International Humanitarian Law Commons^™

A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing: Executive Order No. 13,780 As A Disguise For A Muslim Ban: The Implications Of International Refugee Assistance Project V. Trump, Latoya Tyson

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

Theorizing The Immigrant Child: The Case Of Married Minors, Medha D. Makhlouf

Brooklyn Law Review

U.S. immigration laws provide special protections, benefits, and forms of relief for children. They also provide certain marriage-based benefits and exclusions. However, the most common definitions of “child” in the Immigration and Nationality Act make the existence of a married child into a legal impossibility. In other words, married children are variously treated as either married adults or unmarried children. This article analyzes the treatment of married minors in the immigration system in three contexts: as beneficiaries of spousal petitions; as petitioners for spouses, parents, and siblings; and as beneficiaries of parent-sponsored petitions. The analysis reveals that married minors are …

Response To Professor Holper's Article, "Redefining 'Particularly Serious Crimes' In Refugee Law", Fatma Marouf

Faculty Scholarship

An individual who faces a significant risk of persecution in her home country is barred from asylum in the United States if she is convicted of a “particularly serious crime” (“PSC”). Despite the grave consequences of such a conviction, there is relatively little scholarship exploring how a PSC should be defined. The term, which comes from the UN Refugee Convention, was incorporated into the Immigration and Nationality Act in 1980.

Professor Holper’s article, Redefining “Particularly Serious Crimes” in Refugee Law, makes an important contribution to the literature by showing how the historical trajectory of the PSC definition mirrors the “severity …

Refugee Reception And Perception: Us Detention Camps And German Welcome Centers, Karla M. Mckanders, Valeria Gomez

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The reception of refugees and asylum seekers has emerged as one of the most critical contemporary global issues. In 2015, the world experienced the most forced migrants since World War II. This essay compares the treatment of asylum seekers at reception in United States and Germany through each countries’ freedom and restriction of movement laws. This comparative analysis is based on Professor Karla McKanders’ December 2015 exploratory trip to Germany to learn more about the processing refugees in the midst of Germany accepting unprecedented numbers of refugees; and attorney Valeria Gomez’s December 2015 volunteer experience in the South Texas Family …

Amicus Curaie, Submitted Susan Akram, Susan M. Akram

Faculty Scholarship

Summary of Argument

Palestinian refugees fall under a legal regime that is distinct from all other refugees in the world. As such, they are covered by a series of special provisions that apply only to them and no other refugees. Their special status resulted from the decisions of the drafters of key international treaties to exclude Palestinian refugees from the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the 1954 Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons, and to conditionally exclude them from the benefits of the 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees.

Three main reasons …

Running For Ayotzinapa: A Father's Marathon To Find His Son, Gustavo Martínez

Capstones

People find a world of reasons to run marathons: to fight cancer, to raise money for a charity, to fulfill a promise. But Antonio Tizapa runs for the reason that has dictated his every waking moment for more than two years: finding his son. The story is presented through a written piece and a video short documentary. It follows Tizapa through events and races in the New York City area.

http://intl-clarke.2016.journalism.cuny.edu/2016/12/30/running-for-ayotzinapa-a-fathers-marathon-to-find-his-missing-son/

Emigration, Repatriation And The Reality Of Returned Youth In El Salvador, Isabel C. Duarte Vasquez

Master's Theses

According to US Customs and Border Protection, over 59 thousand unaccompanied minors from the Northern Triangle (Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador) have been detained at the US border, of those 59 thousand, 17 thousand are from El Salvador. El Salvador is home to some of the most dangerous and ruthless gangs of the twenty-first century. Their ruthlessness comes from 1980s guerrilla warfare experience. In addition, El Salvador serves as a transshipment point for illicit substances from South America into Mexico. These dynamics fuel the homicide rate of the region as local gang members must protect their territory by any means …

Who Controls Immigration Judges?: Towards A Multi-Institutional Model Of Administration Judge Behavior, Mark Richard Beougher

