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2008 News

Massive Racist ICE Immigrant Raids Across the Country at Post-May Day 2008 Mobilization!!

5/12 URGENT! Up to 700 Arrested in Iowa Raid!!!!

By Citizens For Legitimate Government

Up to 700 arrests estimated in Postville raid 12 May 2008 (IA) Four Homeland Security buses with U.S. Immigration and Customs tags on them have entered the Agriprocessors Inc. complex. The buses, along with a trail of SUVs and vans with Minnesota license plates, arrived at about 11:45 a.m. Tim Counts, a Midwest ICE spokesman, declined to confirm where people who are arrested will be detained. Federal officials have leased the National Cattle Congress fairgrounds in Waterloo, but they declined to explain last week whether the property was being prepared for use as a detention center.

5/24: 900 nabbed in California state on immigration charges

Federal immigration officers arrested more than 900 people in California on immigration violations this month, almost half of them in Northern California, officials said.

5/28: County Jails Welcome Immigrants

The immigration crackdown is filling county jails across the country with immigrants who have been torn away from their jobs and homes. Tens of thousands of arrested immigrants are bedding down in county jails while they await court dates and eventual deportation.

As the immigration crackdown escalates, county commissions and sheriff departments are increasingly signing contracts with the federal government to house arrested immigrants. For the most part, county governments are eager to receive immigrants into their jails.

The per diem payments they receive from two federal agencies' immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS)'re covering shortfalls in county budgets, funding the hiring of new deputies, and paying for jail expansion projects. Although some localities are complaining of jail overcrowding and a diffusion of law enforcement priorities, more and more local governments are cashing in on the immigration crackdown.

ICE is the agency of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responsible for the "detention and removal" of unauthorized immigrants. USMS is the Justice Department agency that transports federal prisoners, including arrested immigrants. Both agencies offer per diem payments'enerally much higher than those provided by local law-enforcement organizations, governments and private companies that house immigrants.

5/14: Some Detainees Are Drugged for Deportation

Immigrants sedated without medical reason.

The U.S. government has injected hundreds of foreigners it has deported with dangerous psychotropic drugs against their will to keep them sedated during the trip back to their home country, according to medical records, internal documents and interviews with people who have been drugged.

The government's forced use of antipsychotic drugs, in people who have no history of mental illness, includes dozens of cases in which the "pre-flight cocktail," as a document calls it, had such a potent effect that federal guards needed a wheelchair to move the slumped deportee onto an airplane.

"Unsteady gait. Fell onto tarmac," says a medical note on the deportation of a 38-year-old woman to Costa Rica in late spring 2005. Another detainee was "dragged down the aisle in handcuffs, semi-comatose," according to an airline crew member's written account. Repeatedly, documents describe immigration guards "taking down" a reluctant deportee to be tranquilized before heading to an airport.

2007 News

3/30 Tucson, AZ: 2 dead in attack on migrants

Gunmen ambushed nearly two dozen immigrants and smugglers packed into a pickup truck early Friday, killing two people and wounding at least one, authorities said >> Read More

Racist Radio Show "Jersey Guy"

3/26 New Jersey: Boycoot Radio Host "Jersey Guys" and their sponsors!

Please pass this list around not only in Jersey, but all over the country. They are doing "Operation La Cucha Gotcha." so I think we should do our own operation. Any company that sponsors bigots should be boycotted >> Read More

3/23 Newark, NJ: An Immigrant Segment by Radio's 'Jersey Guys' Draws Fire

Craig Carton and Ray Rossi think mental illness is hilarious and Asian-Americans are best mocked with sing-song Chinese accents. The men, hosts of an afternoon radio show called "The Jersey Guys" that is heard here on WKXW (101.5 FM), favor adjectives for politicians that have to be bleeped out >> Read More

1 Year after History March 25 "Grand Macha" Los Angeles

3/24 Los Angeles, CA: Looking back, moving ahead

Organizers of last year's huge immigrant rights rally in L.A. reflect on successes and goals as they ready for Sunday's anniversary events >> Read More

3/25: Year one of the immigrant rights movement

Washington drags its feet while the rest of society adapts to a new reality >> Read More

3/25 Los Angeles, CA: Turnout low, but immigrant rallies hopeful

Immigrant-rights rallies staged today to commemorate the anniversary of last year's Los Angeles march and to call for reform legislation were marked by low turnout and a counterdemonstration denouncing immigration >> Read More

2/22 Alert! Immigration raids sweep through SoCal eateries!

In a nationwide sweep across 17 states and the District of Columbia, immigration officials descended on popular eateries like Hard Rock Café and Planet Hollywood, arrested almost 200 undocumented immigrants working for a janitorial company and filed criminal charges against its top three officials. >> Read More

2/22/07 New York, NY: Report from NYU Counter College Republicans’ “Find the Illegal Immigrant” event

Hundreds of other New York University (NYU) students, their allies, and NYU IMC contributors to protest the College Republicans’ “Find the Illegal Immigrant” event
>> Read More

2/20: DOJ audit found anti-terror case data flawed

Federal prosecutors counted immigration violations, marriage fraud and drug trafficking among anti-terror cases in the four years after 9/11 even though no evidence linked them to terror activity, a Justice Department audit said >> Read More

2/21: Using Anti-Immigration Hysteria to Promote the Anti-Choice Agenda?

