Current Actions

  • Tell Congress: Defund the Detention and Deportation Machine!

    U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) uses billions of taxpayer dollars to lock up 40,000 people every day--including asylum seekers and families--in its abusive immigration detention system. Congress requires that ICE publicly report on immigration detention and if ICE refuses, it has the power to cut off the funding to stop mass incarceration and family separation. 

    ICE has already failed to meet reporting deadlines set by Congress, including failing to publish its investigation of a tragic death in immigration jail. Congress must hold ICE accountable.

    Tell your representative and senators to stop funding efforts to lock up and deport our immigrant neighbors!

    Enter your address information below to find your members of Congress and call them using the below script. Then submit the form to send them an email message too.

    Sample Script:
    "Hello, my name is [first name] and I'm calling to ask [Representative or Senator's name] to cut funding for the abusive immigration detention and deportation system that separates immigrants in my community from their families. ICE has already failed to meet reporting deadlines set by Congress in the March spending bill, and they must be held accountable. Our taxpayer dollars should be used to strengthen families and communities, not tear them apart. Please pass my message on. Thank you."

  • Pass the VOICES Act in Illinois!

    Tell your Illinois House representative to protect immigrant survivors of domestic violence and other serious crimes by supporting the VOICES Act!

    The VOICES Act helps immigrant survivors of certain serious crimes—including domestic violence, sexual assault, and trafficking—seek legal status called a U Visa if they assist authorities in the crime investigation. This protection can provide life-changing stability for survivors and their families, and helps them move on from the trauma they have experienced.

    Currently, many law enforcement agencies refuse to sign the certification form that an individual needs to apply for a U Visa verifying that he or she is a crime survivor who cooperated with law enforcement. The VOICES Act provides clear guidelines and processes for law enforcement agencies to provide U Visa certifications.

    The VOICES Act passed the Illinois Senate and is moving to the House this week. The full Illinois House may vote on the VOICES Act very soon, and your representatives need to know their constituents (that’s you!) strongly support this bill.

    Enter your address below to see your representative's contact information. First, call your representative and urge them to support the VOICES Act. Then, complete the form to send them a message.  

  • Stop the attack on immigrant rights and save due process!

    We will not allow the Trump administration to end programs that provide basic legal information about the detention and deportation process to immigrants who do not have lawyers. 

    The Immigration Court Help Desk and the Legal Orientation Program have been a literal lifeline for individuals fighting deportation while locked up in remote immigration jails or who arrive at their court hearings without legal representation. Many face persecution and death in their native countries or indefinite separation from their family in the United States.

    These programs are often the only source of legal information individuals have in understanding how to represent themselves and their only chance to connect with a pro bono lawyer.

    The Department of Justice’s own studies have shown that programs informing immigrants of their legal rights have improved efficiency at immigration court, saved the government money, and kept countless families together.

    Stop the attack on our immigrant neighbors! Sign this petition to tell Attorney General Jeff Sessions to #SaveDueProcess and reinstate programs that inform immigrants of their legal rights! 

  • Help DACA Recipients in Indiana and Pass SB 419!

    By tonight at midnight when the legislative session ends, lawmakers in Indiana must pass SB 419, which will allow Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients to earn professional licenses in Indiana.

    Yesenia Giron, a DACA recipient, has lived in Indiana for the past 22 years and is studying to become a registered nurse. She is hoping to take the licensure exam for nursing in May with the goal of working in an intensive care unit or emergency room in Indiana, but under current law she cannot. “I consider Indiana home. All I want to do is contribute to my community, contribute to society,” says Yesenia.

    Call your state senator now to ask him or her to PASS SB 419 so Hoosiers like Yesenia can pursue their professional careers and continue contributing to the state we all love and call home!

    Find your senator using the form below and then call then and ask them to pass SB 419. Here's a sample script you can use:

    “Hi, my name is [your name] and I’m calling to ask Senator [your senator’s name] to pass SB 419 by the deadline tonight so that DACA recipients can earn professional licenses in Indiana. This legislation is good for our state and for the many young Hoosiers who have studied, worked, and contributed to our communities and want to continue doing so. Thank you for your time.” 

