Constitutional Law—Immigration: Meiklejohn Theory of the First Amendment Applied in the Immigration Context—Mandel v. Mitchell, 325 F. Supp. 620 (E.D.N.Y.), appeal docketed 40 U.S.L.W. 3035 (U.S. July 13, 1971)

Authors

anon

Abstract

Ernest Mandel, a noted Belgian economist and a Trotskyite Marxist, was invited to participate as a speaker and panelist in a conference at Stanford University. He was denied a visa pursuant to two subsections of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. Subsection 212(a)(28)(D) excludes "Aliens... who advocate the economic, international, and governmental doctrines of World communism;..." and subsection 212(a)(28)(G)(v) bars "Aliens who write or publish ... or who knowingly circulate ... any written or printed matter, advocating or teaching ... the economic, international and governmental doctrines of world communism.. . . " Although Mandel had been granted visas for two previous visits to the United States, the Attorney General on both occasions had invoked his discretionary powers to waive the statutory disqualifications. However, the Attorney General refused to waive the statutory exclusions in order to permit this proposed third visit. Distinguished citizens of the United States who had issued the invitation to Mandel, who were to participate in the conference with him, or who merely wished to hear him speak, joined with him in bringing this suit seeking a declaratory judgment that the relevant subsections of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 are unconstitutional per se and as applied, and a preliminary injunction restraining the Attorney General from enforcing those parts of the Act. Held: The Immigration and Nationality Act, insofar as subsection 212(a)(28) disqualified Mandel, and subsection 212(d)(3)(A) 6 had been invoked to refuse him temporary admission to the United States, constitutes a forbidden legislative intrusion upon the sovereignty of the people and violates the first amendment rights of United States citizens to hear the views of a communist alien. Mandel v. Mitchell, 325 F. Supp. 620 (E.D.N.Y.), appeal docketed 40 U.S-.L.W. 3035 (U.S. July 13, 1971).

First Page

155

Recommended Citation

anon, Recent Developments, Constitutional Law—Immigration: Meiklejohn Theory of the First Amendment Applied in the Immigration Context—Mandel v. Mitchell, 325 F. Supp. 620 (E.D.N.Y.), appeal docketed 40 U.S.L.W. 3035 (U.S. July 13, 1971), 47 Wash. L. Rev. 155 (1971).
Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wlr/vol47/iss1/5