podcast

Lawful Assembly Podcast Episode 29: Gratitude for those who labor and those who have labored.

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This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast celebrates all those who worked to defeat the amendments that tried to codify Title 42 in August, 2022.  In addition, as we celebrate Labor Day 2022, we give thanks for all those immigrants who came to our nation, offered their skills and fostered families that have contributed to the common good.

ACTION STEPS

Thank your Senator(s) if they voted to defeat the anti-immigrant amendments to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.  If your Senator(s) voted for an amendment, redouble your efforts to urge them to convince them to end Title 42.

Urge Congress to pass the Afghan Adjustment Act.  Church World Service provides you with a link to send your email at:  https://cwsglobal.org/action-alerts/take-action-urge-congress-to-swiftly-pass-the-bipartisan-afghan-adjustment-act/

Faith leaders are invited to urge the Biden administration to increase the number of refugees to be resettled in the next fiscal year to 200,000.  Church World Service provides you with a link to send your email: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScphVDWU93gJA5Q6ZLYcYyCbDsFwPYKjCindlkhO2Bz-dgC9Q/viewform

All are urged to encourage Congress to increase refugee resettlement to 200,000.  https://cwsglobal.org/action-alerts/take-action-urge-congress-to-welcome-refugees-rebuild-the-u-s-resettlement-program/

To be most effective please respond prior to Tuesday, September 6.  Thank you.

RESOURCES

Information on the efforts to amend the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 came from Greg Chen’s “Senate Passage of Legislation Without Immigration.”  You can find additional information on the congressional action in his post:  https://thinkimmigration.org/blog/2022/08/08/why-were-celebrating-the-senates-passage-of-legislation-without-immigration/

Find John McCutcheon’s research about the deportees who died in 1948 and his version of Woody Guthrie’s song, “Deportees,” at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxsPL4uEo34 Visit his website at:  https://www.folkmusic.com

Find Emma’s Revolution song, “Bound for Freedom” at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uo9PVE_RxMI  Visit their website at:  https://www.emmasrevolution.com

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

 

Episode 26: Streamline Rule Precludes a Complete Record

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This is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member of the DePaul University’s College of Law, Refugee and Forced Migrations Studies Program and the Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. The podcast examines the federal government’s request for comments on a proposed Interim Final Rule involving adjudication of asylum applications.  It argues that the expedited deadlines and streamlining procedures will prevent asylum applicants from developing a complete record in support of their claims and may make it almost impossible for asylum seekers to obtain legal representation.  The Action Step below lists a link to the Interim Final Rule and the link to upload your comments.  The Resources list several different links to understand the problems with the Interim Final Rule and different templates to assist you draft your comments.

ACTION STEP
You are invited to submit comments with your personal critiques of elements of the law.

Please note, once you click on this link, you will find a “Commentator’s Checklist” at the top of the page which provides helpful guidelines in preparing your comment.  Comments must be filed before midnight, Eastern Daylight Savings time, on Tuesday, May 31.
The full proposed Interim Final Rule

The quote in the podcast from the proposed IFR regarding soliciting public opinion can be found at 87 Fed. Reg. at 18081.  The quote regarding the Immigration Judge receiving a full record can be found at 87 Fed. Reg. at 18098-99.  The quote regarding the basic purpose of the IFR can be found at 87 Fed. Reg. at 18143).

