Minneapolis, MN – On June 8, 75 people gathered to protest President Biden’s executive order closing the border and restricting asylum. Immediately after Biden issued the order on Tuesday, June 4, the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) called an emergency protest to oppose his action.

Biden’s executive order closes the U.S./Mexico border and severely restricts asylum. It is a continuation of Donald Trump’s repressive immigration policies and is a copy of the ban Trump tried to put into effect before he was blocked by the federal courts. During his presidential campaign of 2020, Biden sharply criticized Trump’s immigration policies and decried his efforts to restrict asylum. Biden is openly breaking his campaign promises and shifting U.S. immigration politics to the far right.

Susana De León, an immigration lawyer and community organizer, talked about the politicians’ hateful rhetoric: “Everything continues to be blamed on Black and brown bodies, indigenous people, and people who have been left out of the system by the same corporations that are now enjoying the highest profits while we have to get food at the highest prices ever.”

The location of the protest was significant. Protesters rallied in a predominantly immigrant neighborhood, a block away from where dozens of day laborers gather daily in desperate search of jobs to feed themselves and their families. The majority of the day laborers are immigrants who recently arrived from Ecuador, driving home the stark reality that President Biden is taking only repressive actions against immigrants while national pressure builds for Biden to grant Temporary Protective Status to Ecuadorian immigrants.

Adriana Cerrillo, speaking on behalf of the Minnesota Interfaith Coalition on Immigration, told the crowd her story and why it was difficult but important to her to be at the action: “It is very difficult for me to be here today, because my own trauma and my own experience from this fucking system is really hard, it’s really difficult. This system has taken so much from me, and yet it is my obligation to stay strong, and the way that I stay strong is by being with and surrounding myself with people like you here today.”

Asylum is a human right protected under international law. Both Democrats and Republicans are using immigrants in a political game. Biden’s closing of the border and nearly total ban on asylum is dangerous and must be opposed.

We must take a firm stance against racist and repressive anti-immigrant policies regardless of which political party is in power. MIRAC will join immigrant rights groups from around the country to protest both the Republican and the Democratic National Conventions this summer. Stand with MIRAC to demand no more attacks on immigrants and legalization for all.

#MinneapolisMN #MN #ImmigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #MIRAC #Asylum

Dallas, TX – La Frontera Nos Cruzo held a vigil, May 10, at the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge to honor mothers who have lost their lives at the border. The event's host, Lesly Torres Guerrero, began the night by singing a rendition of Cielito Lindo before leading a moment of silent prayer for those affected by border violence. An altar of names and faces was decorated with flowers and candles, which passersby stopped to give their respects to.

A guest speaker from the Eagle Pass Border coalition, Amerika Grewal, spoke on the topic, “There is a time for mourning, then there is action!”

#DallasTX #TX #ImmigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #LaFronteraNosCruzo #EaglePassBorderCoalition #OppressedNationalities #ChicanoLatino

Eagle Pass, TX – Members of the Legalization for All (L4A) Network from Los Angeles, Dallas and Minneapolis traveled to the border towns of Eagle Pass, Texas and Piedras Negras, Coahuila, México from February 23-25.

They went to show solidarity with immigrants and activists there fighting against Texas Governor Greg Abbott's racist, anti-immigrant attacks. The Eagle Pass Border Coalition hosted the delegation. The Legalization for All delegation was there just days before Donald Trump went to Eagle Pass to spread racist anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Eagle Pass is a town of 28,000 people on the U.S./México border with a 97% Chicano/Latino population. It has as its sister city across the border Piedras Negras. Eagle Pass has become a flashpoint in national politics as Governor Abbott has delusionally declared that there is an “invasion” there from México and has taken extreme and cruel measures.

Abbott’s measures have maimed and killed immigrants, including installing razor buoys in the Rio Grande and militarily occupying Shelby Park in Eagle Pass with the Texas National Guard. This in defiance of court rulings that say only the federal government can enact immigration policy, not individual states. Beginning in March 2024, Texas’s new harsh anti-immigrant Senate Bill 4 was slated to go into effect, though it has been delayed by a court challenge.

