Attorney Huma Ashan Is Running for the Dane County Circuit Court: Prepared to Fight for the Rule of Law (Part 2 of 2)
Huma Ashan has experience working in the areas of immigrant rights and Indigenous law coming from a family of Indian immigrant parents.
by Jonathan Gramling
Although she is a U.S. citizen, born and raised in the United States, Huma Ahsan’s experience and much of what she draws from is that of an immigrant’s experience, as well as being “The Other” in many of her childhood experiences. And as a lawyer, Ahsan worked with rural Legal Action clients and tribal judicial systems in North Dakota and Wisconsin. And for the past 15 years, Ahsan has focused on immigration law in the Madison area.
Ahsan, a candidate for Dane County Circuit Court, is informed by those personal and professional experiences in her approach to the law. And her desire to become a judge is fueled by what has been going on the U.S. for the past year.
“A year ago, I had no thought about running,” Ahsan said. “I really didn’t. I had my nice little practice here. But then with the election of Trump and the chaos that ensued, I’m seeing people like myself and other people being targeted. I’m seeing protections weakened. I’m seeing people who are scared. And honestly, I’m running because I look at my kids and I wonder what we are going to have left for them. What is coming down the road is pretty scary. We have a U.S. Supreme Court that is retracting on their protections of individual freedoms. And if we look at everything that our country is, it’s because the courts have protected people of color. And we are looking at a retrenchment of that. And when I see that and I see what is happening, I can’t affect federal immigration policy on a national level. But I feel like I can at least protect all of us here in Dane County. I feel like I can be a good judge. I’ve done it.”
Ahsan feels that she is prepared to handle the business of the court in the interest of the citizens of the county.
“I’ve taught the law,” Ahsan said. “I have the experience. I have represented every kind of case, from housing to family law. I feel like I can be a good judge for the people of Dane County. And that is what I am running for because I believe the courts belong to the people. And this is a time for all of us to stand up and stand for our court system. My campaign is all grassroots. My website is built by my neighbor’s 16-year-old kid. Everything has been developed on the fly because this is a grassroots campaign. I am hoping to stand for everyone in the community who is feeling like ‘the other,’ who is feeling targeted, who is feeling scared, who is not sure they are safe in this community. I want to show them that you are safe, that you are an American and as an American, you have to stand up. You have to run and you have to say, ‘This is our community.’ We have to stand for that because if we don’t stand for that, no one else will. I’m running to make sure that our local courts protect all of us here in Dane County.”
Ahsan portrays herself as an outsider who would bring that perspective to the court.
“The rule of law has to exist,” Ahsan said. “And the rule of law really depends upon who is sitting on the bench. And if we have judges who are appointed — for example my opponent — his only background is school law. When we look at the circuit court, Branch 1, 80 percent of that docket is family law. It’s family, custody, protection orders. Another 10 percent is housing. And then the remaining 10 percent is car accidents and constitutional issues. The question is, ‘Who do you want deciding who gets the kids?” Someone who has never done a custody issue? Someone who has never practiced in family law? Someone who has never fought for people? Or do you want someone who has always represented the government? And if we look at our court systems, I feel that the government already has enough lawyers on its side. We have prosecutors. They have an army of investigators. They have the police force. And then there is the individual coming to court. The court doesn’t already need to be stacked with more government attorneys at the bench. I feel that the individual in our court system needs representation on the bench.”
Ahsan would make sure that people felt safe in her courtroom.
“The rule of law is the Wisconsin Constitution and our statutes,” Ahsan said. “I think it’s important that our constitution be protected, particularly if we are looking at some of the things that have happened in other areas. I know many people are worried that ICE could come into the courtroom. It is a major concern because if we look around Dane County, we are surrounded by counties that are participating in the 287(g) program. They’ve gotten funds from ICE to take their law enforcement into cooperation agreements. It’s scary because if ICE comes here, what they would probably do is grab people and then take them to another county. As a judge, what I can do is to make sure that if anyone comes into my courtroom like law enforcement, they are unmasked. They state their name and their badge number on the record. Secondly, I want to make sure that any law enforcement officer, particularly ICE, who is coming in to arrest people has a judicial warrant. Sometimes ICE makes up these fake warrants. They’re called administrative warrants. It’s like me signing my own administrative warrant for you that says since you’re a brown person, you’re an immigrant and you look like you could be deportable.”
Ahsan wants the Wisconsin court system to stand up and establish what is allowable in Wisconsin courtrooms.
“I’ve called for the Supreme Court to begin talking about a rule of court that talks about what to do if ICE enters the courtroom,” Ahsan said. “I’m the only one who has been saying that we need a rule of court that says ICE cannot enter Wisconsin courtrooms without a judicial warrant. Baring that, as a judge, I would set decorum for that courtroom: what happens, who can come in. I would want to make sure that all witnesses and parties are protected so that our business, the Wisconsin business of getting divorces and custody, protection orders, housing issues or paying a speeding ticket that you feel that this court is your court.”
With the fear and uncertainty that many people face as witnesses, defendants and plaintiffs, Ahsan feels that ICE — or even the threat of ICE — is interfering with Wisconsin’s justice system.
“Why interfere with our legal process,” Ahsan asked. “The state of Wisconsin has business that it is trying to deal with. When you send in federal law enforcement into our courtrooms, you are really beginning the process of obstructing our ability to enforce our own constitution. And the way to begin those obstruction charges is to make sure that we have that on the record. And that’s why it is important that when law enforcement enters a courtroom, they are on the record.”
Above and beyond immigration and ICE, Ahsan is concerned about the disparities that are reflected in Dane County statistics.
“Currently in Dane County, according to a 2021 study, African Americans are arrested eight times more than white people,” Ahsan observed. “And that is twice the national average. And according DAIS, their research shows that domestic violence protection orders are issued less than 34 percent in Dane County. That’s a particularly low average. As a judge, I would be interested in why that is. I am interested in data. Is there something that the court can do? Is there something that I as a judge — I don’t advocate for one side or the other — can do to make sure that justice is equal across the whole branch. My question is are we being equal to everyone: every color, every race, every ethnicity. And who sits in this position matters.”
While singularly, any demographic people with different identities is a minority, when one begins to add up all the people who are considered “other,” it ends up being a significant segment of Dane County’s population.
“So many of us are ‘other,’ whether it is sexual orientation, gender and other categories,” Ahsan observed. “We are all feeling it. We just saw two people killed in the Twin Cities. We saw Chicago before that. We’re seeing judges getting threatened in Milwaukee. I realize as a woman of color what I am getting into. This is not going to be easy. But as I said, I am willing to stand up for my community. I am willing to stand up for all of those who are feeling threatened and feeling like ‘the other’ at this time. Our courts are going to be all that we have. The court system is all that we have to protect ‘the other’ in this country. And I believe that is the most important thing that we can do right now, to protect one another. And that is what I am standing up for.”
In the end, Ahsan feels, the courts are not the system’s courts. They are owned by the citizens of Dane County.
“I would encourage your readership to go out, learn more about me, vote and use their voice because this court system belongs to them,” Ahsan said. “It belongs to the people of Dane County. No one owns this seat but the people. And that’s what I am running for and I am running to be the people’s judge, not just to be a judge. I am running to be the people’s judge, to come out and say, ‘I belong to the people and the people own the court system, not people in power, not anyone who has come before it. It’s owned by the people. That’s what I am trying to do. And this is all a grassroots effort that started. Let’s make some positive change.”
Huma Ahsan is ready to practice what she preaches as a Dane County judge.
