The down payment's been paid, when will the goods to be delivered?

For years, all we've heard from those opposed to immigration and immigration reform is that until the government could prove that it was "serious" about border security and enforcement, no meaningful discussion of immigration reform was going to take place. The mantra of "we can't reform immigration laws until we control immigration, and we can't control immigration unless we control our borders" has been the guiding principle behind every obstructionist attempt to derail systematic reform. And attempts to appease restrictionists, by adopting "enforcement first" policies" have become the accepted framework from which all discussions were forced to start.

But most of those working for positive change have known all along that "enforcement first" is just a catch-22. It's an ever-moving target that was never intended to be reached. The ultimate goal of those opposed to reform has never been to "control" immigration...but rather to end it.

Yet despite these obvious facts, both the Bush and Obama administrations dived head first into the enforcement waters.

The last few years have been marked by hugely escalating enforcement budgets, increased apprehension, deportation and detention, increased use of local law enforcement, raids, and employer audits.

Programs like "Operation Streamline", "Secure Communities", "287G", "Operation Community Shield", and "Rapid REPEAT", (to name a few) have all been ramped up to locate, and remove the undocumented population. And while the human suffering caused by these and other programs has been immeasurable, no one can deny their effect on both illegal entry and presence.

So the question now becomes; At what point can we say enough is enough?

At what point will the forces that demand strict enforcement before any discussion of reform can begin, be content? Immigrant communities across this nation have paid the price, they've made their down payment on reform ...when do they finally see something in return?

A couple of new studies demonstrate just how effective and massive these programs and operations have become. Both examining just one aspect of enforcement ...federal prosecutions for immigration related crimes ... which have increased 459% in the last ten years.

The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) and Warren Institute at the University of California at Berkeley recently released reports highlighting the dramatic increase in federal immigration prosecutions and the link to Operation Streamline, a DHS program which mandates federal criminal prosecution of all persons caught crossing the border unlawfully.

The Warren Institute report highlights the impact of Operation Streamline on immigration enforcement and the TRAC report shows that federal immigration prosecutions rose to record levels during fiscal year 2009 and how a shift in priorities has created the largest number of federal immigration prosecutions of non-violent border crossers ever.

The latest available data from the Justice Department show that during the first nine months of FY 2009 the government reported 67,994 new immigration prosecutions. If this activity continues at the same pace, the annual total of prosecutions will be 90,659 for this fiscal year. According to the case-by-case information analyzed by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), this estimate is up 14.1 percent over the past fiscal year when the number of prosecutions totaled 79,431.

Number Year-to-date	67,994
Percent Change from previous year	14.1
Percent Change from 5 years ago	139
Percent Change from 10 years ago	459
Percent Change from 20 years ago	973

The comparisons of the number of defendants charged with immigration-related offenses are based on case-by-case information obtained by TRAC under the Freedom of Information Act from the Executive Office for United States Attorneys

Compared to five years ago when there were 37,884, the estimate of FY 2009 prosecutions of this type is up 139 percent. Prosecutions over the past year are much higher than they were ten years ago. Overall, the data show that prosecutions of this type are up 459 percent from the level of 16,219 reported in 1999 and up 973 percent from the level of 8,448 reported in 1989.
TRAC

While the TRAK report looked at record increase in all federal immigration prosecutions, the Warren Institute looked at the effect of just one Operation along the US/ Mexico border: Operation Streamline.

The Department of Homeland Security(DHS) began implementing OperationStreamline along the U.S.-Mexico border in2005. The program has fundamentally transformed DHS’s border enforcement practices. Before Operation Streamline began, DHSBorder Patrol agents voluntarily returned first-time border crossers to their home countries or detained them and formally removed them from the United States through the civil immigration system. The U.S. Attorney’s Office reserved criminal prosecution for migrants with criminal records and for those who made repeated attempts to cross the border. Operation Streamline removed that prosecutorial discretion, requiring the criminal prosecution of all undocumented border crossers, regardless of their history.

Operation Streamline has generated unprecedented caseloads in eight of the eleven federal district courts along the border, straining the resources of judges, U.S. attorneys, defense attorneys, U.S. Marshals, and court personnel. The program’s voluminous prosecutions have forced many courts to cut procedural corners. Magistrate judges conduct en masse hearings, during which as many as 80 defendants plead guilty at a time, depriving migrants of due process. Indeed, in December 2009, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that Operation Streamline’s en masse plea hearings in Tucson, Arizona violate federal law.By focusing court and law enforcement resources on the prosecution of first-time entrants, Operation Streamline also diverts attention away from fighting drug smuggling, human trafficking, and other crimes that create border violence
Assembly-Line Justice: A Review of Operation Streamline

• Immigration prosecutions make up 54 percent of all federal criminal prosecutions. The most prosecuted federal immigration crimes in FY 2009 were for immigrants caught entering the United States at an improper time or place, totaling approximately 40,000. Between 2002 and 2008, prosecutions for first time illegal entry in border district courts increased 330% from 12,411 to 53,697


• Illegal reentry of a deported alien accounted for nearly 22,000 prosecutions in FY 2009.


• In contrast, potential smuggling charges were brought less frequently. TRAC found 2,980 prosecutions for bringing in and harboring certain aliens, and 106 prosecutions for aiding and abetting an illegal entry.


• 85% of the prosecutions originated with Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accounted for 13% of the prosecutions.


