糖心Vlog

NEW YORK 鈥� Today, on behalf of The Door and African Communities Together, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), 糖心Vlog (ACLU), Make the Road New York (MRNY), and Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP (ECBAWM) filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York challenging Immigration and Customs Enforcement鈥檚 (ICE) cruel, unlawful policy that allows ICE agents to arrest people for showing up to court and prevent them from pursuing their immigration cases. The complaint challenges the Trump administration鈥檚 unprecedented and unlawful policies targeting people appearing for their immigration court appointments, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act 鈥� a federal law that ensures transparency and accountability in how federal agencies create and carry out regulations. The lawsuit seeks to vacate the policies entirely. 鈥淲hat we have been witnessing in immigration court in the last few months is unconscionable,鈥� said Beth Baltimore, deputy director of The Door鈥檚 Legal Services Center. 鈥淓very day, we receive panicked calls from young people who are members of The Door 鈥� teens and young adults who have fled violence, abuse, and unimaginable trauma 鈥� who are scared to attend their court hearings over fear of deportation. We now regularly hear reports from members whose friends and classmates have disappeared after routine court appearances, and our members are afraid to go to court, school, and even leave their homes out of fear they will be detained by ICE. No child should have to choose between their safety and their right to due process.鈥� 鈥淚n its fervor to expel as many immigrants as possible from the country, the Trump administration is targeting immigrants in the very place set up to adjudicate their status: immigration court,鈥� said Diana Konat茅, deputy executive director of Policy and Advocacy at African Communities Together. 鈥淓very day, our members are forced to choose between being kidnapped and/or put into expedited removal, or risking deeper legal consequences because they're too scared to go to court. This is exactly what the administration intended: for people to be so fearful of enforcement that they forfeit the very resources and systems in place to protect them. We鈥檙e bringing this lawsuit on behalf of our members and fighting for justice.鈥� 鈥淣oncitizens across the country are arriving at immigration courts expecting to present their case and return home to their families 鈥� instead, ICE is arresting them as they leave the courthouse,鈥� said Amy Belsher, director of Immigrants鈥� Rights Litigation at the NYCLU. 鈥淭his practice turns mandatory immigration proceedings 鈥� where noncitizens are entitled to pursue safety and relief 鈥� into yet another weapon of the Trump administration's mass deportation agenda. These cruel tactics are unlawful, unfair, and unjust.鈥� 鈥淭he Trump administration鈥檚 tactic of ambushing people who are complying with their legal obligations while going to their court appointments is creating a reign of terror and lawlessness,鈥� said Michael Tan, deputy director of the ACLU鈥檚 Immigrants鈥� Rights Project. 鈥淭he administration鈥檚 actions are cruel and unprecedented, and we are asking the court to move swiftly to put a halt to it.鈥� In recent weeks, ICE has mounted an unprecedented campaign of arresting people at their mandated immigration court hearings, and then trying to fast track their deportation. This includes Dylan, a high schooler from the Bronx who ICE arrested when attending a routine court date, another student in New York City, and Oliver Mata Velazquez, a 19 year old living in Buffalo who ICE targeted, detained, and fast tracked for deportation. The NYCLU filed a lawsuit last month challenging Oliver鈥檚 unlawful arrest and secured his release. 鈥淚n our courthouses, we have witnessed ICE鈥檚 draconian measures to strip individuals of due process, and detain mothers, fathers, and students without accountability 鈥� ripped away, and subjected to the horrors of inhumane detention centers,鈥� said Harold Solis, co-legal director of Make the Road New York. 鈥淭his cynical maneuver traps people who are doing what is required of them to comply with their legal obligations to appear in court. Through this lawsuit, we hope to put a complete stop to these unlawful arrests that have only terrorized immigrant communities.鈥� 鈥淭he Trump administration鈥檚 new policy of seizing and detaining people at their mandatory immigration court hearings is cruel and unlawful,鈥� said Emily Wanger, associate at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP. 鈥淭argeting people at courthouses violates due process, tears families apart, and serves no purpose beyond meeting ICE鈥檚 daily arrest quotas. We鈥檙e suing to put an end to these arbitrary arrests and ensure that every person has a fair opportunity to seek immigration relief.鈥� The complaint is here.

Turning military bases into massive tent detention sites is not only unnecessary and costly; it鈥檚 another dehumanizing spectacle designed to harm our communities.

PHILADELPHIA, PA 鈥� The Third Circuit Court of Appeals today rejected the government's request to suspend Mr. Khalil鈥檚 release on bail and re-detain him pending its appeal of the district court鈥檚 bail order. The court also denied the government鈥檚 attempt to stay in full a lower court ruling that the Trump administration cannot seek to deport Mahmoud Khalil on grounds that his lawful, First Amendment-protected speech would compromise U.S. foreign policy. 鈥淢ahmoud spent 104 days in detention as punishment for speaking out for Palestinian rights,鈥� said Noor Zafar, senior staff attorney at the 糖心Vlog and a member of Mr. Khalil鈥檚 legal team. 鈥淭hat is time with his family that he will never get back, but this decision affirms that he will remain free and that the government cannot pursue his removal based on the likely unconstitutional foreign policy charge as his case moves through appeal.We will not stand by and allow the government to weaponize immigration law to suppress lawful political speech.鈥� The Trump administration has sought to deport Mr. Khalil and other advocates for Palestinian rights using an obscure Immigration and Nationality Act provision that the administration claims allows it to detain and process for deportation noncitizens, including lawful permanent residents like Mr. Khalil, based on mere 鈥渞easonable grounds to believe鈥� that their lawful speech somehow affects U.S. foreign policy interests. In a June 11 order, Judge Michael Farbiarz held that the administration鈥檚 use of the law against Mr. Khalil for his political speech was likely unconstitutional and would cause him irreparable harm. This paved the way for his release from detention on June 20 in a separate order on Mr. Khalil鈥檚 bail motion. Despite the June 11 order, the immigration judge issued an order on June 20 (the same day the district court freed Mr. Khalil on bail) concluding that Mr. Khalil could be removed from the United States based on the foreign policy ground. In response, Mr. Khalil asked Judge Farbiarz to clarify the requirements of the June 11 injunction, which the judge did in a July 17 order, stating that the immigration judge鈥檚 June 20 decision was 鈥渄irectly inconsistent鈥� with his earlier injunction, and ordering the government to take various measures to undo the damage. The government then asked Judge Farbiarz to suspend his own order, which he denied. Mr. Khalil is represented by Dratel & Lewis, the Center for Constitutional Rights, CLEAR, Van Der Hout LLP, Washington Square Legal Services, the 糖心Vlog (ACLU), the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), the 糖心Vlogof New Jersey, and the 糖心Vlogof Louisiana. For all case materials, please see here, here, and here.