A migrant emergency in Italy?

While the immigration rate is much higher in the United States, it is Italy that is announcing a "state of emergency" regarding migration.

Italian gov't faces uproar over migrant emergency
By Deepa Babington

Reuters/Washington Post
Saturday, July 26, 2008; 11:40 AM

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's right-wing government on Saturday defended its decision to declare a nationwide state of emergency to deal with an influx of illegal immigrants after sharp criticism of the move.

Leftist lawmakers accused Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government of heightening fear and exaggerating the migrant problem by declaring the emergency on Friday, which gives police and local authorities added powers to tackle the issue.

"Where are the masses of illegal migrants pressing against the doors of our cities? And what are these risks for public order?" asked leftist lawmaker and former minister Rosy Bindi.

"The reality doesn't count for this government. What counts instead is the effect of announcements that serve to justify the climate of a police state."

Centrist lawmaker Rocco Buttiglone said Italy was not in need of "inhuman and extraordinary" measures and that the application of existing laws would suffice.

A chorus of other opposition lawmakers demanded the government address parliament to explain its surprise move.

Monsignor Agostino Marchetto, secretary of a Vatican council on migrant issues, joined the debate by saying the term "emergency" in itself was not negative but that Italy ought to respect the human rights of all migrants and refugees.

"NOISE"

Lawmakers from Berlusconi's People of Freedom coalition -- which swept to power in the April national election by promising a tough line on illegal immigration and crime -- dismissed the criticism from the left as irresponsible and overzealous.

"It's a lot of noise over nothing," Fabrizio Cicchitto, the head of Berlusconi's party in the lower house of parliament said, playing it down as an extension of existing policy.

A state of emergency was already in place in the southern regions of Calabria, Puglia and Sicily before Friday's decision...

for link to Reuters/WP article click here

Dying while crossing: 67 dead near McAllen in 2008

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July 24, 2008, 12:21AM
Trapped in rail car, 3 illegal immigrants call 911

By DANE SCHILLER
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle

It is not often that undocumented immigrants sneak into the United States and then alert authorities to their whereabouts, but three men trapped in a sweltering rail car had little choice and used a cell phone to call 911.

Smugglers had stashed two Mexicans and a Guatemalan in a grain hopper in the Rio Grande Valley and told them they would ride further north, said Daniel Doty, a spokesman for the Border Patrol's McAllen Sector.

As the temperature climbed Tuesday, the dehydrating men feared for their lives and reached for the phone.

"It gets hot very fast in those places," Doty said."Once inside a grain hopper, you can't get out; you have to be let out."

Agents rescued the men Tuesday afternoon thanks to one of them providing a portion of the Union Pacific identification number listed in the car.

A company emergency-response team was able to use a computer to track down the car within five minutes and provide rescuers with its location, Union Pacific regional spokeswoman Raquel Espinoza said.

"These individuals are very lucky to be alive," she said. "

It remains unclear when and where the men boarded the hopper or where they were headed.

Two of them were released to the Border Patrol on Wednesday after spending the night at the Christus Spohn Hospital Kleberg in Kingsville.

A third remained hospitalized in stable condition, said shift coordinator Linda Ann Garcia.

Illegal immigrants have previously used cell phones to call for help. Earlier this summer, three Chinese men lost in the South Texas brush lands called for rescue.

"We're starting to see more and more of that, where smugglers or members of the group actually carry a cell phone just in case," Doty said.

The McAllen Sector, which includes the Rio Grande Valley and hugs the Gulf Coast, is among the deadliest slices of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Agents assigned there reported finding 67 bodies in the first nine months of this fiscal year. That compares to 61 for all of 2007.

dane.schiller@chron.com

for link to article click here

Not sure if this is good or bad...

...Since the source - Center for Immigration Studies has been linked as a anti-immigrant Hate-Group...we are not sure if this should even be posted. It is a good question whether we post information from anti-immigrant groups. In some ways we think it would be good, that we should always give different sides to the story. We have avoided this in the past because most of the commentaries from anti-immigrant groups is not only negative but generally insulting. (see "Driving in New York Part I," October 21, 2007). this is discussed in "Defending the Contributions of Foreign Students" July 15, 2008. It is also detailed in a video by the Southern Poverty Law Center...




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For CISNEWS subscribers -- Mark Krikorian]
Contact: Steven Camarota (202) 466-8185, sac@cis.org


Illegal-Immigrant Population Dropping New Report Finds Significant Decline Since Last Summer



WASHINGTON (July 25, 2008) — A new analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies of monthly data collected by the Census Bureau shows that the illegal immigrant population has declined significantly between last summer and May of this year. The study is the first to find quantitative evidence that illegal immigrants are leaving the country. It also examines the extent to which stepped-up enforcement and the downturn in the economy account for this trend. The report, entitled 'Homeward Bound: Recent Immigration Enforcement and the Decline in the Illegal Alien Population,' is embargoed until Wednesday, July 30th at 2:30 pm. The study will be available online at http://www.cis.org/. Advance copies are available to the media. The Center will formally release the report at a press conference on Wednesday, July 30th at 2:30 pm in room 1309 of the Longworth House Office Building. The report’s lead author, Dr. Steven Camarota will be joined by Representatives John Barrow (D-GA), Lamar Smith (R-TX), Tom Feeney (R-FL) and Heath Shuler (D-NC) to discuss the implications of the study. For more information, contact Steven Camarota at (202) 466-8185 or sac@cis.org
# # #
The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent research institute which examines the impact of immigration on the United States.

Exactly what we've been saying all this time!

People don't get it, even with real-life stories about talented young students overcoming the odds. Specially the older generation running Congress. Thank you Marisa Trevino for the facts.

We need to start up a SCHOLARSHIP Fund for DREAMers, we can do it!

