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May 3, 2019

Immigrant Rights Activists Maru Mora-Villalpando Vows to Continue Resisting Despite Deportation Order
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In Seattle, Washington, dozens of people rallied this week at the
immigration court where prominent activist Maru Mora-Villalpando was
ordered to appear. It was her third hearing since ICE moved to deport
her last year, after she organized a series of "resistance workshops"
across the state. The judge set another hearing date for November, and
Mora-Villalpando vowed to return with more protesters.

Maru Mora-Villalpando: "I think that, in a way, coming to this building
to show the epicenter of detentions and deportations in Washington, it's
definitely part of our work, and it benefits our work, because most
people didn't know that this place existed in the first place. They have
no idea that this private building hosts many offices of ICE, Homeland
Security Investigations and Department of Justice. Here is where
decisions are made. And we are very happy to bring people here every
time we come and for people to understand that this is another place of
resistance."

Mora-Villalpando also has a pending civil rights lawsuit challenging how
ICE surveils, detains and deports outspoken immigrant activists. The
case cites the arrest of well-known New York activist Ravi Ragbir at his
regular ICE check-in. Last week, a federal appeals court ruled in favor
of Ragbir in his own free speech case, saying the First Amendment bars
ICE from targeting activists for deportation based on their political
speech, and writing, "To allow this retaliatory conduct to proceed would
broadly chill protected speech, among not only activists subject to
final orders of deportation but also those citizens and other residents
who would fear retaliation against others."


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