It’s in this context of sharply increasing racist attacks on immigrants and the extreme militarization of border towns that the Legalization for All Network sent an emergency delegation to Eagle Pass to support the brave activists there who are organizing and fighting back.

After arriving in Eagle Pass on Friday evening, February 23, on Saturday the L4A delegation headed to the First United Methodist Church in Eagle Pass for a workshop with youth activists. Two members of the delegation from Centro CSO in Los Angeles presented a training on creating strategic organizing campaigns, going in depth about grassroots organizing and building community power. Eagle Pass Border Coalition members Jessie Fuentes and Amerika Garcia Grewal explained the context of Texas Governor Abbott’s racist anti-immigrant attacks. After that high school and college-age residents of Eagle Pass talked about ideas for organizing and developing political power.

Feeding immigrants

Before the trip, the delegation members quickly raised money to go toward food banks and shelters that are doing the work every day on the ground feeding, clothing and providing shelter to immigrants and refugees. They hand-delivered donations to the Eagle Pass Frontera Ministries at San Lucas Lutheran Church, which operates a food bank serving anyone from the community including immigrants.

While there, they also helped stock the local food bank. Part of the money the delegation raised also went to the Casa de Migrante (Migrant House) in Piedras Negras, just across the border from Eagle Pass, which they later visited as well.

Seeing the militarized border up close

As soon as the delegation members arrived in Eagle Pass they witnessed an extremely heavy law enforcement presence by local, state and federal police agencies, with local police constantly pulling over and harassing community members for minor infractions.

The delegation toured Eagle Pass, and one of the first stops was the county cemetery where unidentified immigrants were buried. There they could see the disturbed soil from where the bodies were recently exhumed to be identified at a university.

Their next stop was along the Rio Grande where the delegation expected to see the Texas National Guard but was surprised to see United States Army soldiers in Border Patrol Vehicles who said, “We're being the eyes and ears for the Border Patrol” when asked why they were there.

The presence of U.S. Army soldiers is an example of the struggle playing out on the Texas border between the federal and state government as Governor Abbott has illegally militarized the border with Texas's National Guard and then the Biden administration has responded by trying to replace state forces with federal U.S. Army troops to supplement Customs and Border Patrol officials. This approach from the Biden administration continues the Republican-led militarization of the border.

The delegation then went to the edge of Shelby Park, where they saw the occupation by Texas National Guard forces of the park on the edge of downtown Eagle Pass along the Rio Grande. This is the main park of the city and is now completely militarized and blocked off for the general public.

Then the delegation went down the road to where Governor Abbott placed concertina wire-wrapped buoys in the middle of the Rio Grande. Federal courts have ordered Texas to remove the deadly buoys that have already killed people, but so far Texas has refused. They also saw a surveillance tower at the edge of the Rio Grande, likely one supplied by Elbit Systems, an Israeli company that uses such technology against Palestinians and also supplies it to the U.S. to use at the U.S./México border.

And as if the current level of border militarization isn’t enough, while the delegation was in Eagle Pass, the headline story of the Del Rio and Eagle Pass News Leader was that Governor Abbott announced that the Texas Military Department, an agency under the governor’s control, had acquired 80 acres of land in Eagle Pass to construct a forward operating base that would house 1800 more soldiers.

Immigrant shelters in Piedras Negras, México

After seeing the extreme militarization of the US side of the border in Eagle Pass, the delegation members crossed the border into Piedras Negras, Coahuila, México.

The Mexico side of the border was a stark contrast to the U.S. side, and not in the way many might assume. Downtown Eagle Pass, like a lot of downtowns in the U.S., has a lot of vacant storefronts, with few people walking around, and with the park along the river completely blocked off to the public with a massive, militarized force. In contrast, Piedras Negras was lively, with lots of people on the streets and kids playing in a giant park just across the border, as well as colorful murals and with clean and fancy shopping on Calle 11. The militarization of the border has choked off visitors from México who used to be able to cross into Eagle Pass more easily, harming the Eagle Pass economy and strengthening the economy of Piedras Negras.

Once in Piedras Negras, the delegation met up with a local activist there who accompanied them to two shelters housing immigrants and asylum seekers.