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TX: Why Not Let Students 'Become Someone'?
USA Today, July 25, 2008 Friday
By Marisa Trevioo

Maybe it was because the sender's name, Maritza, was so similar to mine that I felt compelled to open the e-mail. A quick scan proved it was not an unwelcome solicitation, but a plea for help from a student who was also an "illegal immigrant."In part, it read: "I send you an e-mail regarding ... undocumented students who wish to keep studying to become someone." She wanted information on college scholarships that helped students like herself -- high school graduates in need of the kind of financial aid that doesn't depend on citizenship status, only good grades. With so few scholarships, it isn't easy for these students. As a recent USA TODAY article notes, more states want to make in-state tuition rates unavailable or outright ban these students from attending U.S. colleges.

In a reading of new laws in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Oklahoma, and North and South Carolina, the idea that all children deserve the opportunity for a college education is as foreign as the countries where these children were born. These laws appear to be offshoots of state measures designed to drive the undocumented from local communities. In 2007, according to the Education Commission of the States, 32 states considered bills to give undocumented students in-state tuition. Ten of those states are now considering restricting in-state tuition.

Why? Many state legislators have become incensed that the federal government hasn't taken the lead on enforcement. Their anti-illegal immigrant rhetoric has encouraged wide interpretations of federal policy.In seeking to punish these students, these legislators are, in fact, punishing all of us. Do we really want to waste the talent of these ambitious students? What good is being done by keeping in the dark those serious about furthering their education? The reality is that this country is their home, and they'll be here whether we choose to educate them or not.

What is an advanced degree worth? The Census reports that in 2006, workers with a bachelor's degree earned $56,788 vs. $31,071 for those with only a high school diploma. A labor study that same year found that 500 of the largest U.S. companies will lose 50% of their senior management by 2011. Our aging labor force needs to be replenished by those schooled to compete in a knowledge-based economy. Other countries are clamoring for a highly educated workforce just as we're driving students away.Is this the new American way?

for link to article click here

The Human Cost

It should be ok to laugh sometimes no?


Immigration: The Human Cost

Driving while famous vs. driving while immigrant

Why is it that so many undocumented immigrants are stopped by police for no violations while infamous journalist Robert Novak can get away with hitting a pedestrian, leaving the scene, and surprisingly saying that he did not know he hit anyone, even though the victim hit Novak's windshield? What kind of selective enforcement is this? Novak was not planning to stop, until a bicyclist forced the issue. Yet, all Novak gets is a failure to yield right of way??? Compare this to the same type of incident with the driver being an immigrant? Big difference in what happens -- the immigrant usually lands in jail - or deported... While Novak can continue "driving aggressively," cursing pedestrians, and unethically outing CIA agents -

p.s. If Novak's vision is that bad where he does not see when someone hits his windshield, he needs to turn in his driver's license.

A Washington Post blog published this comment on the Novak incident:

"columnist Bob Novak, whose ludicrous excuse for his plowing his Corvette into a pedestrian in downtown Washington yesterday fails the laugh test. Novak would have us believe that he simply didn't know he had hit a pedestrian, but a lawyer who watched it all happen said the man who was struck rolled onto Novak's hood and then onto his windshield. This is a bit difficult to miss, don't you think?"

to see WP article on Novak and the pedestrian, click here
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Congressional Hearing on ICE Raids Part II Selective Enforcement of U.S. Laws

While Republicans are accusing Democrats of excessive concern regarding immigrant rights - they don't realize (or don't care) that the recent ICE raids defy the Constitution - and that everyone's rights need to be respected - citizen or not.
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Expedited Trials of Illegal Immigrants Are Questioned

By Spencer S. Hsu
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, July 25, 2008; A09

Criminal defense and immigration lawyers yesterday challenged the government's use of expedited trials to convict 306 illegal immigrant workers at a meat processing plant in Iowa in May, arguing that fast-tracked group trials violated defendants' rights.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's immigration panel, said after a day-long hearing that she found the Justice Department's actions against workers at the Agriprocessors Inc. plant in Postville, Iowa, "to be unusual and provocative, and I do have questions about whether they meet the requirements of due process that is guaranteed in our Constitution."

A Justice Department official, Deborah J. Rhodes, said all defendants were provided with criminal defense lawyers and interpreters, as well as access to immigration lawyers and consular officials. Federal judges also asked them and their lawyers if they understood and voluntarily agreed to the terms, she said.

"While the scope of the case presented unusual challenges, defendants' constitutional rights were carefully protected and exercised," Rhodes said.

The hearings focused attention on the aftermath of the Agriprocessors raid, the largest immigration sweep at a single worksite, and on the Bush administration's expanding use of criminal charges against illegal immigrants. Previously, illegal workers were generally held on administrative grounds and deported.

Erik Camayd-Freixas, one of 12 court interpreters who participated in the two-week Iowa proceedings, called them a dangerous pilot effort that subjected defendants to unfounded charges, denied them access to bail because of their immigration status, gave lawyers too little time to advise their clients and deprived judges of a meaningful role in plea deals or sentencing.

The government convicted and sentenced most defendants in four days at temporary court and detention facilities set up at nearby cattle show fairgrounds.

Defendants, most from Guatemala, were processed in groups of 10. Most were charged with aggravated identity theft with the promise of at least a six-month stay in jail until trial, a mandatory two-year prison sentence if found guilty and deportation whether they were found guilty or not. Or they could plead guilty to a lesser charge of document fraud, serve five months in prison and be deported.

Most agreed to the latter, even though six U.S. circuit courts of appeal have split evenly over the question of whether aggravated identity theft requires that the government prove a defendant knows the person whose identity or Social Security number he has taken.

"If our honorable judges had known how this dubious experiment would have turned out, they never would have allowed it," Camayd-Freixas said.

Homeland Security and Justice Department officials credit the new aggressive tactics with deterring border crossings. Republicans on the Judiciary Committee accused Democrats of caring more about illegal immigrants than the American workers whose jobs they take. "The more the administration tries to do its job . . . the more they are criticized for enforcing the law," said Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.).

for WP article click here


*non-citizens, documented or not are being harassed. Their patriotism is questioned, their legality is questioned. When arrested they are assumed undocumented until proven otherwise.

