News & Commentary written by Michael Tan

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Michael Tan

Deputy Director

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµImmigrants’ Rights Project

Bio

Michael Tan is Deputy Director of the ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµImmigrants' Rights Project (IRP). From 2008 to 2022, Michael held a range of roles at IRP, where he began as a Liman Public Interest Fellow and later worked as a Skadden Fellow. Prior to returning to the ACLU, Michael served as Senior Advisor to the Co-Presidents at Community Change, a nationwide organization that empowers low-income people, and particularly low-income people of color, to lead movements for social change. Michael was also a Clinical Lecturer in Law and Associate Research Scholar in Law at Yale Law School, where he co-taught the Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic, and served as Executive Director of The Movement Project, a new initiative on labor, climate, and migration issues.

Michael is a graduate of Harvard College and the Yale Law School and also holds a Master's Degree in Comparative Literature from New York University. He clerked for the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He has received several awards for his work, including a California Lawyer of the Year Award in Immigration Law, a Best Lawyers Under 40 Award from the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, and a Best LGBT Lawyer Under the Age of 40 Award from the National LGBT Bar Association.


Featured work

Nov 15, 2012

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµFiles Class Action Lawsuit Challenging Mandatory Immigration Lock-up

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµFiles Class Action Lawsuit Challenging Mandatory Immigration Lock-up

Sep 14, 2012

Immigration Detainees Have the Right to Due Process, Too

Immigration Detainees Have the Right to Due Process, Too

Jun 13, 2012

Plyler’s Legacy Goes to College

Plyler’s Legacy Goes to College

Oct 19, 2011

The Tragic Costs of Immigration Detention

The Tragic Costs of Immigration Detention

Sep 1, 2011

No Bond, No Bars

No Bond, No Bars

Jun 16, 2011

Deportation to Haiti Is Still a Death Sentence

Deportation to Haiti Is Still a Death Sentence

May 24, 2011

New Bill Proposes to Lock Up Immigrants Forever

New Bill Proposes to Lock Up Immigrants Forever

May 11, 2011

School Is For Everyone

School Is For Everyone

Mar 9, 2011

No Bond, No Bars: Federal Court Rejects the Prolonged Detention of Immigrants Without a Hearing

No Bond, No Bars: Federal Court Rejects the Prolonged Detention of Immigrants Without a Hearing

Nov 17, 2010

Preserving a Lifeline to College and Daring to DREAM

Preserving a Lifeline to College and Daring to DREAM