Immigration Law, Co-Sponsored by Civil Rights

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Recent events highlight the frequent conflict between individual liberty interests and the government’s migration control policies. The executive order banning the entry of Muslims into the United States has impinged on religious liberty, freedom to travel, and the liberty interest in family. Immigration detention, now greatly expanded, curtails freedom from physical restraint. "Zero tolerance" border control policies have caused large-scale family separation and detention, placed refugees at risk of refoulement, and infringed upon various rights of the child. Denial of noncitizen minors' access to abortion while in government custody has implicated overlapping liberty interests. This session explores the doctrinal, practical, and theoretical issues arising at the intersection of liberty and migration control, including how exercises of the immigration power have affected individual liberty interests, the narrative and advocacy strategies used to advance immigrants' rights, and how courts are assessing and weighing liberty interests in cases involving migration control.