There are changes to the immigration system that cannot wait for the presidential elections.
Top Democratic candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton has already outlined some of her concerns with current immigration enforcement practices, particularly in her roundtable discussion with undocumented students at Rancho High School. But the families being torn apart by deportation and the many people waiting in immigration detention cannot, and should not, have to wait for Presidential elections for these reforms to be prioritized and enacted.
President Obama could make the changes to the immigration enforcement system outlined by Clinton, now.
If Clinton and the Democratic Party believe in these changes as more than talking points, they should move for President Obama to enact them immediately with the urging and vocal support of his party.
Add your organization to the list of signers asking President Obama to enact the changes, six of which are outlined below.
During the roundtable discussion Hillary Clinton said that she was “very worried about detention facilities for people who are vulnerable and for children” and called for the use of discretion, like the President’s executive orders, to change the detention process.
As Clinton asserts, conditions in detention facilities are deplorable. Detainees lack access to medical care, protection from violence and legal counsel. Vulnerable populations such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and especially transgender immigrants, face especially horrific and dehumanizing conditions, including frequent violence and harassment from guards, deprivation of necessary medical care, psychological torture through solitary confinement, and all too often rape.
Particularly for LGBTQ people with criminal histories, ICE should start with a presumption of hardship for people with community and family ties. The agency can then consider all other factors and circumstances that lead to the agency’s designated enforcement practices, but the burden should be on ICE to overcome the presumption of the tremendous hardship caused by the detention of LGBTQ immigrants.
President Obama must direct DHS to use discretion to release from custody of particularly vulnerable populations, including people who are pregnant, transgender, living with HIV/AIDS, and/or with disabilities.
Clinton told undocumented youth that she would go “even further” than President Obama on deferred action, and would like to have “a simple, straightforward and accessible way for parents of DREAMers and others with a history of service and contribution to their communities to make their case.”
Although the White House has argued otherwise, legal experts around the country agree that the President has the authority to expand the group of people who qualify for deferred action, including to people who are parents of deferred action recipients and the other 7 million undocumented immigrants who were left out of President Obama’s executive actions.
“A lot of detention facilities for immigrants are run by private detention facilities, and they have a legal incentive to fill them up. There is actually a legal requirement that so many beds are filled. So people go out and round up people in order to get paid on a per-day basis. That makes no sense to me. That is not the way we should be running any detention facility,” explained Clinton.
The reality is that currently private companies operate 50% of immigration detention beds. Private companies own a stark 100 percent of beds for immigrants serving time for drug offence s or unlawful re-entry. Until private contractors are banned, the President could ensure that private prisons be made subject to the same FOIA laws as public actors, and contracts with private prisons could be required have strict accountability and oversight mechanisms, with contract termination established as a clear consequence of violation.
Currently, 4.4 million people have filed immigration applications but still wait, often times for decades to be reunited with family in the United States. Many of these same people are subject to detention and deportation for overstaying their visas in the United States, and many U.S. citizens remain separated from their loved ones. The backlog particularly impacts Asian Americans with 35% of those in the backlog from Asian countries.
As part of the Visa Modernization Taskforce established by the executive actions on November 20, 2014, many organizations have called on the President to make much needed reforms to the legal immigration system. The President should heed these calls and act to streamline the legal immigration system by protecting from deportation anyone with an approved family or employment visa petition; count derivatives as part of the same family unit for purposes of immigration visas; recapture unused visas and reapply them to those seeking to immigrate; and use parole as a mechanism to reunite families who continue to wait in the growing visa backlog.
The undocumented students who shared their recommendations and stories with Clinton spoke about being paid less than minimum wage, working in less than adequate conditions and being scared of their employers. Clinton responded that that the best way to assure that immigrant workers are not taken advantage of is to pass immigration reform, “The quicker we can legalize the people who are here, the better the job market will be for everyone. Because you won’t have a group of people who are taken advantage of” by being “paid so much less and treated so much worse, “ as Clinton explained. But there are things that President Obama could do now to improve the working conditions of undocumented workers, and allow them to become advocates on behalf of working people when there are labor abuses taking place.