Dissertations

Numerous studies have shown dramatic variations in the rates that immigration judges grant asylum. What these studies have failed to adequately explain as of yet is why? In attempting to understand the behavior of immigration judges in asylum cases, scholars have generally taken one of two approaches, either examining immigration judge behavior through top-down bureaucratic models or with models developed through the study of the judiciary. From these studies we have learned that similarly situated asylum applicants have different chances of success based merely on the ideological leanings of the judge who decides their case. We also have learned that …

The One-Year Bar To Asylum In The Age Of The Immigration Court Backlog, Lindsay M. Harris

Journal Articles

Imagine being forced to flee your home, separated from your children, and undergoing the perilous journey to seek safety and protection in the United States. Upon arrival, you are immediately detained and questioned about your intentions. You explain that you fear for your life and seek asylum protection. You may even undergo a detailed interview with an asylum officer, who finds that you have a significant possibility of establishing asylum eligibility. You are released from detention to pursue your asylum claim in immigration court. You diligently attend check-ins with an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer for the next two years …

Transnational Indigenous Migration: Racialized Geographies And Power In Southern Highland Ecuador, Victoria Stone-Cadena

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study examines the shifting landscape of social and economic inequalities in the remittance-dominated region of southern highland Ecuador, focusing on the transformations brought about by increased international migration since the early 2000s. The broader question is whether or not transnational migration has facilitated political and social upward mobility among indigenous communities. More specifically I ask: in what ways does indigenous identity figure in contemporary international migration practices, how does transnational indigenous migration complicate bounded notions of rural indigenous life, and how might the strategies employed by indigenous migrants transform social and economic inequalities in two small towns in the …

The Family Abandoned By A Migrant, Dr. T. Stark

The Catholic Lawyer

No abstract provided.

State Succession - Convention On Status Of Refugees - Lesotho’S Use Of Nyerere Letter Recognized To Effect Accession To Multilateral Convention But Refugee Definition Precludes Applicability Of Convention, William A. Pierce, William W. Poole

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Shibboleth Of Discretion: The Discretion, Identity, And Persecution Paradigm In American And Australian Lgbt Asylum Claims, Heather Kolinsky

Scholarly Articles

While the High Court in Australia has made it clear that discretion is not to be considered when determining if an applicant may avoid persecution upon returning home, there are concerns that discretion persists in the decision-making process with respect to discrediting identity claims. In addition, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom handed down a retooled formulation of discretion, which once again created subcategories of applicants and suggested discretion is an appropriate consideration so long as it is not exercised out of a fear of persecution. This discussion will focus on a comparison of the evolution of LGBT asylum …

Ilhan, Nura, Radwa, Ziagull And Children, Ilhan, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Ilhan, his wife Nura, and their children resided near Kabul, in a region where both the Taliban and ISIS were active. As Shias, Ilhan’s family faced numerous menaces, including threats from ISIS that they would be beheaded if they did not display ISIS flags. Ilhan’s sister Radwa, who is deaf and mute, was forced to marry a regional leader. In addition to being threatened on religious grounds, Ilhan’s family was also threatened by an elder of their town. Out of desperation, Ilhan’s family sold their house appliances, escaped Afghanistan, and arrived at the …

Fortifying The Rights Of Unauthorized Immigrant Workers: Why Employee-Focused Incentives Under The Nlra Would Help End The Cycle Of Labor Rights Abuse, Caitlin E. Delaney

Journal of Law and Policy

Over the past several decades, there has been an unmistakable tension between labor law and immigration law in the United States. That tension, addressed by the Supreme Court most recently in 2001, still exists for unauthorized immigrant workers who wish to assert their labor rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). While the Obama Administration has made significant strides in easing the concerns that unauthorized immigrant workers may have before filing an NLRA claim, the unavailability of the back pay remedy and the uncertainty of protection from immigration authorities leave little incentive for such workers to assert their labor …

Asylum Crisis Italian Style: The Dublin Regulation Collides With European Human Rights Law, Maryellen Fullerton

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The United Nations: The Syrian Refugee Crisis, Zahra R. Syed

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The main objective of this research paper is to analyze the international effects the Syrian Conflict has had to the global community. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has declared this conflict to be the worst humanitarian crisis of our time. Millions of Syrians have fled their home country to avoid unjust persecution and are looking to not only neighboring countries, but the European Union for assistance in resettlement.

