Los Ángeles, CA – Day one of the Legalization for All (L4A) Network border delegation began today, April 1. Delegates of the trip included Drusie Cassanova from the Bay Area of California and Angel Naranjo from Chicago. Unfortunately, 12 delegates with MIRAC  traveling from Minnesota were unable to join the first day due to flight delays but will unite with the delegation on day two in San Diego.

Delegates first visited La Plaza de Cultura y Artes, a museum that highlights the histories of Chicanos and Latinos in Los Angeles, as well as the cultural influence they have in shaping Los Angeles.

After La Plaza, CSO leaders Carlos Montes and Luis Sifuentes gave Cassanova and Naranjo a personal tour of Ruben Salazar Park in East Los Angeles. In 1970, what was formerly known as Laguna Park was renamed Ruben Salazar park in honor of the journalist and Chicano activist who was killed during the National Chicano Moratorium march of August 29, 1970.

The roots of the Chicano struggle for liberation run deep in East Los Angeles. The fight for legalization for all and an end to the oppression of Chicanos continues. Delegates prepare to visit the U.S.-Mexico border tomorrow, April 2, for day two of the delegation.

#LosAngelesCA #immigrantRights #LegalizationForAllNetwork

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Legalization for All Network.

The Legalization for All Network condemns the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on December 27 to force the government to keep the terrible Trump-era ‘Title 42’ policy in place that closed the US-México border to asylum-seekers.

Trump invoked Title 42 more than two years ago, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic to close the border to asylum-seekers attempting to present themselves at the US-México border to request asylum. It is a right under international law to request asylum and have that request considered. That has not happened at the US-México border since Title 42 was imposed.

Trump’s implementation of Title 42 at the US-México border has unjustly and indefinitely trapped desperate people in makeshift camps, parks and shelters on the México side of the border. Title 42 is supposed to be for public health emergencies, and Trump imposed it supposedly because of COVID-19. But what other federal COVID-19 restrictions remain in place other than Title 42? Clearly COVID-19 was just an excuse for Trump to attack immigrants. Asylum seekers pose no greater public health threat than any of the international travelers coming into the US daily by air, sea and land.

While racist, anti-immigrant politicians and media outlets fear-monger about a so-called crisis at the border, the real crisis at the border is the unjust and cruel harm that Title 42 and other border militarization policies inflict on children, adults, and families.

With the Supreme Court’s decision, Title 42 will now continue for the foreseeable future unless the Biden administration acts to end it.

While earlier a federal judge had ordered the Biden administration to end Title 42, Republican governors like Texas and officials from 19 states sued to stop this, which resulted in the Supreme Court’s decision December 27 to block the ending of Title 42. Trump appointed three of the current conservative majority Supreme Court justices.

The Legalization for All Network condemns the racist, anti-immigrant Republicans that sued to keep Title 42 in place. We condemn the Supreme Court for this racist, anti-immigrant decision, just one more in their ongoing assault on basic democratic rights.

We demand that despite the Supreme Court decision, the Biden administration take action to end Title 42 and other border militarization policies. We demand that they allow asylum-seekers to present themselves at the border and make their case for asylum, as is their right under international law.

The Legalization for All Network is organizing our second delegation to the US-México border in spring 2023. We plan to observe and document the effects of Title 42 and other border militarization policies and denounce the injustices we find.

#UnitedStates #immigrantRights #LegalizationForAllNetwork

Los Angeles, CA – DACAmented youth, organizers of Centro Community Service Organization (CSO), public school teachers, parents, children, and others will be gathering at Mariachi Plaza in support of the continuation of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and for Legalization for All. Los Angeles has the highest concentration of DACA recipients in the country, which has allowed around 200,000 young immigrants and their children to live and work here for the past decade. An end to DACA would take away their protection from deportation and would tear families and our city apart.

When asked why she was joining the event, Juliana Castellon said, “Everyone in the United States, regardless of whether or not they are born here or not, should have access to scholarships, FAFSA and in-state tuition when pursuing a higher education. I’m fighting for all who are under threat if DACA is ended.”

Join us to demand that the U.S. Congress extend DACA for the 600,000 recipients nationwide and accept new applications. We are also calling for a permanent legalization process for all immigrants in the U.S. The event will take place at 5 pm on Monday, November 7.

Tomasa Martínez is a member of the CSO immigration committee and is a mother to DACAmented youth said she was joining the rally because, “I wish with all of my heart that those in the Supreme Court would listen to the demands for our children. Give our children the opportunity to live their lives without fear. On Monday I will be making sure that message is heard.”

Questions regarding the event should be directed to Centro CSO at (323) 484-8630, CentroCSO@gmail.com, or @CentroCSO on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and Facebook.

#LosAngelesCA #LegalizationForAllNetwork #DACADeferredActionForChildhoodArrivals

San José, CA – “No ban! No wall! Legalization for all!” was heard at San José City Hall as about 20 people showed up on Saturday, August 27, to protest the possibility of the U.S. Supreme Court repealing DACA, which would affect nearly a million undocumented immigrants and their families in the United States.

The protest coincided with the 52nd anniversary of the Chicano Moratorium and came in response to a call from the Legalization for All (L4A) Network. The connection between the struggles of undocumented immigrants, especially from Mexico and other Latin American nations, and the Chicano nation, or Aztlan, and their self-determination was highlighted. The L4A Network brings together activists and organizations fighting for legalization and full equality for undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

A member of the L4A Network stated that “Legalization for All is fighting for national change, like the American Dream and Promise Act, which if passed, will permanently legalize people with DACA, as well as immigrants with Temporary Protected Status or Deferred Enforced Departure. We will also continue advocating for legislation to cover the other millions of individuals.”

