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in
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continued from page 8
cases, the fate of the detainees is grim.
Still, leaders in the Chaldean community are holding out
hope their loved ones, now being held in a detention center in
Youngstown, Ohio, will be released and expressed appreciation for
the support of other minority communities.
“There is no community like the Jewish community,” said Martin
Manna, Chaldean Chamber of Commerce president. Since the
arrests, Manna has received many calls of concern and support.
Rabbis have phoned in asking how their congregants can help. The
Chamber retained the legal servic-
es of former Sen. Carl Levin, now
with Honigman Miller Schwartz
Chaldeans, including several who spoke at the
and Cohn LLP.
anti-deportation rally, said they campaigned
“You would have thought it was
and voted for Trump because of his campaign
his own child in danger of being
promises to protect Christians in the Middle
deported from the way [Levin]
East.
responded so quickly,” said Manna,
Yet the recent sweep of arrests of Iraqi
adding that Levin worked with
nationals in Michigan is the result of a revised
other attorneys and the ACLU to
executive order on the initial January executive
file the lawsuit with the federal
order banning entry from seven Muslim major-
court to postpone deportations.
Temple Israel Rabbi Paul
ity countries into the United States, including
Yedwab, one of several local rabbis
Iraq.
who reached out to Manna with
After quiet negotiations, the U.S. and Iraq
support, said he cannot under-
negotiated a new policy that removed Iraq from
stand why the Chaldean popula-
one of the banned countries and also eliminat-
tion is being targeted.
ed the priority of allowing Christians and other
“Our own government officially
religious minorities over Muslims, according to
the Washington Post.
recognizes there is a genocide right
U.S. law states that any non-citizen, includ-
now being committed against Iraqi
ing legal residents, who commits an “aggra-
Christians, so how can we possibly
vated felony” under U.S. immigration law — a
send them back?” Yedwab asked.
term that includes serious crimes as well as
As a congregation, Temple Israel
many nonviolent offenses and misdemeanors
informed members about the
— is deportable, the Washington Post story
situation and encouraged them to
stated. An example of a nonviolent crime could
attend the June 16 and 21 rallies.
be drug trafficking or possession of marijuana.
Also, “hoards” of congregants are
However, for the past several decades, immi-
on standby offering to volunteer
gration officials and federal judges have been
in any way they can to show their
slow to carry out deportations or completely
support for the families affected by
stopped deporting Iraqi nationals because
the arrests.
the situation on the ground was deemed too
“While we are coordinating
dangerous and the deportees would be put in
closely with the JCRC/AJC and
harm’s way.
many of our members have offered
The Iraqis who face deportation do not have
up pro bono legal services, there
visas to live in the United States. Many of them
is a bit of a feeling of helplessness.
lost their green cards because they were con-
This truly lies in the fate of the
victed of crimes. Because of their past criminal
legal system,” Yedwab said.
record, they are targeted by President Trump
for deportation regardless of their nationality,
LEGAL SUPPORT
the Washington Post story said.
Bradley Maze, a lawyer at George
Nationwide, there are approximately 1,400
P. Mann and Associates in
Iraqi nationals in the U.S. who have final orders
Farmington Hills, is representing
of removal.
five of the detainees and is hearing
from other Chaldeans fearful of
being detained in the future. Maze
said he is working to file motions
of appeal to reopen their individual cases to delay or reverse their
order for deportation.
“My clients have served their time for minor crimes they com-
mitted decades ago,” Maze said. “They are now completely rehabili-
tated and contributing members of society with jobs and families.
They check in with immigration officers every six months like they
are supposed to, some even within the last few weeks. If they are
sent back to Iraq, the Iraqi government cannot guarantee their pro-
tection as Christians, and my clients fear torture or worse by ISIS.”
Maze noted the irony that many involved in the class-action law-
Why Deportation?
Robert and Gail Katz of West Bloomfield
“I am here because I have been involved
in bringing the Jewish and Chaldean
families together for many years, from
potlucks to social action, and we look
forward to continuing interfaith
connections. Nothing could have
prepared us for the situation that our
Chaldean neighbors are facing, but we
wanted to be here to show our support.”
— Gail Katz
suit — from Michigan ACLU Executive Director Kary Moss who filed
the lawsuit to attorney Margo Schlanger, former civil rights chief in
the Department of Homeland Security in the Obama Administration,
to Judge Goldsmith — are all Jewish.
“The notion of people being taken from their homes in front of
their families and thrown on a bus conjures up scary images for
Jews,” said Maze, who has practiced immigration law for a decade, six
of those years working as an immigration attorney assisting refugees
at Freedom House. “The ethos of helping the refugee is part of the
Jewish family legacy. It is Jewish tradition.”
Though the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center did not directly
represent any of the 114 Iraqi detainees, Ruby Robinson, MIRC super-
vising attorney, said his organization provides guidance on court fil-
ing procedures and processes to parties filing immigration lawsuits,
including the lawsuit filed last Wednesday by the ACLU designed to
postpone the deportations.
“All of the detainees entered the U.S. lawfully but committed a
crime before they were eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship,” Robinson
continued on page 12
10
June 29 • 2017
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