“We applaud New York for becoming the first state in the country to have a fully funded public defense system for all incarcerated immigrants across the state. With this investment in due process, no New York family can lock up and deport a loved one simply because they can`t afford a lawyer. – Professor Peter L. Markowitz, Director, Immigration Justice Clinic, Cardozo School of Law “With this funding, New York has sent a strong message and set the standard for the rest of the nation. No one should be detained and deported alone, without legal advice or guidance in a frightening process in which a person`s family or even their life could be at stake. We commend the leaders of New York State for creating a fundamental level of due process that will allow more New York families to stay together. Andrea Saenz, supervising immigration attorney, Brooklyn Defender Services Legal counsel, not only ensures immigrants receive meaningful hearings, but also makes immigration litigation more efficient. Improved access to legal aid and information could help reduce the immigration court backlog, which has reached an all-time high. Another report from Syracuse University shows that as of November 2016, more than 526,000 immigrant deportation cases are pending, with cases waiting an average of 678 days for their day in court.
The growing backlog, coupled with a shortage of judges and interpreters, has resulted in delays of up to five years for asylum seekers and other immigrants to hold their first hearings. Making Dreams a Reality: Supporting Immigrant Students: With support from the Office of the President of the New York State Assembly, LSNYC launched Community College CONNECT in 2012, a citywide project to support students at low-income community colleges in New York City through legal advice, advocacy and education. LSNYC advocates help students complete their studies by providing information and advocacy to overcome barriers that can affect student success, including: “NyIFUP`s national expansion will end thousands of unfair deportations and ensure due process for immigrants affected by strict immigration policies. New York is a strong example that we hope other state and local governments will follow. Ana Maria Archila, Co-Executive Director, Center for Popular Democracy New York is the first state to ensure that no immigrant is detained and permanently separated from their families simply because they can`t afford a lawyer. Without advice, according to one study, only 3 percent of detained and unrepresented immigrants avoid deportation, but providing public advocates can improve an immigrant`s chances of winning and staying in the U.S. by up to 1,000 percent. Language rights are civil rights: The LSNYC language access project challenges the language barriers that LEP clients face when receiving benefits, services and access to justice. We are engaging in litigation that challenges the failure of various municipal agencies to provide legally required language access and to work with community partners to engage federal, state and local authorities to extend language rights to all of New York`s diverse immigrant communities. On Friday, July 16, 2021, a federal district judge prevented new DACA applicants from obtaining status. Currently, individuals who already have DACA can continue to renew their status until there is another decision by that judge or superior court.
If you need help submitting a DACA renewal application, please email us at dream@legal-aid.org. “The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project provides a valuable service to immigrants who are at risk of deportation without fair representation,” said Jeff Klein, Director of IDC (D-Bronx/Westchester). “The work done by nyifup is so important that the Independent Democratic Conference is proud to award $4 million from a historic $10 million legal aid fund for its work that guarantees immigrants legal counsel. No one should face a trial without a lawyer, and no family should be torn apart because they could not afford advice. The Independent Democratic Conference is proud to tear down this financial wall so that NYIFUP can protect our immigrant communities. We provide urgent legal services for family reunification and help low-income immigrants obtain legal status, apply for citizenship and defend against deportation. Just months after receiving his work permit, immigration officials recovered it based on a ruling by a Texas anti-immigrant judge. This outrage prompted Martín to put himself in the spotlight. He spoke with MRNY, the National Immigration Law Center, Yale Law School`s Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic and five other DACA defendants to bring a potentially groundbreaking lawsuit that could benefit millions of immigrants in the United States. In December 2016, we published a report entitled Interpreting Justice: Language Access in the New York Courts. The report interviewed 87 lawyers who provide civil services to low-income New Yorkers to learn from their experiences with access to voice in court.
In addition to new data on the prevalence of language access issues, the report also includes recommendations on how courts can best support LEP litigants and provides first-person reports of LEP litigants who have struggled to find interpreters for court proceedings.
