Imposing Draconian Fee Increases for Critical Immigration Filings

Dear Attorney General Garland, Deputy Attorney General Monaco, Associate Attorney General Gupta, and Acting Director King:

The undersigned are refugee and immigrants’ rights advocacy organizations, legal services providers, law school professors, and providers of other services and supports for unaccompanied children, adults, and families in proceedings before the Immigration Courts or the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board).1 We write to address the EOIR Fees Rule, finalized by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) in the waning days of the previous administration, which adopts a harsh new fee schedule for applications, motions, and appeals in Immigration Court and BIA proceedings.2

The EOIR Fees Rule is in every way contrary to the principles of our nation’s legal system and to the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to improving the operation of the Immigration Courts and protecting the vulnerable individuals who appear before them.3 We understand that this Rule is among the anti-immigrant and anti-refugee rules under review pursuant to the February 2, 2021 Executive Order on Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Integration and Inclusion Efforts for New Americans.4 We urge DOJ and EOIR to take the steps necessary to repeal the EOIR Fees Rule and ensure that any further rulemaking involving fees in EOIR proceedings adheres to the principle that no person be denied due process

1 As you are aware, the Executive Office for Immigration Review, within the Department of Justice, oversees the Immigration Courts and the Board of Immigration Appeals and sets the policies governing these adjudicative bodies.

2 Department of Justice and Executive Office for Immigration Review; Fee Review, 85 Fed. Reg. 82750 (Dec. 18, 2020).

3 The White House has issued several Executive Orders and proposed legislation, the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, that convey the Biden Administration’s transformative vision and commitment to building a 21st century immigration system that welcomes immigrants and refugees and keeps families together. See, e.g., The White House, Fact Sheet: President Biden Sends Immigration Bill to Congress as Part of His Commitment to Modernize our Immigration System (Jan. 20, 2021).

4 Executive Order 14012, 86 Fed. Reg. 8277, 8277-80 (Feb. 5, 2021).

May 21, 2021 Page 2

or access to asylum and other congressionally-authorized protection from deportation based on inability to pay.

Overview: The EOIR Fees Rule Creates Unacceptable Barriers to Justice

The EOIR Fees Rule imposes excessive fees on already vulnerable noncitizens—many of them unrepresented—seeking to defend their liberty, and often their lives, in proceedings before the Immigration Courts and the BIA. The new fees apply to the filing of applications, appeals, and motions that are integral to due process and to access to humanitarian protection and relief from deportation that Congress intended be available to those who are eligible. They include, for example, a nearly 9-fold increase to file an administrative appeal, which is a prerequisite to federal court review.

The new fees erect an insurmountable barrier to justice. The consequences of this impeded access are severe. Long-time immigrants face permanent exile from the country they consider home and permanent separation from loved ones, who oftentimes are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents. For those fleeing persecution or torture, a financial barrier to humanitarian protection can mean death. Those who will suffer a wrongful deportation as a result of the EOIR Fees Rule thus face the gravest impact, but the harm for those left behind will also be devastating.5

The gravity of the harms posed by the EOIR Fees Rule has not been felt, but that is only because a federal district court issued a nationwide preliminary injunction stopping nearly all of the new fees from taking effect.6 The threat nevertheless remains until the EOIR Fees Rule is formally vacated by the court or a new rulemaking rights the course.

A fundamental value of our nation’s system of laws is that access to justice and basic liberty not hinge on one’s wealth or lack thereof. Repeal of the EOIR Fees Rule is critical to restoring trust in the nation’s legal immigration system and ensuring that no person is deprived of a full and

5 Numerous studies have documented a range of harms flowing from deportation-forced family separations, including income, housing, and nutritional instability, trauma, and poor health and education outcomes. In view of these and other harms, the District of Columbia and the States of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington filed an amicus curiae brief, available at https://bit.ly/3whOiEH, in support of litigation challenging the EOIR Fees Rule. As other studies have shown, these harms fall disproportionately to those who are unrepresented in their proceedings and to their families because not having counsel substantially decreases the likelihood of prevailing in removal proceedings. See, e.g., Ingrid Eagly & Steven Shafe, American Immigration Council, Access to Counsel in Immigration Court (Sept. 28, 2016), https://bit.ly/3uKOj3z. As noted here and in comments opposing the EOIR Fees Rule, the new fees will diminish access to counsel.

6 Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. v. Executive Office of Immigration Review, No. 20-CV- 03812, — F. Supp. 3d –, 2021 WL 184359 (D.D.C. Jan. 18, 2021) (Mehta, J.). In enjoining the new fees, the Court focused on the failure of DOJ and EOIR, under the prior administration, to consider the EOIR Fees Rule’s impact on legal services providers and the diminished access to counsel that would result for indigent adults, families, and unaccompanied children in proceedings before EOIR. See id. As discussed further below, the Rule’s promulgation violated the Administrative Procedure Act’s substantive and procedural requirements for rulemaking in a host of additional ways.

May 21, 2021 Page 3

fair day in court based on an inability to pay. Indeed, given the nature of the proceedings at issue here, the attachment of fees itself ought to be questioned in the first instance. And if fees are to be required at all, they should be returned to their previous level or lower, and be coupled with a principled, transparent fee waiver process that ensures there is access to justice, without unduly burdening legal services providers and adjudicators.

The Trump Administration’s EOIR Fees Rule: Unprecedented Increases for Appeals, Motions, Applications for Relief from Removal; a New Mandatory Asylum Application Fee; Violations of the Administrative Procedure Act; and Disregard for Access to Justice

A. The Fees Rule Imposed Radical Multi-Fold Fee Increases for Critical Filings.

The EOIR Fees Rule dramatically increased fees to file appeals, motions to reopen or reconsider, and applications for cancellation of removal or suspension of deportation. The Rule increased nearly 9-fold the fee for appealing removal orders to the BIA (from $110 to $975), raised more than 8-fold the cost of motions to the BIA to reopen or reconsider (from $110 to $895), increased fees more than 5-fold to appeal certain DHS decisions to the BIA (from $110 to $595), and more than tripled the fees to apply for cancellation of removal (from $100 to $305 for cancellation of removal for lawful permanent residents (LPRs) or suspension of deportation and from $100 to $360 for non-LPR cancellation). With the exception of the fee to file a motion to reopen or reconsider (increased over 30%) before an Immigration Judge, every increase substantially exceeded the rate of inflation for the period of time since the fees were last adjusted.7

B. The Fees Rule Added an Unprecedented, Non-Waivable, Defensive Asylum Fee.

The EOIR Fees Rule also for the first time ever imposed a fee to file an asylum application before the Immigration Court. DOJ and EOIR attributed imposition of this mandatory, non- waivable asylum application fee to the Department of Homeland Security’s adoption of such a fee for affirmative asylum applications submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). But in fact it was an independent, voluntary decision on the part of DOJ and EOIR to require the fee for the very different context of defensive asylum application filings.

DOJ and EOIR adopted this fee without examining the notable differences in the circumstances of those who can apply affirmatively for asylum and those who must apply defensively in Immigration Court proceedings—including that proceedings before the Asylum Office are non-adversarial and affirmative asylum applicants may have other lawful immigration status at the time of filing whereas defensive asylum applicants frequently are detained, have often only recently arrived in the United States with just the clothes on their backs, and lack work authorization at the time of filing. DOJ and EOIR also made no assessment of the impact that a mandatory fee would be expected to have on access to asylum and related humanitarian protection.