A law ignored for decades is now labeling immigrants as criminals

If the U.S. populace had any idea how many people use false social security cards - everyone would be in shock.  It may be labeled as criminal in 2008, but for decades it was a given that undocumented workers would not be punished for this.  Today however,  ICE and our present administration (who is behind all of this I believe) has decided that using a false number is a very bad thing - which is paradoxical since using a false number only leaves unclaimed money in the social security fund -   Enforcing this law means social security will lose billions that will be needed to support all the aging baby boomers.

Maybe ICE has some deal with industries to gather more inmates for prisons that can work for nothing.... you know that happened after the Civil War.  In 1865 there were only about 300 prison inmates in Texas... by 1890 there were at least a thousand - and it has kept growing (Texas is a prison state you know). A colleague of mine, Robert Perkinson has worked on a project regarding Texas prisons.  He tells me that until the 1930s in Texas, prisoners were "hired out" by the prison to private farms and basically treated like slaves.

When something goes from a minor infraction to a major crime - there is something going on in a society that is turning things upside down.

for NPR program on immigrants and false social security cards, click here

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Legal Affairs
Immigrant Rights Groups Challenge ID Theft Arrests
NPR

by Jennifer Ludden

July 24, 2008 · For years, the chief punishment for immigrants caught working illegally in the United States has been deportation. But prosecutors are now bringing criminal charges that include aggravated identity theft, which can bring a hefty prison sentence. Immigrant rights groups and some members of Congress are challenging the practice.

A congressional panel is meeting Thursday to look at the controversial fallout from an immigration raid on an Iowa meat-packing plant in May. Not long ago, illegal immigrants swept up in such raids faced administrative charges and swift deportation. But in recent years, the Bush administration has started bringing criminal charges against immigrants who use fake documents, including stolen Social Security numbers.

After the raid at the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa, more than 250 workers were sentenced to five months in prison. Rights groups, defense lawyers and even some judges are questioning the Bush administration's strategy.

Iowa immigration attorney Dan Vondra says he was stunned to see immigrant workers from the plant charged with aggravated identity theft. Congress created that law in 2004 to toughen penalties for the growing problem of identity theft.

Still, Vondra said, "When you think of identity theft, what you really want to target is somebody getting credit cards in your name, ruining your credit, using your name to commit crimes, things of that nature."

The immigrants had bought stolen Social Security numbers to help them find work, Vondra said. In fact, one of the translators at the court proceedings has said the mainly Guatemalan immigrants he encountered had no idea what a Social Security card was — let alone that the numbers on it belonged to real people.

Challenges In The Courts

Last year, another Iowa attorney used that argument in court. Gary Koos' client had been arrested at a concrete company after buying an ID off the street in order to fill out employment forms. Koos didn't think that fit the crime of aggravated identity theft.

"If you want to think of it in legal terms, it would be that a person has to be put upon notice of what the crime is," Koos said. "And in this case, it's knowingly to use someone else's identity. My client didn't know he had someone else's Social Security number, he just had a number."

Koos lost the case on appeal, and his immigrant client is now serving five years in federal prison. But Koos' argument has been backed by other appeals courts — and he thinks the Supreme Court may need to resolve the dispute.

The issue is coming up more often because of another part of the Bush administration's immigration crackdown. More and more companies are using a federal computer program that can detect fake Social Security numbers. But it can't tell when real numbers are used by another person — which has fueled a growing market for stolen IDs.

"The issue is whether people using false identifications should be held accountable for that," said Bob Teig, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in northern Iowa, which prosecuted the Agriprocessors case.

Teig said he didn't know whether any of the workers charged with aggravated ID theft had used Social Security numbers for anything but work. But that's not the point, he said.

"The point is, by the time it happens it's too late. The statute is not just designed to punish, the statute is designed to prevent," Teig said.

A Stiff Mandatory Sentence

To be clear, the Agriprocessors employees did not plead guilty to aggravated ID theft. But because the charge carries a two-year prison sentence as its mandatory minimum, it put pressure on them to accept a plea deal on lesser charges.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) has called for a hearing to look at that procedure. She's also an immigration attorney, and she questions whether due process was upheld.

"Hundreds of people were convinced to plead guilty to a crime without really an adequate opportunity to see if they had any remedy under immigration law," Lofgren said. "And of course, now that they've pled guilty to a crime, they have no remedies that they might otherwise have had."

Not all arrested immigrant workers are being sentenced to jail time. But federal immigration officials say incarceration can be an important deterrent. And Julie Myers, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, says that some victims of this kind of ID theft suffer financial and legal hardships.

"We think it's tragic and unfortunate when people break the law by coming here," Myers said, "and then break the law again by actually stealing the identity of U.S. citizens."

So far this year, the immigration agency has made more than 900 criminal arrests.

click here for NPR article

ICE raids Mexican restaurants in Cincinnati

The day before a congressional hearing on immigration raids, ICE arrested 58 people in Cincinnati. They all worked for Casa Fiesta, a restaurant chain.

It would be interesting to see how ICE plans their strategy. They are not planning to deport all undocumented workers. It has to be more than creating fear in communities...

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Immigration raids Ohio restaurants, arrests 58
Wed Jul 23, 2008 10:16pm ED

CINCINNATI (Reuters) - U.S. immigration agents raided eight Mexican restaurants in northern Ohio on Wednesday and arrested 58 employees as part of a criminal operation against illegal immigrants, federal authorities said.

All those arrested were citizens of Mexico and working at Casa Fiesta, a chain of Mexican restaurants in Ashland, Fremont, Norwalk, Oberlin, Oregon, Sandusky, Vermillion and Youngstown, Ohio, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a statement.

It said the raid was the culmination of more than a yearlong investigation.

Of the 58 arrested, 54 were men. Three of the four women were released on their own recognizance on humanitarian grounds, ICE said. They are still required to appear before a federal immigration judge who will determine whether they have a legal right to remain in the United States.

