Movement says 'no' to SB1070 & Washington's 'Secure Communities'By Teresa Gutierrez Despite a continuous onslaught of attacks against immigrant workers, resistance and opposition continue to grow in the U.S. — not only against Arizona’s Senate Bill 1070, but also against the entire campaign to criminalize and drive workers born outside this country underground. In the month of July alone, there were not one but many national actions in Washington, D.C. Organized by different sectors of the movement, they included Arizona but focused on other immigration issues as well. These actions included militant civil disobedience by undocumented students in support of the DREAM Act, who, risking deportation boldly carried out actions directly at the center of power in this country.
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April 30 - May 2, 2010Immigration Enforcement is Out of Control at the Federal LevelIt's Not Just ArizonaBy BILL QUIGLEY While people protest the terrible Arizona state law that uses local law enforcement to target immigrants, the federal government is expanding its efforts to use local law enforcement in immigration enforcement and has launched a major PR campaign to defend it.
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Counterpunch.org July 20, 2010 Why Obama's "Secure Communities" Program may be more dangerous than ArizonaBy STEWART J. LAWRENCE It's one of the Obama administration's most important and secretive immigration enforcement programs. But despite growing concerns from civil libertarians and immigration activists about the way the program's been designed and implemented, it's caused barely a ripple in Congress or in the establishment media. And the White House continues to stonewall those seeking release of basic details about the program.
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Who Are You Calling Names?June 21, 2010 Richard Trumka, President, AFL-CIO, Huffington Post "Wop." "Hunkie." "Polack." "Kike." When I was a kid growing up in Nemacolin, Pa., those are some of the slurs people used for us. Why? Because our parents or grandparents came to this country from somewhere else, fleeing poverty and war, seeking opportunity and hope. As a kid, every person I knew who was older than 50 spoke broken English. |
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The Unspoken Backdrop to Immigration Reform Color-Coded CitizenshipWednesday 31 March 2010 Anita Sinha, counterpunch Now that health care reform passed, the drum for immigration reform is starting to beat. It's a toss up as to whether to be terrified or thrilled. Terrified because the debate on health care was nasty and fraught with misinformation, and that does not bode well for a lightning-rod issue like immigration. Terrified also because the immigration reform blueprint put forth by Senators Charles Schumer and Lindsey Graham (The Right Way to Mend Immigration, Washington Post, March 19, 2010) is setting the legislative debate to the tune of enforcement and punishment, instead of rights and equality. |
Historic rally calls for immigrant rightsWednesday 24 March 2010 Teresa Gutierrez On March 21 a multitude of immigrants and their supporters amassed in the largest demonstration for immigrant rights in Washington, D.C., in decades, if not ever. There were at least 200,000 people at the biggest immigrant-rights rally in this country since 2006. The crowd was overwhelmingly Latino/a, but pockets of Koreans, Filipinos, Africans and Muslim immigrants and families were also there in proud attendance. |
Immigration Reform: We Need a Better AlternativeMonday 22 March 2010 David Bacon, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed Oakland, California - Sens. Charles Schumer and Lindsey Graham announced Thursday their plan for immigration reform. Unfortunately, it is a retread, recycling the same bad ideas that led to the defeat of reform efforts over the last five years. In some ways, their proposal is even worse. Schumer and Graham dramatize the lack of new ideas among Washington power brokers. Real immigration reform requires a real alternative. We need a different framework that embodies the goals of immigrants and working people, not the political calculations of a reluctant Congress. |
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National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights Statement Immigration Blueprint Reveals Challenges for Immigration FairnessHard Work, Commitment Needed to End Trauma of Current Policies, Ensure Human RightsSaturday 20 March 2010 Catherine Tactaquin 510.459.4457 (mobile) 510.465.1984 ext. 302 (office) OAKLAND, CA: The "blueprint" for immigration reform recently released by Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) points to a difficult road ahead for decent, fair immigration reform. The National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights is very concerned that the provisions described by the senators would extend and deepen harsh enforcement practices that have caused trauma and separation for immigration families, fostered racial profiling and led to tragic deaths at the U.S.-Mexico border of migrants seeking a better life. |
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Immigrants deserve legalization Full Rights for ALL WORKERSFriday 19 March 2010 Teresa Gutierrez On March 21, tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of people will be demonstrating for immigrant rights in Washington, D.C. The action arises from the frustration and deep anger that exist in the immigrant community and among their supporters that despite a nonstop demand for full rights for immigrants, especially legalization for the undocumented, such pleas have been ignored by Washington. |
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American Friends Service Committee Statement Create Peace, Justice with Humane Immigration ReformFriday 19 March 2010 Contact: Christian Ramirez The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), the Quaker peace and social justice organization, is deeply disappointed in the immigration blueprint tying legalization to failed border policies, workplace raids and criminalization of immigrants released by Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and praised by President Obama. Instead of more of the same ineffective policies that further militarize the border and divide more families, AFSC urges Congress and the Obama administration to utilize the following seven principles to guide reform. |
