CAIR Coalition has joined over 100 national, state and local organizations in signing a set of principles designed to insure that any new immigration laws treat all immigrants with fairness, dignity and respect for their human and civil rights.
The 10 principles include:
- The inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights of all people must be at the foundation of all immigration law and policy.
- Immigration law and policy must recognize, respect, and protect the right of every individual to security of the person.
- The immigration system must protect the most fundamental rights to liberty and freedom from arbitrary detention.
- Immigration law and policy cannot undermine the protection of refugees and other vulnerable migrants.
- Immigration law and policy must ensure respect for the fundamental right to privacy.
- Immigration laws must be free from discrimination and uphold the American value of equality.
- Protection of the unity of the family must be at the heart of immigration law and policy.
- Every immigration policy, strategy, and institution must be accountable to affected individuals and communities.
- Judicial discretion, judicial review, and a fair day in court are essential to ensure that immigration law upholds the American value of due process.
- Local communities must be directly involved in decision-making about immigration and border policies and in any review of enforcement systems.
CAIR Coalition is excited about the possibility that comprehensive immigration reform will finally become a reality this year and provide a pathway to citizenship for many of the individuals we see in detention who currently do not have a way to legally remain in the country. However, we are also concerned that much of the current debate on immigration has once again focused on the need to increase enforcement efforts despite the fact that we are currently detaining and deporting a record number of immigrants. Unfortunately, efforts to “reform” the immigration system in the past have led to increasingly harsh penalties for violating immigration laws and the imposition of new barriers to relief, such as the one-year deadline on applying for asylum.
The “10 Principles for Enduring Fair and Human Immigration Policy” is a reminder that we face an historic opportunity to finally get things rights. To finally create an immigration system that is fair and just, and that responds to the needs of the country while respecting the rights and dignity of the individual immigrant. A system in which detention is only used as a last resort and which provides each immigrant with an individualized custody determination rather than depend on broad based categories of “mandatory detainees” that do not take into consideration the security and flight risks posed by a particular individual. A system which insures the protection of asylum seekers and other vulnerable immigrants, upholds family unity and insures due process of law.
