Legal action comes as USCIS fails to provide answers to FOIA request and as advocates push for eligible immigrants to become citizens

(Los Angeles, CA) – On Citizenship Day, September 17, as the nation celebrates the ideals of full and inclusive citizenship, immigrant rights organizations and their attorneys will announce legal action against U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) to address the skyrocketing naturalization backlogs. 

This action is based on the agency’s failure to respond to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to produce documents related to the backlog of citizenship applications. NPNA, a coalition of 37 immigrant and refugee rights groups, filed the FOIA request on August 6, 2018, and is represented by CHRCL and CHIRLA. They are all joined in the lawsuit by UnidosUS, CASA, OneAmerica, the New York Immigration Coalition, Mi Familia Vota, and Michigan United.

The press conference, which will be followed by a naturalization drive, is part of over 50 events in 30 states taking place on Citizenship Day, a day in which cities and community-based organizations encourge eligible immigrants to apply for citizenship.