Humanizing Immigration: How to Transform Our Racist and Unjust System How to Transform Our Racist and Unjust System

by Hing, Bill Ong

• ISBN13: 9780807008027
• ISBN10: 0807008028
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2023-10-24
• Publisher: Beacon Press

Summary

“Incisive and compelling, reflecting the painful wisdom and knowledge that Bill Ong Hing has accrued over the course of fifty years . . . ”—Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow

First book to argue that immigrant and refugee rights are part of the fight for racial justice; offers a humanitarian approach to reform and abolition

Representing non-citizens caught up in what he calls the immigration and enforcement “meat grinder”, Bill Ong Hing witnessed their trauma, arriving at this conclusion: migrants should have the right to free movement across borders—and the right to live free of harassment over immigration status.

He cites examples of racial injustices endemic in immigration law and enforcement, from historic courtroom cases to the recent treatment of Haitian migrants. Hing includes histories of Mexican immigration, African migration and the Asian exclusion era, all of which reveal ICE abuse and a history of often forgotten racist immigration laws.

While ultimately arguing for the abolishment of ICE, Hing advocates for change now. With 50 years of law practice and litigation, Hing has represented non-citizens—from gang members to asylum seekers fleeing violence, and from individuals in ICE detention to families at the US southern border seeking refuge.

Hing maps out major reforms to the immigration system, making an urgent call for the adoption of a radical, racial justice lens. Readers will understand the root causes of migration and our country’s culpability in contributing to those causes.

Author Biography

Bill Ong Hing is Professor of Law and Migration Studies at the University of San Francisco, and Professor of Law and Asian American Studies Emeritus, at U.C. Davis. Previously on the law faculties at Stanford University and Golden Gate University, he founded the Immigrant Legal Resource Center in San Francisco and directs their Immigration & Deportation Defense Clinic. Professor Hing teaches Immigration Law & Policy, Migration Studies, Rebellious Lawyering, and Evidence, is the author of six books, and was co-counsel in the U.S. Supreme Court asylum precedent-setting case INS v. Cardoza-Fonseca (1987).

Table of Contents

Preface

CHAPTER 1
An Introduction to the Racial Injustice of Immigration Law

CHAPTER 2
The Inhumane Treatment of Detained Children

CHAPTER 3
Deporting Aggravated Felons

CHAPTER 4
Deporting Antonio Sanchez: The Failure of Prosecutorial Discretion and Cancellation of Removal

CHAPTER 5
Giving the Benefit of the Doubt to Asylum Seekers

CHAPTER 6
Dysfunctional Immigration Courts

EPILOGUE
On Disruption

APPENDIX TO CHAPTER 1
Historical Overview: The Racism of US Immigration Laws and Enforcement

APPENDIX TO THE EPILOGUE
Disruptive Racial Justice Courtroom Strategies

Acknowledgments
Notes
Index