National Immigration Law Center

18 Aug

❗️Community Alert❗️ The Board of Immigration Appeals issued a new decision that changes the consequences of traveling on “advance parole.” If you are considering traveling outside the United States on "advance parole", our latest resource breaks down what these changes mean. 🧵⤵️

celebrate.anthemawards.comYOU can amplify the voices that spark global changeJoin me in celebrating the impact of this Anthem Awards finalist.

Last year, ICE detained Jackie Merlos, separating her from her children for months. A year ago, she was released & reunited with her kids.♥️ Our campaign with Social Currant to bring Jackie home has been named a 2026 Anthem Awards finalist in three categories. 🗳️ Vote for us: https://bit.ly/4kfDIdc

bit.lyThese Women Were Trying to Escape Domestic Abuse. ICE Detained Them Instead.It’s especially intimidating for immigrants suffering abuse to call 911. With this in mind, Congress has long treated people who need help as victims, not targets for deportation. Under the Trump admi...

Immigration agents are increasingly detaining & deporting survivors of domestic violence after they call 911 for help. An emergency call should never risk immigration detention. Everyone should be able to seek safety without fear—regardless of immigration status. https://bit.ly/4hPDOqG

On this week's Freedom to Thrive podcast episode, “Community on Broadway and Off,” Tony Award-winning costume designer and community organizer Qween Jean joins host Hector Flores to talk about the power of art, belonging, and solidarity. 🎧 Listen: https://www.nilc.org/freedom-to-thrive-podcast/

How much are you paying for Trump's mass deportation agenda? We used data from @nationalpriorities.bsky.social to show how much taxpayers in each state are paying into ICE and CBP's $240 billion slush fund. Find your state. Then tag your members of Congress and tell them: Take back our money.

Getting ready to vote? Our guide covers what eligible voters need to know to vote safely in the 2026 midterms & beyond 🧵⤵️ ¿Estás lista para votar? Nuestra guía explica lo que los votantes habilitados deben saber para votar de manera segura en 2026 y en el futuro 🧵⤵️

What should you do if you see someone violating voting rights laws? ¿Qué debería hacer si ve a alguien violando las normas de votación?

nilc.orgHow to Vote Safely: A Guide for Naturalized Citizens and All Other Eligible VotersThis guide is designed to help eligible voters, including naturalized citizens, vote safely in federal elections in the 2026 midterms and beyond.

For more information, visit: www.nilc.org/resources/ho... Para más información, visita: www.nilc.org/resources/co...

What can you do to make sure you’re prepared to vote? ¿Qué puede hacer para confirmar que esté preparado para votar?

What is not allowed at polling sites? ¿Qué no está permitido en los puntos de votación?

Who is eligible to vote in federal elections? ¿Quiénes están habilitados para votar en elecciones federales?

n.prPolicy: ICE And The Pregnant Women It's Detaining : 1AImmigration and Customs Enforcement arrests reached record highs this summer. And the full scope is just coming into focus. Some 43,000 people were arrested in June, more than 49,000 in July, and almo...

One pregnant, nursing, or postpartum person in ICE detention is one too many. Healthy pregnancy outcomes require consistent monitoring, nutrition, and reliable medical care — standards that detention facilities are in no way equipped to meet. https://n.pr/3UiNgK3

theguardian.comDetained immigrants at Georgia ICE facility launch mass hunger strikeAt least 73 people estimated to have joined protest against prolonged detention and Folkston facility’s ‘violations’

Hundreds of people detained at Folkston ICE Processing Center in Georgia are on a hunger strike, protesting unsafe drinking water, spoiled food, and denied medical care. We stand in solidarity with them & demand humane conditions & accountability🧵⤵️ www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

npr.orgPrivate prisons announce $1.4 billion in revenue as immigration detentions climbThat revenue does not include net proceeds of $1.6 billion made by CoreCivic after the recent sale of four of their facilities to the Department of Homeland Security.

It’s no secret that private prison groups, like GEO Group, which runs Folkston, have hit a gold rush with Trump’s mass deportation machine. Earlier this year, GEO Group reported over $732 million in quarterly revenue. www.npr.org/2026/08/08/n...

No one is safe in ICE detention. We demand that Congress take back the billions of dollars fueling this aggressive detention machine. 📣Join us in taking action ⬇️ act.nilc.org/page/100389/...

act.nilc.orgTake Action!