The speaker went on to urge action, stating “The Legalization for All Network stands with DACA recipients and the immigrant community at large. We demand the Supreme Court protect DACA. We demand legalization for all. We demand full equality for all undocumented immigrants in the U.S. If you or your organization agree, I invite you to join the network. We will continue the momentum of immigrant rights movements, past and present because when the masses unite and fight back, we will win.”

Isaiah Jimenez also spoke, representing the Communist Party USA, and advocated for DACA to be codified. He also spoke of his personal connection to the issue, “My dad is literally a politician in this building. He came here as an undocumented immigrant. He didn’t become a citizen until 2008, when he was 32 years old. And realizing that he could’ve been deported at any time is just one of the many reasons why I, and anyone with a conscience and a brain, and a heart, will stand for immigrants and stand for DREAMers, and stand to see DACA become codified into law. And we won’t stop until that is accomplished.”

A member of Silicon Valley Unemployed Committee stated that he didn’t seem hopeful of the Supreme Court ruling on DACA and how it would affect many people’s futures. “First of all, if DACA is repealed, there will be mass unemployment within the undocumented community.” He connected that issue to Silicon Valley Unemployed Committee’s current campaign to win access to unemployment benefits for undocumented immigrants in California by having the California Legislature pass AB-2847. This bill would establish an Excluded Workers Pilot Program to provide weekly monetary assistance to unemployed workers who are not eligible for state or federal unemployment insurance benefits due to their immigration status. Silicon Valley Unemployed Committee was formed in early 2021 to fight for expanded unemployment benefits for unemployed people at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mike Paradela of Freedom Road Socialist Organization spoke about how the Supreme Court, and both the Democrat and Republican parties have failed to protect working people. Paradela stated, “Like Roe v. Wade, the Democrats could have codified DACA, but they did not. The Democrats are always conveniently one or two votes shy from a majority, supposedly, to pass any progressive policy. Yet, they always have a majority when it comes to increasing our policing, or our already over-inflated military budget. Their priorities are clear: death and destruction abroad, and nothing at home.”

Paradela also called for self-determination for Aztlan, or the Chicano nation, stating, “Chicanos and Latinos are the majority here, they should be the ones to determine the destiny of this land, not the U.S. imperialists. It will be the Chicano community and the Latino community that rescues the children from this heartless system. It will be the Chicano and Latino community that will save DACA. It will be the Chicano community that frees Aztlan.”

#SanJoseCA #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork #DACA

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Legalization for All Network.

On June 8th, the Legalization for All (L4A) Network is calling for a national action urging the Senate to pass the American Dream and Promise Act, or the American Promise Act.

American Promise Act would permanently legalize people with DACA, TPS and DED. It passed the U.S. House in March 2021 and is currently sitting in the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety. The American Promise Act needs to pass the subcommittee, then the committee, before going on to the full Senate for a vote. Successful passage of it could spark a mass movement! We must also continue advocating for legislation to cover the other millions – legalization for all!

L4A is urging all participants of the day of action to partake in either a physical action, our official Twitterstorm, or call their local senator/email them urging them to:

Take action now Senator ____ and pass the American Dream and Promise Act! Over 2 million people will not wait! We are also demanding that steps be taken to cover the other 12 million undocumented. Legalization for all 12 million!”

The day of action will begin at 8:00 am Eastern Time Zone and end at 8:00 pm Pacific Time Zone. For the Twitterstorm, use the following graphic and copy/past this: I’m joining the Twitterstorm called by @LegalizeForAll urging the Senate to pass the American Dream & Promise Act #AmericanPromiseAct NOW!

The complete list of senators who are on the Judiciary Committee are as follows:

Republicans (minority)

Lindsey Graham – South Carolina

Ted Cruz – Texas

Tom Cotton – Arkansas

John Kennedy – Louisiana

Thom Tillis – North Carolina

Marsha Blackburn – Tennessee

Democrats (majority)

Dianne Feinstein – California

Amy Klobuchar – Minnesota

Christopher A. Coons – Delaware

Richard Blumenthal – Connecticut

Mazie Hirono – Hawaii

Cory Booker – New Jersey

To join the Legalization for All Network, click here.

#UnitedStates #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork #AmericanDreamAndPromiseAct

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by Legalization for All Network (L4A).

Los Angeles, CA – Early Thursday morning, June 18, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Trump administration's attempt to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). DACA was an executive order signed June 15, 2012 by then-President Barak Obama and it protects hundreds of thousands of undocumented youth, allowing them to work and go to school without fear of arrest and deportation.

The 5-4 ruling was written by Chief Justice John Roberts and joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan, Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor. The decision was made after it was ruled the Trump administration failed to provide an adequate reason to justify ending DACA. Since Trump's election he has attempted to dismantle, in many cases successfully, Presidents Obama's executive orders and other policy decisions. Trump is also changing U.S. asylum policy and procedures for the worse.

Many are pushing for the Dream and Promise Act, a bill that passed the House in 2019 but has been blocked by the Republican-controlled Senate. The act would allow those with DACA, those who are DACA eligible, and other immigrants with temporary status such as TPS or Temporary Protected Status to apply for permanent resident status.

Legalization for All (L4A) deems this Supreme Court decision as a victory, but a victory that would not have been possible without undocumented immigrant youth risking everything to take political action to demand it. In 2012, they took to protesting President Obama, whose administration had the highest records of deportations in his first four years in office. Republican control of the House of Representatives blocked any decent immigration legislation. After the Obama administration had resisted taking executive action for four years, in the midst of a reelection campaign he gave in to the demand of immigrant youth and finally created the executive order on DACA. Later, Obama also issued another executive order, DAPA, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans, which would have given temporary protection to many parents and family members of DACA recipients, but this was blocked by a Republican-led legal assault.

