SIGN THE PETITION
SIGN THE PETITION
About the Campaign
Across Massachusetts, Southeast Asian immigrant and refugee communities are facing ongoing detention and deportation—often due to old criminal records shaped by systemic inequities and the legacy of war and displacement.
For decades, our communities have built lives here. Yet families are still being torn apart.
Pardons are a critical pathway to relief.
A state pardon can clear a person’s criminal record, reopen their immigration case, and create a pathway for them to remain with their families and communities. Pardons can also remove barriers to employment, housing, and education.
That’s why we are launching a campaign to demand Governor Healey, Protect & PARDON our people.
Priority Actions:
Sign the Petition &
Call your Governor’s Councilors
Priority Action #1
We are calling on state leaders to take immediate action to protect our communities. Add your name to help build pressure and demonstrate public support for pardons.
Priority Action #2
Call Governor’s Council Member Iannella. View scripts here.
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Update from AARW as of 8/21/2026: The AARW team has been able to meet Governor’s Council Member Dolan. To date, AARW has been able to meet with 4 of the 8 Governor Council Members to brief them on the Southeast Asian deportation crisis in Massachusetts. We still have not heard back from Governor’s Council Member Iannella to brief him on this issue. We are calling on our members to contact Council Member Iannella to encourage him to meet with AARW to learn more about the impact of Southeast Asian deportations and urgency for pardons in his district.
Update from AARW as of 7/22/2026: The AARW team has been in touch with Council Member Zeigler’s office, but have not been able to get in contact with Council Member Ianella. We encourage our members to call Council Member Ianella and ask him to meet with AARW about the impact of Southeast Asian deportations in Dorchester.
Update from AARW as of 6/1/2026: The AARW team and pardons campaign committee members met with Governor’s Council Member Civil to brief her on the issue of Southeast Asian deportations and the urgency for pardons for our communities.
We will be focusing our outreach on Governor’s Council Members Ianella and Zeigler this summer, as they represent two districts with high Southeast Asian populations, many of whom live in Lowell and Dorchester, and are part of AARW’s base.
Update from AARW as of 5/4/2026: On March 31st, AARW participated in Advocacy Day at the statehouse. Council members were not in the offices that day, so we provided each member with info sheets about Southeast Asian deportations and the role they play in granting pardons for our impacted members.Most recently, we emailed the councilors again, inviting them both to attend our campaign launch event and/or to schedule a meeting with us and our impacted base. Since then, Councilors Tamisha Civil (District 2) and Tara Jacobs (District 8)have scheduled meetings with us!
Priority Action #3
Sign up to join AARW’s Deportation Defense Canvassing Team. We have a goal of collecting 3,000 pardons petition signatures this fall! Sign up to join the team to take action with AARW in demanding pardons for our Southeast Asian community members vulnerable for deportation —> bit.ly/ddefense26
Governor’s Councilor FAQs
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The Governor's Council has 8 members who are elected by voters in different districts. The parole board (appointed by the governor), the governor (elected) and the governor’s council (elected) all play a role in granting/approving pardons in the state of MA. The Governor's Council must approve all favorable decisions from the Governor.
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Identify your Governor’s Councilor here: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/WhereDoIVoteMA/WhereDoIVote/
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Learn more about contacting your Governor’s Councilor here: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/councillors
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We have developed sample email and call scripts for you to use in your outreach
Our Demands
We are calling on the Parole Board, Governor, and Governor’s Council to…
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Expedite the process for applicants who are most at risk including but not limited to community members at risk of ice detention and deportation, elders, and members who require special care and/or resources
Expand the parole board to address the backlog of pardon applications
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Follow set timelines for the pardon process for present and future applications
Create a community oversight and accountability body for the pardons process to ensure the parole board, governor, and governor’s council respond to applications timely
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Shorten pardon eligibility waiting periods
Timely access to case records, more guidance on applying and navigating the process, ensure all resources for applying are translated in languages needed by community members.
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Other ways to
take action now
Donate here to sustain the critical work of defending and protecting our community members.
Donate to our Community Defense Fund
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By joining the team, we will train our members to support families with ICE accompaniment, court accompaniment, help meet everyday mutual aid needs like rides, food, childcare, or interpretation, and respond to other direct service needs that come up as families navigate these incredibly difficult moments.
Join our Deportation Defense Team
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Please consider contributing to directly support Dong, an AARW member who is rebuilding his life in Vietnam after surviving multiple detentions and deportation from Boston in early 2026.
Donate to Dong’s Gofundme
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Share resources with members you know facing or at risk of deportation/ICE detention
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We keep each other safe.
Support our national partners fighting against deportation — The SEARR Campaign is a national movement platform organized by the Southeast Asian Freedom Network (SEAFN) to free our people from generational cycles of displacement and to heal our communities from collective trauma
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Endorse SEADRA Bill to End SEA Deportation.
Check out their campaign tool kit.
Join our Canvassing Team
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We are looking for members who have capacity and energy to join a small canvassing team to collect signatures for this petition. If you are interested, please fill out this form bit.ly/ddefense26
Stay Connected &
Get Involved
There are many ways to support this campaign and get involved in the work.
Contact us to:
Join organizing meetings
Volunteer for outreach and events
Support impacted community members
Email: teresa@aarw.org
Press: Media@aarw.org
Follow along for updates @aarw.boston