• Before 2005, CBP voluntarily returned first time border crossers or formally removed them through the civil system. Federal prosecutions were used almost exclusively for individuals with previous criminal records or repeat crossers. Operation Streamline --instituted in Del Rio, Texas in 2005 and later expanded to other areas -- shifted this practice by eliminating prosecutorial discretion and requiring that all unlawful border crossers be prosecuted in federal criminal court and imprisoned if convicted, regardless of their immigration history.15 Those who are caught entering the U.S. illegally for the first time are prosecuted for misdemeanors punishable by up to 6 months in prison.


• Most Operation Streamline defendants are migrants from Mexico or Central America who have no prior criminal convictions and who have attempted to cross the border in search of work or to reunite with family in the United States.


• The link between Operation Streamline and federal prosecution rates can be seen in the judicial districts near these enforcement zones. The Southern District of Texas prosecutes the most immigration crimes, with 23,000 in FY 2009, up 22.1% from FY 2008.1819 The District of Arizona was second with 16,477, up 39.7% from FY 2008.

If we add the fact that President Obama's proposed budget for 2011 includes additional increases in spending along the border and for interior enforcement it becomes obvious that the enforcement juggernaut has far from reached it's end.

So we must now ask ourselves ... when in fact will the border ever be "secure" enough?

We have long heard about the failures of 1986 and how if only the laws were enforced, then we could start to look at reforming the dysfunctional and broken system that only feeds the growing prison-industrial complex.

Well, the laws have been enforced.

There's been a nearly 1000% increase in immigration prosecutions since 1990. In 2009 alone, the U.S. government had held over 440,000 people in immigration custody – more than triple the number of people in detention just ten years ago - and deported 387,000 immigrant workers, the highest recorded number in U.S. history.

So, how much longer are the "sins" of 1986 to hang over everyone's heads? Is there some secret magic number that needs to be reached? Is it a 2000% or 3000% increase in prosecutions? One Million in detention or deported?

How large a price must be paid by immigrant communities before there is a remedy? How many more mothers must be separated from their children? How many families torn apart? Communities terrorized? How many more lives destroyed and futures taken away?

When will the down payment paid in suffering and sorrow be acknowledge ... and the promise of reform finally be honored.?

I think it's fair to say ...NOW!!!!!!

Read More...

Summary only...

Over 500 Groups Demand End To Local Immigration Checks

Since taking office, the Obama Administration has been doing a carefully choreographed dance with both sides of the immigration debate in an attempt to place itself in a "sweet spot" where it believes it will be able to appease all concerned parties when the thorny issue of immigration reform finally moves up the legislative agenda.

Taking a cue from past administrations who tackled immigration legislation, like Reagan in 86, and Clinton in 95, Obama has chosen to pave the way for negotiations by launching a pre-emptive strike against opposition from the right by engaging in increased crackdowns and heavy-handed enforcement to prove that he's "serious about enforcing the law". Both Reagan and Clinton engaged in increased workplace raids and ramped up deportations before coming to the table to negotiate. Bush, did the same after the failure of reform legislation in 06.

But Obama, being much more attuned than his predecessors to the potential negative PR ramifications of pictures of crying children, or parents being paraded around in shackles, plastered across the pages of the New York Times or the Nightly News, has chosen to send his dog-whistle messages to the right in far more subtle ways.

Since taking office he's increased the number of deportations and detentions through the use of roundups of "criminal aliens" (and anyone within proximity to them), and increased use of local law enforcement to single out undocumented immigrants at traffic stops and routine misdemeanor calls. Additionally he's ramped up the use of the provisions of Clinton's 1996 legislation that allows the deportation of legal residents who've run afoul of the law (even years ago on minor charges.)

While both he, and his Homeland Defense Secretary, have promised to review it's agreements with local enforcement agencies and revise their detention policies to make them more "humane", neither has been willing to totally abandon the enforcement policies that fill those detention centers.

Finally last week, 521 immigrant-rights and human-rights organizations threw down the gauntlet and demanded that the Administration immediately terminate the Department of Homeland Security's 287(g) program that allows over 66 different local law enforcement agencies to run roughshod over the constitution

August 25, 2009

The President
The White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We, the undersigned civil rights, community, and immigrant rights organizations, urge you to immediately terminate the 287(g) program operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The program has come under severe criticism this year because local law enforcement agencies that have been granted 287(g) powers are using the program to target communities of color, including disproportionate numbers of Latinos in particular places, for arrest. Racial profiling and other civil rights abuses by the local law enforcement agencies that have sought out 287(g) powers have compromised public safety, while doing nothing to solve the immigration crisis.

We applaud your recent remarks acknowledging, that “there is a long history in this country of African Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately.” However, DHS’s continued use of the 287(g) program exacerbates exactly this type of racial profiling. In light of well-documented evidence that local law enforcement agencies are using 287(g) powers to justify and intensify racial profiling, Secretary Napolitano’s July 10, 2009 announcement that DHS has expanded the 287(g) program to include 11 new jurisdictions is deeply alarming.

Since its inception, the 287(g) program has drawn sharp criticism from federal officials, law enforcement, and local community groups. The program, largely recognized as a failed Bush experiment, relinquishes the power to enforce immigration law to local law enforcement and corrections agencies and has resulted in the widespread use of pretextual traffic stops, racially motivated questioning, and unconstitutional searches and seizures primarily in communities of color. In a country where racial profiling by law enforcement agents has led to massive arrests of people of color, these efforts to push immigrants into the criminal justice system is not surprising, but absolutely counterproductive to increasing public safety.