Despite this uplifting Supreme Court decision, many more undocumented people are still left with no safety net or ability to become legalized. In the last few weeks, we have seen the country reacting to the massive protests after the murder of George Floyd and others by police and racist vigilantes. To win legalization we need to rebuild a militant mass movement. Legalization for All will continue pushing for legalization for all of the undocumented, and we urge you to join this push. If you are interested, please fill out this contact form and we will tell you when the next national action is: https://legalizationforall.wordpress.com/contact-us/

#LosAngelesCA #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by the Legalization for All Network (L4A)

Monday night [April 20] Trump tweeted, “In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!” The “Invisible Enemy” Trump is referring to is COVID-19. Deaths in the U.S. have risen to a staggering 45,318 at the time of writing this statement; the numbers are going up constantly. The blame however cannot be placed on immigrants, the blame is on Trump and the U.S.’ overall inability to help the majority impacted by the virus. Immigrants are not taking jobs from U.S. citizens and are not the cause of COVID-19.

This will impact millions who apply for legal residency. Trump has already stopped asylum applicants and has stepped up deportations. Overcrowded detention centers spread COVID-19 among immigrants who are then deported. This is causing the spread of COVID-19 from the U.S., which has the highest rate in the world.

When Trump tweeted #LIBERATE Michigan, he sparked countless right-wingers to take to the streets demanding the Stay at Home orders be lifted. Unsurprisingly COVID-19 cases rose following these reckless protests.

Trump does however have the authority to restrict entry into the United States. This was never more evident than when the Supreme Court upheld his racist travel ban in 2018. The 2018 travel ban suspended the issuance of immigrant and nonimmigrant visas to applicants from the Muslim-majority countries Libya, Iran, Somalia, Syria and Yemen – plus north Korea and Venezuela.

The late night Trump order, which first appeared on Twitter, is currently with the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel for review. This office reviews all executive orders, no matter what tweet they come from. While it is under review, L4A demands Trump back off immigrants. Chicanos, Latinos, and other immigrants do so many of the jobs that make this country run. From farmworking essential workers, many of whom are temporary visa holders (still being issued during the pandemic), to UPS DACAmented employees personally delivering all essentials during these intense times.

The real and visible enemy is Trump, who views Chicanos, Latinos, and immigrants as dispensable. A multi-billionaire who exploits many immigrants, including undocumented in his business, Trump sleeps well at night while essential workers get sick and die.

What Can You Do

May 1st is International Workers Day or May Day. It is a day which after the 2006 “Mega Marches” turned into a day to also fight for immigrants’ rights. If you are interested in organizing a safe way to voice your concerns and anger against Trump’s latest executive order, L4A encourages you to participate in May Day! Message them here to let them know you will be participating.

For examples on what to do: May 1st Virtual Rally! May Day Car Protest | Boyle Heights 2020

#UnitedStates #OppressedNationalities #US #Healthcare #PeoplesStruggles #ChicanoLatino #LegalizationForAllNetwork #DonaldTrump #COVID19

The Legalization for All (L4A) Network is a coalition of various individuals and organizations from around the U.S. who fight to win legalization for all undocumented and Temporary-status peoples in the U.S. The need for full equality has never been clearer than in the face of a global pandemic, like Covid-19. Trump and the ruling-class have nothing stopping them from making changes that could devastate the undocumented, as the majority of people are preoccupied with the very real danger of Coronavirus.

Putting more people into jails and prisons right now where the virus can spread like wildfire is a terrible idea. Even ICE officers and several DHS officers have tested positive for Covid-19, which adds to the risk of spreading the virus in detention centers. The goal should be reducing the hazard of mass infections in jails, prisons, courts and refugee camps.

Public health measures necessary to combat the virus are creating major disruptions to the economy and people’s jobs. Many immigrants are concentrated in the lowest sectors of the economy with few job protections and benefits. The majority have little in the way of sick and vacation leave, as well as very limited ability to participate in what still exists of the social safety net.

Additionally, the Supreme Court could rule any day on whether to uphold Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). DACA currently covers over 800,000 young, undocumented people. If DACA was defeated, DACAmented youth would be left with nothing to protect them from deportation. Together, the L4A Network has put together a list of necessary demands which must be upheld NOW.

Our demands:

• Protect DACA, and delay the Supreme Court decision until next year (summer 2021)
• Automatic renewal of DACA
• Extend Deferred Action to the 12 million others who are not covered under any legalization measure
• An immediate halt to all immigration enforcement operations by ICE and related agencies
• All levels of government provide immigrants the same level of services that is afforded to any other resident and immediately implement universal free access to all health and medical needs
• A stop to evictions
• No utility shutoffs
• Elimination of ICE check-ins and mandatory court appearances
• All immigrant detainees be tested for COVID-19
• All detainees who test positive, receive free and proper medical treatment
• Detainees who don't test positive be released
• Stop the transfer of immigrants to different jails and camps
• Close border camps and release all detainees
• Stop the “Remain in Mexico” policies that have left 60,000 families stranded in crowded and unsanitary encampments on the Mexico side of the border
• All people who were employed in the U.S. before the COVID-19 crisis and are suffering loss of income through layoff or reduced hours, be included in any relief programs, aid or stimulus checks, approved by local, state or federal government, regardless of immigration status
• All workers who are able to work remotely be allowed to do so in order to slow the spread of the virus
• Any workers who must continue to report to work because their duties are essential, be given proper protective equipment and that their working conditions be made as safe as possible
• Don’t fire anyone who does not report to work due to feeling sick or testing positive for COVID-19

Include Immigrant Families in COVID-19 Stimulus Package NOW

#SaveDACA

To join the L4A network click here: https://legalizationforall.wordpress.com/contact-us/

A full statement will soon follow this initial one, stay tuned.

#UnitedStates #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork

November 12, 2019 the Supreme Court will begin hearing oral-arguments to determine if the Trump attack on DACA is lawful. Trump filed a lawsuit to rescind DACA in 2017 after Ken Paxton Attorney General of Texas threatened to sue Trump. Paxton began with a coalition of 7 states countering DACA, but the 7 are now 10 — Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Kansas, Mississippi, and Maine. Since then, DACA has been under attack.