The raid was the latest targeting businesses employing illegal workers.
... ICE said it had made 949 criminal arrests in worksite-related raids since October 2007, including the arrests of 105 owners, managers, supervisors or human resources employees who face charges ranging from harboring to knowingly hiring illegal aliens...

(Reporting by Andrea Hopkins; Editing by Peter Cooney)

for complete Reuters article click here

Congressional Hearing on ICE Raids

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Congressional Documents and Publications

July 24, 2008

CONGRESSWOMAN SHEILA JACKSON LEE
SHEILA JACKSON LEE -Search using:
SECTION: U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DOCUMENTS



July 24, 2008

Contact: Judith Kargbo 202-225-3816

202-225-7080

Giving Insight Into ICE Immigrations Raids That Took Place in Houston

Washington, D.C. -Today, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee
Enhanced Coverage Linking
Sheila Jackson Lee, senior Member of the House Judiciary Committee, will testify in front of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law in a hearing entitled, "on Immigration Raids Postville and Beyond." She released the following statement to discuss how the ICE Immigration Raids have effect Houston, Texas:

"I would like to thank Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren

Zoe Lofgren from California and Ranking Member Steve King from Iowa for holding this very important hearing on the recent immigration raids in Houston, Texas and across this great nation. Chairwoman Lofgren has continued to bring relevant and timely hearings and continues to work for comprehensive immigration reform. For this, she should be applauded.

"As a senior Member of the House Judiciary Committee and the former Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Immigration, it is of the utmost importance to me that we thoroughly investigate the raids that took place at Shipley Do-Nuts and Action Rags USA by ICE officials. Both of these raids occurred in Houston, Texas.

"Shipley Do-Nuts is a family-owned chain that has been catapulted into a highly controversial debate when federal agents raided the company's Houston headquarters and arrested 20 suspected illegal immigrants employed at the facility.

"On Wednesday, April 17, 2008, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents - in a caravan of 50 vehicles, detention vans and an ambulance - swarmed Shipley's office and warehouse complex on North Main Street at 5 a.m. A government helicopter circled overhead as the Shipley workers were led away in handcuffs to face civil charges of being in the country illegally.

"The Houston raid took place at the same time ICE agents conducted raids of chicken processing plants in East Texas, Arkansas, Florida, West Virginia, and Tennessee. In all, 290 workers were arrested during raids at Texas-based Pilgrims Pride plants on suspicion of identify theft, document fraud and immigration violations, the agency said.

"ICE officials have released few details of the Shipley investigation, saying only that it would continue. The undocumented workers arrested Wednesday face deportation.

"The Shipley raid centered on its 140,000-square-foot warehouse, processing plants and office complex. It is part of a four-block compound the company operates at 5200 North Main, where doughnut mix and other fillings are made for many of the 86 Houston-area locations.

"The site includes at least five trailers and 14 small homes. The neatly maintained properties sit behind cyclone and barbed-wire fencing used by some Shipley employees.

"The people caught in this raid were hard working people. ICE should make certain that minors were not caught in this raid. And, if minors were caught, ICE should ensure that these minors are returned safely to their families.

"Within weeks of the Shipley Do-Nuts raid, on June 25, 2008, ICE agents raided the Action Rags USA plant in Houston. In all, 166 of the 192 workers at the plant were undocumented.

"Approximately 70 percent of the 166 detained workers, about 116 workers, were women including eight pregnant women. Many of those workers were detained by ICE, though at least 73 have been released for humanitarian reasons. The vast majority of these women were caring for children and had families. It is shocking to imagine that on that fateful day, many children returned home to empty homes and apartments wondering when their mothers would return. Equally appalling, the pregnant workers were subject to the stress and anxiety of arrest and detention when their own health and well-being is critical to the health and development of their unborn baby.

"The chaos and fear in the aftermath of raids did cause injuries. Four women sustained injuries that required immediate medical attention, including one woman that required an immediate "life flight" by helicopter to a nearby hospital as she was so fearful of the raid and the ensuing chaos that she climbed on a stack of wooden pallets and fell 20 feet to the ground.

"The detainees in both raids were of Mexican and Central-American descent. The raid on Action Rags USA resulted in the detention of 138 Mexican, 12 Honduran, 8 Guatemalan, and 8 El Salvadoran workers. The Shipley Donuts raid resulted in the detention of men from Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, and El Salvador.

"In both raids, youths were detained. The Shipley Donuts Raid resulted in the detention of one youth who was placed in the care of Catholic Charities and allowed to attend school until ICE could secure deportation papers. He was subsequently deported before finishing the school year.

"Two youths were detained in the raid on Action Rags USA. One of the youths, a rising senior in high school, worked at Action Rags USA as a summer job and had only been employed for one week prior to the Raid. He is now awaiting deportation and will be deported before he is able to achieve his dream of a high school degree. Assistant U.S. Attorney Doug Davis said the fact that 85 percent of company workers at the plant were undocumented was sufficient to show a conspiracy existed. U.S. Magistrate Frances Stacy ruled there was evidence to support federal conspiracy charges that Mabarik Kahlon, 45, owner of Action Rags USA, and three managers knew undocumented workers were hired and they had presented false work documents.

"Four government informants, three who were paid a total of $13,200 along with immigration benefits, will be a key part of the case. The three paid informants were illegal immigrants planted at Action Rags USA by ICE agents. Because the paid informants were given cash money and documents allowing them to legally stay and work in the country, there is a strong incentive for anybody to say what the agents want them to say.

"The ICE surveillance reports documented only one hour and 57 minutes in which Mr. Kahlon was at the plant. Mr. Kahlon is the owner of several vitamin supplement companies, and may not have been actively managing daily operations at Action Rags USA.

"Among the persons arrested at Action Rags USA was 34 year old, Valerie Rodriguez, described by government officials as the company's resource manager. It was reported that Ms. Rodriguez was nothing more than a secretary.

"Both Mr. Kahlon and Ms. Rodriguez were released last week from custody after posting bond. The judge denied bail for Cirila Barron, 38, one of two illegal immigrants ICE documents describe as company managers at the plant.

