The Government’s Use of Coercion on Separated Parents
In this blog post, Immigration Justice Campaign National Advocacy Counsel Katie Shepherd describes the government’s use of coercion on separated parents and the complaint AILA and the Council filed with DHS to draw attention to this illegal and unconstitutional practice.
New Partners in the Fight for Due Process
Karen Lucas, Director of the Immigration Justice Campaign in which AILA and the Council are partnered, describes new ways the campaign is meeting the needs of detained immigrants, including a recent partnership with Save the Children.
Witnessing the Destruction in the Wake of Administration Border Policies
Katie Shepherd, National Advocacy Counsel for the Immigration Justice Campaign, describes the meetings she had with detained parents who had been traumatically separated from their children and needlessly incarcerated in West Texas, highlighting the urgent need for volunteer attorneys.
Tearing Down the Wall and Building Bridges
This blog post is adapted from the president’s installation speech given by Anastasia Tonello, June 14, 2018 in San Francisco; she shares her message to AILA members and goals for her presidential year.
Taking the Battle for Humane Treatment of Detainees from Dilley to Colorado
As she shares details about the complaint filed demanding the government address the inhumane conditions and inadequate medical assistance at the Aurora facility, Immigration Justice Campaign National Advocacy Counsel Katie Shepherd urges readers to take action and help vulnerable detainees.
Working Together as Change Agents
AILA President Annaluisa Padilla shares how the Immigration Justice Campaign is marshalling new resources to increase the representation of detained immigrants, including the recently launched interactive website with information about successes, trainings, and pro bono opportunities.
From DC to Dilley – One Volunteer’s Firsthand Experience
In this blog post, Immigration Justice Campaign Director Karen Lucas interviews recent family detention volunteer McKayla Eskilson about her experience, the work the project is doing, and the impact she had during her week at Dilley helping asylum seeking moms and kids incarcerated in the facility.
Helping Daisy
AILA member Rebecca Minahan shares how she helped one young family at the Dilley detention facility through the credible fear process, writing that while she “would most likely never learn of their fate,” she “felt honored to have been a part of their lives if only for a very short time.”
Two Business Immigration Lawyers in “Baby Jail”: A Report from Dilley
“I can barely handle being a prisoner here….”
A Fighting Chance to Claim Asylum
Earlier this year, a young man called James* fled his country of origin after enduring yet another attack on his life, this time at the hands of his family members who learned he was gay. They also reported James to the police, who began searching for him because, under a law outlawing homosexuality, the authorities viewed him as the culprit rather than the victim of an unjustified attack. The writing was on the wall: if James stayed, he would surely meet the fate of his late boyfriend, who lost his life a few years before to similar senseless cruelty.