A March 2009 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report criticized DHS for program mismanagement and insufficient oversight of the controversial program. The DHS Inspector General is currently conducting an audit of the 287(g) program, and the Department of Justice launched a civil rights investigation into the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, whose 287(g) program has been widely criticized for engaging in racial and ethnic profiling. The Police Foundation, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the Major Cities Chiefs Association have expressed concerns that deputizing local law enforcement officers to enforce civil federal immigration law undermines their core public safety mission, diverts scarce resources, increases their exposure to liability and litigation, and exacerbates fear in communities.

Reports of abuse in local communities have been widespread. In Davidson County, Tennessee, the Sheriff’s Office used its 287(g) power to apprehend undocumented immigrants driving to work, standing at day labor sites, or while fishing off piers. One pregnant woman---charged with driving without a license---was shackled to her bed during labor. In Gwinnett County, Georgia, even without formal 287(g) powers, over 350 individuals were detained and deported from the jail this February after being arrested for driving without a license, a county ordinance violation, or on traffic or misdemeanor charges. The Gwinnett jail is triple-bunked, with one person in each cell sleeping on the floor, and the jail’s internal SWAT team is known for appearing in ski masks to subdue detainees it deems uncooperative. Yet, Gwinnett County is among the 11 jurisdictions granted new 287(g) approval by Secretary Napolitano earlier this month.

In a recent research report, Justice Strategies, a nonpartisan research firm, found evidence that links the expansion of the program to racial animus against communities of color. According to FBI and census data, sixty-one percent of ICE-deputized localities had violent and property crime indices lower than the national average, while eighty-seven percent of these localities had a rate of Latino population growth higher than the national average.

The abusive misuse of the 287(g) program by its current slate of agencies has rendered it not only ineffective, but dangerous to community safety. The program has worked counter to community policing goals by eroding the trust and cooperation of immigrant communities and diverted already reduced law enforcement resources from their core mission. DHS’s proposed changes to the program not only fail to correct its serious flaws,
but also create new ones.

We know that you are committed to tackling our nation’s most complex issues, for these reasons we ask that you examine the damaging impact the 287(g) program is having on immigrant communities across the country and terminate the program. We would be pleased to provide additional information or recommendations regarding current programs and operations of DHS.

Thank you for your consideration. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Marielena Hincapié, executive director, National Immigration Law Center

Sincerely,
Marielena Hincapie
National Immigration Law Center
Executive Director

Kudos to those organizations standing up for human and civil rights for all:

National Organizations:

9 to 5, National Association of Working Women
Action Committee for Women in Prison (ACWIP)
Adrian Dominican Sisters
African American Ministers in Action (AAMIA)
All of Us or None
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)
American Arab Forum (AAF)
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
American G.I. Forum (AGIF)
American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
Anti-Defamation League (ADL)
Asian American Justice Center (AAJC)
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF)
Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN)
ASISTA Immigration Assistance
Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN)
Black Alliance for Just Immigration
Bill of Rights Defense Committee (BORDC)
Border Network for Human Rights (BNHR)
BRAC
Breakthrough: Building Human Rights Culture
Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR)
Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law
Center for Media Justice
Center for New Community
Center for Third World Organizing (CTWO)
Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (CJCJ)
Church World Service, Immigration and Refugee Program
Citizen Orange
Coalition of African, Arab, Asian, European and Latino Immigrant (CAAAELII)
Colombian American Cultural Society
Consejo de Federaciones Mexicanas en Norteamerica (COFEM)
Council on Crime and Justice
Defending Dissent Foundation
Deported Diaspora
Detention Watch Network (DWN)
Drug Policy Alliance Network (DPA Network)
Drum Major Institute (DMI)
Equal Justice Society
Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM)
Fellowship of Reconciliation USA (FOR USA)
Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center (FIAC)
Foundation for Change
Foundations for Our New Alkebulan/Afrikan Millennium (FONAMI)
Gamaliel Foundation
Guatemalan Immigrant Movement (MIGUA)
Global Action Project (GAP)
Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW)
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
Grassroots Leadership
Gray Panthers
Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional
Hispanic American Association
Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC)
INCITE! Women of Color Against Domestic Violence
International CURE
Irish Apostolate USA
Jobs with Justice (JWJ)
Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Network (JPIC)
Justice Strategies
La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE)
Latino Justice PRLDEF
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights (LCCR)
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR)
Legion of Mary
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS)
Malcolm X Grassroots Movement (MXGM)
March 25 Coalition
Medical Mission Sisters' Alliance for Justice
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF)
Ms. Foundation for Women
Mundo Maya Foundation, Inc.
NAACP Legal Defense Fund
National Alliance of Latin American & Caribbean Communities (NALACC)
National Alliance to End Sexual Violence (NAESV)
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF)
National Black Police Association (NBPA)
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Council of La Raza (NCLR)
National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON)
National Employment Law Project (NELP)
National Immigrant Bond Fund
National Immigration Law Center (NILC)
National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Inc.
National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC)
National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (NNIRR)
National Training and Information Center (NTIC)
National People's Action (NPA)
NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby
Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA)
Pax Christi USA
People For the American Way (PFAW)
Progressive States Network
Real Cost of Prisons Project (RCPP)
Respect Respeto
Rights Working Group (RWG)
Ruckus Society
Safe Streets Art Foundation
Salvadoran American National Network (SANN)
Sentencing Project
Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas--Institute Justice Team
Sisters of the Holy Cross – Congregation Justice Committee
South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT)
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
SpeakOut - Institute for Democratic Education & Culture
SpiritHouse
Sugar Law Center for Economic and Social Justice
The Caribbean Voice
The Episcopal Church
The Praxis Project
The Tahirih Justice Center
Transnational Institute for Grassroots Research and Action (TIGRA)
United Network for Immigrants and Refugee Rights (UNIRR)
Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations
United African Organization
United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE)
United for a Fair Economy (UFE)
United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society
United Methodist Women (UMW)
United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS)
United We DREAM (UWD)
Victim Rights Law Center (VRLC)
VIVE, Inc.
VivirLatino.com
War Times/Tiempo de Guerras
William C. Velasquez Institute (WCVI)
Women of Color United
Women's Refugee Commission
World Organization for Human Rights


Regional, State and Local Organizations:

32BJ SEIU
9 to5 Atlanta
9to5 Bay Area
9to5 Colorado
9to5 Milwaukee
9to5 Los Angeles
A New Way of Life Reentry Project
American Postal Workers Union AFL-CIO Local 591
Atlantans Building Leadership for Empowerment (ABLE)
ACORN California
African American Ministers in Action
AFSC - San Diego
AFSC-Austin office
AFT/ Nicaragua Center for Community Action
AIDS Care Ocean State
Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice
Alianza Indigena Sin Fronteras
Alianza Latinoamericana por los Derechos de los Inmigrantes (ALIADI)
Alliance of White Anti-Racists Everywhere - Los Angeles (AWARE-LA)
Amigos Multicultural Services Center
Annunciation House, Inc.
Anti-Racist Action-Los Angeles/People Against Racist Terror (ARA-LA)
Arab Resource and Organizing Center
Arise Chicago
Arizona Advocacy Network
Arizona Dream Act Coalition
Asian / Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project
Asian Law Alliance
Asian Law Caucus
Asian Pacific American Legal Center
Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach
Austin Immigrant Rights Coalition
Bay Area Immigration Taskforce/JFON
Bend-Condega Friendship Project
Benedictine Mission House
Berkshire Immigrant Center
Blessing Xchange
Books Not Bars
Border Action
Border Ambassadors
Boulder Community United
Brass Liberation Orchestra
Brazilian Total Assistance, Inc.
Building Locally to Organize for Community Safety (BLOCS)
CADENA
California Coalition for Women Prisoners
California Prison Moratorium Project
Canal Alliance
Capital Area Immigrants' Rights Coalition
CASA de Maryland
Casa de Proyecto Libertad
Casa Esperanza
Casa Freehold
Casa Latina
Catholic Caucus Southeast Michigan
The Catholic Center
Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking LA (CAST LA)
Catholic Community of St. Michael/St. Patrick
Catholic Legal Services, Archdiocese of Miami, Inc.
Center for Artistic Revolution (CAR)
Center for Independent Living of South Florida, Inc.
Center for Participatory Change (CPC)
Central American Resource Center (CRECEN)
Centro Campesino Farmworker Center, Inc.
Centro de Orientacion del Inmigrante CODI
Centro de Servicios Hispanos, WI
Centro Hispano
Centro Hispano Comunitario De Nebraska
Challenging White Supremacy (CWS)
Chelsea Collaborative
Chiapas Support Committee
Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers (CLAIM)
Chicago Media Watch (CMA)
Chicago New Sanctuary Coalition
Children and Family Justice Center
Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA)
Christian Alliance of Arkansas
Citizens Against Recidivism, Inc.
Citizens Alert
Citizens for Border Solutions
Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA)
Comisión Latinoamericana por los Derechos y Libertades de los Trabajadores y Pueblos
(CLADEHLT)
Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers (CLAIM)
Claire Heureuse Community Center, Inc
Club Migrante Cheran-Sur de Ilinois
Coalition for Economic Justice
Coalition for Justice, Peace and Dignity
Coalition for Prisoners' Rights
Coalition of Latino Leaders (CLILA)
Coastal Community Action Inc
CODEPINK Arizona
Coalicion de Organizaciones Latino-Americanas (COLA)
Collaborative Center for Justice, Inc.
Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault (CCASA)
Community Coalition for Healthcare Access
Community Development Project, Urban Justice Center
Community to Community Development
Community United Against Violence (CUAV)
Community Works West
Companeros
Cristo Rey Catholic Church
Critical Resistance - Los Angeles
Darfur Community Organization
Direct Action for Rights and Equality
Discrimination & National Security Initiative
Dominican Development Center-DDC
East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy
East Bay Sanctuary Covenant
East Williamson County Democratic Club
EastSide Arts Alliance
Economic Justice Coalition
El Centro de Igualdad y Derechos
El Centro de la Raza
El Centro Latino, Inc.
El Grupo of North San Diego County
El Pueblo - Immigration Legal Services
El Pueblo, Inc.
El Vinculo Hispano
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
English for Action
Equal Justice Center
FaithAction International House
Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children (FFLIC)
Families for Freedom
Families to Amend California’s Three Strikes (FACTS)
Farmworker Association of Florida
Filipinos for Affirmative Action
Florida Immigrant Coalition
Freedom House
Freeport Community Worklink Center
Fuerza Laboral
Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights
Georgia Rural Urban Summit
Georgia STAND UP
Glenmary Commission on Justice
Gloria Dei Lutheran Church
Gloria Dei Step Up Center
Good Shepher of the Hills Episcopal Church Cave Creek
Greater Boston United for Justice with Peace Coalition
Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition
Grupo Shalom
Guatemala Solidarity Committee Boston
Green Valley Samaritans/The Good Shepherd United Church Of Christ
Hand in Hand/ Mano en Mano
Harris County Green Party
Health Education Solutions
Heartland Alliance National Immigrant Justice Center
Highlander Research and Education Center
Hispanic Coalition, Inc.
Hispanic Resource Center of Larchmont and Mamaroneck
Homies Unidos
Houston DREAM Act Coalition
Houston Interfaith Worker Justice Center
Hudson Valley Community Coalition, Inc.
Human Concerns Committee St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Palo Alto CA
Human Rights Initiative of North Texas
Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur de California (IDEPSCA)
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Immigrant Defense Project (IDP)
Immigrant Family Advocates of Bend, Oregon
Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota
Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project (ILAP)
Immigrant Rights Clinic, NYU School of Law
Immigration Clinic, University of MD School of Law
Immigration Law Clinic, UC Davis
Immigrant Solidarity Dupage
Immigration Research Team, A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS)
INCITE! LA
Indo-American Center
Institute for Urban Policy Research
Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center - Cincinnati
Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center-- Congregation of St. Joseph
Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice of South Central Wisconsin
International Institute of Rhode Island
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement
Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault
IRATE & First Friends
Irish Immigration Center
Jobs With Justice of East Tennessee
Jewish Community Action
JUNTOS/Casa de los Soles
Justice and Peace Commission
Justice Now
Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana
Kentucky Interfaith Taskforce for Latin America and the Caribbean
Kino Border Initiative
Korean American Resource & Cultural Center (KRCC)
Korean Resource Center (KRCLA)
La Capilla de Santa Maria, Episcopal Church
La Causa, Inc.
La Fuente
La Raza Centro Legal
Labor/Community Strategy Center
Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center
Latin American Coalition
Latino Advocacy Coalition of Henderson County
Latino American Initiative of Nebraska (LAI)
Latino American employee network of Creighton University (LAEN-CU)
Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey
Latino Union of Chicago