It’s urgent that we amplify their demands. Detention officials have already placed some participants in solitary confinement as punishment. ICE has also deported one of the striker’s organizers.

What’s happening in Folkston is a part of a broader pattern of abuse & neglect in detention facilities nationwide. Immigration detention is a for-profit industry built on caging as many human beings as possible & turning detention into revenue—with little regard for the safety of the people inside.

With no other place to turn, immigrants in GA — and in other facilities across the country — are using this extreme form of protest to demand that someone listen. Among the hunger strikers is a Yemeni asylum seeker with lung cancer who is separated from his U.S. citizen child.

nilc.orgFreedom to Thrive PodcastListen to our Freedom to Thrive podcast and meet the artists, organizers, and unexpected allies influencing culture and building solidarity.

🎙️Tune in to this week's Freedom to Thrive podcast episode, "Creating Safe Spaces." Host Hector Flores talks with Katya Grokhovsky, artist & Founding Director of The Immigrant Artist Biennial, about her work exploring gender & immigration and creating space for artists. www.nilc.org/freedom-to-t...

Multiple federal agencies are illegally dismantling the rights of unaccompanied immigrant children seeking safety and denying them a fair chance to request protection in the United States. Breaking down our new lawsuit to protect children's rights🧵⤵️

All of these illegal attacks are a part of the administration's larger project: building a child-deportation pipeline.

This unconscionable assembly line is working as designed. We will not stand by while the administration uses the full force of the government to attack children and shred due process to pieces.

USCIS has shifted to virtual interviews for all detained unaccompanied children. Virtual anything can be difficult for children and youth, let alone a legal interview with life-altering stakes.

EOIR is limiting the discretion of immigration judges with the goal of completing all unaccompanied children's cases on a rapid timeline.

USCIS started scheduling children’s asylum interviews at an unprecedented pace and volume. It also began making it harder for attorneys to reschedule interviews and seek continuances, while shortening the windows for them to submit evidence.

It's giving attorneys and children extremely short notice of an asylum interview — in some cases, less than 24 hours. The consequences have been dire.

Congress has created specific procedures for unaccompanied kids in recognition of an undeniable reality: children should not have to navigate the U.S. immigration system on their own. But now, the agencies tasked with protecting children are dismantling their rights altogether. Here's how⤵️

nilc.orgAdvocates for Unaccompanied Children File Lawsuit to Stop Federal Government’s Fast-Track Deportation SchemeLegal service providers representing immigrant children filed a challenge in federal court today to stop the cruel and unlawful scheme to fast-track children’s asylum cases.

BREAKING: We filed a lawsuit to stop the government's cruel & unlawful scheme to fast-track children's asylum cases. The lawsuit challenges the admin's broad attempts to rush the deportation of unaccompanied kids in violation of their civil rights & U.S. law. www.nilc.org/press/advoca...

Plaintiffs: Amica Center for Immigrant Rights, The Door, @immdef.bsky.social, @florenceproject.bsky.social, Galveston-Houston Immigrant Representation Project, & Jewish Family and Community Services Pittsburgh Co-counsel: @cgrsasylum.bsky.social, @theyoungcenter.bsky.social, & Trial Impact Project

nilc.orgThis Hispanic Heritage Month, Respect Immigrants’ NamesAs we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, one way that we can respect and honor immigrants is to respect their names, and their humanity.

Our names carry our stories, culture, and identity. Yet, immigration authorities often overlook or erase our names altogether. As Latine Heritage Month comes to an end, today and every day, we can honor Latine immigrants by respecting their names—and their humanity. 💜 https://bit.ly/4B130lo

npr.orgThe chilling effect of ICE in hospitals : The Indicator from Planet MoneyFederal immigration enforcement arrests reached record highs this past summer, and under the second Trump administration, immigration agents can now more easily access so-called sensitive areas, inclu...

ICE in hospitals puts entire communities at risk, discouraging people from seeking lifesaving care and making it harder for health care workers to do their jobs. #ICEOut of hospitals. www.npr.org/2026/10/08/n...

nilc.orgAdvocating On Behalf of Patients in Immigration Custody: A Resource for Health Care Providers and Medical StaffUnder the Trump administration, medical professionals are increasingly caring for patients who are in the custody of ICE or CBP officers. This resource provides guidance for healthcare professionals o...

