Schools are closed.
Restaurants are closed.
But courts are still issuing rulings, and we are still fighting on behalf of our clients.
Because civil rights remain open. Always.
Like many of you, we at CLCMA have had to adapt. Most of us, on most days, are working from home. For the moment, we are rotating having two people at a time in the office designated to answer calls and receive important documents in the mail. For example, yesterday (March 19), we received a “green card” (lawful permanent resident card) in the mail for one of our clients. We are thrilled we did not have to miss that important moment. And today, we filed an appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of another client, whom the government has designated as having provided material support to a terrorist organization, for something that he disclosed and which was not deemed problematic when he gained asylum here decades ago.
In the coming weeks, we will be continuing to work for your rights, and the rights of those in the community as a whole. While the courts have postponed in-person hearings, we continue to have deadlines for briefing, and appeals, and other important steps to preserve the rights of our clients and others. So, while we continue to fight the COVID-19 virus, we will also continue to fight for civil rights.
We appreciate your support to help us while we do that. We know there are many concerns on people’s minds now. We have concerns about ourselves, our coworkers, and our loved ones also. And yet we know we cannot afford to miss a step in the many ongoing legal battles. We are still making sure our voices are heard, that your voices are heard, through the courts and to the judges. We will keep filing lawsuits. We will keep briefing our cases. We will keep filing our appeals, all while we fight for the rights which are guaranteed to all, equally, under the Constitution. Be assured that while we all isolate ourselves as needed physically, our work continues unabated.
Because civil rights remain open. And our fight continues.
