From the Oregon Peaceworker
April 2, 2004 

MIDDLE OF NOWHERE 
Somalis Wait in Legal Limbo with Homeland Security
By Kayse Jama

On the morning of June 12, 2001, my life was in legal limbo as I faced immigration judge Michel Barnett. His decision could mean indefinite imprisonment or possible deportation to Somalia, a country that has not had a central government for more than thirteen years, a country no longer home. Though I had not committed a crime, I wasn’t provided legal representation. The U.S. government does not provide lawyers to asylees and immigrants in deportation hearings. Ironically, even the private lawyers that I consulted refused to take my case, citing that it was “un-winnable.”

I refused to accept their advice and went forward with my case, representing myself. With the help of many friends, a fair judge and my will to challenge the INS (now the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration, part of the Office of Homeland Security), I won the case against the federal prosecutor. However, many Somalis and other asylum seekers are not so lucky. Take the case of another Keyse Jama -- a young Somali resident of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jama has been in jail for three years, and his case has become a bellwether for the ever-shifting winds of U.S. immigration policy.

For fifty years, United States case law has upheld that individuals from countries without a central government or with whom the U.S. has no diplomatic relationship cannot be deported to their countries of origin. Thousands of immigrants are jailed in the United States for these reasons. My name-twin -- Keyse Jama -- is one.

For a while, Jama’s case followed the usual course. In January of 2003, a federal district court judge in Seattle, applying the reasoning first enunciated in the Jama case (March 2002), temporarily enjoined the INS nation-wide from deporting anyone to Somalia. However, a three-judge panel for the 8th District Court of Appeals subsequently voted 2-1 to reverse the Minnesota federal district court that had blocked Jama’s deportation and ruled that the INS did, indeed, have the authority to deport Keyse Jama to Somalia. The court stated that it was not persuaded by the 50 years of judicial precedent cited by Jama because, in essence, it disagreed with that precedent.

Immigration Post 9/11

Immigration sentiment ebbs and flows with the national tide. The recent wave of anti-immigrant legislation started after a few highly publicized incidents in the 1990s, where people with pending asylum claims were involved in acts of terrorism. Following these attacks, Congress passed the Immigration Reform Act of 1996 that instituted policies of deportation with cursory hearings. Large-scale detention of most asylum seekers became standard operating procedure, even for children. September 11th gave birth to the U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act (although this time, the attackers were here legally), and mandatory registration from selected countries ensued. One of these countries was Somalia.

With the 8th District Court of Appeals reversal of the Jama decision, we witnessed the anti-immigrant wave in the United States reach tsunami proportions. It was a civics lesson I won’t soon forget. The reversal revealed that settled law is no longer law when a majority (two out of three) of the judges charged with upholding the law choose to ignore it and allow an arm of the executive branch (in this case, the INS) to define it differently. Perhaps we truly are in an era of judicial activism. Things looked bad for my Somali brother.

Then good news came. A group of Somali plaintiffs filed a class-action lawsuit to force the government to stop deporting Somalis. On September 17, 2003, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a January decision that effectively bans deportation to Somalia. This ruling affects more than 2,700 Somalis in the U.S. facing deportation. The ruling settles -- at least temporarily -- the uncertainty that ensued following the Jama case. At that time, it was unclear whether the Jama decision would have broader consequences for other Somalis in removal proceedings.

Somalis Behind Bars

The 9th Circuit Court ruling provides some relief, but the future remains uncertain for Somalis facing deportation. The U.S. government will likely appeal the decision. Furthermore, while the class action lawsuit prohibits the deportation to Somalia of people living anywhere in the U.S., it excludes those Somalis who have previously filed petitions challenging the legality of their removal. Finally, while the ruling upheld the decision to release four Somalis who had previously been detained by the INS in Washington State, the ruling does not extend to all Somali class members who are being deported.

So, how do we find Somalis still held in immigration detention in locations throughout the United States? The INS is not forthcoming with information regarding class members, despite repeated requests. Many Somalis in detention may not be aware of the 9th Circuit Court ruling, which prohibits the government from indefinitely detaining people who face deportation, but whose countries of origin will not accept them. Once Somalis in detention learn of the suit, they may be able to obtain their own release. However, the INS’ refusal to provide names and locations of detainees impedes efforts to seek release of Somali detainees.

Somalis being held by the INS may be able to seek release from detention by filing a petition with the federal court. To report information on any Somali currently held in immigration detention, contact the Hate Free Zone Campaign of Washington State at (206) 723-2203 or e-mail liza@hatefreezone.org.

So what will happen in the case of the other Keyse Jama? Only time (and, perhaps, the Supreme Court) will tell. But if we deport Jama, or others, to Somalia, America will risk abusing its strength at the expense of the weak. In changing this policy, the U.S. abandons a stateless person -- without a passport or travel documents -- in a war-torn country victimized by warlords and without a central government. 

As someone who once faced as similar fate, I can assure you that nothing feels more violating than being held captive in the one place you thought was free. [

Kayse Jama grew up a nomad child in Somalia. During his emigration following the civil war, Jama lived many different countries, and now resides in Portland. He is the founder of the Center for Intercultural Organizing (:www.interculturalorganizing.org, 503-287-4117, kayse@interculturalorganizing.org).