Until Congress steps up, it will be up to philanthropists, foundations, nonprofits, grassroots advocacy groups, and others to partner with immigration lawyers and bar associations to create a sustainable system to help those facing deportation.
The post The U.S. Needs A National Immigration Legal Defense Fund appeared first on Above the Law.
With the presidential election decided, so too it seems are the fates of immigrants in the United States. It is time to create a national immigration legal defense fund so that our nation’s immigrants — our neighbors, friends, family, small business owners, and other vital parts of our communities — can have the resources to fight the discriminatory executive actions that are inevitable and the mass deportations that have been promised.
It has been widely reported that former, and newly reelected, President Donald Trump’s teams are drafting plans to implement immigration crackdowns from Day One. We’ve already witnessed what such plans can do, and how quickly it might happen. In January 2017, the Trump administration enacted “Executive Order 13769: Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” also referred to as the “Muslim ban.” This order took effect within the first week of his term with an immediate global impact.
We also experienced four years of unrelenting policies to deter immigration. These policies didn’t affect only what happened at the border. They affected all immigration, including family and business visas, which had an impact on thousands of people diligently going through the process of immigrating, and contributing, to this country. It also had a strong negative effect on companies, especially small local businesses. These policies created a brain drain in the United States, the result of innovative entrepreneurs relocating to other countries, thereby creating a disadvantage to growth.
Those of us on the ground know what that looked like in 2017. It was a chaotic time with many lawyers trying to quickly come up with legal solutions to combat unfair executive actions and policies.
Now is the time for everyone to come together and proactively create a nationwide plan of action. As soon as the Muslim travel ban went into effect on January 25, 2017, lawyers around the country stepped up and flooded the airports with legal assistance. As a co-founder of airportlawyer.org, I was one of those lawyers on the ground helping travelers and immigrants caught in the chaos. But my work didn’t start that day. It started months before the election results were declared, and we organized and collaborated with local leaders and lawyers to ensure we could all come together strategically in case Trump did win and act on his campaign rhetoric.
So much was at stake. Many who contribute to our communities and economy include documented and undocumented immigrants, parents and spouses of U.S. citizens and green card holders, founders of businesses, and valued employees. The rhetoric risked harm to all walks of society. Much of what happened during the first Trump era for lawyers, especially immigration lawyers, is a blur, yet still vividly traumatic. A blur because it was constant. Relentless. All-consuming. Vividly traumatic because the fear was real. The effect of the executive orders and policies were evident and implemented. From the travel ban, to separation of parents from their children, to raids and aggressive deportation, the impact was palpable, and lawyers stepped up in every crisis.
In her book “The Shock Doctrine,” Professor Naomi Klein describes how national crises are often created to bring on collective shock and public disorientation. I believe that is what happened in this situation, too. Immigrants and immigration lawyers were kept in continuous crisis that led to inevitable emotional and physical exhaustion. It was strategic. With each crisis, fewer lawyers could keep up with the demand, and the number of people responding to the calls for pro bono help dwindled. That exhaustion remains four years on (or eight years, however you want to look at it).
Nevertheless, even after Trump left office, immigration lawyers generously gave their time, and there was still much pro bono help for Afghan and Ukrainian nationals during these recent crises. Yet, pro bono work to respond to mass immigration crises is not sustainable. The Wall Street Journal and others reported on May 17, 2024, that Trump teams were drafting executive orders on immigration. Since the election, mass deportation threats have dominated the news headlines. These will affect not just the undocumented but also legal immigration. In fact, the recent high-profile national H-1B debates have been jarring.
As an organizer and strategist, I can’t help but keep thinking about solutions we will need in the event we have more and possibly worse bans and restrictive policies, especially if we will have to face removal of people. We never had enough removal defense lawyers, and the pressure is even greater now, given the rising demands. As a business and startup immigration lawyer, I do not go to immigration court. Yet, it’s possible some of my clients, some of whom have lived and worked in the United States for years, could face removal too. Despite these high stakes for many U.S. residents and families, we do not have an immigration legal defense system for immigration as we have for criminal law. It is high time we had one. Congress, however, will not create one. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, representing my own district in Washington state, has sponsored several bills in Congress for the right to representation for immigrants. If Congress as a whole does not pass such a bill, we will be left to be reactive once more.
Therefore, it is incumbent on us, the people, particularly the lawyers, to find a workable and sustainable solution. I propose one. In Washington state, my lawyer co-founders and I created the Washington Immigrant Defense network in 2018. With funding from the Washington chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), and immigrant rights organization FWD.us, we proved the concept that “low bono” stipends can help immigration lawyers sustain their practices while also providing crucial help to those who cannot afford immigration lawyers. In Washington state, we have used the stipend model in various scenarios, broadening the use from immigration court to including legal clinics and Afghan asylum cases. Instead of a lawyer providing assistance for free, the nonprofit pays the lawyer a small fee, about 25% to 40% of their regular fees, that can help maintain their practice and at least cover overhead costs. In our model, everything remains pro bono to the client.
The time has come to share this model widely to create a nationwide program. If what the Trump teams are planning becomes true, we advocates must act. And while discussions are likely happening in various communities and organizations, all the organizations need to collaborate. There are shortages in both funding and lawyers who can handle the complexity of immigration law. Both shortfalls need to be addressed. A public-private solution would be ideal. But until Congress steps up, it will be up to philanthropists, foundations, nonprofits, grassroots advocacy groups, and others to partner with immigration lawyers and bar associations to create a sustainable system to help those facing deportation. Without a cohesive and collaborative effort, we will not be effective in protecting not just immigrants but also U.S. family members and U.S. businesses affected by the removal of important members.
The time is now.
Tahmina Watson is the founding attorney of Watson Immigration Law in Seattle, where she practices US immigration law focusing on business immigration. She has been blogging about immigration law since 2008 and has written numerous articles in many publications. She is the author of Legal Heroes in the Trump Era: Be Inspired. Expand Your Impact. Change the World and The Startup Visa: Key to Job Growth and Economic Prosperity in America. She is also the founder of The Washington Immigrant Defense Network (WIDEN), which funds and facilitates legal representation in the immigration courtroom, and co-founder of Airport Lawyers, which provided critical services during the early travel bans. Tahmina is regularly quoted in the media and is the host of the podcast Tahmina Talks Immigration. She is a Puget Sound Business Journal 2020 Women of Influence honoree. Business Insider recently named her as one of the top immigration attorneys in the U.S. that help tech startups. You can reach her by email at [email protected], connect with her on LinkedIn or follow her on Twitter at @tahminawatson.
