Emergency Protest at SF INS Office

Subject: Emergency Protest at Noon at SFINS Office - Friday June 13, 2003 June 11, 2003 From: Rachel Swain (ACLUNC Communications Coordinator) Civil Rights, Community Groups Protest Looming Deportations of 13,000 Immigrants, Call on INS to Halt Expulsions of Muslim and Arab Men What: News Conference and Protest When: Friday, June 13, 2003, 12:00 noon-1:30 PM Where: Immigration and Naturalization (INS) Building 444 Washington Street (at Sansome), San Francisco Who: (list speakers here) Jayashri Srikantiah, Staff Attorney, American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California Matthew VonSaun, Amnesty International Samina Faheem, American Muslims Alliance Greg Marutani, SF Japanese American Citizens League Riva Enteen, National Lawyers Guild Rev. John Oda (Pine United Methodist Church) statement from Lynne Stewart And others SAN FRANCISCO -- Civil rights and community organizations will hold a news conference and demonstration outside the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) offices in San Francisco on Friday, June 13. Following reports that 13,000 of the Arab and Muslim men who voluntarily registered with the INS as part of the government’s controversial Special Registration Program (NSEERS) will face deportation, the groups are calling on the INS to halt the expulsions of men from a list of mainly Arab and Muslim nations. The groups say that the proposed deportations constitute racial profiling and will not aid the fight against terrorism. Only a handful of the 82,000 men over the age of 16 who complied with government orders to register with their local INS office have been linked to terrorism. Yet government officials say that more than 13,000, or 16 percent, are living in this country illegally and will face deportation. Thousands of law-abiding individuals, many of whom are awaiting permanent resident status due to INS processing or delays, will unjustly face deportation, according to civil rights and community leaders. The deportations are part of a systematic erosion of immigrants’ rights since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the groups say. A recent report by the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Justice found that the Bush Administration’s round-up of non-citizens immediately after Sept. 11 was plagued with problems, forcing many people with no connection to terrorism to languish behind bars in unduly harsh conditions. Officials made "made little attempt distinguish" between individuals with possible ties to terrorism and those with visa infractions who were "coincidentally" swept up, the report said. Despite these findings, on Thursday, May 27, Attorney General John Ashcroft urged Congress to expand an anti-terror law to permit the U.S. government to hold more suspects indefinitely. Sponsored by Amnesty International, American Muslim Alliance, The Blue Triangle Network, Justice for New Americans, Refuse & Resist!, South Alameda County Peace and Justice Coalition Endorsed by: American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, ADCSF, Global Exchange, National Lawyers Guild, Justice for New Americans, People's NonViolent Response Networ