Bellingham Raid Focus Results in Drastically Different Outcome

by: nezua

Fri Apr 17, 2009 at 15:47:45 PM EDT

Shortly after, Janet Napolitano confessed that the raid had taken even her by surprise, that she was not consulted, and that she would order a review. Speaker Pelosi was soon quoted speaking out against the devastating effects our "enforcement" tactics have been having on communities.

Did the focus have an effect on how this raid played out in the aftermath?

Weekly Immigration Wire: 'Systematic Failures' in U.S. Detention Healthcare

by: The Media Consortium

Thu Mar 19, 2009 at 13:19:11 PM EDT

by Nezua TMC MediaWire Blogger

This week, two comprehensive reports on the health of immigrant detainees were released by Human Rights Watch and the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center. As Public News Service reports, "Immigrants are, literally, dying for decent care."

Weekly Immigration Wire: Obama Administration Absent on Immigration

by: The Media Consortium

Thu Mar 05, 2009 at 12:36:16 PM EST

President Obama is shaking up the established political and corporate order with a bold economic agenda. Sadly, immigration reform remains untouched by Obama’s energizing blueprint for Change. Immigration policy and programs are still tied to President George W. Bush and former Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff: Paramilitary-style raids, detention centers, and the deputizing of otherwise-engaged local police forces continue to stand strong.

Weekly Immigration Wire: Policy Must Inspire Allegiance, Not Anger

by: The Media Consortium

Thu Feb 12, 2009 at 13:46:36 PM EST

by Nezua Media Consortium Blogger

George W. Bush told the world that the US was targeted for 9/11 because "we're the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world." And as President Obama said in his inaugural address:

The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

Target of Immigrant Raids Shifted from Criminals to 'Easy Targets'

by: MATTorg

Fri Feb 06, 2009 at 11:39:09 AM EST

According to the article, while ICE said that Operation: Return to Sender and other such programs were directed at undocumented immigrants with criminal backgrounds, "the agency changed the rules, and the program increasingly went after easier targets. A vast majority of those arrested had no criminal record, and many had no deportation orders against them, either."

More, from the story-

Internal directives by immigration officials in 2006 raised arrest quotas for each team in the National Fugitive Operations Program, eliminated a requirement that 75 percent of those arrested be criminals, and then allowed the teams to include nonfugitives in their count.

In the next year, fugitives with criminal records dropped to 9 percent of those arrested, and nonfugitives picked up by chance - without a deportation order - rose to 40 percent. Many were sent to detention centers far from their homes, and deported.

The impact of the internal directives, obtained by a professor and students at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law through a Freedom of Information lawsuit and shared with The New York Times, shows the power of administrative memos to significantly alter immigration enforcement policy without any legislative change.

The memos also help explain the pattern of arrests documented in a report, criticizing the fugitive operations program, to be released on Wednesday by the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization in Washington.

Analyzing more than five years of arrest data supplied to the institute last year by Julie Myers, who was then chief of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the report found that over all, as the program spent a total of $625 million, nearly three-quarters of the 96,000 people it apprehended had no criminal convictions.

Without consulting Congress, the report concluded, the program shifted to picking up "the easiest targets, not the most dangerous fugitives."

http://www.matt.org/english/bl...

Chertoff Raids own House

by: jackie @ americasvoice

Thu Dec 11, 2008 at 21:29:26 PM EST

Cross-posted at America's Voice.

No not really, but the Washington Post is reporting that Department of Homeland Security Head Michael Chertoff has had undocumented workers cleaning his home for over four years:

Every few weeks for nearly four years, the Secret Service screened the IDs of employees for a Maryland cleaning company before they entered the house of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, the nation's top immigration official.

The company's owner says the workers sailed through the checks -- although some of them turned out to be illegal immigrants. 

Coupled with last week's announcement that a high-ranking New England Border Patrol official had undocumented workers cleaning her home, hypocrisy at DHS now seems to be the rule, rather than the exception. In "Chertoff hired company that used illegal workers," the Associated Press points out just how hypocritical the situation is:

Speaking Oct. 23 on the state of immigration, Chertoff boasted about his department's record year for worksite enforcement cases - which led to more than 6,000 arrests.

He also said, "We need to make sure our own house is in order," referring not to his own home, but to the federal government, which now is required to use a federal online database to check whether the workers are in the country legally.

This stunning piece of news is yet another piece of evidence pointing to our need for a change of direction at DHS and the passage of real, comprehensive immigration reform.

ICE and the Stargazers

by: marsguero

Thu Nov 06, 2008 at 00:08:12 AM EST

http://lawprofessors.typepad.c...

While I don't know Julie Myers personally, nor could I say that I am familiar with the inner workings of her bureaucratic lever pulling at the department, I can't help but comment that it puzzles me how anyone could view ICE as emblematic of a "21st Century" law enforcement operation.  Of course it's axiomatic that the 21st Century serves as an adjective to the subject because after all this is the year 2008, and the department under which ICE is organized was not formed until the beginning of our present century.  I will infer that what Mr. Chertoff means to say when he uses the term 21st century is that ICE is a state of the art, or cutting edge, or forward thinking kind of bureaucracy.  It is none of these.  It is a bloated gestapo.  

Not only are its tactics brutal and inhuman strikes that result in the separation of innocent families, and the dehumanization of our immigrant neighbors, it is also an enormously expensive, wasteful welfare program for the military and security lobby.  It combines the worst elements of cruelty and indifference of despotic tyrants together with the wasteful stupidity-cronyism of the most corrupted oligarchies.  

Its statistics are meaningless.  It is pointless to count the number of fugitive arrests and felony prosecutions.  Everybody knows that they are arresting and locking up Guatemalan peasants on trumped up federal charges solely for the purpose of making the figures of criminal "alien" captures appear significant.  Those are not aliens.  Only fools think that aliens walk among us.  There is not one shred of evidence that aliens have ever touched our soil, and the government that perpetuates the funding and expansion of quasi-military operations in our towns and cities to deal with imaginary beings is a danger to the liberty of every man, woman and child among us.  

Many will argue that the aliens do exist, that it is legal term of art, of course, and that "we have to do something about them otherwise..." and then on, and on, and on into an infinite regression of mindless imperatives and stupid policies.  There are a very large number of people who live here currently who did not have the U.S. Government's permission before they decided to join us.  All of them are here for a reason.  All of them have reason - that human ability to make calculated choices with the assistance of abstract conceptions.  We are not objects.  

Another U.S. Citizen Treated Like an 'Illegal Immigrant'

by: DreamActivist

Sat Oct 18, 2008 at 17:27:30 PM EDT

How many is too many? 

 Parrish discovered he had an outstanding arrest warrant for a bad check and came to the jail to pay a small "no arrest" bond. But the 50-year-old father of five from Brooklyn said he was finger printed, strip searched, and sent to the inmate intake area because a deputy thought he was an illegal immigrant.

Full story is here  This is by no means and isolated incident.

Nezua's DNC08 Documentary

by: kyledeb

Fri Sep 26, 2008 at 14:29:47 PM EDT

Which America Do You Want To Live In?: Pro-Migrant SanctuarySphere

by: symsess

Mon Sep 08, 2008 at 08:13:18 AM EDT

The GOP actually needs an army now, to make itself evident and dare celebrate anything in public. They have lied, killed, they laugh while we suffer with health problems or bemoan the loss of life and humanity. They bring their army to protect them from the voice of the People they supposedly serve.

Another raid!

by: MaryRW

Tue Aug 26, 2008 at 02:19:03 AM EDT

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08...

As in Postville, Iowa, many families and a small community have been terrorized. Essentially the same tactics as were used in Postville, but as of late Monday, no criminal charges had been filed.

The National Endowment For Migrant Justice

by: kyledeb

Tue Aug 12, 2008 at 08:06:25 AM EDT

The National Immigrant Bond Fund seeks to reaffirm the values of dignity and due process by assisting immigrants swept up in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions to post bond quickly in order to secure a fair hearing in America's courts.

National Immigrant Bond Fund Website (12 August 2007)

A small victory in Postville - owners to be charged with child labor violations

by: Duke Reed

Tue Aug 05, 2008 at 19:45:53 PM EDT

DES MOINES, Iowa - State officials say they're shocked by the sheer number of child labor violations uncovered at the Agriprocessors meatpacking plant in Postville, where nearly 400 workers were arrested during an Immigration raid in May.

... The state's investigation found dozens of violations from "virtually every aspect of Iowa's child labor laws," said Dave Neil the Iowa Labor Commissioner. Officials also said the scope of the case -- with 57 children involved -- makes it unusually large.

"Typically, when we have child labor issues it's an issue of one or two individuals," said Kerry Koonce, a spokeswoman for Iowa Workforce Development, which oversees the labor commissioner's office. "From our point of view, with this investigation, it's a large-scale violation of the law."

Labor officials said their investigation spanned several months and began before a May 12 federal Immigration raid at Agriprocessors. The raid resulted in 389 arrests and was the largest in U.S. history.

... Labor officials said the violations included minors working in prohibited occupations, exceeding allowable hours for youth to work, failure to obtain work permits, exposure to hazardous chemicals and working with prohibited tools. Under Iowa law, it is illegal for children under the age of 18 to work in a meatpacking plant.

Neil said he was recommending "that the attorney general's office prosecute these violations to the fullest extent of the law."

Officials say they are still investigating possible wage violations at the plant.

Juda Engelmayer, an Agriprocessors spokesman, declined immediate comment on the labor officials' announcement.

Chicago Tribune

While the announcement of these charges will provide little solace to those illegally charged with criminal activity and held in prison, the hundreds of children left behind to a life of uncertainty, or those at the forefront of the humanitarian effort to care for a community ravaged by the overzealous overreach of the Department of Homeland Security and a corrupted justice system, at least those who are the only true criminals in this sad case will finally be held accountable for some of their despicable actions.    

More evidence about injustice of Postville surfaces.

by: Duke Reed

Fri Aug 01, 2008 at 00:57:19 AM EDT

Additionally, The ACLU has acquired a copy of a Government "manual" distributed to defense lawyers assigned to represent the immigrant workers arrested in the meat packing raids. The manual contians prepackaged scripts for plea and sentencing hearings as well as documents providing for guilty pleas and waivers of rights to be used by both the judges and attorneys in expediting procedures as quickly as possible with little regard for due process.

"This document provides further evidence of the government's disturbing pressure cooker tactics for mass guilty pleas that assumed guilt instead of protecting the constitutional presumption of innocence," said ACLU Immigrants' Rights Project Director Lucas Guttentag. "Along with the workers, fairness and due process were the victims of the Postville prosecutions."

The government "manual" provided for the workers to waive all their legal rights and in the overwhelming majority of cases, to plead guilty to charges of falsely using identity documents for employment. It was an important tool used to rush defendants through the criminal justice and immigration systems without a criminal trial or immigration proceedings. The plea forms in the "manual" included a requirement barring immigrants from pursuing any legal claims or procedures under the immigration laws.

.... The troubling system implemented by the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Department of Homeland Security appeared designed to undermine fairness and due process by criminally prosecuting the workers under circumstances that undermined their ability to understand or protect their rights.

link

View Government Manual (PDF)

When viewed together these two important pieces of evidence paint a vivid picture of the gross abuses of power and disrespect for basic constitutional protections that marked the aftermath of the Postville raid

What follows are the prepared remarks of Dr Camayd-Freixas from the congressional hearing:

The True Story Of Postville

by: Duke Reed

Fri Jul 11, 2008 at 12:30:00 PM EDT

In 23 years as a certified Spanish interpreter for federal courts, Erik Camayd-Freixas has spoken up in criminal trials many times, but the words he uttered were rarely his own.

Then he was summoned here by court officials to translate in the hearings for nearly 400 illegal immigrant workers arrested in a raid on May 12 at a meatpacking plant. Since then, Mr. Camayd-Freixas, a professor of Spanish at Florida International University, has taken the unusual step of breaking the code of confidentiality among legal interpreters about their work.

In a 14-page essay he circulated among two dozen other interpreters who worked here, Professor Camayd-Freixas wrote that the immigrant defendants whose words he translated, most of them villagers from Guatemala, did not fully understand the criminal charges they were facing or the rights most of them had waived.

In the essay and an interview, Professor Camayd-Freixas said he was taken aback by the rapid pace of the proceedings and the pressure prosecutors brought to bear on the defendants and their lawyers by pressing criminal charges instead of deporting the workers immediately for immigration violations.

He said defense lawyers had little time or privacy to meet with their court-assigned clients in the first hectic days after the raid. Most of the Guatemalans could not read or write, he said. Most did not understand that they were in criminal court.

"The questions they asked showed they did not understand what was going on," Professor Camayd-Freixas said in the interview. "The great majority were under the impression they were there because of being illegal in the country, not because of Social Security fraud."

NYT
(Article also contains a video interview with Dr Camayd-Freixas ..it's a must view)  

Last month I received a copy of the essay Dr Camayd-Freixas wrote detailing the raid.

It is published here in its entirety to document what went on behind closed doors at the National Cattle Congress in Waterloo Iowa where 390 migrants were subjected to kangaroo court proceedings that resulted in guilty pleas and mandatory jail sentences.  

Dr Camayd-Freixas will be testifying before Congress later this month at the Immigration Sub-Committee of the House of Representatives in regards to the raid.

He has asked that anyone moved by his account help the relief effort in any way possible;

"Finally, my new friends from Postville involved in the relief effort inform me that they are still dealing with a very tough humanitarian crisis. So, please, if you have any opportunity for fundraising, this is the address where donations can be sent:

St. Bridget's Hispanic Ministry Fund
c/o Sister Mary McCauley
PO Box 369
Postville, Iowa 52162"

What follows is the complete story of what happened after the Postville raid:

Keep Up The Good Work: Pro-Migrant SanctuarySphere

by: symsess

Wed Jul 02, 2008 at 09:42:36 AM EDT

Congratulations to Man Eegee and Latino Politico! Happy 3rd Blogiversary to Latino Político at Latino Politico. This is a great post which speaks of the energy in yesterday's SanctuarySphere. Man Eegee notes that we must strengthen one another and remember that we share a responsibility to all of our brothers and sisters of this world. This is why we're here in this realm of thought, because we believe in the good of each other. Thanks to Man Eegee for 3 years of dedication and thanks to everyone else for their dedication as well.

Immigrant Ballot Power at Standing FIRM on our newest voters. Also check out the great series of articles at The New Bedford Times in Series Spotlight: The New Immigrants. In Op-Ed: Real Change Happens Off-Line we learn one person's belief that while the internet brings us together it is not in a "real" way. I do believe we have to be active in person as well as on-line, but they can certainly work well together. What do you think?

Supreme Court Won't Hear Kansas In-State Tuition Case at A Dream Deferred. While Kris Kobach tried to take his case to the Supreme Court that undocumented students should not receive in-state tuition they refused to listen. And Leaving the United States for Higher Education tells of one undocumented student who sought an education elsewhere because it was denied here.

Here's an article in the New York Post Kobach wrote as an adverstisement for E-Verify. It's quite disturbing.

writing letters

by: MaryRW

Sun Jun 08, 2008 at 23:02:18 PM EDT

I wrote the letter, a friend made photocopies and provided stamps, another printed address labels and provided envelopes. During lunch after the service today, we laid out letters and envelopes and people signed them. We got about 30 to 35 letters just today. We are a very small Latino congregation--small, but fierce, muy fuerte.

Here's a copy of the letter we are sending:

Dear Senator Feingold

by: MaryRW

Wed Jun 04, 2008 at 12:26:12 PM EDT

I've written to you many times, with the help of organizations such as the ACLU, MoveOn.org, and Amnesty International, but today I am writing to you myself about an issue very close to me that I hope will gain your immediate attention and commitment.

I'm sure you are aware of what's being called the biggest immigration raid in U.S. history, which took place on May 12 in Postville, Iowa. I had the remarkable experience of visiting Postville just yesterday, and I talked with family members of some of the workers who have been detained. Many of the them have not had the opportunity to communicate with their imprisoned family members, and many don't know where their family members are being held. Those arrested were treated with terrible harshness; both their hands and their feet were shackled, as though they represent some dire physical threat. Many are bruised, many were sworn and cursed at by ICE enforcement officers, and one woman was frantic because her husband did not have any shoes in prison and she wasn't allowed to bring him any.

Response to NYTimes June 3, 2008, Editorial

by: MaryRW

Wed Jun 04, 2008 at 12:22:43 PM EDT

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06...

I wrote the following comment:

I've been looking for this editorial ever since the May 12 raid in Iowa, in which workers were rounded up and treated with less respect and dignity than cattle. I have been to Postville, Iowa, and have talked with the families of those who have been imprisoned for having committed the crime of being willing to work at any job, however nasty, in order to support their families.

They don't come here because they have no respect for our laws. They come here because they have no other choice. They pay taxes. They are quiet and law-abiding in general. Many have risked their lives to come here, not on a whim, not for a change of scenery, not to steal someone else's job. They come here because it is the only option they have left to support their families. They are willing to work in appalling conditions that no one born in this country would tolerate. They break immigration laws only because no other option is available to them. There is no way for them to come here legally, and there is no other way for them to support their families.

Any human being on this planet would do the same in order to provide for their family.

one deportation: Armando's story

by: yave begnet

Tue May 27, 2008 at 22:12:19 PM EDT

I have been “detained” by the Department of Homeland Security for over ten months now, as I had been fighting my deportation case and hoping for a second chance. I really don’t like the word detained because I feel it is a word used by “them” in an attempt to lessen the truth; that I am their prisoner.

It seems all I have been doing in my life is adapting to major changes, one after the other. From the loss of my father at seventeen, to adapting to military life, to getting used to a 6x9 cell. I have had to make some major adjustments and I have come to learn that change is inevitable.

However, I never would have guessed that I would now be getting ready to be deported to a country I know nothing about. I never thought I would be preparing to be banished from the only country I have known, the country I volunteered to fight for, and not to mention the country that my family lives in.