7 See Executive Office for Immigration Review; Fee Review, 85 Fed. Reg. 11866, 11870 (Feb. 28, 2020).

May 21, 2021 Page 4

C. Promulgation of the EOIR Fees Rule Violated the Administrative Procedure Act.

The rulemaking that led to these fee increases violated the letter and spirit of Administrative Procedure Act by preventing meaningful notice and comment by the public. For the entire comment period, DOJ and EOIR withheld the data and much of the methodology for the study on which they based the proposed fee increases. The agency also failed to disclose the data it possessed regarding fee waivers and provided no information addressing the expected impact that fee increases would have on an already problematic fee waiver system. The inadequate record hindered public comment by depriving the public of crucial information relating to the putative basis for the EOIR Fees Rule.

Additionally, the comment period was limited to 30 days, during the onset of the COVID- 19 pandemic-driven lockdown in the United States that forced businesses, courts, government agencies, nonprofit services providers, schools, and daycare providers to close their doors and to move to a new world of remote work. The comment period was not extended despite repeated requests for more time.

The public’s ability to meaningfully comment on the impact of the proposed fee increases was also hobbled because DOJ and EOIR waited until the comment period closed before announcing a series of interrelated rulemakings that would exacerbate the impact of the fee increases.8

Finally, the agency issued the final rule without adequately addressing the concerns raised in the comments that were filed about how the proposed rules would lock low-income individuals out of court because of the inadequacy of EOIR’s fee waiver practices and deprive them of legal representation by devastating the legal services providers on whom they rely.

D. The EOIR Fees Rule Violates the Biden Administration’s Stated Values and Fundamental Principles of Fairness, Access, and Due Process.

The most serious flaws of the EOIR Fees Rule include the following.

1. Requiring noncitizens to bear nearly the full cost of adjudications in adversarial proceedings reverses decades of agency policy and defies legal norms.

EOIR is an appropriated agency, not one that is fee-based. Nonetheless, in a sharp departure from decades-long policy, the EOIR Fees Rule employed an “activity-based” or “cost recovery” model that assigned to respondents in removal proceedings the dollar value of nearly all of the staff time involved in processing, adjudicating, and transmitting Immigration Judge and BIA

8 See, e.g., Procedures for Asylum and Withholding of Removal; Credible Fear and Reasonable Fear Review, 85 Fed. Reg. 36,264 (June 15, 2020); Appellate Procedures and Decisional Finality in Immigration Proceedings; Administrative Closure, 85 Fed. Reg. 52,491 (Aug. 26, 2020); Procedures for Asylum and Withholding of Removal, 85 Fed. Reg. 59,692 (Sept. 23, 2020); see also Centro Legal de la Raza v. EOIR, No. 21-CV-00463-SI, 2021 WL 916804, at *26 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 10, 2021) (noting serious concerns with staggered, piecemeal rulemaking by EOIR, including the EOIR Fees Rule).

May 21, 2021 Page 5

decisions on motions, appeals, and applications for cancellation of removal or suspension of deportation.9

EOIR is an adjudicative body. Nearly all the proceedings before it are adversarial and initiated and prosecuted by the Government. We are aware of no judicial or quasi-judicial adversarial proceedings in which any party—let alone the one whose liberty is at stake—bears nearly the entire cost of the court staff time involved in adjudicating a motion, an appeal, or an application of the type that is presented in immigration court as a defense to removal.10 The decision to employ a cost recovery model and impose such radical fee increases was a marked and unjustified departure from decades of agency commitment to keeping costs “at less than full recovery recognizing longstanding public policy and the interest served by these processes.”11

2. A new mandatory asylum fee defies the Biden Administration’s commitment to undoing the prior administration’s evisceration of U.S. asylum law and policy.

The decision to adopt an asylum application fee, let alone one that would be mandatory and not waivable, was also an historic and unjustifiable departure from decades-long policy and the practice of nearly every other party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. A host of concerns were raised when this fee was proposed for affirmative asylum applications.12 As explained above, those concerns apply with even greater force to any fee required for defensive asylum applications, let alone one that is mandatory.

9 The only costs not assigned to respondents under the rule were office overhead, fringe benefits, and certain other costs such as interpreters. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking noted that such costs could not be included because, for example, they would be incurred in any event for other agency work, do not arise in all cases, and/or are infeasible to calculate because they hinge on decisions such as individual employee benefits selections. See 85 Fed. Reg. at 11870, 11872.

10 Contrasting examples are abundantly available. To name just a few, unlike the heavy fees here, the fee to file a petition for writ of habeas corpus in federal court is only $5, and there is no cost for any level of administrative review of the denial of Social Security benefits. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) (establishing $5 filing fee for writ of habeas corpus); Social Security Administration, The Appeals Process, Publication No. 05-10041 (Jan. 2018), https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10041.pdf (describing the various levels of administrative review and listing no cost for review). There also is no fee to file a motion for reconsideration in federal district court. Under the EOIR Fees Rule, the fee for an appeal to the BIA is nearly double the cost of docketing an appeal before a federal circuit court and more than twice as high as the fees for filing a complaint in federal court. See U.S. Courts, Court of Appeals Miscellaneous Fee Schedule (Oct. 1, 2019), https://bit.ly/3fke1oO ($500 docketing fee for appeals before the federal courts of appeal); U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Fee Schedule, https://www.dcd.uscourts.gov/fee-schedule (last visited Mar. 24, 2020) ($400 docketing fee for complaint before the federal district court). None of these tribunals seeks to recover anything approximating the full cost of the staff time needed for their adjudications. That is simply not how the justice system works in this country.

11 Powers and Duties of Service Officers; Availability of Service Records, 51 Fed. Reg. 39993, 39993 (Nov. 4, 1986) (Final Rule amending fee schedule of the former INS and EOIR).

12 See, e.g., 85 Fed. Reg. at 46844 (summarizing commenters’ concerns with an affirmative asylum application fee).

May 21, 2021 Page 6

3. The EOIR Fees Rule placed undue reliance on EOIR’s inadequate fee waiver process.

In response to the obvious concerns about the unaffordability of multi-fold increases in fees that many respondents could not afford even at their previous level, DOJ and EOIR pointed to the “possibility” of a fee waiver as protection for indigent respondents.13 The wholesale reliance on this “possibility” was another fundamental flaw of the rulemaking. As evidence in the record made clear, fee waivers were an inadequate safety valve even before promulgation of markedly higher fees.14 Of particular note, there are no clear standards for fee waiver eligibility, and the decision to grant or deny a fee waiver request is entirely discretionary.15 Not surprisingly, fee waiver requests are inconsistently adjudicated, as DOJ and EOIR have themselves admitted.16

4. Fee increases and the increased need for fee waivers harm legal services providers and undermine access to counsel.

Immigration court respondents who have legal representation are substantially more likely to succeed at every stage of their proceedings. But many cannot afford counsel. As comments opposing the EOIR Fees Rule explained, the prior administration’s fee increases ensure that even greater numbers will be forced to go without representation.