First they brought boxes of food to Casa del Migrante – Frontera Digna (Migrant House – Dignified Border) to give to asylum seekers staying there. The delegation was warmly greeted at Casa del Migrante. They unloaded the food and helped stock their pantry, then they talked with dozens of immigrants and asylum seekers who gathered around eager to share their stories. The main people they spoke with were from Honduras, El Salvador, Venezuela and Haiti. People spoke of the hardships they faced in their journey from their home countries to the U.S./México border and spoke of the fact that many of them were robbed and beaten on their long journey by Mexican police or gangs. Women spoke of incidents of sexual violence along the journey.

They spoke of not necessarily wanting to go to the U.S. for a better life or for the “American dream,” but of wanting a secure life. Many of them spoke of facing violence and threats of death in their home countries by gangs, simply for not wanting to join or for objecting to the theft of their homes by the gangs. The destabilization of their home countries by U.S. imperialism is the root cause for many of these people leaving from places like Honduras, Venezuela and Haiti in search of safety for their children.

After leaving Casa del Migrante, the delegation went to a second smaller immigrant shelter down the street. By this time the sun had gone down, and inside the shelter it was completely dark. The people there said the electricity hadn’t worked for days. Delegation members spoke to a Salvadoran woman who was there with her child, who said they left El Salvador due to the terrible economic situation, among other reasons.

It was notable that in both shelters there were large numbers of children. While Texas Governor Abbott and Donald Trump talk about an “invasion” from México, and billions of dollars are being spent on hyper-militarization of the border to stop this so-called invasion, the reality the delegation saw is that the people coming across the border are overwhelmingly families with children seeking refuge from the chaos caused by U.S. imperialism in their countries.

After leaving the second shelter, the delegation went to the edge of the Rio Grande on the México side. While on the México side there are homes and there’s a park where people can walk and sit alongside river, across the river on the U.S. side you see the massive militarization with huge coils of concertina wire, Border Patrol vehicles and armed officers, and huge spotlights pointed at the river and at México.

While at the river, the delegation saw Mexican police vehicles pull up suddenly, who said they received a report of someone drowning trying to cross the river. The delegation didn’t observe anyone drowning but did see one woman successfully cross the river and then try to present herself to the U.S. Border Patrol officials. The Border Patrol didn’t let her through, so instead she got back in the water to go further downstream. It was notable that she crossed successfully because local residents said that the water was higher and choppier than usual. So by forcing her to either swim back across to México or go further downstream to try to cross, it put her life at risk.

The growing battle in Texas and the importance of supporting border activists on the front line

Eagle Pass, Texas is at the epicenter of the conflict in the U.S. between reactionary forces like Donald Trump and Governor Abbott on the one hand, and the working class and oppressed nationality people on the other hand. While the Biden administration doesn’t oppose militarization of the border, the ongoing standoff in Eagle Pass between Texas, with support from other reactionary state governments like Florida, and the federal forces like Customs and Border Patrol and the U.S. Army, is one of the most serious manifestations of the extreme level of political polarization in the U.S. While the Biden administration might embrace Republican demands for even more militarization of the border, it also has the potential to sharpen into deeper conflict.

In this context, the organizers and activists in Eagle Pass are doing crucial work under very trying circumstances to support the right of immigrants to request asylum, and to stand against the racist anti-immigrant onslaught carried out by Governor Abbott and aided by national figures like Donald Trump.

This is why the Legalization for All Network organized their delegation, to amplify the voices of those organizers and show solidarity with them and with immigrants and asylum-seekers.

The delegation succeeded in supporting the struggle for immigrant rights on the front lines of the racist anti-immigrant attack in Texas, as well as deepening solidarity with immigrant rights organizers doing work on the front lines in Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras.

Amerika Garcia Grewal of the Eagle Pass Border Coalition, who helped host the delegation, said, “Our visitors inspired us with their personal attention and fresh insights in Saturday's workshop. They showed us how to turn our challenges into opportunities, and how to make a bigger impact in our community. Throughout their three-day visit their questions and concern for our community emphasized that we are not alone in our quest for justice and equality.”

A delegation member from Centro CSO, Los Angeles stated, “We hope to continue to solidify those relationships we made and continue to support them. What I learned by being on the ground in Eagle Pass is invaluable and I will be spreading that knowledge back home in Los Angeles.”

