‘Self-deport’ flyers reach migrants in courtrooms across the country

Migrants attending immigration court hearings across the U.S. are being handed flyers telling them to leave the country

The notices coming from the U.S. Department of Justice printed in both English and Spanish

The flyer reads, message to illegal aliens, a warning to self-deport. They promote self-deportation as a safe option, promising benefits like leaving on your own terms

keeping earned income and even getting a $1,000 stipend for travel. If you choose to stay, the flyers warn about daily fines up to $1,000, possible jail time

and immediate deportation by ICE. The American Immigration Lawyers Association calls it a

deceptive tactic. Attorneys say migrants often get these flyers without having a lawyer present

even if they have a legal right to stay. The Immigration Policy Tracking Project also notes

the flyers make no distinction between migrants with final removal orders and those who may

qualify for asylum or other relief, and there's no mention of the right to appeal. It's all a part

of a wider campaign by the Department of Homeland Security promoting voluntary departure to end

illegal migration. On July 1st, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem toured a new migrant

detention center in the Florida Everglades nicknamed Alligator Alcatraz. She said migrants

can avoid being detained there if they choose to leave on their own

But if you wait and we bring you to this facility, you don't ever get to come back to America

You don't get the chance to come back and be in America again and work here. Another tool DHS is pushing, the CBP Home Mobile app

allowing users to coordinate their own deportation through their phone. For Straight Arrow News, I'm Kaylee Carey

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