In promulgating the Fees Rule, DOJ and EOIR failed to consider the harmful impact of fee increases and a new asylum fee on nonprofit legal services providers and the new fees’ adverse impact on low-income respondents’ access to counsel. Among the expected impacts of the Final Rule was an explosion in the need for fee waivers and the corresponding need for fee waiver requests, adding to the time required for each individual case and diminishing the capacity of legal services providers to provide free or low-cost legal representation to those unable to afford counsel. DOJ and EOIR dismissed these concerns, but as the federal district court that enjoined the bulk of EOIR’s new fees found, “the APA required EOIR to acknowledge those concerns and respond to them in a meaningful way, not blithely dismiss them as ‘outside the limited scope of this rulemaking.’”17

13 See, e.g., 85 Fed. Reg. at 11874.

14 See, e.g., 85 Fed. Reg. at 82758.

15 See 8 C.F.R. §§ 1003.8(a)(3), 1003.24(d); see also DOJ, EOIR POLICY MANUAL pt. II, ch. 3, § 3.4(d)

(“When a fee to file an application or motion is required, the Immigration Judge has the discretion to waive the fee upon a showing that the filing party is unable to pay the fee.”) (Jan. 28, 2020), https://www.justice.gov/eoir/eoir-policy-manual/3/4; id. pt. III, ch. 3, § 3.4(c) (“When an appeal or motion normally requires a filing fee, the Board has the discretion to waive that fee upon a showing of economic hardship or incapacity.”) (last updated Dec. 22, 2020), https://www.justice.gov/eoir/eoir-policy-manual/iii/3/4; 85 Fed. Reg. at 82759 (“fee waivers are discretionary by nature”).

16 See, e.g., 85 Fed. Reg. at 82759 (“differences in adjudicatory outcomes are inherent in any system rooted in adjudicator discretion”); see also id. (“Any calculations attempted by the Department to ‘account for’ the effects of fee waiver adjudications in light of the updated fees would be unreliable because fee waivers are discretionary by nature.”).

17 Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. v. EOIR, No. 20-CV-03812, — F. Supp. 3d –, 2021 WL 184359 (D.D.C. Jan. 18, 2021) (quoting 85 Fed. Reg. at 82775).

May 21, 2021 Page 7

5. The EOIR Fees Rule disregards noncitizens’ inability to pay exorbitant fees and the attendant impact on access.

DOJ and EOIR did not undertake their own examination of the impact that fee increases would have on access to due process and justice before the Immigration Courts and the BIA. The Final Rule then failed to heed the substantial concerns that commenters raised in this regard. Indeed, in the Final Rule’s publication, DOJ and EOIR stated that the agency’s authority to set fees was “not restricted by . . . principles of ‘affordability’ or ‘accessibility.’”18

The Final Rule, embodying this lack of regard for affordability and access, has no place in a system of justice.

Recommendations

The prior administration undermined the strength and integrity of the Immigration Court system in myriad ways. There is much work to be done to ensure that noncitizens in removal proceedings have fair access to justice and the families of those noncitizens and the entire public see the system has integrity. Repealing the EOIR Fees Rule is not sufficient to achieve this end, but it is a necessary step. Toward this end, we make the following recommendations:

1. The EOIR Fees Rule must be repealed. As outlined above, there is reason to question the imposition of fees on Immigration Court respondents at all given the nature of the proceedings and the liberty interests at stake. At a minimum, fees should be restored to their prior level or be lowered.

2. Such repeal should make explicit the principle—long understood until its upending by the EOIR Fees Rule—that no person should be denied access to the appeals, motions, humanitarian protection or other congressionally-authorized protection or relief from removal, based on an inability to pay.

3. The prior administration’s rulemaking exposed deficiencies in EOIR’s approach to fee waivers that should be rectified. Standards should be clear, adjudications should be consistent, and safeguards should be adopted to account for special circumstances to ensure that no person is prevented from filing necessary applications, motions, or appeals because of cost.

4. Exemptions from any required fees should be codified for particularly vulnerable populations, including asylum applicants, children, those who are detained, those lacking representation, and those who are incompetent or otherwise have disabilities that interfere with their ability to access justice.

18 85 Fed. Reg. at 82754.

May 21, 2021 Page 8

5. EOIR must improve its data collection and analysis, ensure transparency, and provide a clear channel for low-income noncitizens to seek a remedy where denial of a fee waiver precludes the filing of any application, motion, or appeal.

In closing, we thank you for the careful review that is underway and your consideration of the foregoing. We look forward to working with the Biden Administration to bring about a more just approach. For further discussion of the EOIR Fees Rule, please contact Avideh Moussavian at moussavian@nilc.org or Jorge Loweree at jloweree@immcouncil.org.

Respectfully submitted,

African Public Affairs Committee

Ahri Center

Alein Haro, University of California, Berkeley*

American Friends Service Committee

American Gateways

American Immigration Council**

American Immigration Lawyers Association

Americans for Immigrant Justice

America’s Voice

Anita Sinha, American University, Washington College of Law*

Anne Schaufele, International Human Rights Law Clinic, American University Washington

College of Law*

Anti-Defamation League (ADL)

Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles Asian Counseling and Referral Service (ACRS) Asian Law Alliance

Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence Asian Resources, Inc

ASISTA

Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP) AsylumWorks

Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture

Black and Brown United in Action

BPSOS Center for Community Advancement Bridges Faith Initiative

Campesinos Sin Fronteras

Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition

CARE Fund

Carol Bohmer, Dartmouth College*

CASA

May 21, 2021 Page 9

Catholic Charities Dallas

Catholic Charities NY, Immigrant and Refugee Services

Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.***

Causa Oregon

Center for Gender & Refugee Studies

Center for Immigrant Advancement (CIMA)

Center for Victims of Torture

Chaldean Community Foundation

Chicanos Por La Causa, Inc.

Church World Service

Cleveland Jobs with Justice

Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA)***

Coalition on Human Needs

Colorado Asylum Center

Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto***

Connecticut Shoreline Indivisible

David B Thronson, Michigan State University College of Law*

Democratic Socialists of America – Coachella Valley

Denise Gilman, University of Texas School of Law*

Desert Support for Asylum Seekers

Education and Leadership Foundation

Elissa Steglich, University of Texas School of Law*

Ellen Forman, LICSW, Massachusetts General Hospital, Social Service Department* Employee Rights Center (ERC)

Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

First Friends of New Jersey and New York

Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project

Free Migration Project

Freedom Network USA

Geoffrey Heeren, University of Idaho College of Law*

Geoffrey Hoffman, University of Houston Law Center*

Greater Portland Family Promise

Haitian Bridge Alliance

HIAS

¡HICA! Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama

Human Rights First

Human Rights Initiative of North Texas

Immigrant Action Alliance

Immigrant Defenders Law Center

Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project

Immigrant Legal Defense

Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) Immigrant Welcome Center

Immigration Advocates Network Immigration Equality

Immigration Hub

Innovation Law Lab

Interfaith Community for Detained Immigrants

International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)

International Rescue Committee

Jaya Ramji-Nogales, Temple University*

Jewish Activists for Immigration Justice of Western MA

Jon Bauer, Asylum and Human Rights Clinic at the University of Connecticut School of Law* Jonathan Weinberg, Wayne State University Law School*