Latino Youth Collective of Indiana
League of Rural Voters
League of United Latin American Citizens #754
League of United Latin American Citizens #761
League of United Latin American Citizens Florida
Legal Aid Justice Center -- Immigrant Advocacy Program
Legal Aid Service of Broward County
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (LSPC)
Legal Voice
Liberian Community Association of Central New Jersey & the Metro
Living Waters Lutheran Church
Long Beach Immigrant Rights Coalition
Long Island Immigrant Solidarity
Long Island Jobs with Justice
Los Angles Community Legal Center and Educational
MA Resist the Raids Network
Make the Road New York
March 10th Movement
Marin Interfaith Task Force on the Americas (MITF)
Massachusetts Global Action
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
Massachusetts Jobs with Justice
Matahari: Eye of the Day
McHenry County Latino Coalition
Meadowlark Center
Middlesex County Coalition for Immigrant Rights
Migration and Refugee Services Diocese of Trenton
Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Coalition (MIRAc)
Mission Houston
Missouri Immigrant & Refugee Advocates
Monmouth County Pax Christi
Monsoon United Asian Women of Iowa
Mount Kisco Drug and Alcohol Abuse Prevention Council
Movimiento Migrante Mesoamericano
Mujeres Unidas y Activas
Multicultural Center of Hope
NC Justice Center
Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest
Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, Immigration Services Project
New Jersey Civil Rights Defense Committee
New Jersey Immigration Policy Network
New Jersey Tenants Organization
New Labor
New Orleans Workers' Center for Racial Justice (NOWCRJ)
New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI)
New York State Youth Leadership Council (NYSYLC)
NH Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees
NJ Coalition for Battered Women
No More Deaths-Phoenix
North Carolina Council of Churches
North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA)
Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights
Northwest Federation of Community Organizations (NWFCO)
Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP)
Project Rebound
Ohio Justice and Policy Center
Olneyville Neighborhood Association
ONE/Northwest
OneAmerica
Oregon New Sanctuary Movement
Organization of Chinese Americans - Westchester & Hudson Valley
Organization of Chinese Americans- New Jersey Chapter
Palm Beach County Coalition for Immigrant Rights
Partnership for Safety & Justice (PSJ)
Paso del Norte Civil Rights Project
Pastores en Accion
Pax Christi Austin
Pax Christi Metro New York
Pax Christi Metrowest
Pax Christi NJ
Pax Christi Texas
Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape
Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition
People of Faith Peacemakers
People Organized in Defense of Earth and her Resources (PODER)
Portland Green Cultural Projects Ltd
Prax(us)
Presentation Sisters
Priority Africa Network
Prison Policy Initiative
Project South
Providence Students for a Democratic Society
Proyecto Azteca
Proyecto Digna, Inc
Proyecto Voz, American Friends Service Committee - New England
Public Justice Center
Quad Cities Interfaith (Gamaliel Network)
Reform Immigration FOR Arkansas Coalition
Resource Center of the Americas
RI Jobs with Justice
RI Mobilization Committee to Stop War and Occupation
Rights for All People
Rochester Committee on Latin America
Rockland Immigration Coalition
Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network
Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center
Rural Organizing Project
Safe Streets/Strong Communities
School of the Americas Watch L. A. chapter
School Sisters of Notre Dame - Global Justice & Peace Commission
Service Center for Latinos Inc.
Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN)
Shalom Community Church
Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Central Leadership
Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill
Sisters of Mercy in Guam
Sisters of Mercy Sisters of Mercy Community of New York, Pennsylvania
Sisters of Mercy West Midwest Justice Team
Sisters of Mercy West Midwest Leadership Team
Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur
Sisters of Providence Mother Joseph Province
Sisters of St. Francis
Sisters of St. Joseph of Rochester
Sisters of the Divine Compassion
Social Justice Guild of the First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta
Somervile/Medford United with Justice and Peace
Somos America
SOS Inc.
South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault
South Texas Civil Rights Project
Southern California Library
Southern Center for Human Rights
Southern Coalition for Social Justice
Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
Southern Poverty Law Center
Southwest Creations Collaborative
Southwest Organizing Project
Southwest Voter Registration Education Project
SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW!
St. Francis Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Committee
St. Joseph Valley Project - Jobs with Justice
St. Peter's Housing Committee
St. Pious Immigration Reform Group
Sunflower Community Action - Comunidad Latina en Accion
Texas Civil Rights Project
Texas Criminal Justice Coalition
Texas Indigenous Council
Texas Jail Project
Texas/Oklahoma/New Mexico Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers
Association
The Advocates for Human Rights
The Ashe County Health Council, A Healthy Carolinians Task Force
The Austin Center for Peace and Justice
The Harriet Tubman Freedom House Project
The Hispanic/Latino Center, Inc.
The Jubilee Center at Saint Matthew/San Mateo Episcopal Church
The Network/La Red
The New York Immigration Coalition
The Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition
The Trauma Healing Project, Inc
Time for Change Foundation
TN Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition
Tonatierra
Town of East Hampton Anti-Bias Task Force
Trinity Episcopal Church
Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of NJ
Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of RI
Unite for Dignity, Inc.
UNited Dubuque Immigrant Alliance (UN DIA)
Urban Morgan Institute for Human Rights
Ursuline Sisters
Ursulines of Brown County
Utah Immigrant And Refugee Integration Coalition
Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
Vermont Workers' Center
Violence Intervention Program (VIP)
Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations
Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy
Virginia Organizing Project
Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance
Voces de la Frontera
Voice of the Ex-offender
Watts/Century Latino Organization
WeCount!
West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project
Westchester Hispanic Coalition
Western NC Community Health Services
Westside Community Action Network Center, Inc.
Wind of the Spirit, Immigrant Resource Center
WISDOM, The Gamaliel Foundation in Wisconsin
Women's Employment Rights Clinic
Women for CrossCultural Action
Women Helping Women
Workers Defense Project (PDL)
Workers Interfaith Network (WIN)
Workers' Rights Center
Workers' Rights Law Center of New York, Inc. (WRLC)
Young Democratic Socialists (YDS)
Youth Justice Coalition
Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice

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Reading the Tea Leaves: McLarty-Bush Council on Foreign Relations Report

After months of wading through the mixed messages and red herrings thrown out by The Administration and Democratic leadership, trying to figure out exactly what form the long promised initiative to reform US immigration policy will take, a rough blueprint for Comprehensive Immigration Reform has finally emerged from The Council on Foreign Relations.

If I'm reading my tea leaves correctly, the report, written by a nineteen member bipartisan panel, lays out what will become the "middle ground" consensus position that pro-reform forces will rally around. The fact that the panel contains representatives from the various factions of the newest version of the CIR coalition, including those with ties to advocacy groups like NCLR and unions like SEIU, along with economists, scholars, politicians and members of government agencies, leads me to believe that my hunch is most likely right.

In my last post introducing the report, I promised I would follow through with further examination and analysis of exactly what I believe those within the beltway are formulating for the upcoming legislative battle. In fact, that initial post in what will become a series of articles examining all the various aspects of the reports observations and recommendation, attracted the attention of Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America's Voice.

While I intend to follow through with posts covering all the good, bad, and ugly contained in the report in hopes of getting a firm hold on exactly what to expect when the CIR debate begins, Mr. Sharry made a point in his response to my post of singling out the Task Force's recommendations on immigrant detention and incarceration for their forward thinking.

Since immigrant detention has been a topic of much concern and conversation among those of the broader pro-migrant movement, I figure I'll start by taking Mr Sharry up on his challenge, and examine the Task Force's recommendations and observations on detention.

First off, I must commend the Task Force simply for the title of this section of the report: "Upholding American Values." The mere fact that they see the problems with the current system of detention and incarceration as a "values" or moral issue is a step in the right direction after years of tough talk and dehumanizing rhetoric whenever immigrant detention is discussed.

Upholding American Values

Even as the United States enforces its immigration laws vigorously, it is vital that this be done in a way that upholds core American values, humane treatment, and the dignity of the individual.

The Task Force believes three areas in particular are in need of immediate and serious review: incarceration policies, the severe penalties for some immigration and minor criminal violations, and policies on refugees and asylees.

The Task Force believes that all immigrants to the United States, regardless of their legal status, have a right to fair consideration under the law and humane treatment. We therefore encourage the administration and Congress to implement the following measures:

1. Expand the use of alternatives to detention.

Pilot projects in DHS have shown that programs that provide an alternative to incarceration— from restrictive measures such as ankle bracelets to less restrictive measures that are the equivalent of monitoring parolees—are successful in many instances at keeping track of asylum claimants or others facing removal hearings, and at lower costs than incarceration.

Although any individual considered a criminal or a security threat should be detained for as long as necessary, except in a few cases, asylum claimants or immigration violators are not who would ordinarily be thought of as criminals and should not be treated as such.

That same principle also calls for better treatment of those detained while they await deportation or adjudication of legal challenges or asylum requests. Those who must be detained for security reasons should be housed in facilities separate from regular criminal populations and as close as possible to their family and community, provided with safe and healthy living conditions, and given full access to medical treatment when necessary. Detainees should also be allowed ready access to legal counsel (and interpreters if needed), which in most cases is necessary for individuals trying to deal with the complexities of U.S. immigration law. Their terms of detention should be kept as short as possible.

2. Revisit some of the penalties passed by Congress as part of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.

Congress should reconsider provisions of the 1996 laws that instituted mandatory three-year, five-year, ten-year, and permanent bans from the United States for certain violations of U.S. immigration law. Too often these bars on admission, rather than deterring people from remaining illegally in the United States, have posed an insurmountable hurdle to those who might otherwise be able to obtain lawful status by going abroad and applying for reentry. Although such provisions have their place, they should not always be mandatory, and there should be discretion for immigration officers and the immigration courts to waive them when appropriate.