Since the outbreak of the conflict in Syria in 2011, more than 220,000 people have been massacred, leaving fifty percent of the population in unrest due to home displacement. According …

The Puerto Rico-Chicago Connection: Cross-Boundary Drug-Treatment In The United States, Sarah Dávila A., Steven D. Schwinn, John Marshall Law School International Human Rights Clinic

Faculty White Papers

1. The John Marshall Law School International Human Rights Clinic is a law school student-practice clinic that is committed to the investigation of human rights abuses, the publication of abuses, and the protection against abuses within the United States and around the world.

2. The International Human Rights Clinic has been investigating human rights abuses arising out of a systematic practice of government officials and cooperating private individuals to relocate homeless, drug-addicted persons to putative drug-treatment centers in Chicago, Illinois. In fact, these so-called drug-treatment centers deprive individuals of their physical liberty; fail to provide adequate food, shelter, and other …

From Surviving To Thriving? An Investigation Of Asylee Integration In The United States, Lindsay M. Harris

Journal Articles

This article assesses the efficacy of the legal framework for asylees, individuals granted refugee status within the United States, through an examination of the human outcomes following the grant of asylum. To understand how the asylee benefits system actually functions, I conducted more than fifty field interviews with advocates, service providers, and government officials in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. This research fills a conspicuous gap in our understanding of what happens after the grant of asylum and reveals a number of insights about the ways in which the prevailing laws, policies, and programs …

Fawad And Zakeela, Fawad, Zakeela, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Fawad and his wife, Zakeela, have three children. Zakeela was a beautician, and Fawad was a singer in the Baghlan district in Afghanistan. The music he produced was not in accordance with the strict restrictions of the Taliban. They threatened his life and assaulted him many times, so he decided to leave with his family to Kabul. Fawad’s day job was as an FM radio producer; at night, he moonlighted as a singer and musician. He produced music for ceremonies and weddings, often performing for the women’s part, which the Taliban did not accept. Eventually, his life was again threatened, …

Faroosh And Elina, Faroosh, Elina, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Faroosh was a cameraman for a private television program in Afghanistan working on a documentary about the Taliban. When he and his crew were discovered, the Taliban attacked them and he and his wife fled to Turkey, walking 12 hours to get there. Upon arrival the police arrested and harassed them. Turkey was not a safe place. After several suicide bombings in the area, they decided to move on to Greece, where they are in a refugee camp without any progress in their situation. They have no money to move forward and no ability to work and the economic situation …

Trafficking Smuggled Migrants: An Issue Of Vulnerability, Rachel A. Hews

Global Tides

This paper analyzes why the UN’s efforts against the sex trafficking of smuggled migrants, specifically regarding the Palermo and Smuggling Protocols, have been inadequate in preventing migrant smuggling. It concludes that the crime-based focus on prosecution overshadows prevention of the crime and protection of the victims, and that a human rights approach addressing the vulnerability of smuggled migrants would be more effective in reducing migrant smuggling long-term. Proposed solutions include decreasing both the “push” and “pull” factors of migration by ratifying existing legislation regarding basic human rights, implementing national policies that increase migrant rights in destination countries, and shifting further …

Arbitrary Detention? The Immigration Detention Bed Quota, Anita Sinha

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

When President Obama took office in 2009, Congress through appropriations linked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) funding to “maintaining” 33,400 immigration detention beds a day. This provision, what this Article refers to as the bed quota, remains in effect, except now the mandate is 34,000 beds a day. Since 2009, DHS detentions of non-citizens have gone up by nearly 25 percent. To accommodate for this significant spike over a relatively short period of time, the federal government has relied considerably on private prison corporations to build and operate immigration detention facilities.