RESOURCES
The National Immigrant Justice Center submitted its comments previously.  You may review their suggestions to provide you with examples of areas of concern.  NIJC invites you to use their comments as a template, but it is important that you provide your own words and ideas with your comments.
NIJC has a shorter summary.
NIJC has also prepared a flow chart to demonstrate the complexity of the proposed rule.
Human Rights first has also provided a summary of its concerns and suggested alternatives.
If you want to prepare comments based on the two critiques in our podcast, you may follow this template below.  You can prepare your letter and upload it at the link provided above:
Submitted via https://www.regulations.gov

Rená Cutlip-Mason
Chief, Division of Humanitarian Affairs
Office of Policy and Strategy
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Department of Homeland Security
5900 Capital Gateway Drive
Camp Springs, MD 20588-0009
Lauren Alder Reid
Assistant Director, Office of Policy
Executive Office for Immigration Review
5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 1800
Falls Church, VA 22041

Re: Procedures for Credible Fear Screening and Consideration of Asylum, Withholding of Removal, and Convention Against Torture Protection Claims by Asylum Officers (03/29/2021)

Dear Chief Cutlip-Mason & Assistant Director Reid,

Provide an introductory paragraph of your interest in commenting and explain your expertise and experience in assisting asylum seekers either individually or your faith-based or community-based organization. 

Determine what parts of the IFR you oppose.  The two we discuss in the podcast might include language similar to the following:

  1.  The Interim Final Rule proposed deadlines and a streamlined process that will prevent asylum seekers from obtaining legal representation or develop a full record documenting their claim.

Provide your examples of how the expedited deadlines will hinder your work.

  1. The Interim Final Rule’s proposed deadlines and streamlined process will prevent many asylum seekers from ever obtaining employment authorization, thus further weakening their ability to pursue all the remedies United States law may make available.

You may share your experiences documenting the importance of employment authorization in ensuring that our legal process works.

The quote from the Purpose of the Refugee Act of 1980.
The quote from the Preamble of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

We welcome your inquiries or suggestions for future podcasts.  If you would like to ask more questions about our podcasts or comment, email us at: mission.depaul@gmail.com

Lawful Assembly 11: Building a Welcoming City

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This is a podcast interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, founder and former Director of the Midwest Immigrant Rights Center and an Adjunct Faculty member at DePaul University’s College of Law and The Grace School of Applied Diplomacy.  The podcast celebrates the thirty-sixth anniversary of former Mayor Harold Washington’s Executive Order 85-1 that prohibited city agencies, including the police, from cooperating with the enforcement activities of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.  After the Chicago City Council enacted an ordinance sharing Mayor Washington’s goals twelve years ago, the City Council recently added new amendments to Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance, signed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot on February 23, 2021.   The podcast commends the activism of the Chicago Immigration Working Group for its efforts to build a truly welcoming city.  To that end, that Group reminded all that “to be a true welcoming city, Chicago must start to divest from criminalization, begin to invest in our communities, and ensure true police accountability.” (press release celebrating the new amendments which includes the list of the diverse groups that constitute the Chicago Immigration Working Group):  https://www.icirr.org/News/Welcoming-City-Ordinance-is-a-win-by-and-for-our-communities%2C-but-work-remains-to-be-done

For more information on Chicago’s response to the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and Mayor Harold Washington’s issuance of his Executive Order 85-1, see “A Clear View from the Prairie: Harold Washington and the People of Illinois Respond to Federal Encroachment of Human Rights,” 29 S. Ill. L. J. 285 (Fall, 2004/Winter, 2005):

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2997657

 

Honor World Children’s Day

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This episode is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin, an Adjunct Faculty member at DePaul University’s College of Law and The Grace School of Applied Diplomacy.  On November 20, 2020, the designated World Children’s Day, Rev. Mousin discusses what can be done in response to the thousands of children detained, deported, and excluded from applying for remedies permitted under the Refugee Act of 1980.  In addition, he invokes the ten immediate priorities recommended by a coalition of several national organizations including among others, The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights and the American Academy of Pediatricians to correct United States immigration and refugee law and policy regarding children.

