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    The secretive, destructive work of an ICE attorney: ‘My job is to do what I’m told’

    ICE lawyers in New York City earn more than $100,000 a year, enjoy generous benefits and post about rich social lives. Their work is vital to Trump’s deportation agendaOne morning last June in an immigration courtroom in New York City, a lawyer named Estefani Rodriguez looked as if she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. She was a prosecuting attorney for the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE). Her job was to present immigration judges with motions to kick non-citizens out of the United States – to switch on the deportation machine.Rodriguez is in her late 30s, with long hair and full cheeks. According to the website of the Dominican Bar Association, her parents are immigrants from the Dominican Republic. In online photos, she sports a wide smile. But on this day, as she covered one of some 60 immigration courtrooms housed in labyrinthine federal buildings in lower Manhattan, she seemed to churn with angst. Repeatedly she touched her hands to her mouth, then under her glasses, then back to her mouth, and then she rubbed and rubbed her eyes. Continue reading… More

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    Federal prosecutors reportedly failed to secure indictments against six Democratic lawmakers over US military video – as it happened

    This live blog is now closed.Trump news at a glance: Why did FBI raid Georgia election office? Trump-loyal election deniers told them toJamie Raskin, a top House Democrat, accused the justice department of making “puzzling, inexplicable redactions” to documents related to Jeffrey Epstein that obscured the names of abusers, while allowing the identities of the disgraced financier’s victims to become public.Raskin told reporters that he wanted to view the complete files to better understand how the justice department handled the redaction process. Continue reading… More

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    Ohio city stands up to Trump’s ‘attitude of hate’ toward Haitian community

    Churches in Springfield provide networks of support as Haitians face uncertainty over the future of TPS legal protectionsAt morning services at Central Christian Church in Springfield, Ohio, on Sunday, congregants greeted one another with hugs and expressed gratitude for a rare piece of good news. Nearly a week before, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end legal protections for 350,000 Haitians in the US.The church is one of several in Springfield that provide services in Haitian Creole and has opened its doors to thousands of Haitians living in the small city in south-western Ohio. Addressing the ruling, pastor Carl Ruby explained in his sermon that during times of suffering, the silence of God doesn’t mean the absence of God. Continue reading… More

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    Judge rejects Trump administration effort to deport pro-Palestinian Tufts student

    Rümeysa Öztürk was arrested as part of the government’s targeting of students protesting against Israel’s war on GazaAn immigration judge has rejected the Trump administration’s efforts to deport Rümeysa Öztürk, a Tufts University PhD student, who was arrested last year as part of its targeting of pro-Palestinian campus activists, her lawyers said on Monday.Lawyers for the Turkish student detailed the immigration judge’s decision in a filing with the New York-based second US circuit court of appeals, which had been reviewing a ruling that led to her release from immigration custody in May. Continue reading… More

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    These are the high schoolers taking a stand against ICE: ‘You can’t let despair take over’

    Thousands of students across the US have been walking out of their schools to protest ICE in their communitiesOver the past six months, thousands of students have been walking out of their schools in protest of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) presence in their communities. Some of their schools supported the protests; some didn’t, threatening disciplinary action. Other schools stayed neutral out of fear of inviting unwanted attention to vulnerable immigrant students.The Guardian spoke to seven teenagers who led or participated in school walkouts. Many said their organizing went beyond leaving class, extending to checking social media for suspected ICE sightings, distributing “know your rights” materials and making political posters. All were resolute about the need to protest against ICE regardless of any risk – and whether or not they got support from the grownups around them. Continue reading… More

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    Bad Bunny to meet political moment as Maga fumes over Super Bowl show

    Puerto Rican superstar promises ‘the world will dance’ in all-Spanish half-time gig that comes as Trump agents wage deadly crackdownFor 13 minutes on Sunday night, Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara will pulse with reggaeton, Latin trap and Caribbean rhythms as Bad Bunny headlines a historic Super Bowl halftime performance, primarily – or perhaps entirely – in Spanish. The Puerto Rican megastar, whose songs fuse the raw energy of música urbana, Boricua pride and resistance politics, has promised a “huge party”.At a moment when masked federal agents are sweeping through American cities, rounding up long-settled immigrants, legal residents and even US citizens, Bad Bunny’s presence on the grandest stage in US sports offers a striking contrast – a joyful celebration of pride and solidarity for millions of Latinos. Continue reading… More

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    ‘A profound sense of being hunted’: with all eyes on Minneapolis, ICE arrests continue quietly across the US

    Immigration operations are still stoking fear and disrupting the ability to go to work, school or doctor’s appointmentsWith the public’s outrage and attention focused on the deadly surge of federal agents in Minneapolis, immigration operations have quietly continued across the US – albeit in less noticeable but still troubling ways, advocates say.In recent weeks there have been day laborers swept up at a Home Depot in San Diego. A taco truck vendor chased down outside a church in Los Angeles. Immigrants arrested at check-ins in North Carolina, and during traffic stops in the nation’s capital. Continue reading… More

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    How anti-ICE pin badges became the essential red carpet accessory

    Billie Eilish and Biebers wore ‘ICE out’ pins at the Grammys, as more and more celebrities find their political voicesThe red carpet is being used increasingly as a platform for protest – and one accessory in particular has become key: the pin badge.At Sunday night’s Grammy awards, stars including Hailey and Justin Bieber and Billie Eilish wore black and white pins that read “ICE out”, a condemnation of the recent actions of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Continue reading… More