ABA calls on federal government to ensure immigrants receive due process
The ABA, a longtime advocate for immigrants’ rights, took a stand against some sweeping changes to the U.S. immigration system by President Donald Trump’s administration during its annual meeting in Toronto.
On Monday, the House of Delegates adopted Resolution 510 in response to current policies and practices that permit due process violations, including the denial of access to counsel, lack of meaningful notice and inability to challenge evidence. Specifically, the measure:
• Calls on the federal government to ensure noncitizens receive due process protections in all immigration proceedings, including those involving denial of entry, visa revocation, recission of lawful permanent residence and removal.
• Urges the federal government to affirm and protect noncitizens’ constitutional rights under the Fourth, Fifth and 14th Amendments.
• Opposes First Amendment infringements that occur when noncitizens’ speech is used as grounds for adverse immigration actions.
Michelle Jacobson, chair of the Commission on Immigration, cited a number of actions being taken against immigrants, including elimination of funding for programs benefiting them, targeting of activists and use of vague evidence to justify removals.
“This resolution is not about changing immigration policy, but is about ensuring that our government adheres to constitutional principles that define our democracy and protect the most vulnerable populations,” Jacobson told the House.
The House on Tuesday also adopted Resolution 602, which responds to the Trump administration’s directive to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection agents to use their discretion when deciding where to conduct immigration enforcement operations.
The resolution urges the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to prohibit immigration enforcement actions in or near sensitive locations, such as schools, health care facilities and courthouses, except in exigent circumstances. It also urges the U.S. Congress to pass the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act or similar legislation.
“These sites are critical to public welfare and must remain accessible and safe for all,” Jacobson said.
The House additionally adopted Resolution 603 on Tuesday. Among other tenets, the measure calls on the federal government to prohibit the detention of immigrants at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay and other facilities operated by the U.S. Department of Defense. The Trump administration announced in January that it would begin transporting immigrants to Guantanamo, despite potential due process violations.
Jacobson told the House the ABA has received reports of migrants who were transferred to Guantanamo and then put in solitary confinement, subjected to verbal and physical abuse and strip searches, and denied basic care.
“In these times, we must remind ourselves that immigration detention is a civil process and not meant to be … criminal punishment,” she said.
The Commission on Immigration was the primary sponsor of all three resolutions. The Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice also was a primary sponsor of Resolution 510.
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