#EaglePassTX #ImmigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #L4A #CentroCSO #Feature

Eagle Pass, TX – Grassroots organizers from Legalization for All Network affiliates in California, Texas and Minnesota are on their way to the border town of Eagle Pass, Texas to learn from and support local organizers doing the work to feed, house and support immigrants and refugees in this town on the U.S./Mexico border.

Tensions have risen in Eagle Pass as Governor Greg Abott of Texas has continued to heavily militarize the border there, with Texas National Guard troops continuing to occupy Shelby Park along the Rio Grande River in defiance of federal court rulings and community demands that they leave.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has also gone to Eagle Pass to do anti-immigrant photo-op stunts. The Texas National Guard’s occupation of this area led directly to the deaths of a mother and her two daughters in the river in January, by blocking anyone from trying to save them from drowning. The razor buoys that Governor Abbott put in the Rio Grande before that have also caused many deaths and injuries.

White supremacists have been emboldened and have been mobilizing to Eagle Pass supposedly to patrol the normally quiet border town to try to capitalize on this moment for their own racist agenda.

Adding to Texas’s wave of racist anti-immigrant hysteria, on February 20 Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced a lawsuit to try to shut down Annunciation House, a Catholic volunteer organization that offers hospitality to immigrants and refugees. Paxton ridiculously claims that the organization is “smuggling and harboring” immigrants. This is on top of the Texas legislature passing the draconian anti-immigrant bill SB 4 which is slated to go into effect in March.

Gabriel Quiroz Jr. of Centro CSO in Boyle Heights Los Angeles ,California, who will be participating in the Legalization for All Network delegation to Eagle Pass said, “I’m looking forward to getting to work and helping the groups and organizations on the ground in any way we can, in trying times like this solidarity is very important.”

Another participant in the upcoming border delegation, Brad Sigal of the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, said, “The only ‘crisis’ at the border is the human rights catastrophe that Governor Abbott and anti-immigrant politicians like him are creating with their racist attacks. No human being is illegal.”

The Legalization for All Network delegation is being hosted by Eagle Pass community members who are ignored by Texas Governor Abbott and Republican congresspeople when they swoop into Eagle Pass to grandstand.

Delegation members plan to learn about and document the realities on the ground for immigrants and asylum seekers as well as for residents of this border town who live under constant surveillance and occupation by federal immigration enforcement agencies, and now Texas National Guard troops. They also plan to share what they learn to counter the propaganda pumped out by anti-immigrant politicians like Donald Trump and Greg Abbott.

#EaglePassTX #ImmigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #L4A #MIRAC #CentroCSO

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

!!Emergency Action!!

Call Biden and your two senators:

Stand Up to Anti-Immigrant, Racist Republicans!

In Eagle Pass, Texas, Governor Abbott, with support from Trump and other Republicans in Congress, are refusing to allow Federal Customs and Border Patrol agents to remove the deadly razor wire in the Rio Grande at Shelby Park. Texas lost their case at the Supreme Court, resulting in an ongoing standoff. Additionally, Governor Abbott has deployed the Texas National Guard to occupy 47 acres of Shelby Park. This occupation has led to at least three recorded deaths — the drowning of a mother and her two children. The Guard blocked Border Patrol from rendering aid to them and stood back as the three drowned. President Biden called on Abbott to also remove the Guard as immigration is a federal matter, but Abbott has refused to comply.

At the same time, Congress is coming closer to reaching an immigration deal. Republican House Speaker Johnson warned of stopping the deal and holding back further military aid to Ukraine and Israel, if the deal did not include stronger border enforcement. Current reports have read that if passed, the deal would dismantle key asylum protections, allow the president the power to “close the border” if a threshold of immigrants crossing is reached, and increase swift deportations. It is vital for Biden, the Democrats, the Senate, and the general public to stand up against these increasing racist attacks on immigrants by the Republicans.

We must denounce the growing oppressive, anti-immigrant sentiment the Republicans are whipping up targeting refugees from Central America, Mexico, Haiti, and South America. Now more than ever, we must support human rights activists in Eagle Pass who are seeing tremendous rise of immigration activity.

