Department of Homeland Security

Intel Officials Admit "Cyber Pearl Harbor" Unlikely Soon, Agree Cyber Should be Kept in Civilian Hands

By Robyn Greene, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 4:27pm

Privacy protection, and the debate about whether to house information-sharing programs in a civilian or military agency, dominated three congressional hearings on cybersecurity this week.

In separate hearings Tuesday in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and the Armed Services Committee, leaders of the intelligence community called cyberattacks the greatest threat to the U.S. at this time—but admitted that the kinds of catastrophic attacks imagined by reporters and cyber experts were only a "remote" possibility in the near future.

ACLU to Congress: Keep Cybersecurity Information Sharing Out of Military Hands!

By Robyn Greene, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 4:58pm

UPDATE: Due to a winter storm approaching Washington, D.C., tomorrow's House Homeland Security Committee hearing on cybersecurity has been postponed for a later date.

As Congress debates cybersecurity legislation, one of the most significant questions legislators are tackling addresses where to house an information sharing program that would allow the private sector to hand over Americans' most private online information to the government: in a civilian or a military agency?

Important Breakthrough for LGBT Immigrant Families

By Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office & Joanne Lin, Washington Legislative Office at 1:57pm

In August, over 80 members of Congress, led by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), wrote to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requesting recognition, explicitly and in writing, of the ties of a same-sex partner or spouse as a positive factor for determining discretionary relief in immigration cases.  On Friday, it was reported that DHS had announced it would be issuing new, written guidance providing that relief to LGBT immigrant families. 

TRUST Act: California Could Set National Model for Correcting the Damage Done by S-Comm

By Danielle Riendeau, ACLU of Northern California at 1:27pm

Juana Reyes is a food vendor and mother of two who was arrested, and detained in immigration jail for two weeks (while her children were taken away and placed in foster care) - all because she was selling tamales in front of a Sacramento Walmart. 

In fact, she had been a food vendor for years, with no incidents.  The trouble only came when a new security guard tried to remove her from the premises, and local police filed trespassing and “interfering with business” charges at her. Just like that, Juana was locked away, even though the state criminal charges were minor and eventually dropped by the local prosecutor. 

A Win for Free Speech: ACLU Recommendations Adopted by DHS!

By Robyn Greene, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 1:46pm

The ACLU just scored a big win for freedom of speech from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). More than 2 years ago we filed a complaint with the DHS Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (OCRCL) concerning an effort to collect and distribute information about lawful demonstrations. Earlier this month, we received a letter from OCRCL letting us know that they have resolved our complaint, and are adopting our recommendations!

ACLU to President Obama: Tackle the Homeland Security Budget in Your Plan to Avert Fiscal Cliff

By Shawn Jain, ACLU at 4:22pm

Much attention has turned to the so-called “fiscal cliff” of spending cuts and increases in taxes that could take effect in early 2013 barring congressional action. According to  The Wall Street Journaland others, the president met last Friday with congressional leaders to avert falling off the cliff, and the Obama administration is planning to unveil an alternative that would replace the cuts for 6-12 months with more-targeted reductions and revenue increases. Immigration policy is an important consideration to keep in mind during these negotiations. Specifically, we encourage the president’s forthcoming plan to include specific cuts that right-size the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) by cutting wasteful and unnecessary immigration enforcement spending.

ACLU Lens: NY Times Highlights DHS Latest Plan to Deport Criminals

By Sandhya Bathija, Washington Legislative Office at 1:36pm

The New York Times reports today that the Department of Homeland Security will begin a new system to review deportation cases in a way that officials claim will speed up the deportations of convicted criminals while stopping many deportations of immigrants with no criminal record.

DHS has claimed its priority is to deport dangerous, violent criminals who have come into the country illegally. Five months after its original announcement on this, the department will at last begin a nationwide training program for enforcement agents and prosecuting lawyers to achieve these goals and to close deportation cases that fall outside DHS priorities. Currently, about half of immigration detainees have no criminal convictions.

DHS Told Loud and Clear: Stop Tearing Immigrant Families Apart

By Chris Rickerd, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 1:49pm

Last night in Arlington, Virginia, a community spoke to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) by bearing witness to fear and hardship sown by the immigration enforcement program misleadingly called Secure Communities. Hundreds of people were turned away from this field meeting of the Homeland Security Advisory Council's Task Force on S-Comm, but those 300 who crowded into a university auditorium – including students, clergy, nongovernmental organization activists, U.S. citizens and immigrants – conveyed eloquently-told stories of S-Comm's irreparable flaws. The community's message about S-Comm was "End It, Don't Amend It."

The Good Wife Tackles Destructive Immigration Enforcement Policies

By Elizabeth Beresford, ACLU at 5:09pm

In last week’s episode of the television drama The Good Wife, the devastating effects of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Secure Communities program took center stage. Actress America Ferrara guest starred as Natalie Flores, a Latina student whose father, Mr. Flores, is swept up in an overzealous Chicago police officer’s attempt to secure an arrest for a neighborhood burglary. The officer, looking for a “Hispanic burglar with a weapon,” targeted Mr. Flores because of his appearance, pulled him over, and arrested him despite the fact that neither the make or model of Mr. Flores’s car, nor his age and physical appearance, matched that of the burglary suspect.

ACLU to Congress: Keep Cybersecurity Information Sharing Out of Military Hands!

By Robyn Greene, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 4:49pm

As Congress debates cybersecurity legislation, one of the most significant questions legislators are tackling addresses where to house...

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