President Obama could prohibit unscrupulous employers and other bad actors from using immigration status as a weapon against organizing and whistle-‐blowing immigrants who push back on inhumane hours, dangerous conditions, and withholding of pay (among other violations). Federal agencies could adopt formal non-‐retaliation policies prohibiting agents from targeting defenders of civil, labor, and human rights for arrest, detention, or deportation. These non-‐retaliation policies should include a blanket prohibition of immigration enforcement activities during a labor dispute, an organizing drive and/or as a result of either. The President could also give deferred action to individuals without lawful status who come forward to file civil, labor, or human rights complaints; individuals who are detained by immigration authorities during a labor strike; and individuals involved in a pending matter before a federal agency in which they are participating/providing evidence. Finally, all agencies that enforce civil, labor, and human rights should be recognized as having authority to certify U-‐Nonimmigrant Status.
Although there was little crossover between the round table discussion on immigration and Clinton’s recent Columbia University speech on reforms to the criminal justice system, there are important connections between them. During her speech, she explains that “It’s time to change our approach. It’s time to end the era of mass incarceration. We need a true national debate about how to reduce our prison population while keeping our communities safe.”
Current immigration enforcement practices equate deportation and detention of immigrants with criminal histories with community safety. Especially after the November 20th announcement on changes to the priorities as defined by the Department of Homeland Security, families are being torn apart when their loved ones are taken into custody – regardless of whether this takes away a breadwinner from the family, of how long ago the conviction took place, whether the person has lived most of their life in the U.S., or the type of restitution that the person has made to society after their conviction. Although Clinton is not specifically referring to immigrants, she gets it right when she says that “keeping them behind bars does little to reduce crime. But it does a lot to tear apart families and communities.”
The President has the power to make changes to how the immigration system criminalizes immigrant families and communities. Right now, he could direct the DHS to review its guidelines and priorities, particularly when it comes to people with criminal convictions. As with LGBT immigrants and other vulnerable populations, ICE should start with a presumption of hardship for people with community and family ties. The burden should be on ICE to prove need for deportation and detention.
In addition, the executive branch has created programs that criminalize immigration and allow local police to act as immigration agents. Operation Streamline, for example, mandates the criminal prosecution of nearly every individual detained for unlawfully crossing the southern United States border. The program is one of the main reasons that immigration-‐related crimes now make up 40% of federal criminal prosecutions. Operation Streamline, like other ICE-access programs, was created by the Executive branch, not by Congress. Just as the Executive branch created the program, it can end it. President Obama has the constitutional authority not only to decline to prosecute, but to pardon any and all violations of criminal immigration laws—in advance or after the fact, for any reason or no reason at all, on an individual or a categorical basis. In the face of this broad authority, there can be no question that the President could end Operation Streamline immediately and the criminal prosecution of people for immigration-related violations.
Lastly, the President could end all collaboration between local police enforcement and immigration enforcement. Even after the end of the Secure Communities program, the Priority Enforcement Program continues to seek collaboration with local governments to detain and deport undocumented immigrants. Ending collaboration between police and ICE is an important step that opens the door for trust between communities and police.