Kate Evans, Duke Immigrant Rights Clinic*

Katie Herbert Meyer, Washington University Immigration Law Clinic*

Kids in Need of Defense (KIND)***

Korean Community Center of the East Bay

La Resistencia

Las Américas Immigrant Advocacy Center

Legal Aid Justice Center

Lincoln United Methodist Church

Louisiana Advocates for Immigrants in Detention

Lutheran Social Services of New York

Lynn Marcus, University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law*

M Isabel Medina, Loyola University New Orleans College of Law*

Make the Road Nevada

Make the Road New York

Memphis United Methodist Immigrant Relief

Mexican American Opportunity Foundation (MAOF)

Mi Familia Vota Nevada

Michael Kagan, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Immigration Clinic*

Michigan Immigrant Rights Center

Migrant Center for Human Rights

Minkwon Center

Mississippi Center for Justice

Mixteco/Indígena Community Organizing Project

National Center for Lesbian Rights

National Health Law Program

National Immigrant Justice Center

National Immigration Forum

National Immigration Law Center**

National Immigration Litigation Alliance

May 21, 2021 Page 10

National Immigration Project (NIP-NLG)

National Network for Immigrant & Refugee Rights

NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice

New Mexico Immigrant Law Center

New Sanctuary Coalition

New York Immigration Coalition

New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG)

North Carolina Asian Americans Together

Northern Illinois Justice for Our Neighbors

Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation

Northwest Immigrant Rights Project

Oasis Legal Services

OCA-Greater Houston

OneAmerica

PARS Equality Center

PG ChangeMakers Coalition

Philip G. Schrag, Georgetown University*

President and CEO, Self-Help for the Elderly

Prisoners’ Legal Services of New York

Project Blueprint

Project Lifeline

Public Counsel

Public Law Center

Pueblo Sin Fronteras/Familia Latina Unida

Puentes de Cristo, Inc.

Quixote Center

RAICES

Rainbow Beginnings

Refugee Action Network of Illinois

RefugeeOne

Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network

SAAVI Michigan

Sanctuary DMV

Sarah H. Paoletti, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School* Sarah R Sherman Stokes, Boston University School of Law* Saratoga Immigration Coalition

Tahirih Justice Center

Takoma Park Mobilization, Equal Justice Committee

Tania Valdez, University of Denver Sturm College of Law*

The Asylum Program of Arizona

The International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit

The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights

May 21, 2021 Page 11

UndocuBlack Network

Unidos Bridging Community

Unitarian Universalist Service Committee

UNITED SIKHS

UnLocal

UpValley Family Centers

Valeria Gomez, University of Connecticut School of Law* VECINA

Volunteers of Legal Service

W.M. Jewish Activists for Immigration Justice Washington Defender Association

Witness at the Border

* The institutional affiliation listed for identification purposes only.

** The National Immigration Law Center and the American Immigration Council are counsel in Cath. Legal Immigr. Network, Inc. v. Exec. Off. for Immigr. Rev., No. 20-CV-03812 (D.D.C.), which seeks to enjoin the EOIR Fee Rule that is the subject of this letter.

*** Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto, and Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) are plaintiffs in Cath. Legal Immigr. Network, Inc. v. Exec. Off. for Immigr. Rev., No. 20-CV- 03812 (D.D.C.), which seeks to enjoin the EOIR Fee Rule that is the subject of this letter.

cc: Susan Rice, Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy

Esther Olavarria, Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council for Immigration

Tyler Moran, Special Assistant to the President for Immigration, Domestic Policy Council Margy O’Herron, Senior Counsel, Office of the Deputy Attorney General, Department of Justice

May 21, 2021 Page 12

*************************

Thanks to my good friend and NDPA Superstar Laura Lynch over at NILC for reporting and forwarding this!

Laura Lynch
Laura Lynch
Senior Immigration Policy Counsel
National Immigration Law Center

How many “Team Garland” officials at DOJ does it take to change a light bulb? 

A: About the same number as the total of EOIR “managers” over the past two decades who have failed to provide any semblance of an operational, nationwide e-filing system (perhaps this would have been useful during COVID?) for the past 20 years and then had the “chutzpah” to astronomically raise filing fees for the public to cover up and divert attention from DOJ/EOIR’s gross incompetence and contempt for “good government.” 

Yeah, these problems were there when Garland arrived. But, his failure for going on three months to take the elementary steps necessary to repeal Trump-era travesties makes him complicit! Rescinding a totally unjustified regulation, panned by progressive groups across the board, would be about a four-hour job for an expert who knew what they were doing. Too bad the basic progressive changes necessary to restore sanity @ EOIR appear to be “above the pay grade” of Team Garland. 

Pity us poor American taxpayers! We are still footing the bill for Stephen Miller to continue his work for former President Trump (outrageous🤮). https://www.salon.com/2021/05/18/stephen-miller-and-more-than-15-other-trump-aides-still-getting-paid-by-taxpayers-report_partner/

We also are paying “top dollar (for USG) for Garland, Monaco, and Gupta NOT to undo any of the racist, misogynist White Nationalist policies Miller and his cronies instituted at Justice, NOT to remove all of the unqualified Sessions/Barr/Miller “plants” at EOIR, and, get this, to mindlessly CONTINUE TO HIRE less qualified, non-progressive, non-expert, non-diverse Immigration “Judges” under a totally discredited, biased, anti-diversity process developed under Miller, Sessions, and Barr FOR THE SPECIFIC PURPOSE OF PRODUCING A XENOPHOBIC, ANTI-DUE-PROCESS, ANTI-ASYLUM “JUDICIARY @ EOIR” (doubly outrageous 🤮🤮)!

Let’s be clear about this: Every day that Garland & co. continue to dwaddle over long overdue progressive reforms @ EOIR means innocent lives and futures — futures that will be essential to our national success —  are flushed down the toilet by EOIR. 🚽 This human damage is both irresponsible and irreparable! Garland’s inaction and lack of expertise and concern about immigration, human rights, and due process is also a DIRECT INSULT to legions of advocates — all members of the NDPA — who have put their professional lives, as well as in many cases their health and safety, “on the line” to save vulnerable lives and preserve American democracy against the Trump/Miller onslaught! And, this is the “thanks” they get from Garland and others who spent the last few years in the “ivory tower” of the Article III appellate judiciary or otherwise above the fray and out of the line of fire! Simply unacceptable!

Not what we expected nor what we deserved from the Biden Administration and “Team Garland” @ (continuing parody of) “Justice!”

“TEAM GARLAND” TO ASYLUM SEEKERS & THEIR LAWYERS:  “OF COURSE, YOU SHOULD PAY MORE, MUCH MUCH MORE, FOR THESE TYPES OF “CUSTOMER SERVICES” FROM EOIR! WHERE ELSE IN THE AMERICAN JUSTICE SYSTEM COULD YOU GET THIS LEVEL OF “RED CAPRET” TREATMENT (CUSTOM DESIGNED BY STEPHEN MILLER HIMSELF):

Star Chamber Justice
“Justice”
Star Chamber
Style
Woman Tortured
“She struggled madly in the torturing Ray”
Amazing StoriesArtist Unknown, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

PWS

05-22-21

🗽BIDEN IMMIGRATION BILL: Here’s The National Immigration Law Center’s (“NILC”) Analysis Of The Key Provisions Of The U.S. Citizenship Act!

https://www.nilc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/USCA-key-provisions-summary.pdf

Here’s the section relating to the Immigration Courts:

Title IV: Immigration Courts, Family Values, and Vulnerable Individuals

We are facing a due process crisis in the immigration courts. Nearly 1.3 million cases are currently pending in a structurally flawed system housed within a

prosecutorial agency, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).4 While this bill

4 https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/637/.

