Andrés Besserer, a 2024-2025 CES fellow, reports that he was first author with faculty member, Robert Smith, of an amicus brief filed with the Constitutional Court in Colombia on a case involving the deportation of a Nigerian family that had sought asylum in Colombia. One of the daughters had Colombian citizenship, so the deportation order created the potential for family separation.
The brief used social science data from the U.S. to show that family separation, and the creation of a system where children fear the possibility of separation, is contrary to the best interests of the child—an established principle in Colombian law.
The court cited the amicus brief and granted the parents asylum in Colombia. The ruling further establishes a precedent that will protect mixed status families in Colombia in future cases.
This is a terrific example of what engaged scholarship can accomplish. Congratulations to Andrés and Robert. Well done. The court’s decision in Spanish can be accessed here. If only we had a high court in this country that could be swayed by social scientific evidence