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 floating border buoys and to call attention to the horrible damage they’ve already done. The Department of Justice in July filed a lawsuit against Texas Governor Greg Abbott because the buoys violate the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. On Wednesday, September 6 a federal judge ruled that Texas must remove the buoys from the Rio Grande and halt any further construction on the river.

Organizations from Minneapolis, Chicago, Texas, San Jose and Los Angeles are mobilizing now to demonstrate their solidarity with the Central American, Mexican and various other refugees attempting to cross the border through the Rio Grande. Others are mobilizing calls to President Biden at (202) 456-1111 and Greg Abbott (512) 463-1782 to demand the removal of the 1000 feet of lethal buoys.

Legalization for All is partnering with other U.S./Mexico border organizations and with activist and business owner Jesse Fuentes. Fuentes provided a kayak fact-finding tour with the press shortly after the buoys were installed and helped in the lawsuit against Texas. Fight Back! recently spoke with him and he said, “Operation Lone Star has been causing havoc for two years now, they are trying to suppress Mexican-Americans on this side and those who attempt to cross from México. How much money will they pour into these terrible tactics?”

If you are interested in participating, message legalization for all now on Instagram @LegalizationForAll, X @LegalizeForAll, or send them an email at LegalizationForAll@gmail.com

#EaglePassTX #USMexicoBorder #L4ANetwork

Minneapolis, MN – On May 18, more than 30 immigrant rights activists gathered with banners at the corner of Lake Street and Chicago Avenue for an emergency response rally. The rally was initiated by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) after President Biden announced that the administration was sending 1500 more troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. Troops have already been sent under the guise of dealing with the aftermath of the end of Title 42, a Trump-era immigration policy that ended last week on May 11.

Protesters held banners that read “No militarized border,” “No more deportations” and “Legalization for all,” for the rush hour traffic to see. Organizers with MIRAC handed out informational flyers about the situation at the border, urging them to contact President Biden and demand an end to both militarization and increased deportations at the border after last week’s end of Title 42.

Title 42, the policy of turning immigrants away at the border allegedly due to COVID, was opposed by Democrats when Trump initiated it in 2020. Yet the Biden administration continued it for over two years after taking office despite pushback from immigrant rights advocates. Though Biden repeatedly criticized President Trump for refusing to allow asylum seekers refuge in the United States, his new border policies include the ability to deny asylum more easily to any immigrant that crosses through another other country prior to entering the United States through Mexico. This is essentially a new asylum ban – but without the same amount of public scrutiny and backlash that Trump’s asylum ban garnered.

The Biden administration now plans to lean heavily on Title 8, which unlike Title 42, actually goes a step further and criminalizes immigrants for coming and applying for asylum if they get denied. This policy bars those denied asylum from entering the U.S. for five years – causing them to face jail time and criminal charges if they dare to try.

The Department of Homeland Security is also now increasing the use of the fast-track deportation process known as “expedited removal” using the excuse that now that Title 42 has been lifted there will be more people trying to cross. This enables immigration officials to rapidly deport immigrants that they determine do not qualify for asylum or any other status that would allow them to stay in the U.S., without even a court hearing.

After hearing about these new policies from the rally emcee, protesters chanted, “Hey Biden, fuck your ban! No one is illegal on native land!” as others handed out informational flyers and engaged with people driving and walking by. MIRAC member Miguel Hernandez took to the mic and spoke about his experience on MIRAC’s recent delegation to the U.S.-Mexico border and the militarization the group saw at the border wall. Hernandez spoke about the impact of seeing a surveillance tower at the border wall in Friendship Park in Tijuana, Mexico – a surveillance tower constructed by Elbit Systems, an Israeli weapons company that equips both the U.S.-Mexico wall and apartheid Israel with militarized surveillance technology.

The protest was received with overwhelmingly positive support – cars honked as they drove past, and many people walking or driving by yelled in support, some even joining in on the chanting, filming and taking photos. It is clear from this reaction that many people support fighting back against racist immigration policies and horrific militarization of the U.S.-Mexico border that is continuing regardless of the fact that a Democrat is currently in the White House.

