Organization
Khmer Anti-Deportation Advocacy Group of Washington
The Khmer Anti-Deportation Advocacy Group of Washington (KhAAG) is a Washington State group that works against the deportation of Cambodian American refugees and their descendants.[1] It offers policy advocacy, legal referrals and community education, and helps deportees and their families work through the pardon system.[2] KhAAG says its short name is pronounced "kāj"; the Cambodian American Community Council of Washington gives it as "CAGE."[3][2]
History
KhAAG was formed in 2018 by family members of the WA7, seven Khmer Americans from the Seattle-Tacoma area who were detained in a wave of immigration raids that year. The group came together to mobilize on their behalf and to give the community resources and information to push back.[1][4] The council places its founding in the increased raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during the 2016 to 2020 presidential administration, which it says fell hardest on formerly incarcerated Cambodian Americans.[2][5]
From the start, KhAAG worked with a wider coalition of legal experts, policy partners and community activists.[1] In 2018 and 2019 it urged people with old immigration cases to have them reviewed with a lawyer before any detention. It asked counties to fund Know Your Rights trainings that were culturally appropriate and offered in the community's languages. It called on elected officials to stand publicly with Southeast Asian refugees facing deportation and to oppose policies and bilateral agreements that removed their protections, and it sought a faster path to pardon hearings and case relief for families in crisis.[1][4] It also supports national legislation meant to prevent future deportations that it considers unjust.[2]
As of 2026 the group, through its KhAAG for Due Process (K4DP) initiative, was preparing a federal lawsuit, a group writ of habeas corpus with a complaint for injunctive relief. Its co-counsel are Columbia Legal Services, MacDonald Hoague & Bayless, Dorsey & Whitney and the Seattle Clemency Project.[6] The case concerns Cambodian, Laotian, Hmong, Mien and Vietnamese residents of Washington who have final removal orders and report to routine ICE check-ins. KhAAG argues that ICE and the Department of Homeland Security must give advance notice and a fair hearing before taking anyone into custody, so that people have time to seek immigration relief, apply for clemency or prepare their families.[6] The suit seeks court orders, not money damages, and joining it costs plaintiffs and class members nothing.[6]
Community
The group states that its mission is to advance the rights and welfare of refugee and immigrant communities by guiding them through the United States immigration system, and to uplift the Khmer community through cultural preservation, education and support for personal and professional growth.[3] It is made up of community leaders, and it points community members to an SCP intake form, pro bono immigrant and refugee resources in Tacoma, and the WAISN hotline for reporting ICE activity.[3] KhAAG is a member organization of the Cambodian American Community Council of Washington.[2]
Staff (2026)
Staff listed on the group's website in 2026, by first name.[3]
- Bunthay, co-director
- Savong, co-director
- Sina, development and policy director
- Savannah, community engagement coordinator
- Many, direct service coordinator
- Silong, media and communications
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Seattle Globalist, community leads effort to keep Khmer families together (December 2018)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Cambodian American Community Council of Washington, Member organizations
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Khmer Anti-deportation and Advocacy Group, About us
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 International Examiner, Resources to resist deportation for Khmer Americans and others (March 2019)
- ↑ Cambodian American Community Council of Washington, Community partners (2024)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 KhAAG for Due Process (K4DP)