Dean Johnson, Professor Cooper Comment on Immigration for Guardian
Dean Kevin R. Johnson and Professor Holly Cooper commented on U.S. immigration policy for an article in The Guardian authored by Wajahat Ali '07. Ali, who has published a series of commentaries in The Guardian, writes that the Obama administration's recent announcement that no comprehensive immigration reform would occur before 2010 commits the nation "to the highly ineffective, unjust, and draconian policies of the U.S. immigration system that needlessly treat immigrants as scapegoats to appease unfounded national security concerns."
Dean Johnson commented that the key question for Obama is "how to come up with a legally enforceable system of detention in which there are checks and balances. The administration has refused to promulgate an enforceable rule or regulation [for immigration detention]."
Professor Cooper commented that under the current system, detained individuals "are affected in ways that I can't describe in words. One of my clients said it was as if he was dead for the five years he was detained and has decided to deduct the five years of detention from his age."
Kevin R. Johnson is dean and Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest Law and Chicana/o Studies at UC Davis School of Law. He is an internationally recognized scholar in the fields of immigration law and policy, refugee law, and civil rights.
Holly Cooper is a professor of law and serves as staff attorney at the UC Davis Immigration Law Clinic. Her areas of specialty include immigration law and detained immigrants' rights.