#MinneapolisMN #USMexicoBorder

Tijuana, Mexico – On April 2, a group of activists from the Legalization For All network crossed the U.S.-Mexico border to witness the effects of U.S. border militarization. The group met with Robert Vivar, binational coordinator at VÍA Internacional, and Aída Amador, coordinator of VÍA Migrante. They visited the Unified U.S. Deported Veterans Office, the border wall at Friendship Park on the Tijuana side, and the Casa de Luz LGBTQ+ immigrant collective house.

Crossing from the U.S. into Tijuana was quick and easy with no lines – the group did not even need to present their passports, which showed just how easy it is for many U.S. citizens to be able to cross into Mexico without question.

Once in Tijuana, the group stopped at the Unified U.S. Deported Veteran Resource Center, where they heard from Robert Vivar about the work they do. After serving in the U.S. military, immigrant veterans can lose their documentation due to criminal convictions and are then deported, left with PTSD from their service and separated from their homes and families in the U.S. The office was created to welcome these veterans, offering services such as help with housing, legal relief and reintegration into society after being deported.

Vivar himself was a veteran who was deported twice and was finally granted reentry into the U.S. after an almost 20-year battle. He finally won his case before the California Supreme Court. Vivar was a green card holder who had moved to the U.S. at age six. He told the group that after he was deported to Tijuana, he would come to Friendship Park and “it was too painful” to look out across the border to the San Diego side, as California was his home. After his own experience as a deported veteran, he began to advocate for other U.S. veterans who had been deported, understanding firsthand how cruel it is for the U.S. to send immigrants to fight and possibly die to serve the U.S. only to later get deported.

The group then drove to Friendship Park, a binational park located close to the San Ysidro Port of entry border crossing. The park became a meeting place for separated families to meet and even be able to reach through the wall and touch each other across the U.S.-Mexico border. The part of the park on the U.S. side was closed under Trump and remains closed under Biden, so there is no longer a way for families to meet there despite strong organizing efforts to reopen the park in San Diego.

As the delegation members made their way to Friendship Park in a van, Vivar gave the group a lesson about the current situation at the Tijuana border as the border wall came into view. Vivar explained to the group that asylum seekers are given much misinformation about how to apply for asylum, and that they are told they can just go to the border and apply. In reality, an appointment is needed, and appointments are difficult to get. Because of this misinformation, many immigrants jump the first wall and think they can give themselves up to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Instead, the Border Patrol leaves them between the two border walls that run parallel to one another, for hours or even days. Some of the people stuck between the two walls have been infants. This torture-on-display tactic is used to discourage immigrants from crossing. Vivar talked about how VÍA Migrante and others bring food and water to those who are stuck between the walls, since any pleas for help to Border Patrol go ignored. Along the drive, the group was able to see some of the individuals and families stuck between the two walls and was struck by this inhumane practice that happens often in the area.

At Friendship Park, the group heard more from Vivar about the wall and the history of the park, which is situated right on a beach. During the tour, Vivar asked the group if they knew why much of the wall was built to be 30 feet tall, which happened under Trump but is expanding today, as there are still plans for the shorter areas of the wall to be built up to this height under Biden. Vivar explained that 30 feet is a calculated critical height at which if a person falls from, they would be unlikely to make it to the ground alive or without permanently disabling injuries. On top of this, along the base of the wall lies large amounts of razor wire, in exactly the spot where someone climbing the wall would land. The situation is deadly.

There was quite a strong contrast at the park. The wall, which is a physical manifestation of oppression lined with sharp razor wire, was painted in bright colors and displayed beautiful and inspiring messages and images. Families and children could be seen enjoying the sunny day, playing at the beach, as the wall stretched out into the ocean. A Border Patrol vehicle zoomed by in between the two parallel walls. Some members of the group saw a person attempt to scale the wall and cross but climb back down as Border Patrol approached.

The wall’s extension into the ocean itself does not deter people from trying to swim across, but many drown or have to turn back. Vivar told the delegation members that after a large group once tried to cross through the water and some made it across, razor wire was added to the section of the wall in the water as well, creating an even deadlier situation for those trying to cross this way.

