Deportation is when the federal government removes an individual from the United States for violating the immigration laws. Deportation can be scary and is a legal proceeding, so you need to ensure that you know your rights if ever you are being deported.
Many deportations go against the basic human rights such as the right to family unity, the right to seek asylum, the right to humane treatment, the right to due process, and the rights of children. There are a number of other rights that the deportation law violates that you can read here.
What are your rights?
The right to due process of law – Any person who goes before a judge has the right to a fair day in court. The individual’s paperwork and case should be treated equally and fairly by all the parties involved.
The right to family unity and rights of the child – The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) recognizes the family as the main unit of society and deporting immigrants and separating them from their families is a clear violation of this law. The law also states special protection should be guaranteed to children facing deportation.
The right to be free from discrimination – An individual’s race, skin color, sexual orientation, gender, religious beliefs, ethnicity and line of work should never play against him during the hearing of his case. This law is supported by the ICCPR and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD).
The right to non-refoulement – The UN Refugee Convention argues that the state cannot deport a person to an area where the latter’s life or freedom is threatened, except if the individual poses a threat to public safety or has committed a serious crime.
The right to proportionate punishment – Most of the times, immigrants in the United States face deportation due to a crime that they already served a sentence for. This is against any law which indicates that a person shall not be punished for the same crime twice.
All human beings have the right to dignity, equal rights, and fairness. However, with the latest deportation policy approved by President Trump, the US immigration office is deporting people for every minor issue. That is why you need an experienced immigration attorney who will fight for your rights and make you understand the law better.