In the last hours of Joe Biden’s administration, he pardoned Ravi Ragbir, a prominent immigrant rights advocate in New York City.
After years of being threatened with deportation, Ragbir, a lifelong champion in the struggle for immigrant justice, and his wife, Amy Gottlieb, are now able to stay in the United States thanks to the pardon, which the departing Biden White House just issued.
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One day before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, he celebrated the momentous choice with friends and supporters over “a lot of food and lots of wine,” adding that he was still adjusting to the abrupt change in circumstances.
In a phone conversation, 60-year-old Ragbir stated, “I am still numb from the news.”
Ragbir was detained and almost expelled from the nation during Trump’s first term in office.
After being found guilty of mortgage fraud in 2001, Ragbir, a Trinidadian immigrant who now holds a U.S. green card, encountered legal issues. He gained national recognition as the executive director of the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City, particularly after Trump was elected in 2016. 18 of his followers were arrested outside the Federal Building in Lower Manhattan in 2018 after he was detained during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement check-in, sparking demonstrations in the streets.
Knowing that “someone could come and take you away at a moment’s notice,” Ragbir claimed he had lived in constant anxiety for years.
He claimed that the past three weeks had been “torture”.
Ragbir is among several clemency recipients who have made “significant contributions to improving their communities,” according to Biden. After years of support from New Yorkers, including advocacy organizations, labor unions, and public leaders including U.S. Representative Dan Goldman, Ragbir was pardoned.
According to a statement from the White House, “Advocates, religious organizations, and lawmakers commend his efforts to promote justice and human dignity.”
Ragbir’s attorney, Alina Das, reflected on the long legal battle and community support that helped secure his freedom.
Das, who co-directs the Immigrant Rights Clinic at NYU School of Law and is a professor of clinical law, claimed, “ That moment when I saw him being handcuffed, when I saw his wife crying, when we pleaded for some sense of humanity and dignity in the process, that was our darkest moment.”
Das continued, “the community fought tooth and nail for Ravi to be freed and they won,” and that subsequent efforts by Ragbir and his supporters encouraged the public “to see the dignity and humanity of immigrants.”
Additionally, Ragbir’s many honors were highlighted in the announcement, including those from the New York State Association of Black and Puerto Rican Legislators and the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island. Support organizations such as the Immigrant Defense Project hailed the pardon as a win for immigrant rights and a rejection of laws that specifically target immigrant advocates.
Senior staff lawyer Ramya Krishnan of the Knight Institute wrote in a different statement, “Pardoning Mr. Ragbir sends an important message about the constitutional legitimacy of his advocacy and the illegitimacy of targeting immigrants like him based on their criticism of government policy.”
The pardon brought Ragbir’s years of uncertainty to an end. He claimed that he intends to go to his nephew’s wedding in Florida in March now that he has the freedom to travel without restriction.
Ragbir stated, “I can buy the plane ticket and buy my clothes and get ready to go down.” He continued, “That normalcy has not hit me yet.”
