Opinion: Protecting New York’s Most Vulnerable From Federal Attacks

The Trump administration s scare tactics have been so ruthless that they have successfully inhibited those in need from seeking social organization providers leaving them further isolated and at-risk John McCarten NYC Council Media Unit A little over a year ago Frank a young gay man from Haiti fled to the U S was granted Temporary Protected Status and obtained permission to work lawfully in the country He got a job applied for asylum and was well on his way to finding stability in his life That was until the Trump administration revoked the temporary protected status awarded to Haitians terminating Frank s work authorization He like so numerous others now sits in limbo waiting to see if his claim for asylum will be heard or if he will be pushed into deportation without due process Frank s story is not a unique one during these turbulent times He is one of millions of young immigrants casualties of violence trafficked youth and students who came to the U S looking for safety and stability having fled a country where they had none In the first days of the current administration it has declared war on all asylum seekers young old married queer Mistakes are made decisions are rash and there is no recourse Last week three young citizen children one with cancer were deported and the administration did little more than shrug its indifference Unlike countless others however Frank has the benefit of advocacy from his advocates at the The Free to Be Youth Project FYP FYP along with the Domestic Violence Project DVP and Sex Workers Project SWP of the Urban Justice Center are direct legal facility providers and political advocacy groups in New York City each with unique insight into the broad and devastating impacts that Trump s onslaught of executive orders and approach directives have had across New York Our clients are particular of those largest part vulnerable and affected including unaccompanied minors unhoused youth domestic violence survivors HIV-positive adults casualties of trafficking and those involved in criminalized street economies Let us be clear however that Trump and his executive orders do not act alone City and state compliance has allowed these orders to be carried out despite their cruel and often unlawful nature New York City a haven for several has instead become a battleground with our bulk vulnerable members struggling to fight back amidst the slew of hostility and violence directed toward them Already these communities live at the intersection of multiple forms of oppression and neglect Frank struggles daily with the fear that his identity as a queer immigrant makes him a target all the more since he was the victim of a hate crime shortly after his temporary status was revoked Trump s leadership has encouraged attacks against populations represented by our projects by other Americans and by community systems meant to provide empathy and sponsorship More than ever individuals are afraid to pursue legal recourse and or invoke their legal protections As we ve seen in the past limited months protected rights are no longer guaranteed to all That s why it s critical for these vulnerable communities to have the benefit of competent legal representation in these challenging times The Trump administration s scare tactics have been so ruthless that they have successfully inhibited those in need from seeking social organization providers leaving them further isolated and at-risk DVP s clients are survivors of domestic violence for whom immigration pathways are complicated by the unimaginable harm they experienced in the the majority intimate of relationships Larry an HIV-positive client of DVP has struggled to ensure his own safety as his former abuser continues to exert power over him and were it not for DVP s efforts he might have become yet another crime statistic Exacerbating his legal troubles are the harms that arise when he misses an appointment for critical anatomical care or fails to attend a mandated court hearing out of fear that any step from his home risks apprehension and deportation Danny a client of SWP serves as another example of the incredible harm faced by transients in the country Having experienced unimaginable violence in his home country Danny fled to the United States He paid thousands of dollars to an immigration attorney to help him approach the asylum process only to discover that the attorney s license was suspended Danny s asylum claim is now at exposure of being denied without a hearing following a new directive that refuses transients their rights to due process Despite his best efforts to obtain legal counsel Danny s lack of representation leaves him further vulnerable Every day a new threat emerges that restricts our work that of helping these communities obtain stability Individuals are being stripped of their social precaution cards denied due process at asylum hearings and restricted from opening bank accounts Despite generating trillion of economic activity and paying over billion in taxes the contributions of immigrants are overlooked and attacked The IRS s collaboration with ICE is just one of the majority newest examples of undocumented individuals being targeted despite their determination to uplift this country alongside themselves Only days into the new administration the threats coming from the White House are large and unforgiving The Trump Administration s immigration strategies have been wholly destructive to Frank Danny and thousands of others like them They ve culminated in a Maryland man with legally protected status being sent to El Salvador based on a supposed administrative error over scholar visa revocations and over changes in the legal status of international students and contemporary graduates the resurrection of the Alien Enemies Act a long abandoned wartime authority that allows the president exorbitant power over deportations and the illegal removal of hundreds of individuals without due process ignoring explicit court orders instructing otherwise Under Trump individuals with anything short of U S citizenship and not even then as we ve seen in a growing number of incidents are increasingly vulnerable to arrest detainment and deportation Populations who are most of visible to NYPD and ICE agents face heightened risks given especially that countless are already regarded as threatening criminal or deviant by the state SWP FYP and DVP are constantly striving to help these communities However we cannot do this work alone Our information and those of our peer organizations are limited and the increasingly dangerous conditions are straining our efforts We urge New York s city and state governments including the City Council State Senate and State Assembly to stand up and join us in this fight It is critical that we protect all members of our public and ensure their safety Amy Leipziger is the project director at the Urban Justice Center s Free to Be Youth Project Madeline Garcia Bigelow is the associate director of the Urban Justice Center and managing director of the Domestic Violence Project Abigail Anzalone is co-director of the Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center The post Opinion Protecting New York s Greater part Vulnerable From Federal Attacks appeared first on City Limits