NYCLA Issues Call to Legal Community: Lawyers Must Mobilize Against Deportations without Due Process

We Applaud the Pledge Issued by NY Gov. Hochul and NY AG James to Protect New Yorkers

Nov. 12, 2024,  New York, New York – The New York County Lawyers Association (NYCLA) is alarmed by the mass deportations that President-Elect Trump has promised to implement immediately upon taking office.  These will reportedly include not only deploying National Guard troops from “cooperative” states to assist with deportations in “unfriendly” ones, but also sending “deportation officers” to particular types of protests, and even using the Alien Enemies Act (most recently used to justify the internment of people of Japanese, German, and Italian descent during World War II) to deport individuals “suspected” of gang affiliation.  We cannot help but be reminded of the Palmer Raids against suspected Socialists and Communists in 1919-20  – which ultimately led to the founding of the American Civil Liberties Union, but not before countless innocent people were subject to unlawful arrest and inhumane detention.   

That series of events just over 100 years ago was so antithetical to our nation’s commitment to the rule of law that even the FBI itself describes it in apologetic terms on its own website.  But that is the very history that is loudly and pointedly threatening to repeat itself in the coming months.  And make no mistake: that threat is coming at New York City – our city – like a freight train.

NYCLA welcomes and applauds the strong and united pledge issued by Governor Hochul and Attorney General James to “protect New Yorkers’ fundamental freedoms from any potential threats.”  NYCLA stands ready to do its part to assist and invites others in the legal community to join us.  As lawyers we have a key role in ensuring that law enforcement – regardless of its target – always includes the due process that is necessary to guarantee that the rule of law that is so vital to our democracy is fully respected. 

That is why, in the coming days and weeks, NYCLA will be reaching out to bar leaders and others to convene summit meetings to coordinate efforts, share ideas, and pool resources – much as we did with respect to the importance of a diverse judiciary in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision regarding affirmative action.  If you’re an attorney and would like to get involved, please contact tvalenti@nycla.org.

“Let us not forget what the inscription on the Statue of Liberty reminds us,” urges NYCLA President Adrienne Koch: “our great city is the ‘golden door’ beside which Liberty lifts her lamp.  Ours is a city of promise and hope, filled with the richness of our diverse cultures and history.  We look forward to working with our state and local officials, our courts, and the rest of our city’s legal community to protect those riches and to help our nation live up to its founding principle that government should be of laws and not of men.” 

About the New York County Lawyers Association
The New York County Lawyers Association (www.nycla.org) was founded in 1908 as one of the first major bar associations in the country that admitted members without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, or gender. Since its inception, it has pioneered some of the most far-reaching and tangible reforms in American jurisprudence and has continuously played an active role in legal developments and public policy.

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