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ACLU of Massachusetts sues over US denying Afghans humanitarian entry

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ACLU of Massachusetts sues over US denying Afghans humanitarian entry


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The group says the denials left Afghans stranded and vulnerable to being killed.

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BOSTON (AP) — A Boston civil rights group is difficult the U.S. authorities’s denial of humanitarian reduction to scores of Afghans fleeing from the Taliban.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts filed a lawsuit in Boston federal court docket Wednesday on behalf of Afghans and their New England-area households looking for to carry them to the U.S. by a not often used immigration provision often called humanitarian parole.

The group says the denials left Afghans stranded and vulnerable to being killed, after the hardline Taliban seized management of the nation by power final August as U.S. and different overseas forces withdrew within the chaotic finish to a 20-year warfare.

One Afghan plaintiff, who is just named by pseudonym, utilized for humanitarian parole for six relations, solely to have three of them killed whereas awaiting choices on their requests, in line with the swimsuit.

In its lawsuit, the ACLU cites the experiences of Afghan girls who held outstanding positions earlier than the Taliban imposed extra restrictive measures, in addition to Afghans who labored for the U.S. authorities or the U.S.-backed Afghan authorities.

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The humanitarian parole program doesn’t present a direct path to lawful everlasting residence, however these on it may possibly apply for asylum or different immigration reduction if eligible. This system permits folks to quickly enter the nation for “pressing humanitarian or important public profit causes,” in line with USCIS’s web site.

Federal businesses named within the swimsuit, together with the State Division, Homeland Safety Division and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Companies, didn’t reply to emails looking for remark Thursday.

The swimsuit, which the ACLU filed together with the Boston legislation agency Mintz, argues that the federal government promised endangered Afghans they had been eligible for humanitarian parole.

Immigration officers abruptly stopped processing humanitarian parole requests after hundreds of Afghans utilized for this system final August and September, the ACLU states. Then in November, USCIS imposed stricter requirements that resulted in most Afghan functions being denied.

The ACLU argues the adjustments violated federal guidelines and requests a federal decide order functions be promptly adjudicated or re-adjudicated below the unique requirements.

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“The federal government has a duty to use its legal guidelines pretty, successfully, and effectively,” stated Carol Rose, government director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, in a press release.

The denials are all of the extra irritating given the swift reduction afforded to Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion of their homeland in current months, stated Chiara St. Pierre, a lawyer with the Massachusetts-based Worldwide Institute of New England, a refugee resettlement company that had been serving to Afghans search humanitarian parole however isn’t concerned within the ACLU lawsuit.

The brand new humanitarian parole course of created particularly for Ukrainians has been in a position to course of 6,000 functions inside its first three weeks — far exceeding the entire variety of Afghan humanitarian parole adjudications within the 9 months since final August, the lawsuit states. The Ukrainian program additionally waives pricey software submitting charges and permits functions to be accomplished on-line with out requiring journey to a consulate.

“Ukrainians deserve protections too, however the Uniting for Ukraine program solidifies that our authorities is making a selection relating to these Afghan functions and letting them languish,” St. Pierre stated Thursday. “The federal government does actually have the flexibility to truly adjudicate these circumstances as a result of they’re doing so for Ukrainians and with a particular program designed particularly for them.”

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2 of the largest fairs in North America are in Massachusetts

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2 of the largest fairs in North America are in Massachusetts


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One saw record-breaking attendance in 2024.

Children on a ride at The Big E.

If you attended The Big E or the Topsfield Fair this past fall, you were in good company.


  • These New England hotels, restaurants, and more are ‘must visit spots’ in 2025, according to USA Today readers

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Both Massachusetts fairs ranked among the top 50 fairs in the U.S. and Canada in 2024, according to Carnival Warehouse. The list was ranked by attendance.

“2024 contained very positive indicators that North Americans have rekindled their romance for midways, outdoor shows, agricultural programming and food-on-a-stick,” wrote Carnival Warehouse on its website. “Most fairs saw increases over last year’s attendance, only 12 top-50 fairs saw decreases, most of which were nominal and all of which were due to weather.”

The Big E (the Eastern States Exposition) in Springfield ranked No. 4 with an all-time total attendance record of more than 1.6 million visitors. Seven other daily attendance records were also set this year at The Big E, including an all-time single day attendance record of 178,608 visitors on Sept. 21. The Topsfield Fair, at No. 40, saw 418,170 visitors.

Running since 1916, The Big E is New England’s biggest fair. The fair brought live musical acts, carnival rides, agricultural competitions, and food vendors this past September. All six New England states are famously represented on its grounds.

The Topsfield Fair, America’s oldest agricultural fair (running for more than 200 years), featured carnival rides, food, live music, rodeos, art shows, exhibits, and nearly 300 vendors this past October.

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For those looking to help boost attendance in 2025, this year’s fair dates are Sept. 12-28 for The Big E and Oct. 3-13 for the Topsfield Fair.

North America’s No. 1 fair in 2024 is the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, which saw 2.5 million visitors.

Check out the top 50 fairs in the U.S. and Canada in 2024.

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Kristi Palma

Culture writer

 

Kristi Palma is a culture writer for Boston.com, focusing on New England travel. She covers airlines, hotels, and things to do across Boston and New England. She is the author of Scenic Six, a weekly travel newsletter.





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‘Lives are on the line': Mass. native living in Calif. describes wildfires

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‘Lives are on the line': Mass. native living in Calif. describes wildfires


As wildfires continue to spread through Los Angeles County, some from Massachusetts now living in California are faced with the likelihood of evacuations.

“Our bags are packed and we’re ready to go somewhere else if we have to,” said Justin Bitensky.

The native of Hopkinton, Massachusetts, now lives in Calabasas, a city impacted by the wildfires.

“As a dad and a husband, it definitely hits a little different,” he said.

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According to Bitensky, 70mph winds whipped through his neighborhood Tuesday night.

Since then, his family has been without power.

“At this point, everyone kind of knows someone who has been evacuated, or their home has burned down, or both,” he explained. “There’s almost no one who hasn’t been affected.”

The mortgage broker added that his family is waiting to see which roads remain open if evacuations do come to fruition.

“Lives are on the line, homes are on the line, people’s businesses are on the line,” Bitensky said. “I don’t think it can be understated how serious it is.”

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At Boston’s Logan Airport Wednesday, passengers who flew in from LA described the inferno from the sky.

“You could look out the window and see the flames burning,” explained Amy Aldrich of western Massachusetts. “You could see the black smoke. We could smell it. My daughter and I smelled it and said, ‘That smells like wildfire smoke.’”

“A lot of people got on planes to start heading kind of west and all,” said Cam Mahseni of Boston. “A buddy of mine, Chris, is in Pasadena, and he had to kind of evacuate, and a power line went down, too, outside his house.”

“From the highway, we saw the fire and the big smoke,” another passenger added. “It’s like a movie.”

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MBTA Communities Law is constitutional, Massachusetts SJC rules

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MBTA Communities Law is constitutional, Massachusetts SJC rules


MBTA Communities Law is constitutional, Massachusetts SJC rules – CBS Boston

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The controversial​ MBTA Communities Law is constitutional, the high court ruled, but changes are needed. WBZ-TV’s Tiffany Chan reports.

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