Statement: MN refugees to be released
STATEMENT: (Minneapolis, Minn.) — Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid extends profound gratitude to the Advocates for Human Rights and attorneys at Berger Montague. In these crucial hours, their litigation work has led to the Temporary Restraining Order issued Wednesday, Jan. 28 by U.S. District Judge John R. Tunheim. The TRO puts a critical stop to the illegal seizure and detainment of our refugee clients.
While only temporary, we are heartened that we are seeing the effects of this judicial decision. This morning, a Legal Aid client showed up to appear before federal authorities. Deputy Director Yasin Alsaidi shared, “Our client was very apprehensive about the outcome but ended up receiving the very good news that he was relieved of this request to appear and sent home.”
We caution, this was one client and we cannot say with certainty that this will be the experience of other clients until more time has passed. What we can say with certainty is refugees in Minnesota are an irreplaceable part of our community fabric.
Judge Tunheim, in his temporary order, states universal and long-lasting truths:
“It is also essential to emphasize that the refugees impacted by this Order are carefully and thoroughly vetted individuals who have been invited into the United States because of persecution in the countries from which they have come. They are not committing crimes on our streets, nor did they illegally cross the border. Refugees have a legal right to be in the United States, a right to work, a right to live peacefully—and importantly, a right not to be subjected to the terror of being arrested and detained without warrants or cause in their homes or on their way to religious services or to buy groceries. At its best, America serves as a haven of individual liberties in a world too often full of tyranny and cruelty. We abandon that ideal when we subject our neighbors to fear and chaos.”
– U.S. District Judge John R. Tunheim
Related links:
###
Media contact:
Lisa Ramirez | Lramirez@mylegalaid.org
Communications Director
Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid