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Immigrants rally again but in less numbers
 CHICAGO, IL
- On May Day or International Workers’ Day 2007 many immigrants took the streets
in various cities throughout the United States. Unlike last year’s turnout, the
number of participants was significantly less. For example, last year’s
immigration rally in downtown Los Angeles was estimated at 650,000 whereas this
year’s was an estimated 25,000. The Chicago immigration rally had about 400,000
last year and about 150,000 this year. Some organizers believe the turnout was
lower than expected due to some immigrants fearing raids and their frustration
in seeing little progress in Congress passing an immigration bill since last
year’s marches. The majority of those participating in the marches were of
Hispanic heritage (some legally in the country and others not legally in the
country). However, some immigration marches were more ethnically diverse. There
were many American flags visible in the marches and they were for the most part
peaceful. Some organizers have now shifted their strategy to get those who
qualify to vote and to become U.S. citizens to do so, which may have a greater
impact than the marches. |
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New project documents both sides of immigration
 LOS ANGELES, CA
- Many Mexican border regions are an immigrant’s last gathering place before
heading out to the United States in search of a better life. One of those places
is Altar, Mexico. Not all those hoping to get across the U.S.-Mexico border are
of Mexican heritage, and it is common to see Central Americans there as well.
Steve Hartman, a CBS News correspondent, chose to do a special on migrants. He
interviewed Felicia, a young 15 year old girl, who was going to attempt to make
it to the U.S. along with her mother via the desert. The journey was expected to
take three days. Inside Felicia’s backpack was one set of clothes, cookies, a
roll of toilet paper and two garbage bags. The purpose of the bags was to shield
her from rain and the cold weather. Migrants heading into the desert have an
idea of what to expect, yet they will not be able to fully understand the
dangers of crossing until they are actually there. Since many migrants and U.S.
citizens cannot imagine what it is truly like, someone came up with the idea to
document the journey in a project called the Border Film Project.
The project
consisted of distributing 1,000 disposable cameras to those
crossing the border
and the Minutemen volunteers who guard certain regions of the
border to catch
them. To encourage participants from returning the camera, they were given a
pre-paid envelope. The images were shown to Felicia and other migrants who had
never seen these types of images, yet they were not discouraged. |
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Deputy training to include immigration law
 TUCSON, AZ
- In order to reduce crime, some Tucson border-crime deputies will be trained in
immigration law and also receive certification in this area. States like
Arizona, Texas and
California see a greater share of crimes that are
border-related. Under current law, deputies can only set up roadblocks for
anti-DUI purposes. However, if they are certified in immigration law the
deputies can set up roadblocks and ask drivers to provide proof of residency
status. If an individual is found to be illegally in the country, then that
individual would be temporarily detained and turned over to Border Patrol.
Sheriff Clarence Dupnik believes such roadblocks will make a difference in the
134 mile Pima County area where bandits and armed smugglers abound. The
roadblocks would allow deputies to intercept a greater number of these criminals
and to enforce state laws as well. In addition to the cross-training that some
deputies will be receiving, the fiscal year budget for law enforcement will be
increased. This will translate into anywhere from 6 to 12 new deputies being
hired, which will allow the border-crime unit to grow and become more effective. |
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Seung-Hui Cho was a Green Card holder
 BLACKSBURG, VA
- Seung-Hui Cho (Green Card photo on the left) and his family arrived in the United States in 1992 from South
Korea. The 23 year old was attending college at Virginia Polytechnic Institute
and State University (more commonly known as Virginia Tech). Cho was an English
major with senior standing. He was described as being a “loner” in high school,
but no one imagined what he was capable of doing on the morning of April 16,
2007 at the Virginia Tech campus located in Blacksburg, Virginia. Cho initially
walked into a co-ed dormitory hall and fatally shot two students there. After
leaving the scene, he sent a package to NBC news. About two hours later he
entered a different hall where classes were taking place. He chained locked the
hall’s three main entrances and went on a shooting rampage. Seng-Hui Cho killed
32 people in all (27 students and 5 faculty members) and also took his own life.
Cho possessed two firearms which he was able to obtain by presenting his
permanent residency card and driver’s license.
The Virginia Tech massacre is now
infamously the worst mass shooting to have taken place on an American campus.
The package sent to NBC included a manifesto, disturbing images and videos of
Cho expressing hatred toward rich kids and comparing himself to Jesus Christ. In
2005 he was declared mentally ill by a Virginia official and at least one of his
professors had recommended he get some counseling. |
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Immigration raids are becoming a common occurrence
 CHICAGO, IL
- Immigration raids are becoming a more common occurrence across the United
States and that alone is enough to instill fear in some immigrants. However,
lately there have been claims of abuse by Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) officials which has illegal immigrants and their advocates worried. Some
of the claims include denial of medical services, strip-searching, pressure to
sign deportation orders not entirely understood and rough handcuffing. Others
claim to have been charged up to $23,000 for a bail bond. In a raid that took
place in a packaging company of a middle class neighborhood of Illinois, a total
of nine illegal immigrants were detained by ICE officials. At the immigration
detention center, Maria de Carmen Santana claims she was thoroughly
strip-searched for drug searching purposes, got marks on her wrists as the
result of excessively tight handcuffs and was not able to receive pain
medication for her ankle tendonitis. A diabetic man who was not feeling well and
did not make his bed was supposedly punished with exercises. Other complaints
were that the food portions the detainees were given still left them hungry and
they were forced to sign deportation and removal orders. An ICE spokesman denied
the allegations and responded that all detainees are treated with utmost
respect. She even encouraged complaints to be filed if an individual was not
treated properly. |
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San Francisco, a “sanctuary” city
 SAN FRANCISCO, CA
- In response to the recent immigration raids, the mayor of San Francisco has
publicly declared that he and those serving under him will not assist federal
authorities with immigrant raids. He has declared San Francisco a “sanctuary”
for immigrants due to the intimidation many of them face during raids. It is
common for federal officials to come into cities with
deportation warrants and
in their quest for these individuals round up many more. In one instance, ICE
officials had five deportation warrants in Marin County and ended up taking more
than 60 individuals who were in the United States illegally. A
deportation
warrant allows immigration officials to arrest an immigrant not legally in the
U.S. or who has committed crimes. In addition, the immigrant must have
disregarded their final deportation orders. Immigration raids are not only
occurring at worksites but at homes as well. It is not only those who are in the
country illegally that are being intimidated by raids but includes others who
are in the country legally and end up being questioned due to wrong information
received by ICE officials. |
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This newsletter is published by U.S. Immigration Support, an independent organization. U.S. Immigration Support is not affiliated with the United States government. Please review our disclaimer for more information. |
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The U.S. Immigration Newsletter is published by:
U.S. Immigration Support
511 Avenue of the Americas # 45
New York, NY 10011
Web: www.usimmigrationsupport.org
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