If you are a health care provider, read our resource on how to advocate and care for your patients with ICE and CBP agents present: www.nilc.org/resources/ad...

For months, advocates & people formerly detained at Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz" sounded the alarm about dangerous conditions. Only after it closed did DHS’s OIG document many of the same concerns. But the report only captures what the gov't recorded—not the full scope of what people endured. ⤵️

“Alligator Alcatraz” is now closed. But the Trump administration was prepared to spend $600 million on it and had already paid $58.3 million to Florida before its closure.

Tell Congress: Take back the taxpayer money bankrolling immigrant detention. 📣Take action: act.nilc.org/page/100389/...

"The food is dirty; I’ve found hair in it. The lights are always on. The water smells bad."

People detained at the facility did not have access to legal materials and telephones. One person reported going all eight days in the facility without access to a phone to contact his attorney or ICE case officer.

Like many detention facilities, this facility was severely overcrowded

Like many detention centers, this facility was severely overcrowded – violating even ICE’s own detention standards. At its peak population, the facility held 1,468 people, with units providing only 28 square feet per person.

bit.lyThe Babies Left Behind in AmericaThe United States is deporting parents without their children, creating a whole new family-separation crisis.

"Marlyn didn’t see Eber’s first steps or hear his first words. He was so fragile the last time they were together...Even if he makes it to Venezuela, they’ll never regain the time they lost. 'I’ve missed everything,' she said." https://bit.ly/4ytX7vx

Shooting into a car with a 5 year old inside. Executing people in broad daylight. Disappearing tens of thousands of our neighbors into for-profit prisons rife with abuse. This agency is violent and unlawful to its core. We must dismantle ICE.

bit.lyCLINIC v. Rubio: The 75-Country Visa Pause Was Vacated. What Happens Now?The 75-country visa pause was vacated. What happens now? A practical roadmap, created by CLINIC, for immigrant visa applicants and their legal representatives.

Questions about the 75-country visa pause or CLINIC v. Rubio, our lawsuit challenging it? Our latest resource breaks down what immigrant visa applicants and their legal representatives need to know⬇️ https://bit.ly/3Wia7G7

🗣️Tune in to our latest Freedom to Thrive podcast episode, "Everyday People," with content creator and actor Leo González. Leo joins our host, Hector Flores, to talk about his upcoming projects and his deep connection to immigrant communities. Listen: https://bit.ly/46dMfoM

Today, on #LatinaEqualPayDay, remember that Latina women earn only 53 cents for every $1 earned by a white male. We must stand for a future where every woman is paid fairly, free from discrimination, and able to achieve economic security. Equal pay is a matter of fairness, dignity, and justice.

bit.lyU.S. Military Likely Violated Posse Comitatus Act During 2025 Immigration Raids in California, New Document ShowsWASHINGTON — A U.S. military document newly obtained by the National Immigration Law Center seems to reveal a previously unknown Trump administration violation of the Posse Comitatus Act during its de...

We obtained a military document that appears to show an additional violation of the Posse Comitatus Act by the Trump admin during last summer's deployment of federalized National Guard in CA. We demand transparency & accountability for how these decisions were made. https://bit.ly/4j5RA9z

Election Day is coming up. All eligible U.S. citizens have the right to vote free from intimidation. Here's what to know to vote safely ⤵️

🗳️Remember: Don’t give up your right to vote! If you are in line by the time your polling location closes, you have a right to cast your vote.

For more information, read our new guide to voting safely: www.nilc.org/resources/ho...

Election Day is coming up. All eligible U.S. citizens have the right to vote free from intimidation. Here's what to know to vote safely ⤵️

Important: 🛑It’s illegal to prevent someone from voting based on their English proficiency 🛑It's illegal for armed agents from ICE or other federal agencies to appear at polling places 🛑Harassment, intimidation, or any other action that prevents eligible people from voting is against the law

If you see someone violating voting rights laws: ➡️If you can do so safely, tell a poll worker what's happening ➡️Report the incident by calling the Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE ➡️Connect with your local immigrant rights org for voting resources for eligible voters

Election Day is coming up. All eligible U.S. citizens have the right to vote free from intimidation. Here's what to know to vote safely ⤵️