In 2017, we filed suit on behalf of two young men from Yemen who were denied entry to the U.S. immediately after President Trump’s Executive Order went into effect. The young men were coming to the U.S. to be reunified with their U.S. citizen fathers and should have entered the U.S. as lawful permanent residents. They left Africa before the Executive Order was signed but landed after it went into effect. They were immediately deported, at their own expense, to Ethiopia. After a few days living and sleeping on the airport floor in Addis Ababa, they were forced to return to Djibouti.  

Our case was one of the first cases nationwide challenging the Muslim Ban. We obtained one of the first Temporary Restraining Orders nationwide enjoining the ban. We quickly the settled the case on behalf the Aziz brothers and another family of 7 who had been similarly treated, all of whom returned to the United States. After Virginia’s Motion to Intervene was granted, the case resulted in the first preliminary injunction nationwide.  

Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, then the Legal Director of our Immigrant Justice Program, went to the airport to witness the brothers’ reunion with their father and said “All their dad could talk about to the press was how much he loves this country. The American he believes in is the America that LAJC is working toward at the border and right here in our backyard.” 

Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, then the Legal Director of our Immigrant Justice Program, went to the airport to witness the reunion and said, “All their dad could talk about to the press was how much he loves this country. The American he believes in is the America that LAJC is working toward at the border and right here in our backyard.”