Today’s immigration debate extends beyond the goal of limiting the rights and humanity of immigrants: It’s about controlling who may be considered an American >> Read More

2/20: Which Babies Are Real Americans?

Yuki Lin , born on the stroke of midnight this New Year’s, became the winner of a random drawing for a national Toys “R” Us sweepstakes. The company had promised a $25,000 U.S. savings bond to the “first American baby born in 2007.” However, Yuki lost her prize after the company learned that her mother was an undocumented U.S. resident. Instead, the bond went to a baby in Gainesville, Georgia, described by her mother as “an American all the way.” >> Read More

3/10 New Brunswick, NJ: Conference - Making Comprehensive Immigration Reform real, fair and humane

Our topics will include legalization, education issues, worker’s rights, due process, local ordinances, and the creation of an Office of Immigrant Affairs >> Read More

2/19 Vista, CA: Residents believe anti-immigrant fliers were tossed from plane

Residents of a central Vista neighborhood said they watched dozens of fliers with anti immigrant messages fall from the sky like "snowfall" Thursday evening. Some said they believe the papers may have been chucked out of the airplane they also saw pass overhead at the same time >> Read More

3/3-4 Ithaca, NY: Northeast United Students Against Sweatshops Regional Conference at Cornell University

>> Read More

2/20 New York, NY: Please endorse the following letter to support Ester Young and her immigrant struggles

>> Read More

2/26-3/2 San Francisco, CA: Stop the Raids! No New Guest-Worker Plan!

In response to the rash of raids that have been affecting our communities, Bay Area immigrant rights organizations are planning a week of action (2/26 to 3/2) and will protest in front of Homeland Security's office at 630 Sansome street in San Francisco every day from 11am to 1pm. >> Read More

2/13 Oaklnand, CA: Thieves preying on undocumented immigrants, police say

Oakland is witnessing a rising crime trend of young "rat packs" preying on poor, often undocumented immigrants who carry their cash with them, according to a new police report >> Read More

2/18 Florida: U.S. MUSLIM COALITION CALLS FOR FASTING IN SOLIDARITY WITH DETAINED FLA. PROF

A coalition of major Muslim organizations, today called for a worldwide "rolling fast" in support of Dr. Sami Al-Arian. Al-Arian is the former Florida professor who has been on a hunger strike since January 21 to protest his detention and treatment by federal authorities >> Read More

2/19 Greensboro, NC: Students Rally Against Anti-Arab Hate Crime

Students from colleges across North Carolina rallied Feb. 2 against a recent hate crime committed against three Palestinian students at Guilford College >> Read More

1/20 Phoenix, AZ: New AZ Law Bar on Minutemen Proposed

A proposed new law would make felons out of members of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps -- and probably some neighborhood watch groups >> Read More

1/1/07 San Antonio, TX: Tell ICE: Release Palestinian Family NOW!

The Arab American Community Coalition(theaacc.org) has just learned of an entire Palestinian family - the Ibrahims - being held in jail in Texas while waiting an unjustified deportation >> Read More

2006 News

12/22: Tacoma, WA: Corporate-Runs Immigration Jail Capacity Grows+More Profit!

Back on Sept. 30 the Seattle Times that capacity of the Northwest Detention Center, the immigration jail built on a Tacoma Tideflats Superfund site, was expected to grow to 1,000 by January 2007 >> Read More

12/19: ICE makes largest repatriation flight to Africa in two years (ICE Press Release)

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers returned from their largest deportation flight to Africa in two years after repatriating 99 Nigerian and Liberian nationals. This was a joint charter removal flight conducted with the government of Canada.... >> Read Mor

12/12: More Than 1,200 Arrested in Six-State Immigration Raid

How to Locate/Help Immigrants Who Are Arrested/Detained

Immigration officials have set up a toll-free telephone number, 866-341-3858, for families to contact for information on where their relatives are being detained. Operators speaking English and Spanish are available.

According to Democracy Now! radio show and other reports, at least 1,280 workers have been arrested in a series of immigration raids targeting meatpacking plants owned by the company Swift at Tuesday, December 12th (see the map). The raids took place in Colorado, Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Iowa and Minnesota (1, 2) It marks the largest sweep of its kind ever against a single company.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff justified the raids saying many of the detained men and women were using false or stolen identities.

Interactive Map of Swift Plants Nationwide
A Day to remember-Swift ICE raid (Movie)

Many immigrant activists had critized the raid. David Bacon, the labor journalists says Tuesday’s (12/12) immigration raids on meatpacking plants weren’t about curbing identity theft, they were about union-busting. Many also raise skeptical about the DHS/ICE's motivation of the raid. Many had pointed out that only small numbers of the workers who arrested were charged identity theft crimes.