Make your THREE phone calls to:

President Biden and demand that he stand with immigrants against these racist Republican attacks! (202) 456-1111

Script: “My name is —- calling from (City/State) urging President Biden to side with the undocumented and put a stop to racist, anti-immigrant Republicans like Texas Governor Abbott who is leading countless atrocities and attacks against refugees! Don’t back down now Biden! Put a stop to human rights violations against the undocumented, legalization for all now!”

Send President Biden an email: https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

Your TWO senators and demand they vote AGAINST further funding Ukraine, Israel and border militarization.

Look up your senators’ phones and emails:

https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm

Script: “My name is ___ and I am a (YOUR STATE) resident. I urge the Senator to vote NO on the proposed funding bill that would severely restrict asylum rights, increase swift deportations, and provide billions of dollars to Israel to continue the genocide of Palestinians. The Senator must show they stand against attacks on immigrants to push a political agenda. The Senator should work toward an end to US aid for war and refuse to trade immigrant rights for further funding of death, destruction, and displacement.”

#ImmigrantRights #L4A #USMexicoBorder

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

The Legalization for All (L4A) network denounces the latest actions by the state of Texas at the Eagle Pass/U.S. border. The Texas National Guard, under the direction of Republican Governor Greg Abbott, began an occupation on January 10, 2024 of 47 acres at a public place of gathering — Shelby Park. These actions have led to injury and death of at least three immigrants attempting to cross into the U.S. at Shelby Park. The three died from drowning and Border Patrol agents who were attempting to help them were blocked by the National Guard.

For these heinous crimes, we demand:

• The Texas National Guard be removed IMMEDIATELY from Shelby Park and that all lethal weapons — like the concertina barbed wire also be removed
• Charges be placed on all individuals whose actions at the border have led to the deaths of at least three people, attempting to cross the border
• Governor Abbott MUST GO
• STOP plans to continue building the border wall

Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas National Guard’s actions for the past year have resulted in the murder and maiming of people who have every right to a safe passage. With this being a deadly military tactic within U.S. public bounds, and countless escalation tactics under Operation Lone Star, the L4A demands the removal of Greg Abbott as well as criminal charges against him no less than first degree murder, the removal of all lethal barriers and an end to the building of the border wall.

The crossing of immigrants in Eagle Pass is the result of hundreds of years of violent U.S. imperialism in Central and South America. The founding of Texas is based on slavery and the racists who fought to keep owning African-American slaves. The state of Texas exercises violence, terror, and discrimination against immigrants. It also has a long and sordid history filled with racist attacks against Chicanos and against Mexican, Central American, Haitian, and various other refugees.

The people who travel here, from homes shattered by U.S. rule and dominance, have every right to safe passage and to a life free of harm thereafter. The Biden administration on Sunday January 14, 2024, sent the Texas government a Cease and Desist letter on border access. It stated that Texas National Guard soldiers are unconstitutionally restricting Border Patrol access to about 2.5 miles of the U.S. Mexico border. U.S. Congress Representative Henry Cuellar blamed Texas governor’s aggressive border action for the deaths of a mother and two children.

Join this pertinent denouncing of military occupation by the Texas National Guard, and demand they stop the killing of refugees at the Eagle Pass/U.S. Border. Become part of our network by sending us a message here https://legalizationforall.wordpress.com/contact-us/

NATIONAL GUARD OUT OF EAGLE PASS

#EaglePassTX #ImmigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #GovAbbot #NationalGuard #BorderWall #Migrants #Feature

Dallas, TX – The Legalization for All Network is asking all to express their anger December 1 against the racist Texas Senate Bill 4.

SB 4 would make it a state crime to cross into Texas from Mexico without proper documentation, allowing Texas law enforcement to arrest anyone they think might be undocumented. The U.S. Supreme Court’s case 2012 Arizona v. The United States however, ruled that only the federal government can enforce immigration laws, not police, sheriff’s deputies, or state troopers. Therefore constitutionally, law enforcement does not have the power to racially profile or deport. Nobody has to prove citizenship status or provide any immigration documents to a law enforcement officer.

