Immigration Groups Using FOIAs to Expose Government Secrets
The Trump administration has implemented a number of immigration policies thought to be controversial. One of them is the ‘Zero-tolerance policy’. Its purpose is to enable officials to prosecute all migrants who did not enter the United States through a Port-Of-Entry and want to seek asylum. As a result of that disastrous policy, families have been separated; children detained in cages sparking nationwide outrage against this form of brutality and inhumanity. In an effort to fight against a system that has been gaslighting millions of vulnerable immigrants and their families in the dark, immigration advocates have turned to a secret tool that can help bring more transparency. This tool is none other than the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The key word here is Information. FOIA is designed to allow public access to any record in possession of top immigration agencies. Everything that was once hidden is now exposed as the public has the right to know where their tax money goes and how it is managed. With FOIA, Immigration advocates can relentlessly scrutinize Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) costs and their management of detaining immigrants. Thus, the government agencies must comply with the law and also give account for their unfair policies and treatment of all categories of immigrants, especially asylum-seekers.