IMMIGRATION POLICY IN FOCUS Volume 3, Issue 2 May 2004 Targets of Suspicion: The Impact of Post-9/11 Policies on Muslims, Arabs and South Asians in the United States ImmigrationImmigration PolicyPolicy CenterCenter AA divisiondivision ofof thethe AmericanAmerican ImmigrationImmigration LawLaw FoundationFoundation ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report was made possible by a grant from the ChevronTexaco Foundation, with the support of the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ). The IPC is grateful for the hard work and dedication of Paul M. Sherer, the primary author of this report. Mr. Sherer is a writer living in Walnut Creek, Calif. He is a former reporter for the Wall Street Journal and the Asian Wall Street Journal. The IPC and Mr. Sherer would also like to thank all the people who generously shared their time and perspectives in inter- views conducted for this report. Targets of Suspicion: The Impact of Post-9/11 Policies on Muslims, Arabs and South Asians in the United States EXECUTIVE SUMMARY trary to popular perception, the people most affected by NSEERS have been non-Arab Muslims, in particular Pa- n response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, kistanis and Bangladeshis. I2001, the U.S. government began a campaign of ag- gressive immigration enforcement targeted at Muslims, Economic and Social Impacts: Groups around the coun- Arabs and South Asians. Rather than first seeking to iden- try report that the detention and deportation of fathers tify suspected terrorists, the government initiated harsh and husbands has divided families and deprived them of law enforcement actions against whole communities with their primary sources of income. In some cases, Ameri- the hope that some of those caught might be terrorist can-citizen children with fathers subject to deportation suspects. Of all the post-9/11 policies, the National Se- have been pulled out of U.S. schools and taken to coun- curity Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS), com- tries they have never known, such as Pakistan, Bangladesh monly referred to as Special Registration, has had the and Egypt. NSEERS registration also applied to teenage most serious impacts on the targeted communities. In- boys 16 and older, who are often far more vulnerable to terviews conducted with attorneys, community groups removal deportation than adults, with fewer opportuni- and registrants themselves indicate that the deportations ties for benefit eligibility or relief from removal. and heightened immigration scrutiny resulting from NSEERS and other post-9/11 policies have created wide- Fear and Uncertainty: Interviews with community groups spread fear, stress and alienation in the nation’s Muslim, confirm that Muslims, Arabs and South Asians across Arab and South Asian communities. the country have become wary of any contact with au- thorities, often too frightened to report domestic vio- Confusion and Misinformation Result in Deportations: lence or other crimes or to seek help during emergencies. The rules and deadlines of NSEERS were complex, con- Numerous deportations for minor bureaucratic mistakes fusing and poorly publicized. NSEERS has provided many have led to a fear among lawfully-present immigrants, opportunities for people to unintentionally violate regu- workers and students of targeted national origins that lations and therefore become subject to deportation. The they could be deported at any time at the whim of an confusion was complicated by missing, incomplete or immigration official. incorrect instructions given out by immigration officials at registration. A December 2003 interim rule that lifted Unmet Legal Needs: In all four areas of the country certain NSEERS requirements was widely misreported by examined in this report – New York, Los Angeles, Hous- the press as an end to NSEERS. In fact, important NSEERS ton and Florida – local groups reported critical short- requirements remain in effect. ages of resources for pro bono legal assistance. As a result of the NSEERS program, about 14,000 people have Targeted Communities: Interviews with community been put into removal proceedings. Due to the sheer groups indicate that NSEERS has created the widespread number of cases and the complex legal issues involved, perception among Muslims, Arabs and South Asians that existing pro-bono programs have been inadequate, leav- the federal government is applying immigration laws in ing many thousands of people in proceedings with no a highly selective and discriminatory manner. Not only legal representation. Even in areas where the immediate does NSEERS single out individuals from Muslim-ma- response to NSEERS was well-coordinated and effective, jority countries (with the exception of North Korea), but the demand for skilled representation poses a serious it denies them avenues to avoid deportation that are com- challenge to philanthropic organizations and the immi- monly granted to people of other national origins. Con- gration bar. 1 I. INTRODUCTION In practical terms, the sanctions threatened against “the terrorists among us” were targeted at non-citizen Muslim, Arab and South Asian As part of its response to the terrorist attacks of men living in the United States who had no September 11, 2001, the U.S. government began a suspected ties to terrorism. series of law enforcement actions focused on Muslims, Arabs and South Asians living in the United States. While security and law enforcement experts have debated the Nationality-Based Immigration Enforcement appropriateness of many of these policies, there is little as an Anti-Terrorism Tool argument that they have taken a significant toll on the targeted communities. Under these policies, federal au- In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, the Department thorities have interviewed roughly 100,000 people of of Justice (DOJ) launched an aggressive campaign aimed Muslim, Arab or South Asian origin, including citizens, at disrupting terrorist networks in the United States. U.S. permanent residents, applicants for permanent residency, Attorney General John Ashcroft declared in October 2001 individuals legally present in the country on student or that immigration rules would be a primary weapon in the work visas, and people who overstayed their visas. These effort: interviews have resulted in thousands of people being put into removal (deportation) proceedings. Bearing the Robert Kennedy’s Justice Department, it is said, would brunt of these restrictive policies and being the targets arrest mobsters for ‘spitting on the sidewalk’ if it of suspicion under a heightened security regime has ex- would help in the battle against organized crime. It erted enormous pressure on Muslim, Arab and South has been and will be the policy of this Department Asian communities and the organizations that serve them. of Justice to use the same aggressive arrest and de- tention tactics in the war on terror. Let the terrorists In June of 2002 the Bush administration launched among us be warned: If you overstay your visa – the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System even by one day – we will arrest you.1 (NSEERS), commonly referred to as Special Registration. Arguably, of all the post-9/11 policies, NSEERS has had What sets the post-9/11 policies apart from Robert the most serious impacts on the targeted communities. Kennedy’s campaign against suspected members of or- Despite the announcement of an interim rule that lifted ganized crime, however, is the fact that the aggressive certain NSEERS requirements and confusing reports from arrest and detention tactics after 9/11 were not focused the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the on suspected terrorists. In practical terms, the sanctions media that the program was ended, many requirements threatened against “the terrorists among us” were tar- of the program remain in force. Perhaps more impor- geted at non-citizen Muslim, Arab and South Asian men tantly, the lingering effects of the program continue to living in the United States who had no suspected ties to resonate within Muslim, Arab and South Asian commu- terrorism. Rather than identifying suspected terrorists nities. The perception that they have been singled out and then using all available tools to arrest them, the DOJ because of their religion or national origin has led many initiated these aggressive tactics against whole commu- hard-working, law-abiding new Americans to question nities with the hope that some of those caught might be their future in this country. terrorist suspects. The programs have singled out for intensive immigration enforcement people of national In light of the impact it has had on the targeted com- origins that comprise a small proportion of the total U.S. munities and the fact that important aspects of the pro- immigrant population, and have led to thousands of them gram continue to be enforced, NSEERS is the primary being deported for alleged violations for which most focus of this report. immigrants face little risk of deportation. 2 In addition to the NSEERS program, other actions In addition, the FBI has aggressively used the threat that have focused on Muslims, Arabs and South Asians of immigration enforcement as a means of recruiting in- include: formants in Arab and Muslim communities in the United States. Several people interviewed for this report said • Initial Post-9/11 Detentions – More than 1,200 FBI officials threatened to cause – and in at least one people, mostly Arabs and Muslims, were rounded case described by a prominent Florida attorney did cause up and detained by the Federal Bureau of Investiga- – immigration problems for Arabs and Muslims who re- tion (FBI) and other law enforcement agencies in the fused to act as informants in their own communities. days and weeks after 9/11. Many of them were de- tained after neighbors, coworkers or strangers phoned in tips to authorities based largely on their appear- II. NSEERS - A LESSON IN ance, language or ethnic origin. Many were held for CONTRADICTION AND CONFUSION months without charge, and were denied access to attorneys and to their families.