To the Editor:
Re “Brushing Off Due Process for Migrants” (news analysis, front page, April 25):
President Trump’s assertion that people should be denied hearings in immigration court is unconstitutional and an affront to due process.
No matter where they are from, all people in the United States are entitled to due process when their freedom is at risk. When due process is denied, people face threats to their safety and our democracy is jeopardized.
Due process requires notice and a fair hearing, as well as legal representation in immigration court. Deporting people who have the right to stay safely rooted in the United States — parents, children, business owners and people seeking safety from persecution — exposes them to grave harm.
Rather than slamming shut the courthouse doors in an effort to expedite a mass deportation agenda that upends our democratic values, we should advance sensible and humane solutions to build a fair immigration system.
Immigrants are central to our families, communities and economy. The real danger to our country is a government that denies anyone a fair day in court.
Shayna Kessler
Brooklyn
The writer is the director of the Advancing Universal Representation Initiative at the Vera Institute of Justice.
To the Editor:
In “Two U.S. Citizens, Ages 4 and 7, Deported to Honduras With Their Mother” (news article, April 27), you describe families forced to make or accept irreversible decisions under extreme duress, without meaningful access to legal counsel, explanation of their rights or any consideration of medical needs.
As a pediatrician, I am deeply disturbed by these stories — particularly the deportation of a child battling advanced cancer. In medicine, we are taught to first do no harm. I have sat beside children fighting rare diseases, sustained by the fragile lifelines of specialized medical care. Interrupting a child’s cancer treatment is a death sentence imposed by policy.
Stability, continuous care and emotional security are essential for a child’s recovery and survival. Pediatricians often write letters describing the health effects of family separation and deportation on a child. Sadly, these cases are not isolated — and they are rising. Such actions intentionally inflict harm on children as a demonstration of power.
The deportation of any child, especially one with critical health needs, without proper legal and medical considerations, represents a profound failure of our nation’s responsibility to protect the most vulnerable. I urge policymakers to put a stop to practices that disregard due process and endanger the lives of children.
Minal Giri
Lincolnshire, Ill.
The author is a pediatrician and an executive committee member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Immigrant Child and Family Health.
Harvard’s Defiance
To the Editor:
Re “Harvard May Not Be the Hero We Want, but It Is the Hero We Need,” by David French (column, April 28):
Sometimes a single candle flickering in the darkness reminds the mighty that with stature and financial means comes civic responsibility.
Mr. French rightly notes that Harvard’s lawsuit against the Trump administration has become a proxy for all the organizations and institutions lacking the resources or courage to challenge a president bulldozing his way into domains beyond federal jurisdiction.
May Harvard’s defiance trigger a chain reaction across academia, businesses and local communities. Each rebuke of President Trump empowers others to fight for their constitutional right to freely speak, write, teach and hire.
In a democratic society, the rule of law is not optional. When the executive branch wields government power to silence dissent and punish enemies, no American can stand mutely on the sidelines.
Maryellen Donnellan
Falls Church, Va.
Cuts to Meals on Wheels
To the Editor:
Re “Overhaul Dismantles the Agency Running Meals on Wheels” (news article, April 25):
As a social worker and volunteer for Meals on Wheels, I am shocked and dismayed by the cutbacks planned at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the potential impact on the elderly and the disabled in our communities.
Meals on Wheels provides a lifeline for seniors confronting food insecurity. Moreover, it allows volunteers to check on the well-being of meal recipients and offers door-to-door human contact desperately needed by the homebound.
When we lose sight of the needs of our most vulnerable in the interest of government efficiency, our compassion is on the chopping block.
June Rogoznica
Rye, N.Y.
#Opinion #Deportation #Occurs #Trials