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ORGANIZATION | NAME | |
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2 | 18MillionRising.org | Cayden Mak |
3 | Actors Equity-AFL-CIO | Alfred Cross |
4 | Advancing Justice – AAJC | Prerna Lal |
5 | Advocacy for Justice and Peace Committee of the Sisters of St. F | Sr. Frances Murray |
6 | Alianzas Latino Outreach | Nina Guzman |
7 | Allies for Knoxville\\\’s Immigrant Neighbors | M reeves |
8 | Alvernia University Mission Office | Judith Bohler |
9 | America\’s Voice | Lynn Tramonte |
10 | Amistad ~ ¡por la Paz! | Kathryn Albrecht |
11 | API Equality-LA | Eileen Ma |
12 | APSA Executive Board | Kasuni Bodinayake |
13 | Arkansas Coalition for DREAM | Rosa Velazquez |
14 | Arkansas Interfaith Alliance | Stephen Copley |
15 | Asian Americans Advancing Justice-LA | Anthony Ng |
16 | Asian Pacific Student Association @ UCI | Amy Yu |
17 | ASPIRE-LA | anthony ng |
18 | Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice | Namita Chad |
19 | Atlanta Jobs with Justice | Neil Sardana |
20 | Atlanta Jobs with Justice Organizing Committee | Katherine Acker |
21 | BASF | Jc Sarmiento |
22 | Bay Area Guatemala Action (BAGUA) | Edgar Ayala |
23 | Beacon Unitarian-Universalist Cong. | Anne Cotten |
24 | Birmingham High School | Iris Edinger |
25 | Black alliance for just immigration | Opal Tometi |
26 | Black Lives Matter | Patrisse Cullors |
27 | BSHC | Martha Perez |
28 | California Immigrant Policy Center | Jon Rodney |
29 | California Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance | Luis Ojeda |
30 | Call to Action/Rio Grande Valley Texas | David Jackson |
31 | Casa Freehold | Marguerita Dentino |
32 | Casa San Jose | Monica Ruiz |
33 | Central Ohio Worker Center | Ruben Castilla Herrera |
34 | Channing Memorial Church | joanne armenia |
35 | Chicago Community and Workers Rights | Martin Unzueta |
36 | Chicago Jobs with Justice | Susan Hurley |
37 | Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America (CRLN) | Lissette Castillo |
38 | Chinese for Affirmative Action | Grace Lee |
39 | Church and Society Network, The United Methodist Church | Mary Ann Dimand |
40 | Church of Our Saviour/La Iglesia de Nuestro Salvador | Paula Jackson |
41 | Church World Service | Erol Kekic |
42 | Cleveland Jobs with Justice | Deb Kline |
43 | Climate Jobs Portland (OR) | Dave & Laurie King |
44 | Columbine Unitarian Church | Maureen Flanigan |
45 | Comite de Derechos Humanos de Forks/ Forks Human Rights Group | Lesley Hoare |
46 | Community Services Unlimited Inc | Neelam Sharma |
47 | Congress of Day Laborers | Fernando Lopez |
48 | CTA/NEA | William Briggs |
49 | D.C. Center for Immigrant Justice | Lindsay Schubiner |
50 | Dare to Dream: Get Educated! Conference for Latina Teens | Cynthia Brito |
51 | Detention Watch Network | Silky Shah |
52 | Dignity and power now | Carla Gonzalez |
53 | Dominican Sisters | Mary Carr |
54 | DREAMers of Virginia | Jose Caceres |
1 | DRM – Dream Action Coalition | Erika Andiola |
55 | DRUM – Desis Rising Up & Moving | Fahd Ahmed |
56 | East Bay Immigrant Youth Coalition | Itzel Calvo |
57 | East Shore Unitarian Church | Marilyn Mayers |
58 | Editide | Sue and John Morris |
59 | El Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas | Jessica Culley |
60 | El/La Para TransLatinas | Isa Noyola |
61 | Empowered Connections LLC | Deb Duley |
62 | Enlace | Daniel Carrillo |
63 | Episcopal Peace Fellowship | David Atwood |
64 | Everglades Earth First! | Niko Segal-Wright |
65 | Familia: Trans Queer Liberation Movement | Jorge Gutierrez |
66 | Farmworker Association of Florida | Antonio Tovar |
67 | Fearless Undocumented Alliance | natalie cruz |
68 | First Congregational Church of Palo Alto | Eileen Altman |