Trump and the coalition of 10 states have been met with much resistance. 16 Democratic and nonpartisan state attorney generals filed their own lawsuit to counter Trump's fight on DACA. Additionally, this month, Harvard and 18 other colleges and universities jointly filed an amicus brief —which advises the United States Supreme Court to support DACA.

It is important to remember the bashing of DACA and other Obama-era programs have not only been lead by Trump. In November of 2014, former President Obama announced the creation of a new program —Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA). DAPA would have protected over five million undocumented immigrants whom already live in the U.S. But Greg Abbot, who in 2014 was the Attorney General of Texas, and 25 other states filed lawsuits and succeeded in stopping DAPA from materializing.

The Legalization for All Network (L4A) condemns all of these attacks on the undocumented. November 12, 2019 will be an important day and one that should be met with support and mobilizations. L4A has been rallying behind the slogans and demands: Legalization for all of the undocumented, NO Trump Wall, NO guest worker expansion, and NO more repression or militarization at the border. November 12th many of us will be uniting to defend DACA.

Some 200 DREAMers will be marching over 230 miles from NYC to D.C. to protect DACA. One transgender rights activist and attorney Chase Strangio has called for supporters to #RiseUpForDACA on November 12th. Some cities are already calling for walkouts and marches on November 12th.

If you and/or your organization would like to participate, message us with your action and we will help project your event. If you are looking to sign onto the Legalization for All (L4A) network, send us an email legalizationforall@gmail.com, text/call us (262) 709-8820, twitter.com/LegalizeForAll, instagram.com/LegalizationForAll

#UnitedStates #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork

ICE, or Immigration and Customs Enforcement, has just announced that they would start to round up thousands of undocumented immigrants in cities across the United States. They plan to separate even more families and deport long-term U.S. residents whose only crime is to try to provide a better life for their families. Their purpose is to terrorize our communities and rally anti-immigrant support for Trump’s 2020 campaign. This is another outrage by the Trump administration. No raids, no deportations, no family separations!

There is a crisis at the border – one that the United States and the Trump administration has created. Years of U.S. free trade and regime change policies have been a disaster for Central American countries. Central American refugees, many if not most of them women and children, are fleeing violence so bad that even the U.S. State Department has advised U.S. tourists not to go there! Thousands of refugees, many of whom are children, are being held in concentration camps at the border, and more and more are dying in detention. The administration says that they lack resources to properly care for the refugees – but they have enough money to carry out raids throughout the United States. We say, “Asylum for refugees. End the border concentration camps. No increase in border funding for ICE/CBP [Customs and Border Patrol]!”

The typical undocumented immigrant has been living in the United States for 13 years or more. Millions of them have U.S.-born citizen children or immigrant children who have known no other home than the United States. They come to work and to better the lives of their children – just as other immigrants have done for generations. We support the legalization of the DREAMERS, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and others with temporary visas. We say, “Legalization for all!”

Trump is a bigot who is trying to demonize and dehumanize refugees, claiming that they are criminals, drug dealers and rapists. He is racist who has referred to Central American and African countries as “shitholes.” First he launched an attack on Muslims with his travel ban, now it is Central Americans and Mexicans who are his target. He claims that immigrants and refugees are coming to take jobs but the cities with the most immigrants have the lowest unemployment rates.

We ask you and your organizations to protest the planned raids and lend all assistance possible to those who are caught in the Trump administration dragnet.

Legalization for All (L4A) Network

NO RAIDS, NO DEPORTATIONS, NO FAMILY SEPARATIONS!

END THE BORDER CONCENTRATION CAMPS, ASYLUM FOR REFUGEES, NO INCREASE IN BORDER FUNDING FOR ICE/CBP!

LEGALIZATION FOR ALL!

#UnitedStates #International #OppressedNationalities #US #Americas #PeoplesStruggles #ChicanoLatino #deportations #ImmigrationAndCustomEnforcementICE #LegalizationForAllNetwork #DonaldTrump

Nogales, Sonora, Mexico – The second day of the Legalization for All Network delegation to the U.S.-Mexico border on March 31 was intense and emotional. The delegation divided into three groups for the day, which allowed them to gain a wider range of experiences.

One group of delegation members crossed the U.S.-Mexico border into Nogales to visit the organization HEPAC (Hogar de Esperanza y Paz – Home of Hope and Peace) and hear testimonies from women fleeing horrific situations and trying to seek asylum in the U.S. Another group accompanied the humanitarian organization Tucson Samaritans deep into the Arizona desert to leave water for immigrants walking through remote areas and to see the border wall. And another volunteered with the Inn Project, an organization in Tucson that provides support and shelter for immigrants released by ICE in Tucson.

Nogales: Two sides of an unjust wall, harrowing testimonies

The guide for the group crossing the border in Nogales was a member of the indigenous Tohono O'odham Nation, whose land is on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border and who have been harshly impacted with flagrant violations of their sovereignty by increasingly imposing border militarization. The delegation learned about the O’odham people’s struggles for sovereignty and how that is inseparable from the struggle for immigrant rights and against border militarization.

The group that crossed into Mexico went through the border crossing in Nogales, which divides Nogales, Arizona from Nogales, Mexico. Until relatively recently, this border was much more fluid, with people crossing back and forth regularly and the two cities bearing the same name more united. Now a massive inhumane wall, which the Trump administration recently garnished with razor wire on the U.S. side, cuts the two Nogales in half.

Before crossing the border, the delegation first walked along the U.S. side of the border wall. On the U.S. side of the border, the wall is sterile and imposing. When President Trump ordered the National Guard to the border in 2018, they added coils of razor wire all along the U.S. side of the wall. Border Patrol trucks are ever-present, driving around and parked near the wall, always watching. There are towers above watching with technology. The imposition of a wall in the middle of the two cities makes a deep impression.

