News & Commentary

On the heels of the president’s executive action, the decision by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to end the deeply-flawed Secure Communities program is a step in the right direction. But with a new program in its place that will target “enforcement priorities,” we are cautious.

As the 2014 California legislative session came to an end, you may have seen headlines about California passing a “first-in-the-nation law.” While these headlines covered issues such as the statewide plastic-bag ban, they also applied to landmark civil liberties and civil rights legislation sponsored by the ACLU of California.

California leaders have concluded another legislative session bringing significant new rights and opportunities to the state's 10 million immigrants.

ACLU of Northern California report confirms Latino community's experience with racial profiling by California Highway Patrol in Fresno County.

Last week, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved $2.1 million for legal services for refugee children and families in the County who are facing deportation. It is the first county in the country to do so, although legislation to allocate $3 million from the State for this purpose is currently on Governor Brown’s desk.

My family and I left Iran when I was 8 years old and eventually made our way to the United States. Today there are thousands of children who have fled from some of the most dangerous places in the world and are now detained throughout the country. Some have made the treacherous journey here alone.

A black canvas near Gate 18 in the Sacramento airport’s Terminal B sits in place of a billboards intended to promote healthcare access for immigrants in California. Why? The airport has refused to use the original ads, claiming that they are too political in nature.

There are children in cages along the U.S.-Mexico border right now. And more are showing up every day.

While immigration detention is supposed to be “civil” detention, as opposed to incarceration as punishment for a crime, the conditions that immigrants experience are anything but civil. People detained by ICE are bused daily to immigration court wearing jumpsuits and metal handcuffs, belly chains, and leg irons in San Francisco.