The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union has filed an emergency lawsuit in an effort to release the workers who they say were illegally detained and are being held without access to legal counsel. In Iowa, immigration lawyers have accused the federal government of holding the arrested workers at the military site Camp Dodge near Des Moines.

Furthermore, many immigrants had been brutally terrified by the racist immigrant raids. On Marshalltown, IA, Breastfeeding baby's mom among those detained; at Hyrum, UT, immigrant raid puts families in limbo; Immigrant rights groups accuse ICE raids had violated immigrant's civil rights.

More On The Recent Massive Raids

AFTER NOVEMBER 7, 2006: The Mid-Term Elections and Immigration

[The Immigrant Legal Resource Center] The November mid-term election was a repudiation of the Republican majority and a strong protest against the status quo -- whatever the status quo voters were registering their opposition to: the war in Iraq, Congressional corruption, the economy, or terrorism. And this mid-term election was largely focused on national, not local, issues.

Immigration Not A Wedge Issue: Republican leadership tried, but failed, to make immigration the wedge issue that would ensure their continued control of Congress after aggressively promoting an enforcement-only measure (H.R.4437) as their solution to reforming our broken immigration system. In fact, exit polling as reported by the Washington Post found that fewer than one in three cited immigration 'as extremely important in influencing their decision, and they only narrowly favored Republican candidates. About six in 10 voters said that they believe illegal immigrants working in the United States should be offered a chance to apply for legal status'.. Democratic candidates won support from 61 percent of those who backed a path to citizenship, according to the poll.

Election Results: As a result of this election, aÿsignificant number of candidates were defeated who, given their records, would have supported anti-immigrant and anti-immigration measures in the new 110th Congress that will convene next January. Who were they? Minuteman Randy Graf (R-AZ -- who ran for the seat of retiring Representative Jim Kolbe); J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ), John Hostettler (R-IN -- the chair in the 109th Congress of the House Immigration Subcommittee), Chris Chocola (R-IN), Anne Northup (R-KY), Melissa Hart (R-PA), Bob Beauprez (R-CO -- who lost his race for Governor), Charles Taylor (R-NC), Gil Gutknecht (R-MN), and Richard Pombo (R-CA). Many of those defeated are members of the so-called Immigration Reform Caucus (headed by Representative Tom Tancredo (R-CO)) whose ranks have been reduced by the results of this mid-term election. >> Read

11/10: Focus on Election Results

[Immigration News Briefs] Voters Reject Many Anti-Immigrant Campaigns; Georgia: Republicans Gain, Voters Split; Arizona Vote: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Colorado Vote: More Ballot Initiatives; Election Results Elsewhere: A Mixed Bag >> Read

11/10: In Arizona, Minutemen lost more than House hopeful on Election Day

[Arizona Daily Star] Despite the Minutemen's all-out effort to get Republican Graf into the congressional seat vacated by fellow Republican Jim Kolbe, their man lost his bid - in a Republican-dominated district - to Democrat Gabrielle Giffords >> Read

Press Release: “The Surprise Winner of this Year’s Election Is…Comprehensive Immigration Reform” by the National Immigration Forum

Analysis of 2006 Elections by the American Immigration Lawyers Association

Washington Times: Bush Eyes Democrats for Help on Amnesty

The Hill: House GOP's immigration strategy no ‘magic bullet’

10/18: Bush Signs the Detainee Bill - Welcome to Martial Law?

BUSH SIGNS THE MILITARY COMMISSIONS ACT: CCR CALLS IT A BLOW TO DEMOCRACY AND THE CONSTITUTION
Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR)
October 17, 2006

The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) denounced President Bush's signing into law of the Military Commissions Act (MCA) on October 17, 2006. The final version of the bill emerged only four days before the Senate's 11th hour vote. Although President Bush declared that "time was of the essence" when he called for the legislation, he has waited nearly two weeks to sign it into law. Congress has once again been cowed into doing the President's bidding and abdicated their Constitutional powers in the process, say attorneys.

The new law strips the right of non-citizens to seek review of their detention by a court through the filing of a writ of habeas corpus, the venerated legal instrument that for centuries has protected people from arbitrary detention, disappearance and indefinite detention without charge. The Act is also meant to erase the hundreds of habeas corpus petitions that CCR and others have brought on behalf of many of the 450 men being held at Guantánamo Bay, a move already once denied by the Supreme Court. >> Read

Articles, Analysis:

Q and A: Military Commissions Act of 2006 (Human Rights Watch)

Download the Report

2006 Report on Migrant Deaths at the US-Mexico Border

10/17: Detainee bill a step backwards (Denver Post Opinion)


10/18: America, Welcome to Martial Law? (Media Monitors Network)

10/17 Civil Rights Attorney Lynne Stewart Sentenced to
28 Months In Jail; Remains Free On Bail

Civil rights attorney Lynne Stewart is claiming victory today in a case that
could have landed her in jail for the rest of her life. On Monday (10/16), Stewart
was sentenced to twenty-eight months in prison. She'll remain free on bail
while her conviction is appealed. >> Read

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