This morning, we joined 49 other ACLU affiliates around the country to expose how Customs and Border Protection officials are violating federal court orders and continuing to implement President Trump's unlawful immigration ban.
ACLU of Alaska Files FOIA on Execution of Trump’s Immigration Ban
FOIA Filed As Part of Coordinated Campaign With 50 ACLU Affiliates
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 2, 2017
CONTACT: Joshua A. Decker, ACLU of Alaska, jdecker@acluak.org
WASHINGTON, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska filed a Freedom of Information Act request today with its local U.S. Customs and Border Protection office to expose how Trump administration officials are interpreting and executing the president’s immigration ban, acting in violation of federal courts that ordered a stay on the ban’s implementation. The filing today is part of a coordinated effort from 50 ACLU affiliates, which filed 18 FOIAs with CBP field offices and its headquarters spanning 55 international airports across the country.
“President Trump’s Muslim ban is unlawful, unjust, and un-American,” said Joshua A. Decker, Executive Director of the ACLU of Alaska. “That’s why we at the ACLU immediately went to court to stop it. But on top of the President’s wrong-headed ban, it’s deeply troubling that Customs and Border Protection officials defied federal court orders to stop. No one in this country, including the President and the U.S. Government, is above the law.”
Media reports indicate that CBP officials detained and deported individuals, even after federal courts ordered officials to stop enforcing the Trump executive order through a petition from the ACLU and other organizations.
“It is imperative that the public learn if federal immigration officials are blatantly defying nationwide federal court orders that discontinue President Trump’s unconstitutional immigration ban,” said Mitra Ebadolahi, Border Litigation Project Staff Attorney with the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties. “To shed light on this critical issue of pressing public concern, 49 ACLU affiliates are using the Freedom of Information Act to expose Customs and Border Protection’s abuse of power.
The Trump administration has yet to inform the public of how many refugees, visa holders, and legal permanent residents have been affected by this unlawful action.
The following ACLU affiliates participated in this coordinated FOIA filing:
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
Colorado
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Northern California
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
San Diego, California
South Carolina
Southern California
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
Washington, D.C.
West Virginia
Wisconsin
The ACLU of Colorado filed a FOIA request on behalf of the Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Wyoming affiliate. Read the request here.
The ACLU national FOIA request can be found here: https://www.aclu.org/cbp-foia-filing-trump-immigration-ban
This statement is online here: https://www.acluak.org/en/news/aclu-files-demands-documents-implementation-trumps-immigration-ban
The American Civil Liberties Union is our nation’s guardian of liberty. For nearly 100 years, the ACLU has been at the forefront of virtually every major battle for civil liberties and equal justice in this country. Principled and nonpartisan, the ACLU works in the courts, legislatures, and communities to preserve and expand the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States. The ACLU of Alaska, founded in 1971, is one of the 53 state ACLU affiliates that strive to make the Bill of Rights real for everyone and to uphold the promise of the Constitution—because freedom can’t protect itself.
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