    After you call, click the "submit" button below to send them a message!

  • Fix Injustices in Immigration Court

    The dysfunction in the immigration court system causes harm every day: delayed adjudications leave parents separated from children who remain abroad in hiding, due process violations lead to erroneous deportations, and the credibility of judges’ decisions is undermined by a failing system. In his year in office, Attorney General Jeff Sessions already has manipulated the immigration court system to advance the White House’s anti-immigrant agenda in alarming ways.

    As the government continues to escalate immigration enforcement, we must protect immigrants' rights to due process and representation as they defend against deportation.

    Urge your members of Congress to support the right to appointed counsel in immigration court and to hold the Attorney General accountable for the protection of due process rights in the immigration court system.

  • SalsaStaff 198369: MCTA targeting question

    Call and send a message to your representative and ask them to co-sponsor the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act! ACT NOW.

    Each day, nearly 40,000 people sit unnecessarily locked up in hundreds of immigration detention centers across the country—most of which are run by private, for-profit companies or county jails. Abuse is rampant, deaths are not uncommon, and due process rights are routinely denied in immigration detention. Moreover, there is very little oversight of the immigration detention system and neither the U.S. government nor private prison corporations are held accountable for these injustices.

    It is past time to overhaul immigration detention. The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act (recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives) will increase oversight and accountability, significantly reduce the number of individuals detained, and end the use of private prisons and county jails for immigration detention.

    Ask your representative to stand up for human rights and co-sponsor the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act.

    Enter your address information below to find your members of congress and call them using the script below. Then submit the form to send them an email message too.

    Sample Script
    "Hello, my name is [first name] and I'm calling to ask Representative [name] to co-sponsor the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act. The bill will end the use of private jails, help ensure humane treatment of detained individuals, and increase oversight and accountability of the immigration detention system. Please pass my message on to the representative."

  • Reform immigration detention!

    Call and send a message to your representative and ask them to co-sponsor the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act! ACT NOW.

    Each day, nearly 40,000 people sit unnecessarily locked up in hundreds of immigration detention centers across the country—most of which are run by private, for-profit companies or county jails. Abuse is rampant, deaths are not uncommon, and due process rights are routinely denied in immigration detention. Moreover, there is very little oversight of the immigration detention system and neither the U.S. government nor private prison corporations are held accountable for these injustices.

    It is past time to overhaul immigration detention. The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act (recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives) will increase oversight and accountability, significantly reduce the number of individuals detained, and end the use of private prisons and county jails for immigration detention.

    Ask your representative to stand up for human rights and co-sponsor the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act.

    Enter your address information below to find your members of congress and call them using the script below. Then submit the form to send them an email message too.

    Sample Script
    "Hello, my name is [first name] and I'm calling to ask Representative [name] to co-sponsor the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act. The bill will end the use of private jails, help ensure humane treatment of detained individuals, and increase oversight and accountability of the immigration detention system. Please pass my message on to the representative."

  • Tell Congress: Pass a clean Dream Act!

    Every day that Congress delays, more than 100 immigrant youth lose their status and protections when their DACA expires. Not taking action on the Dream Act is a vote to deport Dreamers.

    ACT NOW: Demand that members of Congress take action to pass the bi-partisan Dream Act that provides legal status for immigrant youth and does not jeopardize the safety and livelihood of other immigrants in the United States.

    Enter your address information below to find your members of Congress and call them using the below script. Then submit the form to send them an email message too.

    Sample Script:
    "Hello, my name is [first name] and I'm calling to ask [Representative or Senator's name] to pass the bi-partisan Dream Act that provides permanent legal status for immigrant youth and is clean of provisions that further harm immigrants in our communities. Tens of thousands of Dreamers have already lost their DACA protections. Not taking action on the Dream Act is a vote to deport Dreamers. I hope the [Representative or Senator] does everything s/he can right now to protect these individuals and their families. Thank you."

  • Tell Congress: Defund the Detention and Deportation Machine!

