A Way Out for Southeast Asian Refugees at Risk for Deportation

This month I partnered with a friend and fellow VABAW board member at Foster Pepper to take on a pro bono Clemency Project case of a Vietnamese refugee who is at risk of deportation under the Trump administration.

For background, thousands of Vietnamese refugees fled Vietnam and immigrated to the United States in the late 1980s/early 90s (during and after the Vietnam War.) Since the War, the U.S. negotiated with Vietnam to accept repatriations. In 2008, Vietnam entered into a Treaty with the U.S. to essentially to take back immigrants who came to the U.S. after 1995, but not those who came before. The thought was to protect refugees who would face retaliation from the government upon their return.

In 2019, however, under the Trump administration, the federal government sought to re-interpret the Treaty in order to deport Vietnamese immigrants who came here before 1995 and have committed a crime. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security even stated that removing these Vietnamese nationals is a priority for the current administration

Many refugees affected by this new directive committed crimes in their late teens or early 20s over twenty years ago and have served their time. Yet, they are now at risk of deportation to a country they barely know. Some stories are detailed here: https://www.npr.org/2019/03/04/699177071/40-years-after-the-vietnam-war-some-refugees-face-deportation-under-trump. The Trump administration policy has heavily affected Cambodian refugees whom do not have the benefit of a Treaty like the one entered by Vietnam in 2008. Some stories are detailed here: https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/08/14/deported-to-their-parents-homeland-cambodian-americans-start-anew/.

In Washington, there is an avenue for reprieve. Seeking clemency before the Washington state clemency board can prevent deportation by pardoning a crime and vacating the criminal history. The petitioner must show “extraordinary circumstances” and that deportation would disproportionately impact the U.S. citizens that the petitioner would leave behind while providing no benefit to the community.

If you or someone you know are at risk of deportation under the current administration, contact me. We want to help. If you’re an attorney interested in partnering on a Clemency Project case, please also let us know. There are many cases that need pro bono representation.