News
ASISTA Statement on April 22nd Executive Order
Date: April 23, 2020 Media Contact: Ahlam Moussa, ASISTA, ahlam@asistahelp.org ASISTA denounces President Trump’s new executive order temporarily limiting entry for individuals outside the US seeking permanent residency, as it only serves to sow hatred and create division. It needlessly separates families, including certain family members of survivors. The United States is in the middle…
Read MoreImpact of Latest Executive Order on Survivor-based Forms of Immigration Benefits
by: Cecelia Friedman Levin, ASISTA Policy Director with Grace Huang, Policy Director, Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-based Violence Yesterday, President Trump signed an executive order temporarily halting entry of certain individuals seeking to enter the U.S. on immigrant visas (as permanent residents) for 60 days. The order will be effective as of 11:59 pm ET…
Read MoreNew ASISTA COVID-19 Practice Pointer (Current as of April 10, 2020)
While we continue to advocate and await further guidance, we have prepared this Practice Pointer, Filing Deadlines for RFEs, NOIDs, NOIRs and I-290Bs, to assist you in meeting deadlines during this national emergency. We encourage you to also visit ASISTA’s COVID-19 Resource Page and that of our partners, CLINIC and CAST.
Read MoreASISTA calls on USCIS to Ensure Survivors have Continued Access to Immigration Benefits.
On behalf of ASISTA organizational and individual members nationwide, ASISTA expressed our concerns regarding the impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) on USCIS’ survivor-based benefits operations. ASISTA called on USCIS to adopt measures that address the additional limitations faced by immigrant survivors’ of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and other serious crimes. Read…
Read MoreCurrent Job Opportunity: Executive Director
ASISTA (https://asistahelp.org) is looking for a new Executive Director following the retirement of its co-founder and Executive Director, Gail Pendleton, in the fall of 2020. ASISTA’s mission is to advance the dignity, rights, and liberty of immigrant survivors of domestic and sexual violence. The Executive Director will report to ASISTA’s 7-member Board of Directors. ASISTA…
Read MoreOne Training, 2 locations – From RFE to Federal Court: Latest Strategies in Defending Survivors – May 14, 2020 in Detroit, MI and June 16, 2020 in San Diego, CA
May 14th, 2020 in Detroit, MI (before the FBA conference) REGISTER NOW for Detroit! & June 16th, 2020 in San Diego, CA (before the AILA conference) REGISTER NOW for San Diego! __________________________________________________________________________ Join ASISTA for a one-day training where we will discuss administrative, judicial, and collaborative strategies for protecting immigrant survivors of violence in light of the current…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Pointer: What If You Do Not Received an RFE or Denial Notice? (March 2020)
In this practice pointer, ASISTA addresses what to do if your case was denied as abandoned because you did not respond to an RFE that was never received. In the Appendix, we include a sample keystroke FOIA request and redacted keystroke FOIA response. Click here to download the document in Word version.
Read MoreHernandez v. Mesa Ruling
The Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Hernandez v. Mesa this week is inhumane and unjust. The decision insulates a border guard who shot and killed a child on Mexican soil. With numerous other groups advancing the rights of survivors, ASISTA filed an amicus brief highlighting the problem of sexual assaults committed by federal officers and…
Read MoreSafe Horizon and ASISTA File FOIA Request Seeking Immigration Policy Data Related to U-Visa Adjudications
(New York, February 25, 2020) – Safe Horizon and ASISTA have filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for immigration policy data on the adjudication of U-visa petitions and adjustment of status (permanent residence) applications for those granted U visa status. U visas were created…
Read MoreASISTA Press Release: ASISTA Files Lawsuit Challenging Harmful ICE Policies Which Put Victims of Crime at Higher Risk of Removal
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 13, 2020 Contact: Ahlam Moussa, ahlam@asistahelp.org Changes to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policy were announced August 2, 2019 that create significant additional barriers for victims of crime who cooperate with law enforcement in the investigation and prosecution of their crimes. ASISTA, represented by Protect Democracy and the Constitutional Accountability Center, filed suit today…
Read MoreALERT: ASISTA submits Amicus on Erosion of Continuances and Admin Closure for Survivors of Violence
Yesterday, ASISTA, along with our partners, submitted an amicus brief challenging EOIR’s erosion of docketing tools like continuances and administrative closures. This errosion results in limiting access to critical immigration relief for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and other serious crimes. ASISTA was joined in this brief by American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV), National Immigrant Justice…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Advisory: The Impact of Matter of N-L-Y-, 27 I&N Dec. 755 (BIA 2020)
ASISTA has developed this Practice Advisory: The Impact of Matter of L-N-Y-, 27 I&N 755 (BIA 2020), which provides a detailed overview of provisions in this precedential decision, discusses its intersection with other BIA decisions on continuances, and provides best practices for requesting continuances for U visa applicants in removal proceedings. We’ve also summarized our key…
Read MoreAmicus Brief VAWA Joint Residence (December 27, 2019)
This amicus brief, submitted to the Southern District of Florida, addresses USCIS’s requirement that self-petitioners show shared residence with their abuser during the marriage. With deep gratitude to Prof. Rebecca Sharpless and law students Meredith Hoffman and Olivia Parise from the University of Miami School of Law’s Immigration Clinic for their hard work on this…
Read More2019 in Review
As 2019 comes to close, we’ve taken a look back at the work we’ve done this year, and all we can do with your support in 2020. Learn more about our work this year here.
Read MoreGood News from the 9th Circuit on the reviewability of U visa denials!
On Friday November 22, 2019, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals published a decision reversing the district court’s dismissal of a suit challenging a U visa petition denial for lack of jurisdiction. The panel held that § 701(a)(2) of the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”) and 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(ii) do not bar judicial review of…
Read MoreImmigrant Survivors are being scared into silence
“I’ve been working in immigration rights since the 1980s and I’ve never seen this level of antagonism toward immigrants and women.” In this article, ASISTA Executive Director, Gail Pendleton talks about how immigrant survivors are being scared into silence, and how to find help before you need it. https://www.domesticshelters.org/articles/in-the-news/when-fighting-abuse-could-lead-to-deportation
Read MoreASISTA Practice Pointer: Assessing whether to file a U Visa Petition for Victims at Risk of Removal (November 2019)
This practice advisory provides practitioners a road map for assessing a U Visa petitioner’s potential risk of removal. Click here to download this document in Word version. Copyright @2019 by ASISTA Immigration Assistance. All rights reserved. This product or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used without express written permission from ASISTA Immigration…
Read MoreAmicus Briefs filed at the 9th and the BIA on Sanchez-Sosa (July/November, 2019)
Many thanks to fellow authors: Nareeneh Sohbatian from Winston & Strawn LA, and Brigit Greeson Alvarez and Victoria Bonds (intern extraordinaire) from LAFLA. Click here for amicus filed at the 9th Circuit, and click here for amicus filed at the BIA. To download the briefs in Word version, click here for 9th circuit brief, and…
Read MoreA Northern Virginia Mother Was A Victim Of Domestic Violence. She Was Deported.
The Hill: ICE rule change on U visas sparks outrage
“The Trump administration has quietly altered its handling of visas granted to immigrants who cooperate with criminal investigations, allowing people to be deported even while they are waiting for their visas.” ASISTA’s Cecelia Friedman Levin describes the impact of these changes and how they will diminish access to critical protection to immigrant survivors. Read more…
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