The ILRC’s Immigration Preparedness Toolkit is a resource-packed informational document designed to help immigrants with no legal status or in mixed status families begin to understand the immigration legal landscape and plan for their own journey through an ever-changing, complex system in the United States. This free toolkit offers in-depth, yet easily accessible information that outlines the basics about a variety of topics including: your rights during ICE confrontations, the different types of immigration options available, ideas for building your consultation roadmap, and tips on covering your bases while waiting for relief. This 13-page resource also incorporates links to other helpful reference documents, fact sheets, and tools readers can use to construct their own personalized plan.
Sanctuary policies have been under attack since the 2016 presidential campaign and throughout the Trump administration. Nonetheless, these policies have continued to expand, both geographically and in terms of substantive policy content and protections. This detailed report describes what sanctuary policies are and how they are enacted across the country, detailing the changes over the last three years and providing context to the public discourse about local policies related to immigration. It is accompanied by our live national map with data on county-level involvement with ICE: www.ilrc.org/local-enforcement-map.
Moving Texas Forward: Local Policies Towards Inclusive Justice was created for the many organizations and elected officials in Texas that are struggling to find solutions to disrupt the harmful arrest-to-deportation pipeline. Texas has helped deport more people than any other state. In fiscal year 2017, more than 395,000 people, or 17% of all deportations nationwide, were deported from Texas. Texas’ role in the detention and deportation of immigrants has increased under the Trump administration and will continue to increase because of SB 4. This guide attempts to provide a comprehensive and thorough look at some of the ways advocates, policymakers, and local law enforcement can work together to minimize the arrest-to-deportation pipeline.
Immigrant children and families in the child welfare system face unique barriers to permanency and well-being. In some cases, their involvement in the child welfare system also presents distinct opportunities for seeking lawful immigration status. With half of all children in California coming from an immigrant family, child welfare agencies in California must be equipped to effectively support immigrant children and families on the pathway to permanency. The objective of this Toolkit is to provide guidance to child welfare agencies in California working with immigrant children and families.
On July 23, 2019, DHS issued a notice, expanding the reach of expedited removal to individuals who have been living in the United States for two years or less, and who live anywhere in the United States. This would allow noncitizens to be deported without an opportunity to gather evidence or to present their case to a judge. On August 6, 2019, the American Immigration Council, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the law firm of Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett LLP filed suit challenging the legality of this expansion, Make the Road New York v. McAleenan, Case 1:19-cv-02369. On September 27, 2019, the court granted a preliminary injunction in this case, which blocks the expansion of expedited removal from taking effect while the court decides the case.
For noncitizens, even a low level offense like a shoplifting conviction can lead to mandatory deportation. However, this can be avoided when people secure post-conviction relief to erase or modify their old convictions. If the convictions are vacated, or the sentences reduced, the grounds for removal often evaporate.
The Trump administration has vowed to increase 287(g) agreements, which deputize state and local law enforcement officers to undertake various duties of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Indeed, as of the date of this publication, 49 of the 78 total 287(g) agreements were created during this current administration, and the number will likely continue to increase. However, all of the current 287(g) agreements will expire on June 30, 2019, unless they are renewed.
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has faced many threats and experienced significant changes since it began in 2012. This toolkit was created to help inform DACA recipients about their rights as well as how other community members can support DACA recipients during these challenging times.
This report outlines the state of immigration enforcement in Orange County, California by providing a window into the historical and current state of Orange County’s immigration policies, their impact on local residents and the considerations and values that ought to guide a vision for a new Orange County. Specifically, the report offers a first look at data obtained through Public Records Act requests from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and ICE. It concludes with 20 questions that ought to inform any discussion going forward about immigration policy in the sixth most populous county in the nation.
The ILRC is proud to stand with 30 of our partners in the criminal justice reform movement to release this report, Repairing the Road to Redemption in California. Our report is part of a national effort, called #TimeDone, to raise awareness of how many people are affected by the barriers associated with convictions and the extent to which they undermine, economic security, family stability, and public safety.