Immprofs at CSLSA

Immprofs Elias and Jeffries

This past weekend the University of North Dakota School of Law was privileged to host the annual Central States Law Schools Association conference. CSLSA is a generalist conference, yet it still managed to secure the participation of two fabulous immprofs: Stella Elias (Iowa) and Regina Jeffries (Minnesota).

Stella spoke on what she has termed “Refugee Federalism.” During the last two years, some state officials have been at the forefront of a movement to block the resettlement of refugees from the Middle East and asylum seekers from Central America in their jurisdictions. Others have been in the vanguard of an initiative to welcome those fleeing persecution on humanitarian grounds. Stella is currently exploring the perils and promises of state engagement with refugee and asylee protection.

Regina discussed how Central American women and children seeking asylum in the United States should have more support during processing at the border and should not be placed in expedited removal proceedings. She argued that the U.S.’s treaty commitments — under the U.N. Refugee Convention of 1951 and its 1967 Protocol (which the U.S. signed in 1968) — to non-refoulement of refugees fleeing persecution means that the country is obliged to provide these potential refugees with more support and more due process than they currently receive.

I hope other immprofs will considering joining us for the 2017 CSLSA conference at Southern Illinois University School of Law in Carbondale!

-KitJ