"Another undocumented worker, Mayra Herrera-Gutierrez, 32, was denied bail. She was arrested for allegedly being an illegal alien and working as a warehouse supervisor. There is evidence, however, that she did not have the authority to hire and fire workers.

As members of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, we exercise oversight over ICE's actions. Shipley Do-Nuts is a family-owned and operated business with a 72-year history in the Houston area, and 190 stores in several states.

"I am concerned for the well-being of the employees that are being detained and their families. I am concerned that the detainees be treated fairly and are not denied counsel or their basic human and civil rights. Lastly, I am concerned that these raids have disproportionately focused upon the undocumented employees and the employers largely have been left unharmed from these raids. I believe that it is an injustice in the immigration system that the "crackdown" has been directed at the "undocumented" workers who are working to support themselves and their families.

"These raids demonstrate that Congress must pass comprehensive immigration reform. I have long advocated for comprehensive immigration reform. Indeed, in December 2007, I introduced, HR 750, Save America Comprehensive Immigration Act of 2007. This bill would provide for comprehensive immigration reform.

"Importantly, the bill authorizes DHS to adjust the status of aliens who would otherwise be inadmissible (due to unlawful presence, document fraud, or other specified grounds of inadmissibility) if such aliens have been in the United States for at least five years and meet other requirements. Additionally, it authorizes the emergency deployment of Border Patrol agents to a requesting border state.

"The bill also directs DHS to: (1) provide for additional detention space for illegal aliens; (2) increase Border Patrol agents, airport and land border immigration inspectors, immigration enforcement officers, and fraud and document fraud investigators; (3) enhance Border Patrol training and operational facilities; (4) establish immigration, customs, and agriculture inspector occupations within the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection; (5) reestablish the Border Patrol anti-smuggling unit; (6) establish criminal investigator occupations within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); (7) increase Border Patrol agent and investigator pay; (8) require foreign language training for appropriate DHS employees; and (9) establish the Fraudulent Documents Task Force.

"This bill also sets forth unfair immigration-related employment practices. Additionally the bill requires petitioners for nonimmigrant labor to describe their efforts to recruit lawful permanent residents or U.S. citizens.

"As these investigations move forward I will make sure that all issues are addressed surrounding this raid. This raid demonstrates the importance of immigration reform. As members of Congress, let us work together to resolve this matter and ensure that everyone's rights are protected!"

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Gypsy camp near Rome is firebombed

Bombing of Italian Gypsy camp in May 2008. link to photo

Someone decided to imitate the Italian Mafia and firebombed a Roma camp yesterday. Whether authorized by the government or initiated by an Italian terrorist - it is a brutal action.

Berlosconi has intensified the hatred towards the Roma - and has encouraged this by bombing their encampments -- how you expect the Italian populace to act any different?

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The Evening Standard (London)
July 23, 2008 Wednesday
PETROL BOMBERS ATTACK GIPSY CAMP UNDER ROME FLYOVER

BYLINE: NICK PISA IN ROME

ITALIAN police were today investigating a suspected arson attack on a Roma gipsy camp.

Three petrol bombs were thrown onto the ramshackle collection of caravans under a flyover in western Rome from a car above.

The attack last night on the 100-strong community in Magliana comes two months after an attack at Ponticelli in Naples against another Roma camp.

Feeling towards the Roma is running high in Italy as many blame them for soaring petty crime.

Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was re-elected three months ago on a tough law and order package and has vowed to clamp down on illegal immigration. He has introduced measure to fingerprint Roma gipsies. Red Cross officials were due to visit the camp in Rome today to carry out the programme.

Mr Berlusconi's government has passed a law which makes him immune from prosecution while in office. It means that the corruption trial involving the prime minister and David Mills, the estranged husband of Olympics minister Tessa Jowell, will continue without the Italian premier. Both men deny any wrongdoing.

from Lexis Nexis

for additional information, click here for previous London Independent article on the Roma

previous dreamacttexas posts on the Roma:
Roma Children's Deaths: Murder? July 22, 2008
The Meaningless Dead, July 21, 2008

South Carolina must want a less educated population

DREAMers shut out of college in South Carolina because of new immigration law.  

There have been a flood of comments on this article... they might be worth looking at....even if its painful.

It is interesting that Rep. Thad Myers is now back tracking, saying the law is too extreme...

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S.C. IMMIGRATION LAW
Colleges telling illegal students not to return
By Robert Morris - rmorris@thesunnews.com

As they arrived home last week from their study groups and second jobs, a handful of college students across the Grand Strand found letters saying that, because they are in the U.S. illegally, this semester will be their last.

The letters are the result of a new immigration package signed into law last month after a yearlong public debate led in part by state Rep. Thad Viers of Myrtle Beach. Now, Viers says that law may go too far and pledged late last week to work on correcting it or changing its application.

"These kids are the posters for what we want from immigration," Viers said. "We're punishing them for the sins of their fathers and mothers, and that's not right."

Among its many law-enforcement and employment-related provisions, this year's immigration law contained a clause forbidding any state college from accepting illegal immigrants as students and requiring schools to begin screening applicants for citizenship.

Coastal Carolina University already had a policy against admitting illegal immigrants, so none of its students will be asked to leave, said Edgar Dyer, vice president for university relations.

Horry-Georgetown Technical College, however, practiced what is known as "open admission," and officials say a dozen or so students are being asked to leave.

The technical college's application already asks students if they are U.S. citizens, part of the criteria for financial aid, said Greg Thompson, vice president of student affairs. Those students who indicated foreign citizenship are now being sent letters, Thompson said.

"Under the new immigration state law, you are not eligible to attend classes unless you can submit a copy of your permanent resident card," the letters read.

For those students - brought to the U.S. as children by their parents, then learning English from scratch in order to finish high school - the letter was a blow, one more hardship in a world such overachievers would otherwise be on top of....