“Senate Bill 4 is expected to be signed into law in the coming days,” says Xavi Velasquez. Velasquez is an immigrant rights activist based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and organizes with the grassroots organization La Frontera Nos Cruzó. “It will give a free hand to local law enforcement to actively discriminate against the Chicano and Latino community in Texas. Laws like this coming after the heightening of the border crisis by Greg Abbot show the intent of Texas lawmakers to target not only immigrants but the historic Chicano and Latino community of Texas.”

Texas has a long history of oppressing Chicanos, dating back to its founding by pro-slavery politicians, illegal white settlers, and their posse – the Texas Rangers. Mexico outlawed slavery and Texan settlers revolted, leading to further exploitation of Mexicans, Chicanos and African Americans. Conditions were bad, especially those who tilled the soil on cotton farms. With an oppression as longstanding as the Texan one, it comes as no surprise that centuries later, we continue fighting back like today. Governor Greg Abbott is teaming up with Trump for further repression against the undocumented, and we will not be silent.

The Legalization for All Network (L4A) is asking all chapters and allies to demonstrate their outrage leading up to December 1. That day, La Frontera Nos Cruzó, part of L4A, is holding an action and the details will soon be released.

All who are indignant of SB 4 are asked to make a poster and take a picture with it, write statements and submit to L4A, send a 30-second video expressing their anger, or organize a local action. Submit all to Legalization for All social media or email LegalizationForAll@gmail.com

L4A’s pillars are legalization for all, no racist border wall, no militarization at the border and no more deaths, stop the exploitation of undocumented workers, stop the deportations and separation of families, and a stop to the sterilization and sexual violence against the undocumented. For more information or to join L4A, send them a message.

#DallasTX #ImmigrantRights #L4A #USMexicoBorder #Feature

Fight Back! is circulating the following call for solidarity from the Legalization for All Network.

Show Your Support for Immigrants at the Border

The Legalization for All Network is calling on all who are interested in showing support for the undocumented, to make a short 30-second video. Legalization for All Network (L4A) is a national movement challenging the oppressive and harmful policies of Operation Lone Star. Operation Lone Star was created in 2021 and uses various tactics to further militarize the U.S./México border. It is the joining of forces between the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Military Department. Under Governor Greg Abbott in July of 2023, $1million buoys were dropped in the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo waters. These buoys are equipped with razor-sharp saws, chained to the bottom of the river (so they are immobile), and wrapped with concertina wire. While the buoys are dangerous and have already claimed lives, continued efforts have been to also remove the longstanding concertina wire along the river.

The latest request for video solidarity is in support of the people of Eagle Pass, Texas. They are organizing against human rights violations at the border. All are asked to give voice to and demand justice and peace for immigrants and border communities. L4A wants to see and hear messages of support, stories of resistance, and visions of change.

Videos will be spliced together by Jordan Peña from Los Angeles’ Centro Community Service Organization, and the video will be played during a vigil. The vigil will be held on October 23rd, for the lives lost at the Eagle Pass/Mexican border. It is being led by the coalition Border Vigil, which is part of L4A.

Videos should be submitted by Monday, October 16th, by emailing LegalizationForAll@gmail.com. They should be no longer than 30 seconds. Videos should mention the recent atrocities at the border, shout support for Eagle Pass, and use the legalization for all demand. Any language, style, or format is allowed, as long as it is respectful and relevant. Organization shirts are welcome. Filming should be done preferably outside or at city landmarks. All devices or platforms are allowed, such as phones, cameras, laptops, or social media. Participants are asked to tag Legalization for All or direct message a link to videos.

Go here for complete video instructions and guidelines.

For organizations and individuals interested in joining L4A visit @LegalizationForAll on social media or email LegalizationForAll@gmail.com.

#ImmigrantRights #L4A #USMexicoBorder #Featured

Los Angeles, CA – 30 people gathered at Mariachi Plaza in LA’s Boyle Heights neighborhood, September 15, to demand Texas Governor Greg Abbott comply with the federal judge-ordered removal of buoys at the Río Grande/Rio Bravo. Chanting “Abbott is a liar, remove the racist wire!” and “¿Qué es lo que queremos? ¡Legalización! ¿Cuando? ¡Ahora!” supporters and speakers gathered as part of the week of action called by the Legalization for All (L4A) Network in conjunction with activists in Eagle Pass, Texas, where the buoys were dumped into the river.

