On August 8, 2024, the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program and other advocacy groups renewed our demand for an end to civil rights abuses at Plymouth County Correctional Facility by filing a complaint with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office. This complaint builds on one previously filed in March 2023, highlighting a range of civil…
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In 2021, the Biden administration established fast-tracked removal proceedings, known as the Dedicated Docket, targeting asylum-seeking families who recently arrived in the United States. This report analyzes the impact of the Dedicated Docket on asylum-seeking families in the Boston Immigration Court. The Boston Dedicated Docket is the largest in the country, with over 20,000 asylum…
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The Biden administration’s new rule, which took effect yesterday and has already been challenged in court, will unjustly prevent refugees from accessing protection at the southern border in violation of domestic and international law. The inhumane and unlawful rule will lead to the return of vulnerable refugees, including women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and other survivors of…
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Program Director Sabi Ardalan spoke with HLS Today about President Biden’s immigration policies during his first year in office.
Program Director Sabi Ardalan and clinical students George Biashvili ’22 and Michael Shang ’22 spoke with the Harvard Crimson about a recent FOIA lawsuit. Image credit: Nicolas Lampert
Mason Kortz ’14, of the HLS Cyberlaw Clinic, discusses the amicus brief his clinic submitted on behalf of the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program regarding device searches at the U.S. border.
HIRC Director Sabi Ardalan breaks down the many issues with the new proposed rule on asylum.
“‘Our concern is that due to COVID-19 safety restrictions, USCIS will likely only be able to naturalize a handful of individuals at each ceremony,’ said Sameer Ahmed, clinical instructor at the Harvard program. ‘Given that the federal court previously held large-scale oath ceremonies for hundreds of individuals, we believe that the agency’s current effort will be unable to resolve the significant…
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“Sameer Ahmed, an attorney and clinical instructor with Harvard’s Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program, estimates nearly 7,000 Massachusetts residents — and more than 100,000 people nationwide — are still waiting to take the citizenship oath.”
The Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic released a report today on the effects of President Trump’s Executive Orders on people seeking asylum protection in the United States under long-standing provisions of U.S. and international law, including refugee law and the Convention Against Torture. In the wake of the Executive Orders, media attention has focused largely on…
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