WASHINGTON – Immigrants’ rights organizations went back to court last night in CHIRLA v. Noem on behalf of their members to update an earlier complaint filed to stop deportations without due process for those who entered on humanitarian parole. Over the past few weeks, immigrants across the country have had their cases dismissed in immigration court, only to be accosted by ICE upon leaving the courthouse and processed for expedited removal, a form of rapid deportation without the chance to fight their case in immigration court. The groups are also asking the court to move quickly to stop the government from stripping paroled immigrants of their due process rights in light of the courthouse arrests.
Organizational plaintiffs CHIRLA, immigrant advocacy organization CASA, and The UndocuBlack Network filed disturbing declarations from attorneys who detailed the chaotic courthouse scenes that have already captured public attention. One attorney described their client, a Venezuelan asylum seeker, who was followed out of the courthouse by plainclothes ICE agents, apprehended, and detained far from home without his lifesaving HIV medication.
“Our nation has watched in horror as immigrants – all of whom are doing exactly what the government has asked of them – are being placed in a legal Catch 22 where they must appear in court, but when they do, ICE is waiting outside the door. This is morally reprehensible and, for our clients’ members, unlawful,” said Hillary Li, counsel for Justice Action Center, which represents the nonprofits. “We filed an amended complaint and motion today to ensure that the court has a full understanding of the urgency of the situation at hand.”
The case takes on additional importance in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision to allow the Trump administration to strip nearly half a million Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans of their humanitarian parole while the legal case challenging their actions, Svitlana Doe v. Noem, continues.
CHIRLA v. Noem was originally filed on behalf of the nonprofits and their members in March to halt the Trump administration’s attempt to strip certain immigrants of their due process rights.
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The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) was founded in 1986 to advance the human and civil rights of immigrants and refugees. CHIRLA became a place for organizations and people who support human rights to work together for policies that advance justice and full inclusion for all immigrants. CHIRLA has since become one of the largest and most effective advocates for immigrant rights, organizing, educating and defending immigrants and refugees in the streets, in the courts, and in the halls of power.
With over 173,000 lifetime members across 46 US states, CASA is a national powerhouse organization building power and improving the quality of life in working-class: Black, Latino/a/e, Afro-descendent, Indigenous, and Immigrant communities. CASA creates change with its powerbuilding model blending human services, community organizing, and advocacy in order to serve the full spectrum of the needs, dreams, and aspirations of members. www.wearecasa.org
Founded in January 2016, the UndocuBlack Network (UBN) is a multi-generational network of Black immigrants that fosters community, facilitates access to resources, and advocates to transform the realities of our people, so we are thriving and living our fullest lives.
Justice Action Center (JAC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting for greater justice for immigrant communities by combining litigation and storytelling. JAC is committed to bringing additional litigation resources to address unmet needs, empower clients, and change the corrosive narrative around immigrants in the U.S. Learn more at justiceactioncenter.org and follow us on Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.