Immigrant Rights

New York, NY –  Friday, Judge Elizabeth Wolford of the Federal District Court for the Western District of New York issued a 32-page Decision and Order dismissing Erie County’s lawsuit challenging the constitutionally of New York’s newly enacted Green Light Law which would permit non-citizen residents to obtain a drivers’ license in the case of Kearns v. Cuomo et al. Judge Wolford dismissed the case on jurisdictional grounds noting that Kearns as a county clerk failed to establish requisite legal standing to challenge the GreenLight Law.

This rhetoric takes form as official policy carried out by the CBP and ICE; is fueled by the dehumanizing, hate-filled speeches and tweets of President Trump. It is given further impetus by the enabling cowardice of GOP leadership; and used by the white nationalists who take the words of the president and the failure to condemn that speech as a green light. And it must STOP.

Housing and Urban Development is considering a rule change that could make roughly 25,000 Mixed status families homeless unless you take action. HUD is proposing a rule that would require verification of eligible immigration status for every leaseholder who is receiving public assistance for housing. This proposed rule change ignores the family who would suffer while also putting an undue burden on a population who is already struggling to cover expenses for the household.

LatinoJustice’s brief urges Utah to follow California, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Texas, Illinois, Nebraska and Wyoming in granting law licenses to DACA and TPS law school graduates who otherwise meet the rigorous requirements for state bar admission. The two petitioners, Mary Doe and Jane Doe who graduated from Utah law schools, are both admitted to practice law in good standing in California, and reside in Utah, request the Supreme Court to adopt a new rule that would allow undocumented law graduates who otherwise meet the Utah standards for admission to receive their state law license.