"I don't mind going back if they make me," Rodrigues said with a note of resignation. "But I think it's sad that they prefer uneducated illegal immigrants to educated illegal immigrants."

As the immigration debate roiled and Viers was selected to serve on the conference committee responsible for the bill's final version, Myrtle Beach High School teacher Peggy Ryals invited him to her English as a Second Language class, where he met some of the students who are now being asked not to return to college.

They were star students, Viers said later, excelling academically in English with dreams of contributing to society.

"I would much rather the illegals who are here to improve their educations and work to assimilate into American culture than us to shut the door in the face when they're trying," Viers said. "I'm one of the strongest supporters of illegal-immigration reform, but we have to have a balance."

The bill he helped design was intended to keep immigrants who enter the country illegally from receiving tuition breaks or other benefits, Viers said - not to bar from college their children who graduate from local high schools and pay out-of-state tuition.

Viers said he now plans to ask the state attorney general's office to review the bill and ask for an interpretation closer to its original intention, and if that fails, to seek an exception that would allow state high school graduates who have lived most of their lives in the U.S. to attend college.

"It may not be the most popular thing, but it's the right thing," Viers said. "They are just as much Americans as you or I."

Ryals, who takes her foreign students to area colleges every year, urging them to overcome their language difficulties, finish high school and seek higher education, said she was encouraged by Viers' words.

"When we deny people an education, we're creating another generation of people who barely survive, instead of contribute to society," Ryals said. "It used to be that we were proud of people seeking that American dream."

Contact ROBERT MORRIS at 626-0294.

for link to article click here

Chaos After Rhode Island ICE Raid

The ICE Raids last week of various court houses in Rhode Island have left a number of families destitute.  For those that were released, they no longer have jobs.  Most have small children.

St. Teresa Church in Providence is raising money and gathering food and household items for the families

-----

Families and people who have been released met today with a great bunch
of volunteer lawyers, and they identified their material needs, which
are enormous, as you can imagine. People are out of work, with family
here and in home countries counting on them to survive. Some of the things
mentioned include:

- Money for rent, bills, sustenance, medicine, food (probably the
easiest and most important)
- Food - milk, beans, tortillas, corn, fruit, vegetables
- Pampers, toilet paper, basic household supplies

Some of the family members and people released are working on a name and guidelines for the fund which will be passed along as soon as they decide, but in the meantime, St. Teresa Church will have a special account for cash donations. Checks can be made out to St. Teresa Church. Please put "redadas" in the memo. 

Send contributions to

St. Teresa Church
Attn: Ruth Salvatierra
225 Manton Ave
Providence 02909

or cash or food/household items dropped off there.

 The phone # is (401)383-3355.

* * * * *

Las familias y personas que saltaron se reunieron hoy con unos tremendo/as abogado/as voluntario/as, y identificaron sus necesidades materiales, que son enormes, como puedes imaginar. Estan afuera de trabajo, con responsabilidades para sus familias aca y alla. Unas de las cosas que dijeron son:

- dinero para renta, billes, medicina, comida (dinero es lo mas facil y
mas importante)
- Comida: leche, frijoles, maiz, fruta, vegetables
- Pampers, papel del bano, productos generales de casa

Unos de ellos estan dicidiendo el nombre y como va a funcionar el fondo, y les decimos tan pronto que decidan. Mientras tanto, Sta Teresa va a abrir una cuenta dedicada para las donaciones de dinero. Se puede hacer los cheques a St. Teresa Church y enviarlo a

St. Teresa
Attn: Ruth Salvatierra
225 Manton Ave
Providence 02909

o puede dejar comida o productos de casa alla. El telefono es
Just got this friends. Throw out ideas about what to do with it.
We've really got to get an online donation system started when things
like this occur.

Texas city wanting to get rid of immigrants, get ready to lose big bucks

wanting to follow in the foot-steps of Farmers Branch, English-only is the topic of discussion in the little town just outside of Dallas...use your tax-money wisely!
The only "crime" here is immigrants WORKING TO MUCH!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Carrollton City Council to appoint panel on illegal immigration
By Brandon Formby The Dallas Morning News, July 19, 2008

The Carrollton City Council is expected to appoint a residents' task force to develop possible approaches to illegal immigration. The idea for such a group came late Friday during a council retreat after council members failed to reach a consensus on proposed illegal immigration resolutions.

Mayor Ron Branson and council member Terry Simons had proposed a resolution affirming English as the city's official language, arguing that it would deter illegal immigrants.  But council members Tim Hayden and Herb Weidinger disagreed.  Mr. Hayden said such a resolution would do little more than generate headlines.  'I'm trying to follow the logic, but I'm getting lost,' he said.   Mr. Branson said that if a resolution kept one illegal immigrant out of Carrollton, 'it would be worth it.'  He has said that one of his top priorities as mayor will be to work to rid the city of illegal immigrants, some of whom he said moved to Carrollton after neighboring Farmers Branch made them unwelcome with its efforts to prevent them from renting property.

Carrollton already participates in the Criminal Alien Program, which has jailers contacting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers when they think a detainee is in the U.S. illegally. And in April, the city was accepted into a federal program that trains local police to act as immigration officers. Mr. Branson resigned from the City Council in 2006 for health reasons but unseated the incumbent mayor in May.  

Farmers Branch made English the city's official language in 2006. The Oak Point City Council adopted a resolution supporting the use of English as the official language of documents in this small Denton County town last summer.  Council member John Mahalik said he did not want Carrollton to be lumped together with cities such as Farmers Branch that have drawn widespread attention for their approaches to illegal immigration. But he also said he would support a resolution making English Carrollton's official language.  Council member Pat Malone raised the question of whether a resolution would have any significant impact. She also wondered whether it would send a message to residents that the council cares about the problem of illegal immigration.

The council also failed to reach a consensus on a proposed resolution supporting Farmers Branch's approach to illegal immigration, which has included ordinances that have been blocked by or tied up in court.  Council member Matthew Marchant did not voice support or opposition on the resolutions. Council member Larry Williams was not at the retreat Friday.
The council is likely to vote on the structure and membership of the task force in September.