    U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement locks up in immigration detention 40,000 people every day--including asylum seekers and families--and President Trump has requested A LOT more money to expand the abusive detention system and needlessly deport more mothers, fathers, and kids. But YOU can stop the flow of money!

    Congress is negotiating a spending bill right now. Congress has the final say on federal spending and it has the power to cut off the funding to stop mass incarceration and family separation.

    Tell your representative and senators to stop funding efforts to lock up and deport our immigrant neighbors!

    Enter your address information below to find your members of Congress and call them using the below script. Then submit the form to send them an email message too.

    Sample Script:
    "Hello, my name is [first name] and I'm calling to ask [Representative or Senator's name] to cut funding for the abusive immigration detention and deportation system that separates immigrants in my community from their families. Our taxpayer dollars should be used to strengthen families and communities, not tear them apart. Please pass my message on. Thank you."

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  • Tell the Illinois House: Pass the TRUST Act!

    Tell your Illinois House Representative why you support the TRUST Act and ask for their commitment to support it too!

    Holding police and local governments accountable to protect all Illinois residents makes us all safer. The Illinois TRUST Act will help our state be more welcoming and safer for all.

    The Illinois TRUST Act creates a bright line between local governments and federal immigration agents, so immigrants can seek help from the police and other basic services without worrying that they may be turned over to the federal government or deported.

    The Illinois TRUST Act:

    • Bars local law enforcement from engaging in immigration enforcement

    • Sets guidelines for how local law enforcement should assist immigrant survivors of crime who report crimes and seek legal protection

    • Prohibits local participation in a Muslim registry, or any federal registry based on country of origin or religion

    • Prohibits local police from helping federal immigration agents make arrests in schools, health facilities and courthouses if they do not have court warrants

    Personalize the message below to explain why the TRUST Act is important to you. If your representative already has voiced their support for the TRUST Act, we've provided a thank you note.

  • Stop deportation of victim of ICE brutality

    James Chesire, a father of four who has been detained and awaiting deportation to Kenya for nearly two years, was beaten by federal immigration officers in a cell at a Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in downtown Chicago. The officers used racial slurs during the assault, held his neck so he struggled to breathe, and slammed his head into a wall, knocking him unconscious. James says the ICE officers attacked him when he refused to fingerprint or sign unidentified documents the officers refused to let him read. After he was beaten, James was taken to Rush University Medical Center, where records show he was treated for head and elbow injuries, as well as a sprained shoulder and ankle.

    Call the ICE office and tell them to stop James' deportation and investigate this brutal attack. Then send an email using the form below!

    Call ICE Field Office Director Ricardo Wong at 312-347-2400 and use this sample script:
    “I am calling to ask that you halt the deportation of James Chesire (A# 201171008). ICE should not deport Mr. Chesire while he has a pending civil rights investigation. ICE must investigate Mr. Chesire’s brutal assault at the hands of ICE officers and hold these officers accountable.”

    Take action now and tell ICE that Americans adamantly reject a law enforcement culture that permits harm to any individual with impunity.

  • President Obama: Protect Refugees!

    A humanitarian crisis is raging in Central America: Violence and chaos in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras has forced women, men, and children to leave their homes and flee for their lives.

    Sign the petition below urging the U.S. government to grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to refugees from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras!

    Essau escaped violence in El Salvador when he was 15 and fled to the United States with his 17-year-old brother, Jesús. They had seen friends and classmates targeted and forcibly recruited to be gang members, and knew that if they waited any longer they would be next. So they ran. The brothers now live safely with their family, have lots of friends in high school, and want to go to college. But Essau and Jesús also live in fear that they will soon be deported back to El Salvador.

    TPS would save thousands of refugees like Essau and Jesús from the risk of death and grave harm in Central America. Sign the petition below to demand that the United States grant TPS to Central American refugees!

  • Stop locking up mothers and children!

    Thousands of mothers and children who fled to the United States to escape violence in Central America will spend tonight in prison-like detention centers. Many of these mothers and children are survivors of domestic and gang violence and sexual assault. It is shameful that our government further re-traumatizes refugee mothers and children by locking them up.