69 | First Friends | sue Kenney |
70 | First Nation Ministry | Anthony Commarata |
71 | Florida Immigrant Coalition | Katherine Gorell |
72 | Food Chain Workers Alliance | Joann Lo |
73 | Fresno Immigrant Youth in Action | Brisa Cruz |
74 | Fullerton Dream Team | Faby Jacome |
75 | Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights | Adelina Nicholls |
76 | Got Green | Jill Mangaliman |
77 | Grace United Methodist Church | Karen Baker |
78 | Grupo de Apoyo e Integracion Hispanoamericano | Erika Sutherland |
79 | HEAL-ONLINE.ORG | Angela Smith |
80 | Healing Justice Ministries, Parker Lane UMC, Austin TX | Bill Carter |
81 | Homestead Equal rights for all | Michael Sanchez |
82 | Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights | Fred Tsao |
83 | Illinois Dream Fund | Tanya Cabrera |
84 | Immigrant Youth Coalition | Marcela Hernandez |
85 | Immigration Action Group | Yadira Diaz |
86 | Immigration Task Force of the California Nevada Annual Conferenc | Linda Kuruhara |
87 | Inland Empire Immigrant Youth Coalition | Maria Rodriguez |
88 | jackson county, oregon democrats | Ralph Browning |
89 | Jobs With Justice | Natalie Patrick-Knox |
90 | Juntos | Erika Almiron |
91 | Justice for Our Neighbors Southeastern Michigan | Victoria Booker |
92 | Keystone Progress | Michael Morrill |
93 | Laguna Immigrants | Keith Johnson |
94 | Latin American Coalition | Ana Suarez |
95 | Latin@ Youth Action League | Jocelyn Munguia |
96 | Latino Advocacy | Maru Mora Villalpando |
97 | LGBT Straight Alliance | Alexander Start |
98 | Long Island Jobs with Justice | victoria daza |
99 | Los Angeles Brown Berets / youth justice coalition | Juan Pena |
100 | LTSC Community Development Corporation | Laura Blosser |
101 | Lucha Pro Licencias PA:HB1648 | Maria Serna |
102 | Madre Tierra Collective | Lissette Miller |
103 | make the road ny | Maria Reinoso |
104 | Mass Jobs with Justice | Melonie Griffiths |
105 | Migrant Power Movement | Erika Nunez |
106 | Ministerios Nuevo Amanecer | Eldaah Arango |
107 | Missouri Immigrant and Refugee Advocates | Vanessa Crawford Aragon |
108 | Moveon.org | Kathy Rouson |
109 | Napa Valley Dream Team | Alex Hoyt |
110 | National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) | SG Sarmiento |
111 | National Domestic Worker Alliance | B Loewe |
112 | National Justice for Our Neighbors | Rob Rutland-Brown |
113 | National Latino Progressive Voter Party | Mrs Eusebia Luna Aquino-Hughes |
114 | National People\’s Actoin | Liz Ryan Murray |
115 | Neighbors for Immigration Reform | Jeffrey Richardson |
116 | new mexico faith coalition for immigrnat justice | Renny Golden |
117 | New sanctuary coalition | Catherine Stetts |
118 | New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia | Nicole Kligerman |
119 | Nicaragua Center for Community Action | DIANA BOHN |
120 | NJ State Industrial Union Council | Carol Gay |
121 | Nuestro Centro | Jackie Fitzgerald |
122 | NY State Council of Churches | Brooke Newell |
123 | opportunity enterprises | karen stickney |
124 | Orange County Immigrant Youth United | Hairo Cortes |
125 | Organized Communities Against Deportations | Reyna Wences |
126 | P.A.S.O.- West Suburban Action Project | Yesenia Sanchez |
127 | Peace Church Seattle – United Methodist | Lorellen Nausner |
128 | Pennsylvania Council of Churches | Sandra Strauss |
129 | Pennsylvania Immigration & Citizenship Coalition | Natasha Kelemen |
130 | Philadelphia JACL | Hiro Nishikawa |
131 | PODER | Jeanette Martin |
132 | PPOFT | Flora Csontos |
133 | Pre-Health Dreamers | Denisse Rojas |
134 | Presente.org | Mariana Ruiz |
135 | President, Wilco Justice Alliane, Williamson County, TX | Jane Leatherman Van Praag |
136 | private citizen | Meryle A. Korn |