10

falls short of creating an independent Article I immigration court,5 provisions in the bill would improve court operations and enhance due process protections for individuals facing highly complex immigration court proceedings that

often raise issues of life and death.6 Even though representation is often

the single greatest factor in determining whether an individual will obtain relief in removal proceedings,7 low-income immigrants and people in immigration detention face significant barriers to obtaining counsel. This bill calls for expanding alternatives to detention and authorizes funding for the appointment of counsel for children and vulnerable noncitizens. Provisions in this bill also provide for an expansion of DOJ’s Legal Orientation Program and greater access to legal information for immigrants who are not

detained. These are important steps in the right direction, but the bill falls short of ending civil immigration detention and establishing a much-needed universal representation program.8

Judicial diversity encourages fair decision-making, but DOJ’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) has a long history of politicized

hiring,9 resulting in a supermajority of judges on the bench who have prosecutorial backgrounds. This bill calls for the hiring of additional immigration judges (IJs) and Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) members who are experts in immigration law, and it encourages the hiring of IJs who have diverse experience, including people from the private sector. The bill also requires EOIR to conduct mandatory continuing legal and diversity training for IJs and BIA members. Additional steps must be taken to ensure critical oversight into the hiring process, promote diversity, and eliminate harassment in the immigration courts.10

Also included in this bill are provisions to protect vulnerable individuals. The bill eliminates the one-year filing deadline for asylum claims and increases access to employment authorization for people seeking asylum and for U and T visa applicants, ensuring that vulnerable populations seeking refuge in the U.S. will be able to work and support their families while their immigration cases are pending.

5 https://www.aila.org/advo-media/aila-correspondence/2020/advocates-call-on-congress-

establish-independent.

6 https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/im-an-immigration-judge-heres-how-we-can-fix-our-

courts/2019/04/12/76afe914-5d3e-11e9-a00e-050dc7b82693_story.html.

7 https://bit.ly/3q310Uh.

8 https://www.vera.org/advancing-universal-representation-toolkit/the-case-for-universal- representation-1.

9 https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/release/senators-press-barr-on-politicization-of- justice-department-administration-of-immigration-courts.

10 https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/Sexually-inappropriate-behavior-runs-rife-

in-15889003.php.

FEBRUARY 2021

11

The bill calls for expanding alternatives to detention and authorizes funding for the appointment of counsel for children and vulnerable noncitizens.

X Provides for appointing counsel for children and vulnerable noncitizens. Authorizes funding for and requires DOJ to appoint or provide counsel

for children, vulnerable individuals, and other people where necessary. Requires DHS to provide copies of their immigration files to individuals who are in immigration court proceedings.

X Requires access to legal orientation programs and access to counsel. Requires legal orientation programs to be available for all noncitizens in immigration detention. DHS must provide access to counsel inside all immigration detention facilities and border facilities.

X Increases access to legal information. Expands the help desk program

to all immigration courts, providing non-detained individuals who have pending asylum claims access to information related to immigration status. Requires DHS to provide copies of their immigration files to people who are in immigration court proceedings.

X Expands alternatives to detention. Expands the family case management program and requires DHS to develop additional community-based programs. People enrolled in these programs will receive legal orientations.

X Increases immigration court hiring. Requires DOJ to increase the number of IJs on the bench, hire additional BIA staff attorneys, and provide sufficient support staff. In hiring the new IJs and BIA members, DOJ is instructed to select people from diverse backgrounds, including from the nonprofit sector and the private bar and people with academic experience.

X Expands training for IJs and members of the BIA. Requires the EOIR

to conduct mandatory training for IJs and members of the BIA, including continuing legal training and training on age, gender, and trauma sensitivity.

X Directs EOIR to modernize technology. Requires the EOIR director to modernize electronic systems, including by allowing electronic filing, to improve court proceedings.

X Eliminates barriers to asylum and protects vulnerable populations. Removes the one-year time limit for filing an asylum claim. Increases protections for U visa, T visa, and VAWA applicants by providing them with a rebuttable presumption of release from detention and prohibiting the removal of these applicants from the U.S. while an application is pending. Increases the number of U visas, which are available to some crime victims, from the current cap of 10,000 to 30,000 per year.

FEBRUARY 2021

12

In hiring new IJs and BIA members, DOJ is instructed to select people from diverse backgrounds, including from the nonprofit sector and the private bar and people with academic experience.

X Increases access to employment authorization for people seeking U and T visas and protection under VAWA. People seeking U and T visas shall and must be granted employment authorization on the date their application is approved or a date to be determined by the DHS secretary within 180 days of submitting their petition, whichever is earlier. Employment authorization is issued for two years, with the possibility of renewal.

X Increases access to employment authorization for people seeking asylum. Provides that DHS shall grant employment authorization to bona fide and non-detained asylum-seekers within 180 days after they file their asylum application with DHS or DOJ.

***************************

The improvements to the Immigration Courts are all helpful. But, as the NILC points out, they fall short of what’s really needed: An independent Article I Immigration Court. One thing the bill does address, lack of diversity and immigration/human rights expertise among EOIR judicial hires (over the past three Administrations) is a glaring problem and hinderance to achieving due process and fundamental fairness.

Thanks to my friend and NDPA superstar Laura Lynch, Senior Immigration Policy Attorney at the NILC for passing this along.

⚖️🗽🇺🇸🧑🏽‍⚖️Due Process Forever!

PWS

03-03-21 

THE GIBSON REPORT — 03-01-21 — Compiled By Elizabeth Gibson, Esquire, NY Legal Assistance Group — FEATURING: Under The EOIR Big Top 🎪 Robed TV Carnival Barkers Hand Out Death Sentences ☠️ With Ignorance, Indolence, Indifference, & Insult To Injury!

Elizabeth Gibson
Elizabeth Gibson
Attorney, NY Legal Assistance Group
Publisher of “The Gibson Report”

COVID-19 & Closures

Note: Policies are rapidly changing, so please verify information with the government and colleagues.

 

EOIR Status Overview & EOIR Court Status Map/List: Hearings in non-detained cases at courts without an announced date are postponed through, and including, March 19, 2021 (The timing of postponement notices has been inconsistent and it is unclear when the next announcement will be. EOIR announced 3/19 on Wed. 2/10, 2/19 on Mon. 1/25, 2/5 on Mon. 1/11, and 1/22 on Mon. 12/28). There is no announced date for reopening NYC non-detained at this time.

 

USCIS Office Closings, Including Weather

 

TOP NEWS

 

Biden revokes Trump ban on many green card applicants

Reuters: U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday revoked a proclamation from his predecessor that blocked many green card applicants from entering the United States.

 

Biden to allow migrant families separated under Trump to reunite in the U.S.

Politico: ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero was quick to welcome Mayorkas’ announcement, but cautioned that “the devil is in the details and Secretary Mayorkas has to shed all the caveats and qualifications around his announcement and follow through with everything that’s necessary to right the wrong.” See also Lawyers have found the parents of 105 separated migrant children in past month.

 

Biden to Discuss Border and Other Issues With Mexican President

NYT: The two leaders, who previously talked about ways to stem migration in a call on Jan. 22, just days after Mr. Biden took office, are expected to discuss addressing the root causes of persecution and poverty that force Central American families to flee to the United States.