Congress should also clarify the meaning of the term aggravated felony so as to limit mandatory deportations to those found guilty of serious crimes, especially crimes of violence, and to clarify the situations in which U.S. attorneys and immigration judges will be allowed to consider alternative penalties.

For its part, the administration should increase the discretion of immigration trial counsel to halt deportation proceedings in certain cases.

Before 9/11, government immigration lawyers had—and were encouraged—to exercise discretion to not seek deportation orders against unlawful immigrants in cases in which it would cause severe hardship for their families or for other humanitarian reasons. That discretion should be restored. Immigration judges should also have the ability to consider extenuating circumstances such as the nature of the offense, the time since it occurred, and an individual’s family ties to the United States in making decisions on cases involving aggravated felonies.

3. The administration should create an office within DHS that is responsible for refugee protection, and give greater priority for refugee issues throughout DHS and in the White House.

As recommended, the government should limit detention of asylum seekers, wherever it is consistent with security needs, and establish better treatment for those who must be detained. Congress must revisit the broad definitions of material support for terrorist organizations that were approved after 9/11 to ensure that those laws better target persons with genuine terrorist
ties or who have voluntarily aided and assisted terrorist organizations.

The government should also support efforts to rescue academic scholars facing persecution in their home countries. Further, the Task Force supports the recommendations of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, which calls for improvements in the treatment of asylum seekers who face expedited removal when they make their claims at a U.S. port of entry.

Finally, the Task Force recommends the creation of a new nonimmigrant visa category for endangered and persecuted scholars, which would significantly increase the U.S. capacity not only to protect lives but also to bring to this country some of the world’s most brilliant minds.

Read Complete report

Before going any further, I think I should mention a few basic guidelines that I believe to be necessary not only for any analysis of this section of the report… but all sections dealing with enforcement and punishment.

Firstly, I believe that it's not unreasonable to acknowledge that any law, from the simplest laws enacted by a city council concerning when and where one might park a car, to the most complex tax codes, must contain some sort of punishment component for those who fail to comply with it. And the same should hold true for immigration law. But with that said, a just and humane society ensures that the punishment is always proportional to the crime and not excessively punitive, and perhaps more importantly … is administered fairly and equitably regardless of any and all other factors. This obviously has been far from the case as far as immigration law is currently written and administered.

Secondly, any punishment component of reform cannot in fact take effect until after all other components have been put in place and enacted. Those on the right have insisted that no reform should take place until enforcement is well under way. Their rationale being that the American people want to make sure that the rules will be obeyed before granting any relief. But this thinking is backwards. To insist on continually trying to make a broken system work before fixing it makes no sense.

Once all the myriad of problems of current immigration law are address and the system is functional, practical, and fair, then punishing those who fail to obey those laws is reasonable … but until that time, it is merely cruel, arbitrary, irrational…and immoral. And as such, should stop until such time as new laws are enacted.

With those two premises accepted, analysis of enforcement issues becomes somewhat simpler and the goals more clear.

The Task Force's report makes quite a few excellent recommendations. While falling short of calling for a moratorium on detention as I would like to see, it does address many of the core issues.

It's recognition that "asylum claimants or immigration violators are not who would ordinarily be thought of as criminals and should not be treated as such." and that those who must be held for genuine security reasons be guaranteed safe and healthy living conditions, given full access to medical treatment and provided proper legal council is a huge step in the right direction. If even these few simple items became codified and guaranteed in the next round of CIR it would be a giant step in the right direction.

Also very encouraging is the Task Force's call to revisit the harsh penalties and enforcement measures enacted in the 1996 laws. Particularly important is the call to revise the changes made in 1996 that altered the classifications of what infractions could be deemed aggravated felonies….and limit them to those considered " serious crimes, especially crimes of violence." This is a welcome change from the punitive language we saw in HR 4437 and later in McCain-Kennedy and the Grand Compromise.

On a whole these recommendations make a good starting point for addressing the issue of detention. … But the Task Force leaves far too many questions unanswered and stops short of taking all necessary actions. It fails to address one of the root problems in the current detention system … the burgeoning business of for-profit immigration prisons and the total lack of oversight and accountability that is inherent with private sector incarceration.

As long as huge profits are to be made not only in criminalizing immigration violations but mistreating those incarcerated, there will always be a fatal weakness in the system.

Any CIR legislation must make detention issues a core component. It must demand complete transparency and accountability for all detention providers, be they privately owned or public at the state or local level. Strict guidelines must be set at the federal level that assures uniformity across the spectrum and harsh punishment for those violating those guidelines. It must, as a core principle, look not at how best to treat those detained… but how to detain as few as possible.

We will judge future legislation and policy not by how successful it's been in apprehending, deporting, or incarcerating migrants … but rather in how little apprehension, deportation and incarceration is necessary.

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Sheriff Joe to March Immigrant Detainees to Tent City in Chains

Tomorrow afternoon, Sheriff Joe Arpaio plans to parade 220 chained immigrant detainees, carrying their own bedding, through the streets of Phoenix from the county jail to their new home in a newly expanded area in Arpaio's infamous "Tent City"

Having expanded his tent facility to house 2500 of the 10,000 inmates currently incarcerated in the county jail with a newly authorized $1.6 million dollar grant from the state, Arpaio vows to fill it with immigrant detainees.