The Immediate Priorities for the Protection of Immigrant Children can be found at:  https://www.theyoungcenter.org/stories/2020/11/10/immediate-priorities-for-the-protection-of-immigrant-children-november-2020?rq=Immediate%20Priorities.  Amnesty International offers one way to take immediate action to protest the proposed deportation of the 28 children and their families through this link: https://act.amnestyusa.org/page/59764/action/1?ea.tracking.id=vxd8hcs1&ac=W2011EARMR1&ea.url.id=5018432&forwarded=true

The podcast refers to an On Being interview with the late Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks which can be found at: https://onbeing.org/programs/remembering-rabbi-lord-jonathan-sacks/    Rev. Mousin’s article “You Were Told to Love the Immigrant, But What if the Story Never Happened? Hospitality and United States Immigration Law” provides additional information on Rev. Theodore Conklin’s description of the hospitality offered Mary, Joseph, and Jesus when they fled into Egyptian exile in the text at footnote 128.  St. Vincent DePaul’s call to not abandon the children can be found in the same article in the text at footnote 172.  See:  https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2784951

For more information on World Children’s Day see:   https://www.un.org/en/observances/world-childrens-day  In addition, for a discussion on the Convention of the Rights of the Child and the United States’ failure to adopt it and its impact on asylum-seeking children, see Rev. Mousin’s article on “Rights Disappear When US Policy Engages Children as Weapons of Deterrence,” at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3317913

Celebrate Ombuds Day–October 8, 2020

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Join Ombuds and friends from around the world to celebrate the peacemaking work of Ombuds.  Sponsored by the American Bar Association’s Dispute Resolution Committee (https://www.americanbar.org/groups/dispute_resolution/).  Ombuds Day will meet virtually, but intentionally, on Thursday, October 8,2020 to raise up the work of Ombuds and seek ways to address resolution of conflict and miscommunication.  Craig B. Mousin, DePaul University’s Ombudsperson (https://offices.depaul.edu/mission-ministry/programming-and-services/ombudsperson/Pages/default.aspx)  provides an introduction to Ombuds Day and the work of Ombuds in this Lawful Assembly podcast.  You can find additional information as well as the link to register for events on Thursday at:  https://www.americanbar.org/groups/dispute_resolution/events_cle/ombuds-day/

Lawful Assembly Episode 3: Repair the Breach: Help All in Your Community Be Counted in the 2020 Census

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This episode is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin founder and former Executive Director of the Midwest Immigrant Rights Center and an Adjunct Faculty member at DePaul University’s College of Law and The Grace School of Applied Diplomacy.  He discusses how the Census, by counting all those residing in the United States every ten years, if done well, helps the nation repair past breaches to our body politic.  In the wake of a pandemic, civic unrest and the long road to healing our nation from the consequences of slavery and racism, the Census offers an opportunity for all of “We the People” to be counted and leading to a fairer representation.  The government will stop counting residents in this Census on September 30, 2020, thus necessitating that we all use our resources to ensure a fair count.  You can go to www.census.gov  for information on how to encourage greater participation.  If you would like to participate in a phone bank sponsored by the Urban League of Chicago on Wednesday, September 9, 2020 to encourage participation in the City of Chicago, you can volunteer by emailing kbutler@chiul.org (Kareem Butler, Director of Learning and Evaluation, Chicago Urban League).  The quotation from Professor Akhill Reed Amar can be found in American’s Constitution, A Biography,” (Random House, N.Y., 2005), 87.  For a description of rotten districts / rotten boroughs  see P.84.

Please share this podcast and links with members of your community or faith organizations, family members and friends.  Encourage them to assist all members of their communities to file their Census form to  generate a fair count of all.  Thank you for your consideration of this request.

 

Episode 2: New Opportunity to Oppose Proposed Regulations Precluding Asylum Eligibility

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This episode is an interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin founder and former Executive Director of the Midwest Immigrant Rights Center and an Adjunct Faculty member at DePaul University’s College of Law and The Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. He talks about responding to the federal government’s proposed regulations that would make asylum seekers ineligible for asylum and related remedies based on purported public health considerations.   We encourage you to file your own comments opposing part or all of the proposed procedures and asking the government to withdraw the entire proposed rule.  To assist you in obtaining a link to the proposed procedures or in filing your comment, you may incorporate your remarks into one of the templates provided by the following:

The National Immigrant Justice Center’s template.