The next stop for the delegates was visiting Casa de Luz, an LGBTQ+ collective that houses immigrants and their families in a communal living space with a focus on food security. The group then went to Caza de Luz itself and met with Aída Amador from VÍA Internacional and Caza de Luz Founder Irving Mondragón for a tour. Mondragòn had started a kitchen program at the border, cooking healthy meals and providing basic needs to asylum-seekers at El Chaparral camp, a camp at the border. He then founded Caza de Luz, which they call a “collective,” as the word “shelter” has a negative stigma. The house was far from negative – it was full of color and light, kids played on the outdoor patio and the inside space was full of brightly colored furniture, cheerful artwork, books and trinkets. Caza de Luz is unique in that they welcome and embrace the LGBTQ+ community, which is not always the case in many shelters, and they also do not have a time limit on how long individuals and families are able to stay with them.

The group got to see beauty in the work that Caza de Luz does at the border, but was left as well with the heaviness of what they witnessed at the oppressive and grossly inhumane border wall. It is clear that the U.S. would rather see individuals and families who are fleeing desperate situations die at the hands of this oppression than cross the border in hope of a better life. The fortification and expansion of border militarization certainly did not end under Trump, but continues today and must be stopped.

#TijuanaMexico #Tijuana #LegalizationForAllNetworkL4A #USMexicoBorder

San Diego, CA – On April 2, part of the Legalization for All Network’s border delegation spent the day in San Diego, the city on the U.S. side of the border across from Tijuana, México.

The group of immigrant rights activists from Los Angeles, the Bay Area, Chicago and Minnesota spent the day in San Diego’s Barrio Logan neighborhood.

They started with a tour of Chicano Park at the heart of the neighborhood, and then did a walkthrough of the surrounding neighborhood.

As a border city on land that was part of Mexico until 1848, until the U.S.’s theft of the states that are now the southwestern part of the U.S., parts of San Diego are strongly marked by Chicano culture.

Robert Vivar, bi-national coordinator at Via international, and Rigo Reyes, community development director at Via Migrante, explained the history of Chicano Park to the group, a park that is now an officially recognized federal historical landmark.

In the park there is a series of massive murals telling the history of the struggle of the Chicano people who were forged as a people in the struggle against colonization, national oppression, brutality from police and ICE, and exploitation.

53 years ago in 1970, Chicano community activists occupied and then took control over Chicano Park to have a community-controlled space to tell their story and organize activities in their community, which was being threatened with high levels of pollution from the highway passing over it as well as polluting industries, including military contractors, and gentrification.

The massive colorful murals in the park are painted on the large pillars that hold up the highway overpasses that go over the park, bringing life to an area that would otherwise be drab and forgotten.

The 1970 community takeover had to fight against both the city of San Diego and the state of California for control of the park, as the state wanted to use the space under the highway for a Highway Patrol station. After winning control of the space through militant struggle, a Chicano Park Steering Committee was formed, which controls the park to this day. The building at the edge of the park hosts a Chicano Park museum.

Every April, members of the community organize Chicano Park Day commemoration of the April 22, 1970 takeover of the park. They also hold many community events in the park.

The day that the border delegation visited, there was a large Palm Sunday ceremony as well as a lowrider car and bike show. There were also posters around the park advertising the upcoming May 1 International Workers Day march.

After learning about the history of the park and the meaning of many of the images depicted in the murals, the delegation got a block-by-block tour through Barrio Logan with Chicano Park Steering Committee member Lucas Cruz.

He explained the struggle to preserve Chicano culture, identity and political consciousness in the neighborhood. This includes struggles against gentrification, rent gouging and businesses that want to move into the neighborhood while either erasing the Chicano character of the neighborhood or co-opting Chicano culture opportunistically without a connection to the Chicano community or movement. It also includes struggles to prevent police brutality and over-policing of Chicano youth, and struggling with some business owners to not default to calling the police into the community for every problem they encounter.

Cruz talked to the group about the history of the Chicano people while describing one of the murals in Chicano Park. The Chicano people were forged into a nationality in the aftermath of the U.S. invasion of Mexico and then the imposed Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. The people in the states that the U.S. seized in 1848 that currently are the southwestern states of the U.S., began to live a different reality than both Mexicans in México and people in the rest of the United States. The awakening of the Chicano liberation movement in the late 1960s led to the Plan Spiritual de Aztlan that identified the land base of the Chicano liberation struggle as the territory seized by the U.S. in 1848 and the struggle as one for self-determination on that land, named Aztlan.