    Use the form below to SEND A MESSAGE to your representatives in Congress telling them to stop funding family detention and to urge the Department of Homeland Security to stop jailing mothers and children.

    Detaining families is inhumane, unnecessary, and betrays the United States' history as a refuge for the persecuted. Alternatives to detention—such as community-support programs—are humane, effective, and much cheaper than detention. Family detention costs $266 per day, but alternatives can cost as little as 70 cents to $17 per day. Nonetheless, the U.S. government is plowing ahead to quadruple family incarceration at the expense of human rights and taxpayer dollars, and at a profit to private prison companies with terrible human rights records.

    Tell your representatives that locking up vulnerable mothers and children is not what this country is about.

  • President Obama: Please Let the Lawyers In!

    This petition is for community members frustrated by the lack of due process for immigrant children in the current judicial system. Sign this petition urging President Obama to give children a fair day in court with an attorney to represent them. If you’re a lawyer, please sign on to a petition that will be submitted by the legal community.

    I sign this petition to ask you to give unaccompanied immigrant children the opportunity for a fair day in court with attorneys by their side. I am alarmed and outraged by the treatment of children from Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala who are being subjected to “rocket dockets” in immigration court.

    I believe strongly in American values of due process. Our government should be particularly careful to ensure fundamental fairness when it comes to children who fear being sent back to countries where they face murder, kidnapping, rape, sexual slavery, and forced labor.

    All over the country, children are scheduled for shockingly quick hearings in locations far from where they live. Many of these children have not received their hearing notices and are unaware they have been scheduled for hearings. In many cases, the notices were sent to the wrong addresses. When the children fail to appear in court, some government attorneys are asking immigration judges to order the children deported in absentia.

    Attorneys across the country are volunteering to represent these children, but the current rapid adjudication system is blocking them from the courtrooms and from children who need them. The Obama administration has asked attorneys to donate time to help children, but has set up a system that makes it impossible to do so. The legal service organizations which normally facilitate pro bono representation and help the immigration system function more effectively are in triage mode as children are hurried through the system. The influx of hearings is depriving these organizations of the time and resources to train volunteer attorneys, screen cases which could benefit from pro bono representation, and provide technical assistance as the cases unfold.

    Deporting children under these circumstances is a miscarriage of justice. 

    To ensure justice for immigrant children, the government must:

    1. Schedule children’s hearings within months, not days and not years. Children need time to recover from their trauma, find attorneys, and prepare their cases.
    2. Ensure children have access to lawyers by providing appointed counsel for those who need it, and ensuring that legal service organizations have the time and resources necessary to facilitate pro bono representation and help the immigration system function more effectively.

    In a world where case timelines are reasonable and children have the opportunity to access counsel, justice can flourish.

    Please let the lawyers in.

  • Tell Congress to Defend Child Refugees

    American values recognize  that children deserve to live safely and free from violence. For decades, U.S. law has provided protection for refugee children fleeing violence all around the world. 

    But some members of Congress are proposing extreme measures that would put thousands of refugee children in danger.

    TODAY, the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on H.R. 5230, a bill that would create a fast-track deportation process for children fleeing extreme violence in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. This legislation also would waste millions of dollars to unnecessarily deploy the National Guard to the border.

    Tell Congress that when children come to our border seeking safety, America has an opportunity to show the world that we are capable of upholding the values that we hold dear.

    Use the form below to send an email, or call the congressional switchboard at (202) 224-3121, and tell your House representative to to defend children’s right to seek asylum by voting NO on H.R. 5230.

    Here is a sample script you can use:

    Hello, my name is [your name] and I’m from [City, State]. I’m calling to ask Representative [Congress Member’s Name] to vote NO on H.R. 5230. I do not support repealing protections for children. Children fleeing persecution and violence should have a meaningful opportunity to seek asylum, and we should not send them back to places where they will face harm and possibly death. As your constituent, I hope you will take a strong stand to ensure that children’s rights are protected.

    Thank you for taking a stand for children.