Home : Immigrants' Rights

Court Blocks Local Arizona Anti-Solicitation Law (08/08/2008)
PHOENIX – The U.S District Court in Phoenix today blocked the town of Cave Creek, Arizona from enforcing an anti-solicitation ordinance that infringes on the free speech rights of day laborers in that town. The order ensures that day laborers will be able to exercise their constitutional rights by expressing their availability to work in public areas.

ACLU Rebukes House for Passing Problematic E-Verify System (08/01/2008)
WASHINGTON, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union rebukes the U.S. House of Representatives for this evening’s reauthorization of the national voluntary employment-verification program (E-Verify). The House has extended a system proven to be ineffective in verifying potential employees’ work status. It has been plagued with errors and has prevented innocent applicants from working.

ACLU Obtains Government "Manual" For Prepackaged Guilty Pleas For Prosecution Of Immigrant Workers In Postville, Iowa (07/31/2008)
NEW YORK – The American Civil Liberties Union obtained a government "manual" distributed to defense lawyers assigned to represent immigrant workers arrested and prosecuted in last May's Postville, Iowa meatpacking raids. The document – posted on the ACLU Web site today – contains prepackaged scripts for plea and sentencing hearings as well as documents providing for guilty pleas and waivers of rights that were used to push the more than 300 Postville workers through mass criminal proceedings as quickly as possible.

Justice Inspector General Report Finds Immigration Judges Were Illegally Hired (07/30/2008)
Washington, DC – Today at a hearing on “Politicized Hiring at the Department of Justice,” the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony from Department of Justice Inspector General Glenn Fine. In light of a report released on Monday by the DOJ Offices of the Inspector General (“OIG”) and Professional Responsibility (“OPR”) on political hiring, the American Civil Liberties Union urges the Committee to probe the illegal screening process used to hire immigration judges (“IJs”) between 2004 and 2006. The politicization of the DOJ Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is the largest part of the report, entitled “An Investigation of Allegations of Politicized Hiring by Monica Goodling and Other Staff in the Office of the Attorney General.” The EOIR includes approximately 200 IJs nationwide who are responsible for deciding over 300,000 cases annually related to asylum, detention, and deportation.

ACLU Applauds Sen. Clinton and Rep. Honda for Language Rights Bill (07/24/2008)
The American Civil Liberties Union applauds Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Representative Michael Honda (D-CA) for introducing a bill that protects the rights of English language learners. “Strengthening Communities Through English and Integration Act of 2008” will increase investment in English literacy programs, business support for adult education and training programs as well as other local strategies for integrating immigrant communities.

Sheriff Arpaio Sued Over Racial Profiling Of Latinos In Maricopa County (07/16/2008)
PHOENIX – Today, five individuals and Somos America, a Latino community-based coalition, sued Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office (MCSO) and Maricopa County, charging that they or their members were unlawfully stopped and mistreated by law enforcement because they are Latino. The class action lawsuit - which builds upon a complaint filed last December - is before the U.S. District Court in Arizona.

ACLU Sues Government Over Citizenship Delay For Iraq War Hero (07/16/2008)
KANSAS CITY, MO – The American Civil Liberties Union sued the government in a federal court in Kansas for unlawfully delaying the citizen application of Julian Polous Al Matchy, a highly decorated U.S. Army war hero. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court with the ACLU of Kansas and Western Missouri in cooperation with the McCrummen Immigration Law Group, LLC against Attorney General Michael Mukasey, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, FBI Director Robert Mueller and two officers of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

ACLU Reacts to DHS OIG Report on ICE Detainee Deaths and Medical Care (07/01/2008)
WASHINGTON, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reacts to the release of the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General’s report, “ICE Policies Related to Detainee Deaths and the Oversight of Immigration Detention Facilities.” The report examines two of the 33 detainee deaths reported between January 1, 2005 and May 31, 2007 and DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) standards related to detainee deaths and the medical treatment of immigration detainees.

Community Group Launches "Know Your Rights" Campaign In Response To Growing Repression (07/01/2008)
Members of Volviendo a Vivir, Respect/Respeto, and Unidos en Arizona have teamed up with Copwatch and the ACLU of Arizona to launch the Valley's largest and most wide-reaching "Know Your Rights" effort to date. Event organizers will kick-off the campaign at 10 am on Wednesday, July 2, at Cesar Chavez Plaza in downtown Phoenix.