Roma children's deaths: Murder?

Are some deaths more meaningful than others? Who else could die and be left among a group of oblivious sunbathers.

Some people are asking if there was foul play behind the girl's deaths. Would the life guards not have noticed the girls? Did someone throw them into the water?

Now that the Italian government is burning down Roma encampments and fingerprinting all Roma children - anything sinister could be possible.

I wonder if every society has to have someone to hate.

-----

Gypsy girls' corpses on beach in Italy fail to put off sunbathers

· Incident raises questions about attitude to minority
· Civil rights group calls for inquiry into 'drowning'

John Cooper
The Guardian - London
July 21, 2008

Questions about the attitude of Italians to their Roma minority were again being asked yesterday after photographs were published of sunbathers continuing as normal with a day at the beach despite the bodies of two Gypsy girls who had drowned being laid out on the sand nearby.

A civil liberties group said it had asked for talks with the authorities to shed light on the circumstances of the girls' death. The incident took place outside Naples, where a Roma encampment was burned to the ground this year after its inhabitants had been evacuated for their own safety.

Accounts given by Italian media varied, but according to the news agency Ansa, the victims - aged 14 and 16 - and two other young Gypsies had been begging from daytrippers on the beach at Torregaveta, west of Naples, on Saturday. Other reports indicated they were selling trinkets. The area is easily reached from the city by a railway line that ends near the shore.

At about 1pm, the four girls decided to go into the water even though none of them, it seems, knew how to swim. They soon got into difficulties because of strong currents in the area and were hit by an unusually big wave.

Two of the girls were rescued by life-savers from a nearby private beach. But rescuers were unable to reach the two oldest until they were already dead.

Their corpses were dragged ashore and laid out on the sand under beach towels.

"But the knot of curious onlookers that formed around the girls' bodies dissolved as [swiftly] as it had formed," the newspaper Corriere della Sera reported. "Few left the beach or abandoned their sunbathing. When the police from the mortuary arrived an hour later with coffins, the two girls were carried away on the shoulders [of the officers] between bathers stretched out in the sun."

La Repubblica also expressed astonishment at the behaviour of those present. "While the lifeless bodies of the girls were still on the sand, there were those who carried on sunbathing or having lunch just a few metres away," it reported.

Corriere recalled that this was not the first time people had decided a death was no reason to give up their day at the beach. In August 1997, sunbathers carried on as normal after a man drowned near Trieste.

But the fact that the two victims on this occasion were Roma added an extra twist to the affair.

Italy is gripped by anti-Gypsy feeling. Since coming to office in May, Silvio Berlusconi's rightwing government has appointed three special commissioners to deal with the Roma in each of Italy's three biggest cities - Naples, Milan and Rome. It has also ordered the fingerprinting of the country's Gypsy population, including minors, who make up more than half of the estimated 150,000 Roma in Italy.

The European commission has asked the Italian government for more details on the census, and this month the European parliament approved a motion condemning it as an act of discrimination banned by the European convention of human rights. Berlusconi last week told the commission president, José Manuel Barroso, that the information was being collected to ensure Gypsy children went to school.

The civil liberties group EveryOne said it was unconvinced by reports of the incident at Torregaveta and asked whether there might be something more sinister behind it.

A statement from the group said: "Two young Roma would never have left their scant merchandise for 'a refreshing dip' in the waves. Two Gypsy girls would never have gone bathing in full view of everyone because of the modesty that is one of their distinguishing characteristics."

The group said it had asked for a meeting with the authorities, adding: "We await their response."

About this article

This article appeared in the Guardian on Monday July 21 2008 on p16 of the International section. It was last updated at 14:46 on July 21 2008.

for Guardian article click here

Why people are undocumented - dreamacttexas 1st Anniversary Series

This week the dreamactblog team is making an extra effort to present essays/photos/videos that will encourage conversations about immigration.

An important issue that comes to mind is the question of why people are undocumented. Anti-immigrationists often tell of their own families "standing in line" and "doing it the right way." While dreamacttexas and other blogs often re-state that there is no line - there are still many people out there who still believe that undocumented people came to the U.S. on a whim and are wanting to flaunt U.S. laws. These assumptions are wrong.

People only choose to remain here undocumented for the most serious of reasons. It is because they cannot make enough to support their families in their country of origin. For Americans, when we think of "not making enough" it is often about not having enough to pay the cellphone, the car payment, the credit cards, cable, internet etc. The reality is that undocumented immigrants are forced to immigrate because they do not make enough to buy food, have a home, have a car, or buy their kids school clothes.

Did you know that many immigrants who own small farms are forced to mortgage their property in order to pay someone to cross them? For those that get caught, either as they cross or sometime after they arrive - their lives are in effect ruined, because they can no longer make the mortgage payments - they lose their lands - When they are deported, they often have to immigrate to Mexico City to look for work- which is often much worse than the rural areas.

After a couple of years of talking to DREAMERS and other undocumented immigrants, I have learned of a number of "complications" that kept people from regularizing.

1. "My Mom didn't regularize me in 1986 because she didn't want me to get drafted when I was older. "

2. "My family applied for their residency, with my grandfather as our sponsor, but he died. There was no one left to sponsor us."

3. "My family waited so long for their residency papers, that I was already over 21 years old and was no longer allowed to apply as part of the group."

4. "My Mom moved here a month after I was born. Imagine, a few days earlier and I'd be an American citizen."

5. "Our family wanted to regularize, but we did not have the thousands of dollars charged by the lawyers."

6. "I could not afford the fees to purchase my Mexican passport. Since the passport alone wouldn't help me get to the U.S. I still had to gather the money for crossing - which was first priority. In Mexico most people only make 20 dollars per week."

7. "I was only 10. Mom and I had been separated for 5 years. She desperately wanted me with her. She had not been able to fix her papers, and didn't expect to do so for a very long time, so she paid someone to bring me across. She believed I was too young to be separated from her."

