{"id":844,"date":"2025-05-15T18:26:38","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T18:26:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/?p=844"},"modified":"2025-05-16T03:40:50","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T03:40:50","slug":"traveling-in-the-trump-era-know-your-rights-at-airports-and-borders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/american-community-media\/traveling-in-the-trump-era-know-your-rights-at-airports-and-borders\/","title":{"rendered":"Traveling in the Trump Era: Know Your Rights at Airports and Borders"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The tightening of immigration policies is raising alarm among travelers, legal residents, and even U.S. citizens. Legal experts are warning about the use of technology, digital surveillance, and undue pressure at entry points.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summer usually means vacations, reunions, and international flights. But with the return of the Trump administration and its well-known hardline stance on immigration, many people \u2014 including American citizens \u2014 are now thinking twice before traveling. In this context, legal experts came together to address a fundamental question: What are our rights when traveling to or within the United States?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the panel organized by American Community Media, \u201cWho Dares to Travel Now? Know Your Rights at the Airport and the Border\u201d immigration law specialists addressed the most urgent concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are your rights at the airport or the border?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zahra Billoo made one key point clear: if you are a U.S. citizen, no one can stop you from entering the country. \u201cYou have the right to return to the United States. No matter what happens, that right is guaranteed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For those with visas or green cards, the situation is more delicate. \u201cIf you are not a citizen, your reentry is not guaranteed. Border authorities can make discretionary decisions that may seriously affect your immigration status,\u201d Billoo explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding border inspections, the attorney stressed the importance of not handing over passwords to mobile devices and of disabling biometric identification features before traveling. \u201cGiving access to your phone means sacrificing your privacy \u2014 and also that of everyone you communicate with,\u201d she warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital surveillance and technology at customs<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Richard Herman, founder of the Herman Legal Group, painted a troubling picture: \u201cThis is an unprecedented time in U.S. immigration history. What used to be airports are now zones of intensive surveillance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Herman, the use of facial recognition, artificial intelligence, and electronic device searches has become routine. Even U.S. citizen attorneys have been detained and forced to hand over their phones \u2014 violating attorney-client confidentiality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Green cards at risk: coercion at the border<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Xiao Wang, CEO of Boundless Immigration, warned of a growing practice: pressuring lawful permanent residents to sign Form I-407, voluntarily giving up their green cards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a dangerous combination of fear, misinformation, and coercion. Many people are handed this form with no explanation of its consequences, and end up signing away their legal status without even realizing it,\u201d Wang said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those most at risk include individuals who have been outside the country for more than six months, as well as those with conditional green cards or complex immigration histories. \u201cNever sign anything without a lawyer present,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it safe to travel within the U.S. if you’re not a citizen?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding domestic travel \u2014 to places like Hawaii, Puerto Rico, or between states \u2014 Billoo acknowledged that many immigrant rights groups advise against such trips. \u201cThis administration\u2019s goal is for us to live in fear, to feel that even traveling within the country is a constant threat,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In light of this climate of intimidation, her recommendation is clear: minimize non-essential travel, especially if you are not a U.S. citizen and have any past issue that could trigger additional scrutiny.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Activism, surveillance, and silencing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The panelists also discussed how political expression \u2014 such as pro-Palestinian activism \u2014 can become a risk factor. \u201cThere are pro-Israel groups that track posts, comments, and photos related to Palestine and send them to employers or universities in an effort to silence voices under the pretext of antisemitism,\u201d Billoo revealed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The warning is clear: political stances can influence how one is treated at the border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final message: do not give up your rights<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo matter your immigration status, you always have the right to remain silent. And if you’re a citizen, you always have the right to come back,\u201d emphasized Zahra Billoo. \u201cWe should be proud to assert our rights \u2014 especially in times when they are under attack.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The tightening of immigration policies is raising alarm among travelers, legal residents, and even U.S. citizens. Legal experts are warning about the use of technology, digital surveillance, and undue pressure at entry points. Summer usually means vacations, reunions, and international flights. But with the return of the Trump administration and its well-known hardline stance on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":845,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[686],"tags":[901,900,899,132],"class_list":["post-844","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-community-media","tag-rights","tag-safety","tag-travel","tag-trump"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=844"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":852,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844\/revisions\/852"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/845"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}