Secure Communities

12/06/2012

California Attorney General: Immigration Detainers are Voluntary

By Jennie Pasquarella, ACLU of Southern California & Julia Harumi Mass, ACLU of Northern California at 2:14pm

For the first time, California Attorney General Kamala Harris publicly weighed in on the hotly-contested federal immigration program, Secure Communities (S-Comm).

07/23/2012

Secure Communities

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.

04/23/2012

S.B. 1070 at the Supreme Court

ACLU Joins in Briefing Members of Congress on the Implications of Arizona v. U.S.

By Laura W. Murphy, Director, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 5:19pm

Today we let federal lawmakers know that Arizona’s racial profiling law, S.B. 1070, is about much more than just the state of Arizona and its immigrants. It’s about how we see ourselves as a nation.

04/16/2012

I Am Not a Stereotype

Working to End Racial Profiling: ACLU to Testify Before Senate Judiciary

By Anthony D. Romero, ACLU at 2:24pm

Racial profiling is based on crass stereotypes and assumptions, instead of facts, evidence and good solid police work.

04/13/2012

Secure Communities

Whitewashing S-Comm's Immigration Enforcement Failures

By Chris Rickerd, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 2:27pm

Secure Communities, the Obama administration's favored immigration enforcement program, has a track record that includes the unlawful detention of U.S. citizens. Antonio Montejano, for example, was held for four days after an arrest stemming from his children's handling of store merchandise. He remained in custody despite repeatedly proclaiming U.S. citizenship and arrived back home to his worried 8-year-old son, who asked "'Dad, can this happen to me too because I look like you?'"

03/21/2012

Universal Human Rights

How the Obama Administration Can Turn its Human Rights Promises into Concrete Action Against Racism

By Chandra Bhatnagar, Senior Staff Attorney, ACLU Human Rights Program at 3:53pm

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, an occasion when all nations of the world resolve to increase their efforts to combat racial and ethnic discrimination and promote human rights.

Here in the U.S., notwithstanding the fact that it is an election year, there is much that can be done by the Obama administration to make a tangible difference in the lives of racial and ethnic minorities.

12/14/2011

Secure Communities

One Too Many: New York Times Highlights American Citizens Detained Under S-Comm

By Sandhya Bathija, Washington Legislative Office at 3:31pm

The New York Times today exposed a persistent problem with the Department of Homeland Security’s immigration enforcement programs: American citizens are being unlawfully detained for extended periods.

In the report, the Times told the story of Antonio Montejano, an American citizen born in Los Angeles who was arrested while holiday shopping with his family, including his young children. “After his young daughter begged for a $10 bottle of cologne,” he inadvertently dropped it into a bag of items he had already purchased. When he left the store, he was arrested for shoplifting.

12/02/2011

Secure Communities

Keep New York Out of S-Comm

By Udi Ofer at 3:45pm

Editor’s Note: This is the last of five blogs in a series focusing on firsthand experiences with Secure Communities from across the country.

In June 2011, New York’s governor Andrew Cuomo suspended our state’s involvement in the Obama administration’s Secure Communities (S-Comm) program, which targets immigrants for deportation, incentivizes racial profiling and sows mistrust between law enforcement and the communities they serve.

12/01/2011

Secure Communities

California's Opt-Out: The Burden of S-Comm on U.S. Citizens in California

By Tiffany Tiffany Mok, ACLU California Legislative Office at 6:17pm

Editor’s Note: This is the fourth of five blogs in a series focusing on firsthand experiences with Secure Communities from across the country.

Most graduate students are known to spend nights in numerous places — libraries, cubicles and maybe even a party.

But Perla Rodriguez, a graduate student and naturalized citizen, spent three nights in jail, with no reasonable explanation.

11/30/2011

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

ICE's Mess in Massachusetts

By Laura Rotolo, ACLU of Massachusetts at 5:42pm

Over the last year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has played out a miniature version of its catastrophic national strategy on Secure Communities in my home state.

American Civil Liberties Union