The Kites to Southeast Asia coalition (comprised of APSC, CERI, MN8, NBF, and New Light Wellness) put together this resource document for readers to learn more about Southeast Asian deportations and ways to take action.

 

Introduction

Thank you for your interest in learning more about the history of Southeast Asian refugees and the U.S. prison-to-deportation pipeline. Below, you’ll find a list of resources about Southeast Asian deportations. This is not exhaustive, and we will continue to refresh this content as we come across new information.

 

 

Articles & Books

 

Reports and Briefs

from The Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)

 

Videos

 

Campaigns

  • APSC4: Borey “Peejay” Ai, Nghiep “Ke” Lam, Chanthon Bun, and Maria Legarda make up the APSC 4 and are at risk of deportation. Tell Governor Newsom to pardon them NOW so they can remain home with their families and community. The APSC 4 are childhood survivors of violence and trauma. As youth, they were subjected to bullying, poverty, war, and domestic violence. As a result, they were funneled into the criminal legal system. During their incarceration, they became positive leaders inside, completed several self-help programs, and even got educational certificates. They all earned their release from the California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation (CDCR). After the Board of Parole Hearings and the Governor affirmed that all members were suitable for release, CDCR contacted Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) to attempt to deport them instead of allowing them to come home to their communities.
  • #KeepSithyHome: Keep Sithy Home supports Sithy Bin, a Cambodian refugee and long-time community advocate facing imminent removal. A gubernatorial pardon is now more urgent than ever as Sithy has been ordered by ICE to self-deport by June 16, 2025. – UPDATE! Sithy received a pardon in April 2025!
  • #PardonLamHongLe: Lam Hong Le is a Vietnamese refugee who fled to the United States at the age of 12 with his 10-year-old brother. After 32 years of incarceration, in 2019, Lam was paroled out of San Quentin state prison, only to be detained by ICE. Now at 53 years old, Lam is facing the immediate threat of deportation to Vietnam, a country where he has no family and hasn’t lived since childhood. Support Lam’s request to be granted a pardon so he no longer has to face the looming threat of deportation to a country where he has no means of support.

 

Organizations & Other Resources

  • Tiny Toones (Phnom Penh, Cambodia): has made a huge difference in the lives of local underserved Khmer youth, but the organization is having difficulty securing funding. If you’re interested in supporting, you can donate at http://www.tinytoones.org/donate/ or contact them here.
  • KVAO (Phnom Penh, Cambodia): an NGO that provides transitional and reentry support to individuals deported to Cambodia. They lost USAID funding in 2025 and have had to scale down, but they’re still trying to do what they can to help folks with getting identification cards and other necessary documents to live and work in the country.
  • SEAC Village (North Carolina, US): SEAC Village believes in collective liberation where all people are safe and cared for. We are a grassroots organization created for and by impacted communities in the South. We are creating a world where we center the needs of Southeast Asian, Black, Indigenous, and LGBTQIA+ people and work to liberate one another through the lenses of abolition, decolonization, collectivism, no borders, and the right to reclaim our lands, nor be stripped from our homelands. http://www.seacvillage.org/
  • Asian Law Caucus: Resources for Southeast Asian Refugees Facing Deportation
  • SEARAC: Immigration
  • SEARR Campaign: Southeast Asian Relief & Responsibility (SEARR) Campaign
  • Ice Out of California
  • Dignity Not Detention

 

Kites to Southeast Asia Coalition