 

First migrant facility for children opens under Biden

WaPo: Government officials say the camp is needed because facilities for migrant children have had to cut capacity by nearly half because of the coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, the number of unaccompanied children crossing the border has been inching up, with January reporting the highest total — more than 5,700 apprehensions — for that month in recent years.

 

Federal judge deals Biden another blow on 100-day deportation ban

Politico: U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton granted a preliminary injunction that blocks the moratorium the Biden administration announced on its first day.

 

ICE investigators used a private utility database covering millions to pursue immigration violations

WaPo: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have tapped a private database containing hundreds of millions of phone, water, electricity and other utility records while pursuing immigration violations, according to public documents uncovered by Georgetown Law researchers and shared with The Washington Post.

 

The Trump Administration’s Cruelty Haunts Our Virtual Immigration Courts

InTheseTimes: According to the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) — the Justice Department agency that oversees these immigration adjudication centers — nearly 300,000 asylum cases have been heard via videoconference in the past two years.

 

In The Story Of U.S. Immigration, Black Immigrants Are Often Left Out

NPR: Nana Gyamfi, Executive Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, tells NPR’s Scott Simon about challenges Black immigrants to the U.S. face.

 

Consumer watchdog sues immigration services company, claiming it preys on detainees

NBC: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday filed a lawsuit against Libre by Nexus, claiming the company is preying on immigrants through a bond scam that traps participants into paying expensive fees.

 

The five biggest omissions in massive Biden immigration bill

Examiner: Protocols for caring for families and children, border wall infrastructure, decriminalizing illegal immigration, immigration courts, employment-based immigration, and private detention facilities were not addressed in either the House or Senate versions of the bill.

 

LITIGATION/CASELAW/RULES/MEMOS

 

USCIS Launches Pilot Program to Facilitate Attorney or Representative Remote Participation in an Asylum Interview

USCIS has launched a temporary pilot program to facilitate attorney or representative participation in an asylum interview from a remote location via video or telephone. The pilot program is available only at the Arlington, Boston, Miami, Newark, and Newark/Manhattan Branch asylum offices. AILA Doc. No. 21030131

 

2nd Circ. Judge Dings Majority’s ‘Uncharitable’ Asylum Ruling

Law360: A fractured Second Circuit panel tossed an El Salvadoran asylum seeker’s appeal, finding that his opposition to gangs was not a political opinion and that he could avoid future beatings, a view the dissenting judge called an “uncharitable” interpretation of the case.

 

BIA Rules on Special Rule Cancellation of Removal

BIA ruled that an applicant for special rule cancellation of removal under INA §240A(b)(2) based on spousal abuse must demonstrate both that the abuser was their lawful spouse and was either a U.S. citizen or LPR at the time of the abuse. Matter of L-L-P-, 28 I&N Dec. 241 (BIA 2021) AILA Doc. No. 21022432

 

Justices ‘Baffled,’ ‘Confused’ By Asylum Cases

Law360: A pair of thorny immigration cases “baffled” and “confused” the inquisitive justices of the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday as they wrestled with when testimony of asylum applicants must be presumed to be credible.

 

District Court Indefinitely Stops Government from Executing a 100-Day Moratorium on Removals

A district court grants nationwide preliminary injunction to prohibit enforcement and implementation of the 100-day pause on removals as outlined in the 1/20/21 DHS memo. (State of Texas v. USA, et al., 2/23/21) AILA Doc. No. 21012634

 

Presidential Proclamation Revoking Immigrant Visa Ban

On 2/24/21, President Biden issued Proclamation 10149 revoking Proclamation 10014, section 1 of Proclamation 10052, and section 1 of Proclamation 10131, which suspended immigrant visas due to the 2019 novel Coronavirus outbreak. (86 FR 11847, 3/1/21) AILA Doc. No. 21022490

 

DOS Provides Update on the Phased Resumption of Routine Visa Services

DOS updates its announcement and FAQs on the phased resumption of visa services following the rescission of Presidential Proclamation 10014, which suspended the entry of certain immigrant visa applicants into the United States. AILA Doc. No. 20071435

 

DOJ Appeals Ruling Limiting Immigrant Detentions Without a Court Hearing

Documented: Judge Alison Nathan’s Nov. 30 ruling  at U.S. District Court in Manhattan was the first to draw a constitutional line on how long an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainee waits for an initial hearing before a judge.

 

ICE Can’t Keep Transferred Detainee Out Of Fla. Class Action

Law360: A Florida federal judge ruled Friday that a Mexican citizen can join a class action challenging U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement detainee conditions at three South Florida facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the agency cannot escape jurisdiction by transferring him to a facility across the country.

 

Council Sues Customs and Border Protection to Release Records of Militarized Raids on Humanitarian Aid Station

AIC: The Council and partners filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit to compel the government to release documentation of three raids on a humanitarian aid station in the deadly desert in Southern Arizona.

 

HHS Withdrawal of Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Forms for Sponsors of Unaccompanied Children

The Department of Health and Human Services published a notice stating that it is no longer pursuing changes to the forms for sponsors of unaccompanied children on which it had requested public comment on 1/5/21 at 86 FR 308, and therefore withdraws its request for comment. (86 FR 11537, 2/25/21) AILA Doc. No. 21022531

 

DHS Secretary Mayorkas Announces Family Reunification Task Force Principles and Executive Director

DHS: Secretary Mayorkas announced that Michelle Brané will serve as the Task Force’s Executive Director.  Most recently, she served as the senior director of the Migrant Rights and Justice program at the Women’s Refugee Commission.

 

RESOURCES

 

·         Correction: The ERO ombudsman email that was circulating last week had a typo and should be: EROOmbudsman@ice.dhs.gov.

·         AILA: Policy Brief: Walled Off: How USCIS Has Closed Its Doors on Customers and Strayed from Its Statutory Customer Service Mission

·         AILA: Current Leadership of Major Immigration Agencies

·         AILA: Practice Alert: ICE Interim Guidance on Civil Immigration Enforcement and Removal Priorities

·         AILA: Practice Pointer: Employment Verification During the COVID-19 Outbreak

·         AILA: Summary of the U.S. Citizenship Act

·         AILA: Section-by-Section Summary of the U.S. Citizenship Act

·         AILA: Podcast: Representing a Mentally Ill Client Facing Removal Proceedings

·         AILA: Resource Related to Lawsuit Granting Preliminary Relief for Diversity Visa Applicants

·         ASISTA: New Advisory: Overview of U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 & Its Impact on Immigrant Survivors

·         Black Immigrants Got Talent

·         CGRS: Children’s Asylum Manual: A Resource for Practitioners

·         CLINIC: Biden Administration Rescinds 2018 USCIS Notice to Appear Guidance

·         CLINIC: Department of State Shifts Human Rights Reports Comparison Charts

·         CMS: New Study about Immigrant Health in New York City

·         CRS: Are Temporary Protected Status Recipients Eligible to Adjust Status?

