Home : Immigrants' Rights : General

Civil Rights Coalition Continues To Fight Arizona Employer Sanctions Law (02/28/2008)
PHOENIX – The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Arizona, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) will continue to challenge the so-called Legal Arizona Workers Act in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The appellate court issued a decision today denying the coalition’s request to delay the law going into effect while the court considers the appeal. The court’s order did not express any view on the statute’s constitutionality and ordered the appeal to be expedited.

Nevada School District Agrees To Allow Students To Speak Spanish On Bus (02/15/2008)
LAS VEGAS – After receiving a letter from the American Civil Liberties Union, the Esmeralda County School District has agreed to make it clear that students are allowed to speak Spanish while they ride the school bus and will send a letter to parents - in both Spanish and English - explaining the district’s language policy. The new policy rescinds a ban on speaking Spanish on the bus that was approved by the Esmeralda County School Board in October 2007.

ACLU Demands ICE End Illegal Deportation of U.S. Citizens (02/13/2008)
Washington, DC – The story of Pedro Guzman, a U.S. citizen born and raised in California, was invoked today throughout a hearing examining Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s illegal deportation of United States citizens. James Brosnahan, of Morrison & Foerster, who is representing Guzman alongside the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, testified about the plight of the 30-year-old cognitively impaired American citizen illegally deported to Mexico after he was arrested on misdemeanor charges and sent to Los Angeles County jail.

Federal Court Ends County Official's Policy Of Denying Marriage Licenses Based On Immigration Status (02/12/2008)
SCRANTON, PA – A federal court in Pennsylvania yesterday approved a consent order ending a Luzerne County official's policy of denying marriage licenses based upon applicants’ immigration status. The order, issued in the case of Buck v. Stankovic, makes permanent a previous court ruling holding that the Luzerne County Register of Wills violated the constitutional rights of marriage license applicants by requiring that they show a green card or current visa in order to obtain a license.

La ACLU le pide al Distrito Escolar del Condado de Esmeralda que anule la política de prohibirles a los alumnos hablar el español en el autobús escolar (01/31/2008)
LAS VEGAS - El prohibir hablar español a los alumnos de la preparatoria pública, o high school, del Condado de Esmeralda, cuando viajen en el autobús, representa una violación de sus derechos a la libre expresión y discrimina contra los niños de origen latino, acusaron la Unión de Libertades Civiles de los Estados Unidos (American Civil Liberties Union, o ACLU, por sus siglas en inglés) y la ACLU de Nevada, en una carta enviada el día de hoy al Superintendente del Distrito Escolar del Condado de Esmeralda, Robert Aumaugher. La ACLU solicita que el distrito escolar anule de inmediato la prohibición del uso del español.

ACLU Asks Esmeralda County To Stop English-Only Rule On School Bus (01/31/2008)
LAS VEGAS – Forbidding Esmeralda County public high school students from speaking Spanish while riding the school bus violates their free speech rights and discriminates against children of Latino backgrounds, charged the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Nevada in a letter sent today to Esmeralda County School District Superintendent Robert Aumaugher. The ACLU requests that the school district rescind the ban on Spanish immediately.

ACLU Says Mayor Gordon’s Immigration Scheme Will Erode Immigrants' Willingness to Cooperate With Police (12/12/2007)
PHOENIX – In a letter sent today to Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona urged the mayor to abandon plans to use local police to enforce complex immigration laws, saying the proposal is a sure-fire way to reduce immigrants' willingness to cooperate with authorities in the fight against crime.

Groups Sue to Stop Excessive Citizenship Delays (12/05/2007)
LOS ANGELES - Many immigrants who have satisfied the requirements to become U.S. citizens are left in limbo for months or years due to slow processing of FBI name checks, according to a class-action lawsuit to be filed in federal court. The delays violate time limits in the law that are meant to reduce naturalization backlogs while ensuring national security.

Amendment to Legislation Will Require Government Transparency and Accountability Regarding Immigrant Deaths in Custody (11/07/2007)
Washington, DC – An amendment that requires officials to report deaths of detainees in local and state custody was passed today by the House Judiciary Committee. The amendment, offered by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and attached to H.R. 3971, the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2007, mandates transparency and accountability by state and local agencies of all immigration detainees who die in their custody. Since most Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees are held in state and local facilities, most of the deaths of immigrants in detention would have to be reported to the attorney general.