After walking along the U.S. side of the wall, the group drove through the Nogales border crossing into Mexico. When entering Mexico there was no wait or hassle. Once across, the group walked along the Mexico side of the wall. The difference was stark.

While the U.S. side was sterile and threatening, the Mexican side had a feel of defiance. From graffiti saying things like “paz,”“chinga la migra!” and “Palestina Libre, boicot Israel” to murals painted on the wall slats, to an art installation and memorials for Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez – a young person shot to death by U.S. Border Patrol agents on the Mexico side of the wall – there was vibrance, spirit, resistance and life. And no razor wire.

After seeing the wall, the group went to visit HEPAC, an organization based in a Nogales neighborhood that does humanitarian work there and also helps people who are stuck in Nogales hoping to get to the U.S. to apply for asylum. HEPAC’s mission is “to create a healthy community in Nogales, Mexico where citizens do not feel that their only choice for survival is to risk their lives in the desert in an attempt to immigrate to the United States.” They are a nearly-all volunteer operation that provides daily meals and a playground for neighborhood kids, as well as youth and adult education classes, a community garden, a water purification system, and a women’s cooperative. In addition to these things, they provide shelter for women and children who are attempting to enter the U.S. to ask for asylum, but who are blocked by the Trump administration’s policy in violation of international law, which is blocking people in Mexico for long periods rather than allowing them to request asylum right away.

At HEPAC, the delegation met with about a dozen women and their children hoping to request asylum in the U.S. One after another, they told us their harrowing stories of what they’re fleeing in their homes in Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and southern Mexico. Nearly all told of children or other family members murdered by street gangs or cartels, threats or experiences of sexual abuse, or receiving death threats themselves before deciding to run for their lives with nothing but the clothes on their backs. They also spoke of a culture of impunity where they knew reporting their situation to the government or police would either be useless or potentially crease more problems for them, since the police and government themselves are penetrated by organized crime. Hearing their stories one after another was like a repeated punch to the gut, every word piercing through Trump’s lies and mischaracterization of immigrants as a criminal threat rather than what they are – people fleeing from the poverty, violence and organized crime that has taken over their countries due to decades of U.S. government economic and military policies.

The strength of these women who are fighting for their futures and their children’s futures despite the horrors and threats both behind them and in front of them was incredibly inspiring. One woman from Honduras had traveled north with the Honduran caravan in January. After giving her emotional testimony, when asked about songs sung on the caravan, she smiled and started singing the song they sang as they walked their way through Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico – a song of strength and defiance that was punctuated with a chorus of “Fuera Joh!” This is a reference to corrupt U.S.-backed Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández (“JOH”) who is widely blamed for a culture of impunity and doing nothing to improve the unbearable situation that forces mass migration from the country. The whole room lit up and clapped along as she sang the caravan’s song of hope and defiance.

When the delegation attempted to reenter the U.S., the experience was very different than entering into Mexico. The line was hours long, and when arriving at the border, Border Patrol officers took everyone’s passports, then came back and ordered everyone out of the vehicle while being instructed to leave all cell phones in the van. Everyone was then led into a small locked jail-like waiting room with no bathrooms. Border Patrol did not explain why this was happening or how long it would go on. After a relatively short time everyone was released, but with no explanation about why they were singled out for a vehicle search.

In the desert with the Samaritans

The group that did not cross the border and accompanied the Tucson Samaritans into the desert also had an intense day. They started early in the morning on a day-long ‘border orientation’. This included seeing the border wall from the U.S. side, where a Tucson Samaritans member showed them the various phases of the border wall that were built in waves from the 1980s to the present. With each addition to the wall, immigrants seeking to cross the border are driven further into the unforgiving desert, increasing injuries, trauma and deaths.

The group also learned how Tucson Samaritans tracks the ever-changing immigrant trails through the desert to determine where to leave water so that immigrants don’t die from dehydration. In the course of their humanitarian work it is not uncommon for them to find remains of people who died trying to cross the border. The group encountered a memorial marking the spot where a immigrant had died.

The group accompanying the Tucson Samaritans had to pass through Border Patrol checkpoints well within the borders of the United States, where they were asked about their immigration status. This is the reality that people who live in southern Arizona face daily – living in a militarized zone where they have to cross through checkpoints, there are constant surveillance towers, drones and helicopters circling overhead, and where Border Patrol trucks are ever-present. The desert border orientation made clear that the effects of border militarization are not just felt in Mexico, but inside the United States as well, with immigrants dying in the unforgiving desert and whole communities living under what amounts to military occupation.

Support for immigrants who ICE dumps off in Tucson

Another delegation member spent the day in Tucson with The Inn Project, a church-based project where immigrants with children come for food, rest and other relief after being processed by ICE and approved to pursue asylum. When someone in ICE custody is approved to pursue an asylum claim, ICE simply releases that person on the streets of Tucson without any way to get in touch with anyone or get to where they need to go. This is where the Inn Project steps in, taking immigrants in and giving them support until they are able to make arrangements for a place to stay and how they will get there. This is often in another city or state. The work of The Inn Project reflects the chaotic reality of ICE detention and U.S. immigration policy overall – even immigrants who are approved to seek an asylum claim are simply left to their own devices, leaving humanitarians and activists to deal with constant urgency and crises as ICE releases people. Like most of the efforts supporting immigrants, the Inn Project is held together by volunteers and they are always in need of help.

U.S. immigration policy: Trauma and injustice

The second day of the Legalization for All border delegation was extremely impactful and exposed the raw reality of the injustice of U.S. immigration policy. This was true seeing the destructive reality of the border wall and border militarization on border communities. It was true in Nogales, Mexico, speaking with women and children being delayed or blocked from even requesting asylum in the U.S. It was true in the unforgiving Sonoran Desert in Arizona, where immigrants are forced to cross and risk death in the desert due to increased border walls and militarization in more urban areas. And it was true in Tucson, where immigrants who are allowed to pursue an asylum claim are simply dumped on the street by ICE. The second day of the delegation made an emotional impact and exposed the depth of the injustice in immigration policy. But all was not depressing. Delegation participants were also deeply inspired by the grassroots organizations doing everything they can with few resources in the face of these towering injustices to respond to this human rights catastrophe and stand up for basic human dignity and justice for people forced by circumstances to leave their countries.

