Civil rights groups sue Trump admin over 'abrupt termination' of deportation relief for sick people

Daily Kos Staff

Friday September 06, 2019 · 10:43 AM PDT

2019/09/06 · 10:43

ScreenShot2019-09-06at10.41.07AM.png — Copy of the USCIS letter families received informing them their deportation relief would be terminated in 33 days.

A number of civil rights groups have sued the Trump administration over the abrupt and inhumane decision to end deportation relief for sick people undergoing lifesaving medical treatment, and are asking a “federal court to declare the termination unlawful and to ensure the continuation of the life-saving program.”

The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, Lawyers for Civil Rights, and law firm Goodwin Procter, suing on behalf of the Irish International Immigrant Center, said that “immigrant families who are part of this program received a measure of protection from deportation while receiving life-saving medical treatment in the United States. Last month, the Trump administration abruptly ended the deferred action program.”

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ended this protection without so much as a public announcement, instead just mailing letters to families across the U.S. informing them their protections would be removed in 33 days. Among those told to leave were a teen with cystic fibrosis who’d already lost an older sibling to the disease and a woman whose participation in a clinical trial when she was a child helped lead to a life-prolonging medication for her and others.

This week, under widespread condemnation, the administration backed down from this decision, but only partially, saying it would reopen the medical deferred action requests that had been pending when those letters were sent out. USCIS, the groups said in their statement, otherwise appeared “committed to ending the program,” making it just one of the latest extremist moves made under dubiously appointed acting director Ken Cuccinelli.

Among the people he wanted out were 16-year-old Jonathan Sanchez, who has been undergoing cystic fibrosis treatment for three years. During a recent interview with Univision’s Jorge Ramos, the teen said that if he and his family were deported back to Honduras, “the only thing I’m gonna get is death. The only way I can be alive is by staying in the United States because in my country there’s no treatment for cystic fibrosis.”

“The IIIC serves 19 affected people and families in Massachusetts who have applied or were applying for deferred action based on a serious medical need,” the groups continued. “The IIIC’s clients include children seeking treatment for illnesses such cancer, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy—and the parents who care for them. Many of these families have been forced to wrestle with devastating decisions including whether to leave children behind in the United States to continue receiving life-saving care.”

“This lawsuit is being filed to protect the immigrant children and families we serve, all of whom face life-threatening health conditions,” said IIIC executive director Ronnie Millar. “We believe granting deferred action for medical conditions is a valuable humanitarian lifeline for these families. Our clients are very brave and have suffered greatly already. We hope this lawsuit will help prevent further suffering.”

Civil rights groups sue Trump admin over 'abrupt termination' of deportation relief for sick people

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