137 | Private citizen and voter | Camilla Cracchiolo |
138 | Progressive Democrats of America – Arizona | Dan O\’Neal |
139 | Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada | Laura Martin |
140 | Public Counsel | David Sena |
141 | Puente | Francisca Porchas |
142 | RAIZ | Alexis Nava Teodoro |
143 | Responsible Endowments Coalition | Ian Trupin |
144 | RPM | L R |
145 | Sacramento Immigration Alliance | Jennifer Morales |
146 | San Diego Dream Team | Gina Diaz |
147 | San Fernando Valley Dream Team | Christian Alvarez |
148 | San Joaquin Immigrant Youth Collective | Michelle Fajardo |
149 | Santa Ana Boys and Men of Color | Abraham Medina |
150 | School Sisters of Notre Dame Atlantic Midwest Province | Sister Lupita Cordero |
151 | SIM | Vinicius Quirino |
152 | Sisters of Providence | Clare Lentz |
153 | Sisters of St. Joseph | Sister Anna Marie Broxterman |
154 | Sisters of the Most Precious Blood of O\’Fallon, MO | Sister Carol Boschert |
155 | SOAR + AARA | E C YARTER |
156 | SONG | Paulina Helm-Hernandez |
157 | south bronx community congress | ed figueroa |
158 | Southwest Suburban Immigrant Project (SSIP) | Jose Eduardo Vera |
159 | St Joseph Valley Project Jobs with Justice | Joseph Carbone |
160 | St Leonard Parish | Jose Cisneros |
161 | St. Vincent de Paul Society | Joyce Lewis |
162 | Standing on the Side of Love | Usandra Cawthern |
163 | Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition | Stephanie Teatro |
164 | Thai Community Development Center | Chanchanit Martorell |
165 | The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights | Azadeh Zohrabi |
166 | The Gran Varones | Louie Ortiz |
167 | The Resurrection Project | Erendira Rendon |
168 | Transgender Law Center | Kris Hayashi |
169 | Trinity/Las Americs United Methodist Church, DSM IA | Alejandro Alfaro-Santiz |
170 | Tucson Bus Riders\’ Union | Maria Cadaxa |
171 | Tucson Samaritans | Carol Schurr |
172 | Tucson Samaritans | Maria Ochoa |
173 | UIUC | Joanna Perez |
174 | Undocumented Students and Allies at IIT | Egle Malinauskaite |
175 | Unidad Latina en Accion NJ | Jorge Torres |
176 | Union Civica Primero de Mayo | Alma Lopez |
177 | Unitarian Universalist Association | Nora Rasman |
178 | Unitarian Universalist Pennsylvania Legislative Advocacy Network | Anita Mentzer |
179 | United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society | Bill Mefford |
180 | University of Massachusetts | Michael Wolff |
181 | University of Washington | Ariana Flores |
182 | UnLocal, Inc. | Michele Lampach |
183 | USN | Gerardo Ceballos |
184 | UU Community of Frankfort | Ruby Layson |
185 | Voces de la Frontera | Christine Neumann-Ortiz |
186 | Waco immigration alliance | Nick Haynes |
187 | Washington Park United Church of Christ | Alice Silver |
188 | We Are San Juan | Karen Huerta |
189 | We Belong Together | Anna Duncan |
190 | WeCount! | Jonathan Fried |
191 | Western Governor\’s University | Karen Thomas |
192 | Womens International League for Peace and Freedom | Vivian Schatz |
193 | Yakima County Dream Team | Elizabeth Lara |
194 | Yolo Interfaith Immigration Network | Walter Sherwood |
195 | Youth Against Rape Culture | Abby Hylton |
NotOneMoreDeportation.com is a campaign made of individuals, organizations, artists, and allies to expose, confront, and overcome unjust immigration laws.
As the immigration debate continues, #Not1More enters the discussion from the place that touches people in concrete ways and can offer tangible relief. By collectively challenging unfair deportations and unjust policy through organizing, art, legislation, and action, we aim to reverse criminalization, build migrant power, and create immigration policies based on principles of inclusion.
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