This Chicano national consciousness can be seen in distinctive features of Chicano culture and language that continue to this day as well as with the persistence of Chicano organizations such as MEChA, Brown Berets, among others.

After the neighborhood tour with Cruz, the delegation met with two leaders of Aztlan Youth, a Chicano organization based in Barrio Logan. They heard from two women leaders of Aztlan Youth, Rocky and Briana. They talked about the struggles young Chicanos are engaged in in Barrio Logan, like the struggle against the effects of environmental racism including the high rates of asthma and other medical conditions in the community due to the decades of corporate and government decisions to pollute their neighborhood. They talked about the continual struggle to make sure young Chicanos learn their culture, history and identity, since those things aren’t usually taught in schools.

After meeting with Aztlan Youth, the delegation got to visit the Tommie Camarillo Collection, a meticulously-maintained archive of posters, buttons, newspapers, photos, videos, music and other materials going back more than 50 years documenting the history of the Chicano liberation movement with a strong focus on the history of the struggle over Chicano Park.

The day as a whole gave the participants in the border delegation a grounding in the struggles of the Chicano community in the border town of San Diego, and a deeper understanding of the basis of modern-day anti-immigrant politics in the history of oppression and theft of land from Mexico and the forging of the Chicano people in the borderlands and the Southwest.

#SanDiegoCA #immigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #LegalizationForAllNetworkL4A

San Diego, CA – On April 2, part of the Legalization for All Network’s border delegation spent the day in San Diego, the city on the U.S. side of the border across from Tijuana, México.

The group of immigrant rights activists from Los Angeles, the Bay Area, Chicago and Minnesota spent the day in San Diego’s Barrio Logan neighborhood.

They started with a tour of Chicano Park at the heart of the neighborhood, and then did a walkthrough of the surrounding neighborhood.

As a border city on land that was part of Mexico until 1848, until the U.S.’s theft of the states that are now the southwestern part of the U.S., parts of San Diego are strongly marked by Chicano culture.

Robert Vivar, bi-national coordinator at Via international, and Rigo Reyes, community development director at Via Migrante, explained the history of Chicano Park to the group, a park that is now an officially recognized federal historical landmark.

In the park there is a series of massive murals telling the history of the struggle of the Chicano people who were forged as a people in the struggle against colonization, national oppression, brutality from police and ICE, and exploitation.

53 years ago in 1970, Chicano community activists occupied and then took control over Chicano Park to have a community-controlled space to tell their story and organize activities in their community, which was being threatened with high levels of pollution from the highway passing over it as well as polluting industries, including military contractors, and gentrification.

The massive colorful murals in the park are painted on the large pillars that hold up the highway overpasses that go over the park, bringing life to an area that would otherwise be drab and forgotten.

The 1970 community takeover had to fight against both the city of San Diego and the state of California for control of the park, as the state wanted to use the space under the highway for a Highway Patrol station. After winning control of the space through militant struggle, a Chicano Park Steering Committee was formed, which controls the park to this day. The building at the edge of the park hosts a Chicano Park museum.

Every April, members of the community organize Chicano Park Day commemoration of the April 22, 1970 takeover of the park. They also hold many community events in the park.

The day that the border delegation visited, there was a large Palm Sunday ceremony as well as a lowrider car and bike show. There were also posters around the park advertising the upcoming May 1 International Workers Day march.

After learning about the history of the park and the meaning of many of the images depicted in the murals, the delegation got a block-by-block tour through Barrio Logan with Chicano Park Steering Committee member Lucas Cruz.

He explained the struggle to preserve Chicano culture, identity and political consciousness in the neighborhood. This includes struggles against gentrification, rent gouging and businesses that want to move into the neighborhood while either erasing the Chicano character of the neighborhood or co-opting Chicano culture opportunistically without a connection to the Chicano community or movement. It also includes struggles to prevent police brutality and over-policing of Chicano youth, and struggling with some business owners to not default to calling the police into the community for every problem they encounter.

Cruz talked to the group about the history of the Chicano people while describing one of the murals in Chicano Park. The Chicano people were forged into a nationality in the aftermath of the U.S. invasion of Mexico and then the imposed Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. The people in the states that the U.S. seized in 1848 that currently are the southwestern states of the U.S., began to live a different reality than both Mexicans in México and people in the rest of the United States. The awakening of the Chicano liberation movement in the late 1960s led to the Plan Spiritual de Aztlan that identified the land base of the Chicano liberation struggle as the territory seized by the U.S. in 1848 and the struggle as one for self-determination on that land, named Aztlan.