The spirited action took place at Mariachi Plaza, as people drove by and honked or waved in support, or shouted their support as they walked by.

The Los Angeles protest was organized by Centro CSO’s Immigration Rapid Response Team which is led by Jordan Peña and Sol Marquez. Peña opened up the event by saying, “I'm from El Paso, Texas, born and raised on the border. I have always known the border to be a place that people cross every single day. People would cross for normal day-to-day activities such as work, seeing family, going out to eat, and this was normal. This was how our society in El Paso functioned.”

Peña continued, “Throughout the most recent years even under the Biden administration we have seen the militarization at our El Paso increase substantially. When I was a kid there were no barbed wire fences, now there are mounds and mounds of barbed wire fences. Governor Greg Abbott of Texas recently put buoys in the middle of the Rio Grande to deter asylum seekers from crossing over.”

After Peña, Jenny Bekenstein, a Teamster Local 396 rank-and-filer spoke, “We stand with those fleeing the destabilization of their home countries, like Guatemala, only to be met with the vicious hammer of U.S. anti-immigrant policies and tactics.”

Then attendees heard from Jose Barrera, who is a DACAmented DREAMer from Michoacán, Mexico. Barrera is an active advocate for immigrant rights, pushing for strong immigration reform in the U.S. Last month, he became the youngest-elected vice president of the League of United Latin-American Citizens (LULAC) in the organization’s history. He is also the first DREAMer to take the same role in LULAC’s history. During the event Barrera said, “The Democrats also need to do more during these violations of human rights at the border. And if they don’t, then we won’t vote for them!”

Gabriel Quiroz Jr. made his first speech ever and represented CSO’s Police Accountability Committee. “As a Chicano I think it’s very important to stand in solidarity with immigrants at our southern border. I am here to demand Governor Greg Abbott immediately remove the razor-covered buoys. I myself am the son of immigrants, my dad is from Nayarit, Mexico, and so are my grandparents. We stand in solidarity with all in Eagle Pass and those attempting to cross the border.”

Also speaking at the event were Aaron Reveles from the Peace and Freedom Party and Antonia Montes, representing Centro CSO’s education committee. Ending the event was Sol Marquez representing CSO and Freedom Road Socialist Organization. Marquez spoke about how her mother crossed the Rio Grande in the 80s. Marquez asked, “What if my mom, like countless other Central Americans, Mexicanos, Haitians attempted to cross today? Would she have been one of the four who recently died by the concertina wire or the death buoys?”

Those participating in the L4A week of action include organizations in Eagle Pass like Border Vigil, Eagle Pass Border Coalition, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), and Silicon Valley Immigration Committee (SVIC). If you would like to join CSO, send them a message on social media @CentroCSO on their hotline (323) 484-8630. If you and your organization would like to join the Legalization for All Network, send them a message here: legalizationforall.wordpress.com

#LosAngelesCA #BoyleHeights #L4ANetwork #CentroCSO #USMexicoBorder #EaglePassBorderCoalition #MIRAC

By Sol Márquez and Brad Sigal

Eagle Pass, TX – The Eagle Pass Border Coalition, located on the Rio Grande at the U.S.-México border, teamed up with local partners and with the Legalization for All (L4A) Network to kick off nationwide events with a press conference September 11, at Mission Border Hope in Eagle Pass.

Speakers included representatives from the Eagle Pass Border Coalition and some of their local partners, including Iglesia Lutera San Lucas, the Border Vigil, First United Methodist Church of Eagle Pass, Mission Border Hope, and LULAC Council 22519 of Eagle Pass.

The press conference announced details and scheduled events of the L4A Week of Action, which is running from September 10 to September 16. The week of action will feature various events and activities across the country, such as rallies, marches, vigils, forums, workshops and call-in events.

Jessie F. Fuentes, owner of Epi’s Canoe & Kayak Team in Eagle Pass, said, “A tiny little community on the Texas border has the world’s attention because here is where human dignity and intolerance are clashing. If we allow these atrocities to continue we are headed down a path of destruction.”