Report Surveys the Damage of San Diego Fires to Basic Rights (11/02/2007)
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – As the smoke cleared after twelve days of ravaging fires, the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, Immigrant Rights Consortium, and Justice Overcoming Boundaries released a report today revealing patterns of neglect and instances of abuse of some of the area's most vulnerable populations--especially Latino immigrants and the indigent--in the rescue and relief efforts.

Lawsuit Challenges Unreasonable Delays in Granting Citizenship (10/29/2007)
SEATTLE -- In a class-action lawsuit filed today, four people in the Seattle area are challenging the federal government's unlawful and unreasonable delays in handling their applications to become U.S. citizens. All are legal permanent residents who have waited years for the government to make a decision on their requests to become citizens – far beyond the 120-day deadline specified in federal law.

ACLU Answers Congress’ Question ‘Can SBI Succeed?’: No (10/24/2007)
Washington, DC – Congress asked today in a committee hearing appropriately called "The Future of Border Security: Can SBINet succeed?" and the American Civil Liberties Union has a definitive answer: No. Even Department of Homeland Security Director Michael Chertoff himself has admitted the program has problems, calling it "unsatisfactory."

ACLU and Victims of Inadequate Medical Care in Immigration Detention Tell Congress to Prevent More Deaths (10/04/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union and victims of inadequate medical treatment in immigration detention facilities testified in Congress today urging more oversight of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in whose custody at least 65 people have died since 2004. According to the ACLU, inadequate medical care may be a leading cause of death in immigration detention. Activists, experts, victims of deficient medical care in ICE detention and relatives of people who died in ICE custody all testified, sharing harrowing stories and sobering facts.

ACLU of New Mexico Reacts to Sweeps of Border Immigrant Communities (09/14/2007)
LAS CRUCES, NM - The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico condemned recent immigration raids by Otero and Doña Ana County Sheriff's deputies in the border towns of Chaparral and Vado today. The local police agencies are assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials to conduct sweeps of immigrant neighborhoods, knocking on doors and checking identification. Authorities also are stopping motorists and entering private businesses.

Illegally Deported U.S. Citizen Pedro Guzman Found After Nearly Three Months in Mexico (08/07/2007)
LOS ANGELES – Pedro Guzman, the U.S. citizen illegally deported from a Los Angeles County jail on May 11, was reunited with his family today at a Lancaster courthouse after nearly three months lost in Mexico. It ends a harrowing three-month search by the family while the ACLU of Southern California and the law firm of Van Der Hout, Brigagliano and Nightingale sought in vain for assistance from the U.S. government.

ACLU of New Jersey Challenges Arbitrary Police Fees for March (07/09/2007)
NEWARK - The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and the Farmworkers' Support Committee today filed a lawsuit in federal district court against the city of Bridgeton for charging a fee of more than $1,500 for an immigrant rights March held on May 1.

ACLU Urges Congress to Create Real Immigration Reform, Not Reliance on Unworkable Real ID Poison Pill (06/28/2007)
Washington, DC - The American Civil Liberties Union Washington Legislative Office today responded to the defeat of the Senate immigration bill by saying the legislation was unworkable and reduced every U.S. resident’s due process, judicial review and privacy rights. The bill was stalled last night when an amendment on Real ID passed, shooting down the so-called “clay pigeon” package of amendments and throwing a wrench in the entire bill. Senators voted against advancing the legislation this morning, which effectively killed the bill.

Migrant Rights Advocate to Head New ACLU of New Mexico Border Office (06/20/2007)
LAS CRUCES, NM - The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico has named Maria Nape as the Director of a new ACLU office, located in the border town of Las Cruces, New Mexico, which will defend civil rights, especially of immigrants, in the border region. Nape has years of experience advocating for the rights of migrant farmworkers.

Lawsuit Seeks to Stop U.S. From Drugging Immigrants (06/19/2007)
LOS ANGELES — The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California and law firm Munger, Tolles and Olson LLP filed a federal class action lawsuit today to stop the government’s policy of forcibly drugging people facing deportation. The suit was brought on behalf of two immigrants who were drugged against their will by U.S. officials and seeks an immediate end to the practice as well as damages for the two men.

Pedro Guzman Still Missing as Family Seeks His Safe Return (06/18/2007)
LOS ANGELES — Pedro Guzman is still missing in Mexico, one week after a lawsuit was filed seeking government help in the search for the 29-year-old mentally impaired man illegally deported May 11. The ACLU of Southern California and law firm Van Der Hout, Brigagliano & Nightingale have asked that government agents assist in the search and request help from Mexican authorities, two steps the U.S. has so far refused to take.