8. "U.S. immigration favors rich people. Rich Mexicans are welcomed here. You can see that at Houston's Galleria. A family that has a combined income of $20 per week has little chance to come across with a visa.

The Meaningless Dead

Link to photo

Remember all the bodies in New Orleans? Many wondered how such a horrible thing could happen - how can the dead be left on the streets, in the water, or sitting in wheel chairs among thousands of people?

The two Roma girls who drowned - were treated similarly - their bodies were left on the beach, partially covered with beach towels. People sunbathed nearby - as if the girl's bodies were invisible. Many Italians hate the Roma, and are not shocked by what happened. But some think the hatred and indifference have gone too far.

-----

The picture that shames Italy

By Peter Popham in Rome
The London Independent
Tuesday, 22 July 2008

It's another balmy weekend on the beach in Naples. By the rocks, a couple soak up the southern Italian sun. A few metres away, their feet poking from under beach towels that cover their faces and bodies, lie two drowned Roma children.

The girls, Cristina, aged 16, and Violetta, 14, were buried last night as the fallout from the circumstances of their death reverberated throughout Italy.

It is an image that has crystallised the mounting disquiet in the country over the treatment of Roma, coming after camps have been burnt and the government has embarked on a bid to fingerprint every member of the minority. Two young Roma sisters had drowned at Torregaveta beach after taking a dip in treacherous waters. Their corpses were recovered from the sea – then left on the beach for hours while holidaymakers continued to sunbathe and picnic around them....

It was the sort of tragedy that could happen on any beach. But what happened next has stunned Italy. The bodies of the two girls were laid on the sand; their sister and cousin were taken away by the police to identify and contact the parents. Some pious soul donated a couple of towels to preserve the most basic decencies. Then beach life resumed.

The indifference was taken as shocking proof that many Italians no longer have human feelings for the Roma, even though the communities have lived side by side for generations.

"This was the other terrible thing," says Mr Esposito, "besides the fact of the girls drowning: the normality. The way people continued to sunbathe, for three hours, just metres away from the bodies. They could have gone to a different beach. It's not possible that you can watch two young people die then carry on as if nothing happened. It showed a terrible lack of sensitivity and respect...."

The Italians and the Roma

Roma have been living in Italy for seven centuries and the country is home to about 150,000, who live mainly in squalid conditions in one of around 700 encampments on the outskirts of major cities such as Rome, Milan and Naples. They amount to less than 0.3 per cent of the population, one of the lowest proportions in Europe. But their poverty and resistance to integration have made them far more conspicuous than other communities. And the influx of thousands more migrants from Romania in the past year has confirmed the view of many Italians that the Gypsies and their eyesore camps are the source of all their problems. The ethnic group is often blamed for petty theft and burglaries. According to a recent newspaper survey, more than two thirds of Italians want Gypsies expelled, whether they hold Italian passports or not.

for link to complete Independent article click here

Mexico strategizes for better treatment of undocumented migrants in the U.S.

When I was living in Mexico in the late 90s, people used to tell me that migrants were treated worse in Mexico than in the U.S. That may not be true anymore, with U.S. immigration policy turning brutal and Mexican immigration policy loosening up.

It would make sense that Mexico would lighten its policies if it wants its own people to be treated more fairly in the U.S. Considering the deadly rhetoric going around, plus our do nothing Congress (with regards to immigration reform) - Mexico may not see much progress until the next administration - and that's a maybe.
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Mexico will no longer jail illegal immigrants
AP/Washington Post

Monday, July 21, 2008; 1:54 PM

MEXICO CITY -- Mexico will no longer jail illegal immigrants detained within its borders.

A measure that takes effect Tuesday eliminates jail times for illegal immigrants caught in Mexico. Most are crossing the country from Central America en route to the U.S.

Undocumented immigration will now be considered a minor offense, punishable by fines equal to US$500 to US$2,400. Illegal immigrants previously faced up to 10 years in prison, though most were simply deported...

for link to complete AP/WP article click here

Juana Villegas Part IV

More information on Juana Villegas.

Tim Chavez of  www.politicalsalsa.com first posted the story of Mrs. Villegas.   He has additional information on his website. The 287 deportation program in Tennessee needs to be repealed, most of the undocumented people picked up were stopped for traffic violations.  As for Mrs. Villegas being shackled - she is not a dangerous criminal as described by the Davidson County Sheriff's Dept. - It again appears that  DHS and ICE are not honoring the U.S. Constitution.

Maybe we need a Geneva Convention for immigrant detainees.  As shown with the Mrs. Villegas and the Postville detainees, shackling has become popular again.  If you recall, it was commonly used on slaves during in the 19th century.

A Coincidence or a Bit of Imitation?

Today the NYT had an essay on the Obama New Yorker cover. It was well written and thought provoking. There was such a similarity to a post I made yesterday, it seemed strange. Especially since it came up the day after I posted...

it could just be a coincidence... or a bit of imitation...

dreamacttexas post:

"It is ever ok to say stupid Mexicans?" July 19, 2008

Maybe (I am hoping) someone else would probably handle this type of situation differently - with a drawing of the boys playing ball while two kids and their mother (who are Latino) walk by. A bubble with a few words would be next to the boys, depicting what they actually said twenty years ago.

Each image would present an entirely different story. Which would be more accurate? If you draw Mexicans then all you see are three people walking down a sidewalk - if you want to present them as "stupid" there are many ways to depict this, but they all focus on the negative evaluation of the two kids and their mother. If you draw little boys screaming nasty things as the Mexican kids walk by, then you depict an interaction starts in the mouths of the boys playing - it is the boy's nasty language - there is no connection with anyone around them, except for their own imagination.

NY Times essay:

"We're Not Laughing at You, or With You," July 20, 2008

But if that very same New Yorker cover had been drawn in a balloon over the head of a deranged citizen — or a ruthless political operative — it would have appeared as plausible only in the mind of that person. The image would have come across as absurd and unjust — a version of reality exaggerated to the point of madness.