Southern California Immigration Project

Right now SCIP has 12 people on our waiting list. We try to meet with 2 new clients a week from the list, but that still means 6 weeks until we get to the end of the list. 6 weeks is 45 days. And that is not saying the client was detained and had their first court appearance before they ever reached out to SCIP for help! Automatically, that would mean 8 of those 12 people would be deemed denied and deported before I could ever get to them! Our clients are from countries where they do not read or speak English. It is IMPOSSIBLE for them to understand, read or fill out the asylum application in English. This is a death knell for these people.

Thank You San Diego County Employees Charitable Organization (CECO) for our new and much needed supply cabinet and shredder! It was a great team building exercise for our summer interns to figure out how to build the cabinet! When you have a new non profit its the little things that are most appreciated!!!

The United Nations stated within a Special Procedures press release: According to international standards, States should ensure that people in detention have access to the same standard of health care as is available in the community, and that this applies to everyone regardless of citizenship, nationality or migration status. Our government is mandated to reduce the population of our immigration detention facilities!!!!

Well, I knew the day would come, and now its here. I pray it does not spread like it did in Otay Mesa Detention Center. Many of my clients are housed in Imperial and they are very scared now.

A powerful article about the reality of the ongoing Immigration Court hearings for detained immigrants in the face of COVID-19. SCIP continues to serve, making court appearances and entering detention facilities to provide legal services to our clients. https://www.newsweek.com/immigration-attorney-client-covid-

While the work goes on, defending the rights of Immigrant detainees in Immigration court, we thank our ACLU friends for fighting for their release in the time of COVID-19. For profit detention centers do not afford proper health care and safety measure for the detainees. https://www.nbcsandiego.com//aclu-files-lawsuit-c/2310457/

These are crazy times when I get a gift box full of gloves, masks and sanitzer and I'm more excited then if it were clothes or jewelry! Thank you to our generous supporters from the Sisters of Social Service! One of the sisters even hand made the mask and the sanitizer!

Please enjoy our event photos. SCIP continues to serve our clients during this difficult time.

For those of us that have detained clients, the COVID-19 Doesn't stop the trials going forward! This was a busy month for SCIP. We got 6 guys out with asylum wins! A big shout out to Mark and Marcel with Minority Humanitarian Foundation who helped get our guys from Calexico to San Diego. And of course, without the help of my AWESOME interns Rebecca, Kelsey, Jessica and Esther none of this could ever have been possible!

The reality of this pandemic is so much worse for our clients in immigration detention. https://www.nbcsandiego.com//lawyers-judges-push-/2293668/

Thank you ACLU’s National Prison Project. The group has called on ICE to release migrant detainees who are at high risk of serious illness or death" if they become sick with the coronavirus. https://www.nbcnews.com//u-s-called-close-immigration-cour

It is difficult at this time to weigh public health concerns with humanitarian concerns of asylum seekers. In addition to the government failing to release those seeking asylum from federal immigration detention centers, refusing those seeking asylum at the border should also be heavily scrutinized. Los Angeles has released its short term prisoners early but the federal government has not budged on immigrants detain for civil reasons. The southwest border remains open to all others at this time but there are plans to close it to asylum seekers. Both actions put the lives of asylum seekers in jeopardy and can be preventable. SCIP remains committed through this time to serve our clients and reassured them that they are valued.