If you are concerned about unaccompanied minors or children refugee issues, you can use the Young Center’s template.

Both websites provide additional information on how the proposed regulations restrict access to the courts and prevent bona fide applicants from presenting their cases for asylum.  To be accepted by the government, please make sure your comments are filed on or before 11:59 p.m. EDT, Monday, August 10 2020.

For additional information on the pretext of the public health need for these proposals, see:  https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/resource/new-asylum-ban-recycled-pretext-proposed-rule-would-illegally-unjustly-bar-many-asylum

 

Please share this podcast and links with members of your community or faith organizations, family members and friends.  Encourage them to file comments to help ensure that our nation continues to offer shelter for refugees in need.  Thank you for your consideration of this request.

 

Lawful Assembly Podcast – Episode 1: Portland, What Border are we Defending?

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In this episode Rev. Craig B. Mousin discusses the deployment of federal officers to Portland in reaction to the ongoing protests. He discusses the problem of relying on federal immigration officers for local law enforcement and links some of Chicago’s responses to federal interference in local matters.

He references a previous podcast about DACA recipients and their families and communities. It is available here:

It-is-more-than-just-the-dreamers

For more insight into the distinction between the constitutional constraints on Customs And Border Enforcement and local law enforcement, see a blog co-authored by a former colleague at DePaul College of Law’s Asylum and Immigration Law Clinic, Linus Chan, now an Associate Clinical Professor of Law at the University of Minnesota Law School: “Trump’s Paramilitary Unites Trained at the Border for the Assaults on Portland Moms,” by Linus Chan and Carrie L. Rosenbaum. slate.com/news-and-politics/20…d-moms-attacked.html

If you would like more information about Mayor Harold Washington’s Executive Order or Chicago’s response to the Fugitive Slave Act, see my article at:  https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2997657

Your Opportunity to Respond to Proposed Changes Restricting Asylum in the United States [Podcast]

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Listen to the podcast:

This is a podcast interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin founder and former Executive Director of the Midwest Immigrant Rights Center and an Adjunct Faculty member at DePaul University’s College of Law and The Grace School of Applied Diplomacy. He talks about responding to the federal government’s proposed regulations entitled “Procedures for Asylum and Withholding of Removal; Credible Fear and Reasonable Fear Review.”

We encourage you to file your own comments opposing part or all of the proposed procedures and asking the government to withdraw the entire proposed rule.  To assist you in obtaining a link to the proposed procedures or in filing your comment, you may incorporate your remarks into one of the templates provided by the following:

The National Immigrant Justice Center offers this template for any community member concerned about access to asylum:

If you are concerned about unaccompanied minors or children refugee issues, you might find the template of the Young Center helpful:

Both websites provide additional information on how the proposed regulations restrict access to the courts and prevent bona fide applicants from presenting their cases for asylum.  Please make sure your comments are filed on or before 11:59 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, July 15, 2020.

Please share this podcast and links with members of your community or faith organizations, family members and friends.  Encourage them to file comments to help ensure that our nation continues to offer shelter for refugees in need.  Thank you for your consideration of this request.

If you would like more information about the documentary, “Brightness of Noon, the Intersect of Faith, Refugees and Immigrants, Part II,”

Supreme Court DACA Ruling and the Vincentian Mission

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This is a podcast interview with Rev. Craig B. Mousin founder and former Executive Director of the Midwest Immigrant Rights Center and an Adjunct Faculty member at DePaul University’s College of Law. He talks about the June, 2020 18, DACA ruling by the United States Supreme Court and what DACA means for the Vincentian Community and DePaul Students.

For more information visit: National Immigrant Justice Center: immigrantjustice.org/issues/daca-and-dreamers

We reference this previous episode in this podcast: “It is more than just the dreamers”