The L4A Week of Action demands that Texas Governor Abbott remove the deadly razor buoys from the Rio Grande – buoys which have already led to injuries and deaths of immigrants. The Legalization for All Network stands united among the following pillars: legalization for all of the undocumented now, no racist border wall, no border militarization and no more deaths, stop the exploitation of undocumented workers, stop the separation of families, and stop sterilization and sexual violence against the undocumented.

At the press conference, Eagle Pass native Karyme Flores, a university student in Denton, stated, “What started as a small community effort is evolving. Our story is being heard around the state, country and the world, and people want to help. This action week shows that Eagle Pass is not alone and the good fight will continue!”

The L4A Week of Action is part of a broader movement for social justice and human rights that challenges the oppressive, racist actions of the U.S. government and corporations. The L4A network is composed of dozens of organizations that represent various sectors and communities of immigrants, such as students, workers, women, LGBTQ, indigenous peoples, refugees and asylum seekers.

At the press conference Dr. Adriana Martinez said, “In my hometown of Eagle Pass we are fighting for border communities and immigrants all along the southern border, we are fighting for human rights and for the river. This week of action shows that solidarity.”

You can find more information about the L4A network and the Week of Action at Fight Back News https://www.fightbacknews.org/2023/9/8/remove-buoys-week-action-called-legalization-all-network and Legalization For All https://legalizationforall.wordpress.com/about/ .

The Eagle Pass Border Coalition and the Legalization for All Network are inviting all people who support the cause to join them in this week’s events and activities.

Border Vigil organizer Amerika Garcia-Grewal echoes the invitation, saying, “Those of us that live here on the border know that the Rio Grande is not a line that divides us, but a space that unites us. We are here to stand in solidarity with our partner organizations to advocate for the rights and dignity of all immigrants.”

Current list of events (in formation):

Minneapolis, MN – Wednesday, September 13, 5:30 p.m. Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee at the UMN Student Union protest against border militarization and demanding “Texas Governor Abbott, remove the razor buyouts in front of the Rio Grande, NOW!” Contact MIRAC at miracmn@gmail.com or on social media at @MIRACMN 

San Jose, CA – Thursday, September 14, 6:00 p.m. at 48 S 7th Street #101, San Jose, California. Silicon Valley Immigration Committee Border Educational: Remove the Buoys, Governor Abbott! “In support of L4A’s week of action SVIC is holding an educational at the San Jose Peace & Justice Center on Abbott’s Operational Lone Star and the line of razor-covered buoys dumped into the Rio Grande and the injustices towards immigrants as a result.” Contact SVIC on Instagram @SVImmigrationCommittee 

Los Angeles, CA – Friday, September 15, 5 p.m. at Mariachi Plaza 101 N Boyle Avenue, Los Angeles, California. “Join the Centro CSO immigration rapid response team as we hold a protest demanding the judge-ordered removal of the buoys and concertina wire at the Rio Grande and legalization for all now. Bring a poster and join us!” Contact CSO at (323) 484-8630 CentroCSO@gmail.com or @CentroCSO on social media.

For inquiries or interviews, please contact the Eagle Pass Border Coalition at +1-830-294-8380 or epbordercoalition@gmail.com and Legalization for All Network at 323-401-0433 legalizationforall@gmail.com or follow them on Instagram @LegalizationForAll and X @LegalizeForAll.

#EaglePassTX #L4ANetwork #MIRAC #USMexicoBorder

Eagle Pass, TX – Since the creation of Operation Lone Star in 2021, various tactics have been used to further militarize the U.S./México border.

On July 7, 2023, a floating border wall made up of buoys was installed at the Rio Grande. The buoys are equipped with razor-sharp saws between each, and barbed wire to seriously injure and even kill people who attempt to cross over them. Swimming under them is also impossible; they are anchored to the shallow waters of the Rio with cables and unable to be moved. The $1 million buoys have already caused at least four deaths, one a miscarriage. Sadly, the nationality and names of the victims are unknown.

The Legalization for All Network (L4A) is calling on all who are indignant of this tactic to mobilize an action the week of September 10-16. This week will be to support the removal of the