#NogalesSonoraMexico #Nogales #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork #borderWall #USMexicoBorder

Tucson, AZ – On March 30, the Legalization For All Network completed the first day of an immigrant rights delegation to Arizona and the U.S.-México border.

Members of immigrant rights organizations and a Palestinian liberation movement organization from the Midwest are participating in the delegation.

The first day of the trip was in Tucson, Arizona, where the delegation learned about the history of the U.S.-México border and the struggles of the Chicano people in the Southwest, which was the top half of México until the U.S. invasion of México in 1848.

In the morning, the delegation participated in the 19th annual Cesar Chavez rally in Tucson, led by the Cesar Chavez Holiday Coalition. The annual rally honors and celebrates Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers union’s legacy and brings attention to the current Chicano community struggles and immigrant rights and labor struggles. This includes the sharp struggles over the U.S./ México border in the context of President Trump’s declaration of a ‘state of emergency’ and his recent threats to entirely close the U.S.– México border.

The Legalization for All Network delegation members marched together as a contingent in the march that was led by a group from the Tohono O’odham Nation and included many Chicano and labor organizations. After marching about a mile, the delegation arrived at Rudy Garcia park for a rally. Speakers emphasized the importance of not only learning about the history of the Chicano movement, but continuing its legacy by carrying on the struggle today in the workplace, high school and college campuses, and on the streets. For 19 years, the Cesar Chavez Holiday Coalition has been fighting to create a paid holiday in Pima County in honor of Cesar Chavez.

After the march, the delegation arrived at Global Justice Center, which houses several important organizations, such as the Alliance for Global Justice, No More Deaths, and Coalición de Derechos Humanos.

There, the delegation heard an engaging presentation from long-time activist Isabel Garcia of Coalición de Derechos Humanos (Coalition for Human Rights). They have been struggling against the injustices at the border and attacks on immigrant rights for decades. Garcia emphasized the roots of the oppression of immigrants in the capitalist system and corporations’ changing needs over time for cheap, exploitable labor. Garcia also talked about the need to fight against militarization of the border and to connect the immigrant rights struggle to the struggles for Black liberation and against police brutality, among many other things.

After meeting with Garcia, the delegation met with Saulo Escamilla, a leader in the struggle over Chicano Studies in Arizona, who works in culturally responsive pedagogy instruction. The Chicano Studies struggle has been very sharp in Arizona, with the state legislature banning all ethnic studies in 2010 – an attack on Chicano Studies in particular – leading to mass struggles for years until the law was recently overturned in the courts. Escamilla’s presentation was on the history of the Chicano movement, with a particular focus on lesser-known women leaders in the Chicano struggle, and also on Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales, a key Chicano movement leader of the 1960s who organized the conference that led to the founding of the Chicano student group MEChA, which still exists today. Escamilla ended his presentation with an emphasis on the youth’s role in the struggle, reminding us that although change is slow, with continued struggle and youth empowerment, change is bound to come.

After the meetings, the delegation took a tour of some of Tucson’s Chicano street art, seeing an artistic representation on the streets of the struggles of the Chicano community. Street art the delegation saw included the mural “La Pilita” and the “Barrio Anita” mosaic. Members of the delegation also had a chance to drive through some of the historic barrios of Tucson, which are currently being subjected to gentrification.

The Cesar Chavez march and the presentations about the immigrant rights struggle in Arizona and the history of the Chicano movement provided a good framework for the rest of the delegation.

#TusconAZ #International #Labor #OppressedNationalities #Mexico #US #Americas #PeoplesStruggles #ChicanoLatino #LegalizationForAllNetwork #CesarChavez #DonaldTrump #USMexicoBorder

Minneapolis, MN – As national attention has focused on the caravan of Central American refugees winding its way through Mexico towards the U.S.-Mexico border, on November 30 more than 250 immigrants and human rights activists in Minnesota rallied in support of the caravan.

An ad hoc coalition called Minnesota Caravan Solidarity organized the action, with participation from a dozen local organizations including Minnesota Hands Off Honduras, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Immigrant Movement for Justice, Asamblea de Derechos Civiles, COPAL MN, Haiti Justice Committee of Minnesota, Morena Minnesota, Women’s March Minnesota, Anti-War Committee, Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, Women Against Military Madness, Minnesota Cuba Committee, and Puerto Ricans in Minnesota Committee.

The rally in front of the U.S. courthouse featured Honduran women sharing their stories as well as speakers highlighting how U.S. economic and military policy in Central America has created the conditions for the migration we’re seeing now.

The protesters marched through downtown Minneapolis at rush hour to a nearby Wells Fargo building to highlight that company’s complicity in for-profit detention centers that are being used to jail migrants.

A statement from organizers said, “U.S. foreign policy created many of the economic and political crises that our brothers and sisters from Honduras and Central America are desperate to escape. Migration has been taking place throughout human history, and the migrants now coming to the United States are seeking a better life for their families. We reject Trump’s vilification of immigrants as dangerous rapists and murderers. We want all migrants to know that we welcome them with open arms to our community. We call on Minnesotans to join us as we declare: ‘Refugees are welcome here! No troops at the border! No human being is illegal!’”

The Minneapolis protest took place during a national week of action initiated by the Legalization for All Network to support the caravan of asylum-seekers from Central America. Actions have taken place around the country.

#MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork #NoHumanBeingIsIllegal #caravanOfCentralAmericanRefugees

Tucson, AZ – Over 100 people chanted, “Troops off the border! Defy Trump’s order!” at the Davis-Monthan Air Force base on December 1. Signs reading “Refugees welcome here!” drew many honks of solidarity from traffic passing by the base entrance where demonstrators stood outside.

Isabel Garcia of Coalicion de Derechos Humanos warned of the danger of Trump’s unconstitutional order to deploy U.S. military troops to enforce civilian law on immigration, “We saw what armed forces like Border Patrol do. They hurt people, they kill migrants and refugees.”

After the speakers wrapped up, the group took the streets and blocked the whole intersection as the police rerouted hundreds of vehicles. “This is people power! We must build this and defeat the Trump agenda!” declared organizer Edward Cott from his bullhorn in the streets.

Plans continue to build mobilization against the deployment of 15,000 troops to the Mexico border. This action was in response to the call by the Legalization for All Network for a week of national actions.

#TucsonAZ #PeoplesStruggles #CoaliciónDeDerechosHumanos #LegalizationForAllNetwork #DavisMonthanAirForce

Tucson, AZ – On November 27, in response to the U.S. government’s brutal use of rubber bullets and tear gas on demonstrators in Tijuana, three actions of solidarity took place in Tucson. One was at an elementary school where a class of children chanted “Solidarity now!” in a video shared on social media. Another was coordinated by a handful of “Ragin’ Grannies” outside Tucson High holding signs that read “Refugees welcome here!” A third action took place at the University of Arizona and had a turnout of over two dozen people. Their two huge banners read “No hate, no fear! Refugees welcome here!”

This coming Saturday, December 1, a coalition of many organizations are preparing for a large demonstration outside the gates of Davis-Monthan Air Force base, which currently houses at least 500 U.S. troops deployed by President Trump. It will be the sixth action Tucson has had in the last three weeks in response to the deployment of U.S. military troops to the Mexican border. The organizations endorsing Saturday’s action include: Coalicion de Derechos Humanos, Alliance for Global Justice, Tucson Anti-War Committee, School of the Americas Watch, Arizona Palestine Solidarity Alliance, Jewish Voice for Peace, LUPE, Nuclear Resister, People’s Defense Initiative, and the Southern Arizona National Lawyers Guild.

These actions are also a part of the Legalization for All Network’s Week of Action to demonstrate solidarity with the Central American refugee caravan.

Troops Off the Border! Asylum for the Refugee Caravan! U.S. Out of Latin America! Legalization for All!

#TucsonAZ #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Legalization for All Network (L4A).

Washington, D.C. – On May 16, during a White House meeting staged to attack California’s immigrant-friendly ‘sanctuary state’ policies in front of the media, President Trump made one of his most hateful and racist comments yet about undocumented immigrants. Given Trump’s record on speaking poorly of Mexicans, the disabled, women and Black people, that’s saying something.

“You wouldn’t believe how bad these people are. These aren’t people, these are animals, and we’re taking them out of the country at a level and at a rate that’s never happened before,” proclaimed Trump.

These statements and actions are part of an escalation of attacks on immigrants and more incitement of national oppression. As Trump says these statements, he is simultaneously deporting more people, attempting to justify having ended Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Salvadorans, Hondurans, Haitians and others, as well as ending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), threatening to further militarize the border, in addition to congratulating cops for their vile abuse of people. Additionally, Trump has continued and further escalated the longstanding history of workplace audits. The excuse of a workplace audit is to supposedly conduct policy reviews, but in reality ICE is called in to create terror among immigrants. If ICE finds an immigrant to be undocumented, they are immediately detained and processed for deportation.

President Trump, like many racist and rich politicians before him, was using the flimsy pretext of street gangs as an excuse to justify his devastating attacks on entire communities – in this case, targeting Mexican and Central American immigrants and Chicano and Latino communities in the U.S. in general.

The dehumanization of an entire group of people usually goes along with and aims to justify oppressive policies towards that community. This is no exception. While more than 3 million immigrants have been deported since 2009, overwhelmingly to México and Central America, Trump aims to ramp up attacks on immigrants even further. To do that he attempts to convince his supporters that Mexicans and Central Americans are not just violent and threatening, but that they are subhuman.

Although President Trump’s racist and xenophobic attacks on immigrants are so frequent that it’s difficult to even keep track of them all, the brazen racism of his May 17 ‘animals’ comment provoked substantial backlash.

But rather than backtrack from his comment, on May 17 White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders defended Trump’s comments calling immigrants animals. Sanders even took it a step further, saying Trump didn’t “go far enough.” Trump doubled down too, saying, “I refer to them as animals. And guess what? I always will.”

The immigrant rights movement and all progressive-minded people must speak out boldly with one voice to denounce President Trump’s dangerous, racist outburst and stand shoulder to shoulder with our immigrant co-workers, neighbors, families and friends. We must reject Trump’s demonization and repression, and instead stand for solidarity by fighting for legalization and full equality for all, regardless of immigration status.

#UnitedStates #LegalizationForAllNetwork #DonaldTrump

On Friday, January 20, 2017 Donald Trump will be inaugurated as President of the United States. Trump ran a racist campaign, calling Mexicans “rapists, criminals, and drug dealers…” His plans for his first 100 days includes ending DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), deporting millions of undocumented, building a wall on the border with Mexico, further criminalizing the undocumented, cutting off Federal funds to sanctuary cities, and more attacks on immigrants. 70% of the undocumented are from Mexico and Central America, and these are the people that Trump is primarily targeting.

In December, 2005 the Republican House of Representatives passed HR4437, known as the Sensenbrenner bill. This bill was also an attack on the undocumented, calling for many of the same actions as Trump: criminalizing the undocumented, expanding the wall on the border with Mexico, and penalizing sanctuary cities.

In response massive protests, centered in the Chicano, Mexicano, and Latino communities brought more than a million people into the streets in 2006. Students walked out of class, workers left their jobs, and community members of all ages rallied in protest, calling for legalization of the undocumented. This mass resistance was able to stop the Sensenbrenner bill.

