By: Serena Edwards
In the United States (U.S.), the Constitution serves as a framework for how the government should treat and respect people’s rights. During President Trump’s second term, that framework is being eroded. Recently, with the increase in deportations, the forceful removal of a person from a country, the right to due process ( 5th Amendment and 14th Amendment) has become a thing of the past.
Due process is the right to a fair and legal proceeding. This means that those arrested are required to receive notice and a hearing after their arrest. This right is granted to both citizens and non-U.S. citizens. In April of this year, the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) discussed whether undocumented immigrants had the right to due process. They ruled that people in the U.S. have a right to due process regardless of their status.
The 14th Amendment states, “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
The Fifth Amendment goes hand and hand with the 14th Amendment. The Fifth Amendment grants protections to anyone being charged with a crime. For example, “People have the right against self-incrimination and cannot be imprisoned without due process of law (fair procedures and trials),” the Constitution states.
With the expansion of the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) of 1798, immigrants are at risk of being deported if they are perceived as a threat, regardless of their citizenship status. “AEA allows the president to detain or deport the natives and citizens of an ‘enemy’ nation”, according to NAFSA: Association of International Educators. This act, when in the wrong hands, can lead to detrimental damage.
SCOTUS ruled in Noem v. Vasquez that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents can interrogate and detain those with “reasonable suspicion”. This gives ICE agents the authority to approach individuals based on characteristics such as their race, language, and more. This proceeding came shortly after the series of protests against ICE in Los Angeles.
However, the proceeding states, “If the officers learn that the individual they stopped is a U. S. citizen or otherwise lawfully in the United States, they promptly let the individual go. If the individual is illegally in the United States, the officers may arrest the individual and initiate the process for removal.”
Though there are temporary restraining orders (TRO) in some states to prevent these incidents, there are still permanent damages.
While the rules granted by the 14th Amendment are clear, there are other laws that contradict it. For example, in expedited removal, the lines for due process start to blur.
Expedited removal is “ a process in which low-level immigration officers can summarily remove certain noncitizens from the United States without a hearing before an immigration judge,” according to the American Immigration Council (AIC). With this process, the right to due process is simply stripped away.
Expedited removal isn’t a new process. Originating in 2002, when it was first created, there were limitations on who it applied to. “Initially, the application of expedited removal was limited to noncitizens who arrived at a port of entry,” according to the AIC.
It expanded from 2020 to 2022 and again this year. When Trump entered his second term earlier this year, he made it a mission to protect ICE agents, not migrants. The recent expansions of expedited removals from the Trump administration permit ICE agents to start the expedited removal process if they feel it’s suitable. The difference within this process, however, is that it can not be appealed unless there are strenuous circumstances.
There are blatant contradictions within the Constitution, the very piece of legislation that America has deemed our “foundation,” and the government we experience today. In the Constitution and Bill of Rights, we are granted liberties when in the U.S.
Beyond the 5th and 14th amendments, the 4th has been called into question as they have been violated as well. The Fourth Amendment prevents unlawful stops and seizures. With the recent ruling from SCOTUS, there have been violations of the Fourth Amendment as well.
In many cases of deportation, if the right to due process were given, many immigrants wouldn’t go through the trauma they did. Kilmar Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported by ICE due to expedited removal and the AEA. Garcia was racially profiled as a member of the Venezuelan gang MS-13. “Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran native living in Maryland, was mistakenly deported […] despite a 2019 court order barring his deportation to that country due to fear of persecution — after the Trump administration claimed he was a member of the criminal gang MS-13, which his family denies,” according to ABC.
This is a clear example of the foundation the American government stands so proudly on, having flaws within the society we live in today.
If we can’t trust the foundation that was built to protect us in situations like this, the 14th Amendment won’t be the only right we will see start to fade.