Latest news with #immigrantRights
CBS News
17 hours ago
- General
- CBS News
Lawyers seek release of Jeanette Vizguerra, Colorado immigration activist, on bond
Lawyers for detained immigrant rights activist Jeanette Vizguerra are asking that she be released on bond or by an injunction pending a final judgement of her petition for habeas corpus, which challenges the legality of her detention. In a new filing in the federal district court of Colorado, her lawyers are requesting "her immediate release pending adjudication of her petition." While her case drags out in federal court, they say the harm to her, her family and community outweighs any harm her release would pose to the government. Jeanette Vizguerra ICE Vizguerra was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement more than 10 weeks ago. She is being held at the GEO facility in Aurora. Her lawyers say her activism and promotion of immigrant rights is viewed as a "threat to government overreach" and her arrest is a violation of the First Amendment right to free speech. Vizguerra has been in the United States for more than thirty years and has three children who were born here. "I'm just very desperate, very desperate for her to be out, you know, in whatever way possible, it's very scary for her to be in custody," said Vizguerra's daughter Luna Baez Vizguerra. "I never know what they might be capable of doing to her, more so because she does have a little bit more attention towards herself." In the new filing, Vizguerra provides a declaration where she described the effects of her detention, "I am worried about the impact on my kids, grandkids, and ex-partner, all of whom rely on me...I particularly fear for my ex-partner and my youngest daughter, who struggle the most when I am separated from them…Detention makes it nearly impossible for me to be the activist and organizer that I am, and not being able to be there for the community with so many difficult things coming from this administration, so much terror and confusion is devastating." In a recent filing, government lawyer's wrote, "The Supreme Court has determined that noncitizens cannot challenge the enforcement of a removal order based on a selective enforcement theory. Thus, Petitioner does not have a viable First Amendment retaliation challenge here." Upon her arrest on March 17, ICE issued a statement saying, "Vizguerra is a convicted criminal alien from Mexico who has a final order of deportation issued by a federal immigration judge. She illegally entered the United States near El Paso, Texas, on Dec. 24, 1997, and has received legal due process in U.S. immigration court." The government has 21 days to respond to the motion for bond.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Bay Area man walking 100 miles barefoot for immigrant children's rights
(KRON) — Patrick McConnell has been training for three months to walk from San Francisco's Ocean Beach to Santa Cruz barefoot. He says every step will help raise money for immigrant children detained at the border. 'Many of these kids are fleeing violence, trafficking, unimaginable hardships back at home then they are met with a system that treats them like adults,' says McConnell. McConnell says he's partnered with the Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights — an organization that provides child advocates to help give these kids a voice in court and reunite them with their families. 'Ensure that when children are going through these proceedings that they feel safe, that their safety is considered. That wherever they land they are able to be freed from detention,' says Oneida Vargas Molina, child advocate supervisor at the Young Center. McConnell has been fundraising online and posting videos on Instagram showing what it's been like to train for the journey. He says the first time he unlaced his shoes for a walk, he only made it one mile — but now he's up to 13. 'Trying to get it going multiple days in a row is a different story, which is what I'll be doing for the actual walk,' says McConnell. But it's pretty painful. I would say my feet have definitely toughened up. I definitely scrape them every once in a while. It's not always a pretty sight but I'll spare you the details.' McConnell says he believes it'll take six days to complete the 100-mile journey, and knows it will not be an easy feat. 'My main concern is stepping on glass, stepping on anything that could end the walk,' says McConnell. 'I will be walking down Highway 1. There isn't a great clear path. No clear walking trail the whole way down. I'll be on the side of the road. Most of the time there will be a shoulder, but there are some portions that don't really have a shoulder and that's what I'm most concerned about.' He's already raised more than $12,000, with a goal to get to $50,000. 'Every $1k helps support 26 children with a child advocate in court and in life. I know it's going to an amazing cause. So any amount that can be raised is better than nothing so I'm feeling really grateful for that.' McConnell's walking journey will begin on Saturday, May 31 at 10 a.m. at Ocean Beach across from the Beach Chalet, and he's inviting all to come out. Anyone who would like to donate to McConnell's fundraiser can visit here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Independent
3 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Immigrant rights advocates rally against ICE courthouse arrests in San Francisco
Immigrant rights advocates rallied Wednesday outside San Francisco 's immigration court to condemn the Trump administration's latest deportation tactics and implore asylum-seekers to keep their court dates despite recent arrests. Arrests have been a rarity in or near immigration courts, but U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last week showed up at courthouses across the country to arrest migrants who appeared for routine court proceedings. The move has rattled immigrant communities already feeling pressure from the Republican administration to leave. Eight people were arrested in the San Francisco and Contra Costa County courthouses Tuesday, advocates said. At least one person was arrested last week. ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Most of the people in Concord courthouse are asylum-seekers, said Ali Saidi, director of Stand Together Contra Costa, an immigration hotline and rapid response team in the county east of San Francisco. It was unclear who was being targeted and why, but speakers at the rally said agents at both courts had specific names and were not arresting people at random. They did not have details of the people who were arrested. 'It seems to be targeted arrests that they could have done at other locations," Saidi said, 'but chose to do it at the court in order to — it appears — make people afraid to come to court.' Speakers implored immigrants to keep their court dates, because missing a hearing would make them subject to a removal order and deportation. They said lawyers are available, as are volunteers, to accompany them to court.
The Guardian
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Trump officials deported Vietnamese and Burmese migrants to South Sudan, say lawyers
Immigrant rights advocates have accused the Trump administration of deporting about a dozen migrants from countries including Myanmar and Vietnam to South Sudan in violation of a court order, and asked a judge to order their return. The advocates made the request in a motion directed to a federal judge in Boston who had barred the Trump administration from swiftly deporting migrants to countries other than their own without first hearing any concerns they had that they might be tortured or persecuted if sent there. Lawyers for a group of migrants pursuing the class action lawsuit before US district judge Brian Murphy said they learned that nearly a dozen migrants held at a detention facility in Texas were flown to South Sudan on Tuesday morning. Those migrants included an individual from Myanmar whose lawyer received an email on Monday from an official with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement informing the attorney of the intent to deport his client to South Sudan. The migrant's lawyers said they learned their client had been flown to South Sudan on Tuesday morning. The spouse of a Vietnamese man who was held at the same detention center in Texas emailed his lawyer, meanwhile, saying he and 10 other individuals were deported as well, according to the motion. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sign up to This Week in Trumpland A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration after newsletter promotion South Sudan, the world's youngest country, gained independence from Sudan in 2011, and has since struggled with armed conflict and poverty. Between 2013 and 2018, fighting between factions loyal to the current president, Salva Kiir Mayardit, and his vice-president, Riek Machar, killed nearly 400,000 people.
Reuters
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Immigrant rights advocates claim US violated court order by deporting migrants to South Sudan
BOSTON, May 20 (Reuters) - Immigrant rights advocates accused the Trump administration on Tuesday of deporting around a dozen migrants from countries including Myanmar and Vietnam to South Sudan in violation of a court order and asked a judge to order their return. The advocates made the request in a motion directed to a federal judge in Boston who had barred the Trump administration from swiftly deporting migrants to countries other than their own without first hearing any concerns they had that they might be tortured or persecuted if sent there.