Surrounded by an electrified fence that Joe jokes will be one that immigrants "won't want to scale," the tent facility will eventually become the new home for those caught in Arpaio's racial profiling roundups.

As usual, Arpaio has invited the press to document the hour long march in order fuel his colossal ego and need for constant media attention.

PRESS RELEASE

Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office
Deputy Lindsey Smith
Media Relations – M.C.S.O.
Spokeswoman
Office: 602-876-1802
L_Smith@MCSO.Maricopa.Gov

ARPAIO ORDERS MOVE OF HUNDREDS OF ILLEGAL ALIENS TO THEIR OWN TENT CITY

Electric Fence to Minimize Escape Risk

(PHOENIX, AZ.) At 1:00 PM tomorrow, Wednesday, February 4, 2009, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio will order of approximately 200 illegal aliens to be chained and marched into a separate area of Tent City, their new place of incarceration until their sentences are served and the illegal aliens are deported to their home countries.

The move to Tent City frees up much needed space in the Sheriff's hard facilities serving as a management tool for potential jail overcrowding, Arpaio says.

More importantly, the move is a financially responsible alternative to taxpayers already over burdened by the economic drain imposed by a growing number of illegal aliens on social services like education and healthcare.

The move also facilitates security and transportation issues as well as provides easier and quicker access for foreign government visits to these inmates, the Sheriff says. The move to Tent City also makes room for the future. Now that the Arizona state government has given Arpaio back his $1.6 million dollars slated for fighting illegal immigration, more arrests by the Sheriff's human smuggling unit and crime suppression operations are anticipated.

"We have expanded the tents to be able to house as many as 2500 inmates out of the 10,000 currently incarcerated in the jails," Arpaio says. "As we planned the expansion, I decided to have a special area to house this particular population of inmate more effectively and safely. Starting tomorrow, Tent City will be their new address," Arpaio says.

Tent City is Arpaio's canvas incarceration compound which he opened in August of 1993. Since then, it has been a safe and cost effective way of housing inmates and has gained worldwide attention as a model jail program. The consolidation of a large number of illegal aliens into Tent City, Arpaio says, should pose no substantial security problems as the area where they will be housed is protected by an electric fence.

"This is a population of criminals more adept perhaps at escape," the Sheriff says. "But this is a fence they won't want to scale because they risk receiving quite a shock - literally."

Tomorrow's move is expected to take about an hour as the illegal aliens make their way from the Durango Jail complex to Tent City on Gibson Road. Traffic will be rerouted during the transfer, Arpaio says.

The inmates will enter Tent City through the west gate and pick up their bedding before making their way to their section of the tents.

They will be treated like all other inmates incarcerated here with two exceptions. Arpaio wants them to be instructed in American immigration laws, as a way to help them understand that the violation of these laws has serious consequences not only to them but to society as a whole. And anyone found to violate jail rules, may end up on a chain gang. This chain gang will work to clean the areas of the valley, which have been impacted by human trafficking trade.

The inmate march begins at 1:00 PM on Wednesday beginning at the entrance gate of Durango Jail on Gibson Street. The 220 inmates will march east to Tent City. Interested media are asked to park on the access road west of Estrella Jail at 2939 West Durango. SEE MAP ATTACHED. Sheriff Arpaio will answer questions at 1:30 PM from inside Tent City. Call the on call Media Relations person for more information.

How much longer is this racist clown going to be allowed to continue his one man war on the undocumented.

Forced marches in chains, outdoor tent cities surrounded by electrified fences, forced labor on chain gangs as punishment for misbehavior ... all that's missing from this nightmare scene are the search lights and trained attack dogs....but who knows, maybe Arpaio has those also.

Why not give Joe a call, or drop him an e-mail to let him know just how much you appreciate the fine work he's doing out there in Maricopa Co

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NYT on The Great Immigration Panic

While I would argue with the Times characterization of last year's failed "Grand Compromise" legislation as a "sensible" "fix" for the myriad of problems in the current immigration system, their assessment of the current anti-immigrant frenzy, with it's abuses of civil and human rights, as a source of national shame, is right on target.

Someday, the country will recognize the true cost of its war on illegal immigration. We don’t mean dollars, though those are being squandered by the billions. The true cost is to the national identity: the sense of who we are and what we value. It will hit us once the enforcement fever breaks, when we look at what has been done and no longer recognize the country that did it.

A nation of immigrants is holding another nation of immigrants in bondage, exploiting its labor while ignoring its suffering, condemning its lawlessness while sealing off a path to living lawfully. The evidence is all around that something pragmatic and welcoming at the American core has been eclipsed, or is slipping away.

…This is not about forcing people to go home and come back the right way. Ellis Island is closed. Legal paths are clogged or do not exist. Some backlogs are so long that they are measured in decades or generations. A bill to fix the system died a year ago this month. The current strategy, dreamed up by restrictionists and embraced by Republicans and some Democrats, is to force millions into fear and poverty.

…The restrictionist message is brutally simple — that illegal immigrants deserve no rights, mercy or hope. It refuses to recognize that illegality is not an identity; it is a status that can be mended by making reparations and resuming a lawful life. Unless the nation contains its enforcement compulsion, illegal immigrants will remain forever Them and never Us, subject to whatever abusive regimes the powers of the moment may devise.

Every time this country has singled out a group of newly arrived immigrants for unjust punishment, the shame has echoed through history. Think of the Chinese and Irish, Catholics and Americans of Japanese ancestry. Children someday will study the Great Immigration Panic of the early 2000s, which harmed countless lives, wasted billions of dollars and mocked the nation’s most deeply held values.

NYT

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