FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: media@vera.org

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Trump administration invoked The Alien Enemies Act of 1798, an archaic wartime law giving the federal government sweeping authority to detain and deport people from an “enemy nation” without a hearing or any opportunity to defend themselves. The executive order, already being challenged in court, directs the arrest, detention and deportation of Venezuelan nationals suspected of gang affiliation without a hearing or a chance to defend themselves in court.

This marks the latest escalation in President Trump’s agenda to carry out the largest deportation program in U.S. history, expanding the circle of immigrants who can be subject to criminalization, detention, deportation, and family separation.

The law was designed to be used only in times of “declared war” or when a foreign government threatens or launches an “invasion” or “predatory incursion" against the United States. In its nearly 230-year history, the Act has been invoked only three times, most notoriously leading to the disgraceful creation of Japanese internment camps during World War II—an egregious moral stain on our nation’s history.

Shayna Kessler, director, Advancing Universal Representation initiative, Vera Institute of Justice, said: “With this executive order, the Trump administration is using fear and division to escalate its attacks on due process, which is a fundamental part of the U.S. constitution and a foundational value in this country. The shocking invocation of an archaic wartime law will make communities less safe. It threatens families by fast-tracking deportations for Venezuelan immigrants, including children as young as 14, many of whom have the right to be in the U.S. Today’s actions would strip away their constitutional right to defend themselves in court, advance this administration’s agenda of mass detention and family separation, devastate local communities and their economies, and perpetuate a dangerous and false narrative that immigrants are enemies.”

Nicole Melaku, executive director, National Partnership for New Americans, said: “This extremely dangerous law declares war on children, parents, and workers just trying to support their communities and their families. It is an assault on due process, denying people any opportunity to defend themselves in court. Just as the Alien Enemies Act was weaponized to incarcerate and separate Japanese American families during World War II, the Trump administration is abusing this dangerous executive power to make more people deportable and justify his destructive and racist mass deportation agenda. The enemy is not our immigrant neighbors—it’s those willing to enact hate-fueled policies to justify tearing families apart.”

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Fairness to Freedom: The Campaign for Universal Representation was launched by the National Partnership for New Americans and the Vera Institute of Justice in April 2022 with a coalition of over 200 organizations and legal service providers. The campaign’s goal is to support the passage of the Fairness to Freedom Act to establish a federal right to representation for all immigrants facing deportation.