A lawsuit has been filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) challenging an alleged pattern of detaining undocumented immigrants who are trying to become legalized citizens by marrying those with US citizenship. The ACLU filed the proposed class action against the Trump administration in a Boston federal court late on Tuesday, alleging that families have been illegally separated by immigration officials while spouses without citizenship were attempting to gain legal status.
ACLU Massachusetts lawyer Adriana Lafaille told a press conference that the actions were illegal and inhumane. The lawsuit comes as President Trump called on Congress to put a stop to what he calls “chain migration”, the process of legal immigrants sponsoring relatives from their extended families who are looking to move to the United States.
The lawsuit centers on regulations that were enacted during the Obama administration by US Citizenship and Immigration Services that aimed to encourage undocumented immigrants to gain legal status. The 2016 regulations meant that undocumented immigrants who were married to US citizens could enter into a process seeking waivers that enable them to stay in the United States while pursuing permanent residency instead of having to leave the country before doing so.
However, the lawsuit claims that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been putting those going through that process in detention, arresting seven people in January alone at offices in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The complaint alleges that the actions of the Trump administration are based on racial and national animus and are a violation of the Constitution and the Immigration and Nationality Act.