This Article takes a comprehensive look at …

From Baby M To Baby M(Anji): Regulating International Surrogacy Agreements, Yehezkel Margalit

Journal of Law and Policy

In 1985, when Kim Cotton became Britain’s first commercial surrogate mother, Europe was exposed to the issue of surrogacy for the first time on a large scale. Three years later, in 1988, the famous case of Baby M drew the attention of the American public to surrogacy as well. These two cases implicated fundamental ethical and legal issues regarding domestic surrogacy and triggered a fierce debate about motherhood, child-bearing, and the relationship between procreation, science, and commerce. These two cases exemplified the debate regarding domestic surrogacy—a debate that has now been raging for decades. A new ethical and legal debate …

Bordering The Constitution, Constituting The Border, Efrat Arbel

All Faculty Publications

It is an established principle in Canadian law that refugees present at or within Canada’s borders are entitled to basic constitutional protection. Where precisely these borders lie, however, is far from clear. In this article, I examine the Canadian border as a site in which to study the constitutional entitlements of refugees. Through an analysis of the Multiple Borders Strategy (MBS) – a broad strategy that re-charts Canada’s borders for the purposes of enhanced migration regulation – I point to a basic tension at play in the border as site. I argue that the MBS imagines and enacts the border …

Drawing Lines Among The Persecuted, Kate Evans

Faculty Scholarship

Should a victim of persecution be denied protection in the United States if his persecutors forced him to participate in their campaign of terror? In its 2009 decision, Negusie v. Holder, the Supreme Court recognized the “difficult line drawing problems” presented by this question, but failed to offer concrete guidance to the lower courts or the executive agencies charged with drawing those lines. Circuit courts employ a variety of standards, leaving the law in disarray.

This Article offers original historical research to argue that asylum seekers charged with participating in persecution should be afforded a duress defense. It traces the …

Forced Migration, The Human Face Of A Health Crisis, Lawrence O. Gostin, Anna E. Roberts

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Nearly 60 million refugees, asylum-seekers and internally displaced persons (IDPs) fled their homes in 2014, predominately from war-torn Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia. The global response to assisting this vulnerable group has been wholly incommensurate with the need given the profound health hazards faced by forced migrants at each stage of their journey. The majority of forced migrants are housed in lower-income countries that do not have the infrastructure to assist the significant numbers of individuals who are crossing their borders and the humanitarian organizations who seek to assist in the response are grossly underfunded and under-resourced.

Countries have varying responsibilities …

Human Trafficking: Statute Comparisons And Attitudes In Nebraska, Katie Sheets

Annual Interdisciplinary Conference on Human Trafficking: 7th (2015)

Human trafficking has become an issue for global concern. Here in the United States, the Federal government and all fifty states are taking steps to combat the pervasive problem. This study looks at the anti-human trafficking statutes of all fifty states and compares them with each other to see how each state stacks up against the other. Nebraska was the focus of the study as the unicameral has recently been enacting changes to the state’s laws against human trafficking. Nebraska was expected to at least be with the majority of states with their human trafficking provisions. The study then looked …

Human Rights At The Border: European-Union—Moroccan Relations In The Wake Of The 2013 Migratory Policy, Anashua Dutta

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Morocco’s border with the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla has brought the country into direct relations with the European Union (EU) on the issues of border control and migration. In response to the growing human rights violations towards migrants and refugees enumerated in the Conseil Nationale des Droits de l’Homme’s (CNDH) 2013 report, King Muhammad VI passed a migratory policy that emphasized preservation of human rights within Morocco’s borders. This study examines the effects of Morocco’s relationship with the EU on the implementation of the human-rights aspects of Morocco’s 2013 migratory policy. Using the semi-structured interview approach, I will …

Sale V. Haitian Centers Council, Inc.: Closing The Golden Door, Dennis E. Wasitis

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this note is to carefully examine the Supreme Court's reasoning in Sale v. Haitian Centers Council, Inc. Part II sketches the contours of our recent policies with Haiti, and highlights the relevant refugee law involved. Part III dissects the case itself and presents the facts, procedure, and reasoning of the majority and minority. Finally, Part IV probes the strength of the court's analysis, and assesses the future implications of the decision.