·         GAO: Actions Are Needed to Address the Cost and Readiness Implications of Continued DOD Support to U.S. Customs and Border Protection

·         ICYMI: Important Policy & ASISTA Updates

·         ILRC: What Every Noncitizen Must Know About Cannabis and Immigration

·         Immigration Mapping: From Hirabayashi to DACA

·         LGBT Adult Immigrants in the United States

·         LSNYC Practice Advisory on continuances: fourth edition of the sample motion

·         USCIS: Resources on U.S. Citizenship for Adult Adoptees

 

EVENTS

 

·         9/23/21 Representing Children in Immigration Matters 2021: Effective Advocacy and Best Practices

 

ImmProf

 

Monday, March 1, 2021

·         Join the Deported Veterans Symposium on March 10-12, 2021

·         LGBT Adult Immigrants in the United States

·         Jennifer Lee Koh Joins Pepperdine Law Faculty

·         Democrats Strategizing on Immigration Reform, Piecemeal or the Whole Enchilada?

Sunday, February 28, 2021

·         Year of the Ox’s “Viral” Song Gains Traction Amid Rise in Anti-Asian Violence

·         Brookings Institution: Biden’s Immigration Reset

Saturday, February 27, 2021

·         At the Movies: Minari (2020)

·         Immigration Article of the Day: Freedom of Movement, Migration, and Borders by Jaya Ramji-Nogales & Iris Goldner Lang

Friday, February 26, 2021

·         Vera Institute — A Federal Defender Service for Immigrants Why: We Need a Universal, Zealous, and Person-Centered Model

·         Black Immigrants Got Talent (BIG Talent)

·         At the Movies: The Marksman (2021)

·         Fortress (North) America

·         Immigration Mapping: From Hirabayashi to DACA

·         At the Movies: Alien Terminology and Change the Subject, a 2019 Documentary

·         Immigration Article of the Day: Fee Retrenchment in Immigration Habeas by Seth Katsuya Endo

Thursday, February 25, 2021

·         Big Strides In Reunifying Separated Migrant Familes; Long Ways Still To Go

·         Call For Papers: Forced Migration Review on “Public health and WASH”

·         Immigrant Leaves Maplewood Church After 3½ Years As ICE Decides Not To Deport Him

·         Sister Simone Campbell on Immigration Reform

·         #WeCanWelcome Asylum Seekers: Meet Mirna Linares de Batres

·         Throwback Thursday: My Trials by Judge Paul Grussendorf

·         Immigration Article of the Day: Tried and (Inherently) Prejudiced: Disposing of the Prejudice Requirement for Lack of Counsel in Removal Proceedings by Ayissa Maldonado

Wednesday, February 24, 2021

·         President Biden revokes Trump bans on many green card applicants, temporary foreign workers

·         Court Enjoins Biden Administration’s 100 Day Removal Pause

·         Ahilan Arulanantham joins UCLA School of Law as co-faculty director of the Center for Immigration Law and Policy

·         The five biggest omissions in massive Biden immigration bill

·         Immigration Article of the Day: Capital Controls as Migrant Controls by Shayak Sarkar, California Law Review, Forthcoming

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

·         From ‘aliens’ to ‘noncitizens’ – the Biden administration is proposing to change a legal term to recognize the humanity of non-Americans

·         Congressmember Debbie Leski’s Racist Remarks

·         Teaching Immigration Law: Law School Clinics in the US and UK

·         Immigration Article of the Day: Statelessness as Rhetoric: The Case for Revisioning Statelessness in Our Statist World by Francis Tom Temprosa

Monday, February 22, 2021

·         From the Bookshelves: Migrant Conversions:  Transforming Connections between Peru and South Korea by Erica Vogel

·         Supreme Court News: Court to Review Public Charge Case, Hear Asylum Credibility Oral Arguments Tomorrow

·         USCIS restores citizenship and naturalization test

·         Immigration Lawyers Toolbox®

·         Code Compare on Lexis Nexis

·         Human Rights Watch — US: Take New Approach at Mexico Border

·         In Challenging Times, A Call for African American/Asian American Unity

·         Former Trump senior advisor Stephen Miller slams Biden immigration proposal

·         Immigration Article of the Day: The Political (Mis)representation of Immigrants in Voting by Ming Hsu Chen and Hunter Knapp

*******************

Check out “Top News #7.” It’s an article by Arvind Dilawar in In These Times about “EOIR’s Black Sites,” 🏴‍☠️ euphemistically known as “Immigration Adjudication Centers” where imposters masquerading as “judges” “process” cases by TV on the deportation assembly line, often without regard to the law, the facts, and the humanity of their victims and the lawyers representing them.

Here’s an excerpt:

Lisa Koop, associate director of legal services for the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), stood with her client in immigration court in September 2019. The client (name withheld for privacy) had escaped violence in Central America and fled to the United States with her young daughter. Here, they were taken into custody by immigration authorities, which landed them in this courtroom, waiting to hear whether they would be granted asylum.

They were initially scheduled with a traditional, in-person immigration judge. But that judge retired and the case was transferred to an “immigration adjudication center.” This new judge video conferenced in. Koop says the judge did not allow an opening statement, was not familiar with relevant precedent and did not ask Koop to address any particularities of the case in the closing argument. The judge ruled that, while the case was “very sad,” it did not meet the criteria for asylum, then wished Koop’s client “good luck” following deportation.

This outrageous mockery of due process, fundamental fairness, and real judicial proceedings is ongoing, in the Department of “Justice” — yes, folks, the Chief Prosecutor of the U.S. maintains his own “wholly owned” “court system”  in a nation where justice supposedly is unbiased and impartial — more than five weeks into the Biden Administration.

Last week, we heard a refreshingly emotional expression of personal gratitude and recognition of the essential role of refugee protections from Judge Merrick Garland. 

What we haven’t heard to date is a recognition that what will soon be “his” DOJ treats refugees (in this case vulnerable asylum seekers) with disdain and disrespect “revved up” by four years of White Nationalist abuses heaped on them by Judge Garland’s corrupt predecessors as AGs for Trump. We also have yet to hear what Judge Garland plans to do about the deadly and disreputable “EOIR Clown Show” 🤡🦹🏿‍♂️ which will soon be operating under his auspices and which, whether he realizes it or not, will form the the major part of his legacy to American Justice.

Judge Garland should call up folks like Lisa Koop at NIJC, Claudia Valenzuela at American Immigration Council, and their colleagues to get a “real life dose” of what it means to be or represent an asylum seeker in today’s dysfunctional and disreputable Immigration “Courts” that actually are 21st Century Star Chambers.

Star Chamber Justice
“Justice”
Star Chamber
Style

Better yet, he should replace the current EOIR Senior Executives and BIA Appellate Immigration Judges with Koop, Valenzuela, and others like them — “practical experts” in due process, equal justice, immigration, and human rights — who would restore and advance judicial integrity and fairness to a system that has abandoned and trampled upon those fundamental values!

Grim Reaper
G. Reaper Approaches ICE Gulag With “Imbedded Captive Star Chamber” Run By EOIR, For Their “Partner” Reaper
Image: Hernan Fednan, Creative Commons License

As stated at the end of Dilawar’s article: Asylum-seekers are wrongfully denied asylum, and justice is not served.” Duh!

🇺🇸🗽⚖️Due Process Forever! End the EOIR Clown Show!🤡🦹🏿‍♂️🎪☠️

PWS

03-02-21

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PLANS LEGISLATIVE LAUNCH SHORTLY — Goal Is “Progress” 

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/biden-hill-democrats-plan-unveil-immigration-reform-bill-week-n1257960

NBC News reports:

Feb. 15, 2021, 7:40 PM EST

By Geoff Bennett, Julia Ainsley and Jacob Soboroff

The Biden administration and Hill Democrats are expected later this week to release an immigration reform bill, multiple sources familiar with the planning tell NBC News.