The Legalization for All (L4A) network feels that a similar mass movement is needed to stop Trump’s attacks on the undocumented. We are calling on students, workers, and community people, especially from the Chicano, Mexicano, and Latino communities, to organize a national day of protest on inauguration day, Friday, January 20, 2017.

Trump has his 100 day plan, we in the immigrant rights movement need to respond with our own 100 day plan to also build for even bigger protests May 1!

Defend DACA! Legalization not Deportation! Stop the Wall on the border with Mexico!

What you can do to build a national day of protest on January 20, 2017: 1. Organize a protest for immigrant rights in your school, workplace, and community. Let Legalization for All know about your plans!

2. Join with other anti-Trump protests in your city or in Washington DC and bring your signs and banners for immigrant rights. Organize a contingent as part of these protests.

3. Take photos and videos of your protest and share them with Legalization for All!

4. Join the Legalization for All network! Contact us on Facebook at Legalization For All Facebook; Visit our website at Legalization For All Website

#UnitedStates #InJusticeSystem #US #PeoplesStruggles #LegalizationForAllNetwork #Elections

The conference, hosted by the MEChA chapter at the University of Arizona, begins March18 in the Cesar Chavez building. Registration is at 8:00 a.m. and the first workshop at 9:30 a.m.

Veteran Chicano activist Carlos Montes and immigrants rights activist Marisol Marquez will present on the “Chicanx Struggle for Self-Determination” at 10:30 and then again at 11:30 in Room #304.

After a Cesar Chavez march and rally in the morning, the two-day conference continues the afternoon of March 19, at Pueblo High School, including a workshop titled “Legalization for All: Immigrant Rights Struggle for Equality” at 2:10 p.m. Legalization for All Network is comprised of immigrant rights groups around the country.

Attending the conference are local immigrant rights and community groups Lucha Unida por Padres y Estudiantes (LUPE), Centro CSO from Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), and Milwaukee’s Youth Empowered in Struggle (YES), and Raíces from Tampa.

#TucsonAZ #ImmigrantRights #StudentMovement #ChicanoLatino #MECHA #MovimientoEstudiantilChicanoDeAztlánMEChA #LegalizationForAllNetwork

Los Angeles, CA – The Legalization for All Network (L4A) hosted a National Week of Action to demand an end to the jailing of Central American children, also known as ‘family detention.’ Starting on Nov. 2 and ending Nov. 8, protests in cities across the country demanded an “End to Family Detention” and “Not One More Deportation.”

Protests were organized from coast to coast, including actions organized by Florida’s Raices en Tampa; the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) in Minneapolis; Youth Empowered in the Struggle (YES) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Together Without Borders in Provo, Utah; LUPE in Tucson, Arizona; and Centro CSO in Los Angeles.

Since the summer of 2014, over 68,241 refugee children from Central America and Mexico have taken to the treacherous journey of crossing the U.S./Mexico border. Many of them are fleeing the turmoil in their country, like those from Honduras. Honduras’ dire state is the result of a coup backed by the Obama administration. Since last summer thousands of young people have been fleeing violence and devastating poverty, crossing the U.S. border hoping for asylum once in the U.S.

Rather than being welcomed, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has threatened to deport them back to their home countries. But public pressure has forced the DHS to wait rather than deport the refugee children immediately. Instead of following the process of releasing these children to family members in the U.S. to await their asylum hearing, the DHS has decided to indefinitely jail thousands of children and mothers in new family detention centers, the largest of which are in Dilley and Karnes, Texas. These detention centers, private prisons operated for profit by the Corrections Corporation of America and GEO Group, have terrible and horrifying conditions.

A federal judge has twice ordered the administration to release all the detained refugee children, but so far these children have not been released.

Next up for the Legalization for All Network are actions in response to the recent attack against the expansion of Deferred Action for parents (DAPA), which would have expanded the number of undocumented immigrants who would not face the immediate threat of deportation. On Nov. 9 the courts continued to block the expansion of DAPA. It was originally blocked when 26 states with Republican governors sued to block it, and now a higher court upheld that ruling, making it more likely that the case will go to the Supreme Court.

#LosAngelesCA #Deportation #LegalizationForAllNetwork #familyDetention #Karnes #Dilley

The first panel focused on the Syrian and Central American refugee crisis, discussing how U.S. wars, military occupation, and interventions cause people to flee and look for new lives in other countries. Central Americans fleeing death squads and dictatorships came to the U.S. over the past decades. Today it is hundreds of thousands fleeing U.S. wars, with people from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan attempting to find safety in Europe and Turkey.

Rebeca Zellelew, a YES-MU member commented, “Having both my parents flee their native homeland in Ethiopia, one as a refugee and the other through asylum, the critical analysis of the Syrian and Central American Refugee crisis was vital for me to understand, especially in relation to the hushed role the U.S. government plays, and consistently contributes to inhumane atrocities around the world. Panels like this are significant to change our student body.”

The event ended with a solidarity march and candlelight vigil that was a part of the Legalization for All week of action. It was at Joan of Arc Chapel at Marquette University in remembrance of the mothers and children held by the U.S. government at for-profit detention facilities for over a year.

The second event “You May Say I’m a DREAMER”, focused on undocumented youth and their struggles to pursue higher education. The panelists included two Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, and another youth and immigrant rights activist.

“We will continue to raise awareness around immigration and issues of social justice at Marquette. The student body is predominantly white and middle to upper class and they do not always get a chance to see varying perspectives and to see the realities of the lives of people of color. That is where we hope we can direct the support from the Marquette community towards initiatives like a scholarship fund for undocumented students,” explained YES-MU President Miguel Sanchez.

#MilwaukeeWI #YouthEmpoweredInTheStruggle #LegalizationForAllNetwork #MarquetteUniversity