Co-authored by Nasrina Bargzie (National Security & Civil Rights) and Julia Harumi Mass (ACLU) Today, a federal district court in San Francisco issued an important ruling for government transparency and accountability. Judge Richard Seeborg disallowed the FBI’s attempt to use a “law enforcement exemption” in the Freedom of Information Act to shield from public disclosure […]

Co-authored by Angela Chan (Criminal Justice Reform) and Jon Rodney (CIPC) *This article originally appeared on the Huffington Post on March 20, 2015. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has a new director, Sarah Saldaña, but she made it apparent on Thursday that the agency is stuck making the same old mistakes. As she testified before […]

Co-authored by Angela Chan (Criminal Justice Reform), Anoop Prasad (Immigrant Rights), and Winnie Kao (Workers’ Rights) *This article originially appeared on the Huffington Post on March 2, 2015. This past Black History Month, millions of students were told the story of how America abolished slavery 150 years ago with ratification of the 13th Amendment. The story […]

By Reem Suleiman, Community Advocate National Security & Civil Rights  The government of Poland has recently announced it will comply with an order from the European Court of Human Rights to answer for its complicity in the CIA’s illegal rendition, torture, and detention programs by paying compensation to the victims. Yet, the U.S. has failed […]

By Chris Punongbayan, Executive Director *This article originially appeared on the Huffington Post on February 14, 2015.  Valentine’s Day takes on a special meaning at the Supreme Court this year. The first case on the docket delves straight into the matter of love and rights. Specifically, the Court is asked whether a U.S. citizen can be […]

By Nasrina Bargzie, Senior Staff Attorney National Security & Civil Rights  It has been three years since Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asian community members joined forces with 79 civil rights and community organizations to pass the Safe San Francisco Civil Rights Ordinance in June 2012. The Ordinance requires San Francisco police officers who […]

By Yaman Salahi, Staff Attorney National Security & Civil Rights The routine is familiar. Your international flight lands in the United States.You are finally home. You grab your luggage and proceed through customs. “Where did you travel? Was it business or pleasure? Welcome home.” For the vast majority of travelers, that’s it. But over 5 […]

By Nasrina Bargzie, Senior Staff Attorney National Security & Civil Rights  Yesterday a federal judge in the Northern District of California held a hearing to determine whether our lawsuit challenging the U.S. government’s domestic surveillance program called Suspicious Activity Reporting could proceed. The American Civil Liberties Union and Asian Law Caucus are representing five men […]

By Yaman Salahi, Staff Attorney National Security & Civil Rights  When politicians or powerful interests slander critics of government policies with crude epithets like “anti-American” or “pro-terrorist,” it can be much harder for folks to summon the courage to speak up. For years, the Asian Law Caucus has received complaints from students and academics describing […]

By Tejal Mankad, Communications Associate  Yesterday, October 22nd, marked the 19th Anniversary of the National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality, Repression, and Criminalization. Throughout the country, actions took place to demonstrate resistance to police violence. Earlier this month, I traveled to Ferguson, MO as part of a National Weekend of Resistance that brought […]

By Chris Punongbayan, Executive Director  *This article originially appeared on the Huffington Post on September 18, 2014.  I’m a dad and I was shocked this week to read a news story about the five children who had been deported back to Honduras who were later targeted and killed by local gangs, specifically because they were children. What […]

By Anoop Prasad, Senior Staff Attorney Immigrant Rights  In the past few months, over 57,000 refugee children from Central America have fled gang violence in search of protection at the United States-Mexico border. Politicians have argued over what is causing the children to flee – coyotes smuggling the children, irresponsible parents, ineffective governments, or the Obama […]