TL;DR January 28
Welcome to our news segment: TL;DR of Immigration News, for when the news is Too Long and you Didn’t Read it.
This is a weekly collection of immigration-related news stories. These bite-size summaries will keep you up to date without overwhelming your inbox.
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Ending humanitarian parole program affects 1.4 million vulnerable people
NPR shares the story of Reginald and Tristan Daniel, who fled gang violence and attempted kidnapping in Haiti as part of the Biden administration’s CHNV humanitarian parole program, which was designed for people fleeing violence in Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to find safe harbor in the US. With a stroke of the pen, Trump jeopardized the legal status of 1.4 million such people by revoking all humanitarian parole programs and empowering officials to remove migrants for whom these programs were providing safety.
Reginald and Tristan’s sponsor, Anne-Valerie Laveus, is devastated. “When [her nephew Tristian] first came a year ago, he was so shy, so withdrawn. Now he's getting acclimated. He went to get his hair done. It's 30 minutes on a bicycle, even more. And he rode in the middle of the streets to do his hair.”
If Trump gets his way, all that will be over for Tristan and Reginald, and a million and a half others benefitting just from this program alone.
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Democratic lawmakers devising legal obstacles to fight anti-immigration push
In the context of a federal administration almost entirely captured by an emboldened xenophobic insurgency, state and local politics become all the more crucial. In Democratic states, counties, and cities around the country, local elected officials are responding to grassroots advocacy by attempting to implement policies protecting undocumented people.
In New York, state rep Catalina Cruz has filed one bill that would mandate legal representation in immigration proceedings, and another that would provide state funds for legal aid. Cruz said the legislation “gives people an opportunity to fight their case, to fight for their families, to fight for their rights”.
In Oregon, state senator Lisa Reynolds has proposed a bill that would provide grants to non-profits to help undocumented people file for residency and citizenship. Since 1987, an Oregon state law has forbidden police from assisting ICE in deportation; the law survived a repeal campaign as recently as 2018.
In California, state representative Al Muratsuchi has advanced a bill preventing ICE from entering public schools without a judicial warrant and faculty approval. These efforts remind us that we, collectively, must work to create spaces of sanctuary and sanity.
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ConsulApp Contigo: Mexico’s New App to Help Nationals Navigate US Immigration
On the first day of the new administration, Trump shut down CBP One, the app that was being used by asylum seekers to enter the country legally. On the same day, the Mexican government launched a new app designed to help Mexican citizens in the US: ConsulApp Contigo. The app is free to download and available for iOS and Android. ConsulApp Contigo includes several features for Mexican nationals, including a button that, when triggered by the app user, alerts their emergency contacts and the Mexican consulate that the person is being detained by ICE. The app only works within the borders of the US.
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Federal appeals court upholds injunction blocking Iowa immigration law
In a welcome recent win for immigration rights advocates, Iowa will not be able to allow the arrest of immigrants with lawful status. In April 2024, Iowa passed a measure that allows state law enforcement officers to arrest and charge immigrants (regardless of documentation status) with an aggravated misdemeanor if they have been previously deported, removed or denied admission to the country. It also allows judges to order an immigrant found guilty to leave the country or face prison time. In June a US District Judge ruled to block the law, a decision which the state of Iowa appealed. On January 24 the appeal was denied, and the ruling stands that the law is unconstitutional.
Two cases were brought against the measure; one by the Biden administration and another by a coalition of civil and immigration rights groups including the American Immigration Council and the ACLU. Both cases argued that Iowa’s law is unconstitutional on the grounds that immigration law and enforcement is under the federal government’s authority, which states may not undermine. Attorneys representing the state of Iowa argued that it does not infringe on federal authority because it does not contain new rules on immigration. In the federal appeals court decision which stands, Circuit Judge Duane Benton wrote that the bill is unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which states that federal laws take precedence over conflicting state laws.
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ICE Watch Programs Can Protect Immigrants in Your Neighborhood — Here’s What to Know
ICE Watch programs work. Through careful, guided, organized efforts to track ICE and share vetted info with impacted communities, the power is in our hands to take immediate action to fight back against the Trump administration’s racist attacks on people in our neighborhoods. The good people of Teen Vogue have put together a pragmatic guide (with plenty of links to further training materials) that you can start using, right now, to build or strengthen community defense where you live. Take a look!
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5 Actions you can take Right Now
Respond to reports of suspected raids in your area in real time by reading and sharing the information in this 1-page guide. For those of us who are allies especially, learn how to watch for ICE and protect your neighbors.
As the Trump executive orders roll in and the 24 hour news cycle feels too overwhelming to engage with, one of the most important things we can do for ourselves is figure out how to be more grounded in this moment. Join NAA this week for a special skillshare with one of our members, who will offer education and practical skills on nervous system first aid. Join us on Zoom tomorrow, Thursday, January 30th for Somatics for Activists.
On February 12, 6:30pm - 8:30pm, join Jews for Racial & Economic Justice (JFREJ) for a hybrid (Zoom + NYC) Know Your Rights / ICE Watch training to learn more about the current threats to our local communities and how we can protect our immigrant neighbors. Facilitators will share the latest on what actions you can take against anti-immigrant policies and deportations, and how you can get involved with JFREJ's migrant justice and community safety organizing. Register here.
Never Again Action is equipping members to organize themselves into neighborhood groups (or “pods”) to be trained and respond to deportation threats on a hyperlocal level. Learn more: bit.ly/BuildAPod2024
Support Never Again Action’s organizing by making a donation today.
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Thanks for joining us for this week’s roundup! If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for next week’s roundup, drop us a line at neveragainaction@gmail.com.