This Chicano national consciousness can be seen in distinctive features of Chicano culture and language that continue to this day as well as with the persistence of Chicano organizations such as MEChA, Brown Berets, among others.

After the neighborhood tour with Cruz, the delegation met with two leaders of Aztlan Youth, a Chicano organization based in Barrio Logan. They heard from two women leaders of Aztlan Youth, Rocky and Briana. They talked about the struggles young Chicanos are engaged in in Barrio Logan, like the struggle against the effects of environmental racism including the high rates of asthma and other medical conditions in the community due to the decades of corporate and government decisions to pollute their neighborhood. They talked about the continual struggle to make sure young Chicanos learn their culture, history and identity, since those things aren’t usually taught in schools.

After meeting with Aztlan Youth, the delegation got to visit the Tommie Camarillo Collection, a meticulously-maintained archive of posters, buttons, newspapers, photos, videos, music and other materials going back more than 50 years documenting the history of the Chicano liberation movement with a strong focus on the history of the struggle over Chicano Park.

The day as a whole gave the participants in the border delegation a grounding in the struggles of the Chicano community in the border town of San Diego, and a deeper understanding of the basis of modern-day anti-immigrant politics in the history of oppression and theft of land from Mexico and the forging of the Chicano people in the borderlands and the Southwest.

#SanDiegoCA #immigrantRights #USMexicoBorder #LegalizationForAllNetworkL4A

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

In the context of the Biden administration’s continuation of some of former President Trump’s border militarization policies like Title 42 and like the closing of Friendship Park at the border between San Diego and Tijuana, the Legalization for All (L4A) Network’s upcoming second border delegation will observe firsthand and denounce the inhumane treatment of immigrants at the border. A record number, 890 people, died at the border in 2022, a 58% increase over 2021. This just accounts for the people whose bodies were recovered, not the many more reported missing.

Activists from around the country affiliated with the L4A Network will gather in Los Angeles, California to immerse themselves in the continued immigrant rights struggle. Participants will learn about the historical Mexican and Central American immigration fight in Los Angeles and about the Chicano past and current movement for liberation.

After learning about the struggle in Los Angeles, the delegation will travel to San Diego to experience a private tour of Chicano Park. Chicano Park is a 32,000 square meter park located beneath the San Diego-Coronado Bridge in Barrio Logan, a predominantly Chicano neighborhood. Others crossing into Tijuana will visit refugee shelters and learn about and witness the plight of Haitian and Central American Refugees stuck in the U.S./Mexico border. Before returning to LA, everyone will hike to the border wall to witness in real-time the extending of the Trump 30-foot Wall. Even under President Biden construction has proceeded, uninterrupted.

In its second border delegation, the L4A Network has organized an ambitious five-day schedule. Each attendee has united under the banner of legalization for all of the undocumented as it is the main mission of the network.

April 4 at 6:00 pm the public will hear about the trip to the border in a panel presentation hosted at the Boyle Heights City Hall located at 2130 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90033. Some of the panelists include Brad Sigal representing the L4A Network, as well as representatives from the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), GABRIELA, and immigration attorney Andrés Kwon. On the final day of the delegation, participants will gather privately to meet with Central American youth who recently immigrated to Los Angeles.

Handling logistics in LA, Centro Community Service Organization (CSO) has partnered up with the Boyle Heights group the Los Angeles Catholic Worker to make it all happen. Those traveling from outside of LA include a dozen activists from Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), from the Silicon Valley Unemployed Committee, a high school student from Chicago’s Students for a Democratic Society, and from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization. Also assisting with logistics is the impacted family of David Ordaz Jr –who was killed by East LA sheriff deputies on March 14, 2021.

All supporters of the immigrant rights border delegation can make a donation at Centro CSO’s Zelle account by using their email CentroCSO@gmail.com . To follow the delegation live on Instagram go to @LegalizationForAll, Twitter @LegalizeForAll, and on Facebook at Legalization for All’s page. For any questions related to the delegation, text or call (323) 484-8630.

#UnitedStates #immigrantRights #USMexicoBorder

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