The legislative text of the “U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021” will reflect the immigration priorities that President Joe Biden unveiled on his first day in office. His proposal includes an earned pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants, expands the refugee resettlement program and deploys more technology to the Southern border. There are additional protections that are being considered in the legislation, such as asylum processing in home countries for minors, expanded benefits for DREAMers and ending the public charge rule.

While previous attempts at massive immigration reform have failed under both Republican and Democratic administrations, the Biden White House has signaled support for breaking the legislation into pieces.

As a potential secondary path, lawmakers would work to pass bills legalizing farmworkers and Dreamers right away, and then move toward a more expansive overhaul. The main objective, officials and advocates say, is progress.

. . . .

*************

Sounds like modest expectations. But, any meaningful immigration legislation would be a major achievement that has eluded the last two Administrations.

Unfortunately, based on the the GOP’s impeachment performance, it’s hard to see 60 votes for any substantive legislation in the Senate. 

PWS

02-17-21

🇺🇸🗽⚖️FLASH: BIDEN ANNOUNCES LEGALIZATION PLAN: Important Step In Rapidly Eliminating Unnecessary Immigration Court Backlog, Ending “New American Gulag,” Restoring & Enhancing Due Process, Transitioning To Independent Immigration Court — Quick End To Toxic, Dysfunctional “EOIR Clown Show”🤡🦹🏿‍♂️ In Sight? 

https://apple.news/Aw4kuHzfCQEuY_Kbk8FmoLg

From the LA Times:

During his first days in office, President-elect Joe Biden plans to unveil a legislative proposal that would include a path to citizenship for 11 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally, according to activists in communication with his transition team.

By CINDY CARCAMO, ANDREA CASTILLO, MOLLY O’TOOLE

January 16, 2021

During his first days in office, President-elect Joe Biden plans to send a groundbreaking legislative package to Congress to address the long-elusive goal of immigration reform, including what’s certain to be a controversial centerpiece: a pathway to citizenship for an estimated 11 million immigrants who are in the country without legal status, according to immigrant rights activists in communication with the Biden-Harris transition team.

The bill also would provide a shorter pathway to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of people with temporary protected status and beneficiaries of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals who were brought to the U.S. as children, and probably also for certain front-line essential workers, vast numbers of whom are immigrants.

CALIFORNIA

DACA changed a generation of California immigrants. These are some of their stories

In a significant departure from many previous immigration bills passed under both Democratic and Republican administrations, the proposed legislation would not contain any provisions directly linking an expansion of immigration with stepped-up enforcement and security measures, said Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center Immigrant Justice Fund, who has been consulted on the proposal by Biden staffers.

. . . .

***************

Read the full story at the link.

This will present Judge Garland and Vanita Gupta @ DOJ with a timely, outstanding opportunity to get rid of the “EOIR Clown Show🤡,” replace it with a functioning expert judiciary 🧑🏽‍⚖️👨🏻‍⚖️⚖️ and competent judicial administrators, get the vast bulk of these cases off the largely “manufactured” backlog, and get the Immigration Courts and the BIA operating at or near “real time.”

That, in turn will give a new group of expert judges at the BIA, with practical asylum and human rights backgrounds, a chance to implement the fair, generous, consistent interpretation of asylum law intended under the Refugee Act of 1980 and to institute a fair and efficient U.S. asylum system that will serve humanity, honor and exemplify Constitutional due process, and advance our national interests.🗽🇺🇸

Should be a win-win-win for the country and refugees provided that the right, progressive, “steeped in due process and fundamental fairness” judicial talent is put in place to lead and direct the “new EOIR.” No more “Clown Show!” 🤡No more “Amateur Night at the Bijou!” 🤹 Time to give the immigration and human rights experts, a new generation of “practical scholars,” the chance to solve problems and lead the now-broken Immigration Courts to better days!

Not surprisingly, the current “Clown Show” 🤡 and “band of malicious incompetents”🦹🏿‍♂️ @ EOIR “management” are totally out of step — and actually mocking — the direction the Biden Administration is taking on immigration and asylum, even as their time runs out. At a minimum, that warrants immediate reassignment to jobs where they can do no further damage to the American justice system and those who rely upon it. For some who have actually aided and abetted the “human rights criminals” in the DOJ kakistocracy and squandered public resources on illegal gimmicks, further action and accountability could be necessary and appropriate down the line!

Due Process Forever!

PWS

01-16-21

ON THE MOVE: NDPA SUPERSTAR 🌟 LAURA LYNCH TAPPED TO BECOME SENIOR IMMIGRATION POLICY ATTORNEY FOR NATIONAL IMMIGRATION LAW CENTER (“NILC”)

Laura Lynch
Laura Lynch
Senior Policy Counsel
AILA

A graduate of the University of Baltimore Law, Laura has been Senior Policy Counsel at the American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”) National Office in Washington, D.C. for the past four years. In that role, she engaged with Federal agencies, Congress, and designated AILA committees on immigration issues with a focus on interior enforcement, due process, and removal defense. Immigration Court Reform was one of Laura’s key areas of expertise.

 

Importantly, from my personal standpoint, Laura has been (and will continue to be, I hope), part of the “Informal Strategic Planning Group” for the New Due Process Army (”NDPA”) that includes Dan Kowalski, Michelle Mendez, Debi Sanders, Tess Hellgren, and my Round Table colleagues Judge Jeffrey S. Chase and Judge Ilyce Shugall! Her many contributions to our camaraderie and work in behalf of due process and fundamental fairness have been nothing short of spectacular!

 

The good news is that, although NILC is headquartered in Los Angeles, Laura will be remaining in Washington, D.C. While she tells me that her “precise portfolio” at NILC is “TBD,” I know we will be hearing much more from our “Due Process Superstar” in the future.

 

Thanks for all your past contributions and all the best for the future, Laura, from all of your many “admirers and fellow soldiers in the NDPA!”

 

Due Process Forever!

 

PWS

11-02-20

 

DHS RESUMES DACA PROCESSING UNDER COURT ORDER

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/daca-renewal-applications_us_5a5b02cfe4b03c418966501f

Dominique Mosbergen reports for HuffPost:

“Days after a federal judge in California temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s efforts to pull the plug on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, the federal government said on Saturday that it would resume accepting renewal applications for the program “until further notice.”
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a statement on its website that DACA will be “operated on the terms in place before it was rescinded on Sept. 5, 2017.” That was the date on which Trump announced his decision to terminate the Obama-era program that shielded some 700,000 young undocumented immigrants from deportation.
“Due to a federal court order, USCIS has resumed accepting requests to renew a grant of deferred action under DACA,” the agency said.
Renewal applications will, however, only be accepted from people who previously received DACA and whose deferred action had expired on or after Sept. 5, 2016.
Former DACA recipients whose grant expired before that date cannot request a renewal, but they can file a new request, the agency said. No new applicants will be accepted.
Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, warned on Saturday that the window for renewal applications may be “short.” She urged those eligible for renewal to prepare their applications promptly.”

***************************

Read the rest of the article at the link.

The only time the Trump Administration does the right thing is when ordered to do so by one of the courts despises and disses.

PWS

01-14-18