In January 2021, Border Patrol conducted raids in Bakersfield, California, targeting Latino farmworker communities, generating fear in an already tense atmosphere before Trump's inauguration. The ACLU of Northern California filed a lawsuit, alleging racial profiling and illegal stops. Attorneys claim at least 40 individuals faced coercive deportations via voluntary departure agreements, waiving their rights to immigration hearings. Bree Bernwanger, an ACLU attorney, expressed concerns over the lack of clarity regarding consequences for individuals agreeing to such departures, emphasizing the need to halt these actions before they intensify under the new administration.
"This lawsuit is about racial profiling and illegal actions by Border Patrol in the Central Valley," said Bree Bernwanger, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Northern California.
"We expect to see them continue in the Trump administration, and our goal is to stop them before they spread," Bernwanger stated regarding the ACLU's ongoing efforts.
People who agree to voluntary departure are also prohibited from reentering the United States for at least three years, according to Bernwanger.
"What we're challenging is Border Patrol's attempt to push people through this process of banishment without telling them what would happen to them if they accepted it," said Bernwanger.
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