The following articles were published in the May 2007 newsletter (for the newsletter in pdf format, click here:
World Refugee Day Celebration, June 20, 2007
Lutherans Lead Vigils at EDC every Third Sunday of the Month at 4:00 PM
Report on Detention Watch Network Convention
World Refugee Day 2007 Celebration
June 20, 2007 from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
at the Priory Restaurant, 233 W. Market Street; Newark, NJ.
“I hope we never, ever, have to flee again.” Who can describe all the feelings a refugee experiences at the beginning of his run for life. Try imagining the relief of speaking those words after two or three years when you finally reach a safe place you hope to call home. At the beginning of your flight, there is always the dread of being sent back to the dreaded place of torture, threat or persecution. You must go forward. Can we identify with those who must flee – whether from Hutu militias in Congo, from the terror of Darfur, from the constant violence of Iraq or from life as a child soldier? Never, ever again do they want to endure that experience!
So what do we celebrate at this seventh WRD proclaimed by the United Nations High Commission on Refugees? We celebrate the power of human spirit and determination to discover a place to live. We celebrate all the people who help them along the way. We celebrate the world religions who enshrined a special place for those who showed hospitality to the alien and the stranger.
We will have an art show from the World Artist’s Network. Angela Smith-Gieng from the Detention Watch Network will speak. There will be music, poetry and dance from many different countries. We hope to have refugees share their story but the most important element is your presence. Celebrate this human story that is much older than Abraham and as current as the Iraquis fleeing the deadly turmoil of their country. There will be refreshments served all evening. Make a contribution to IRATE at the door or bring stamped envelopes (international or US) that we will share with detainees at the Elizabeth Detention Center around July 4.
Lutherans Lead Vigil at EDC every Third Sunday of the Month at 4:00 PM
God’s care for the stranger is repeated numerous times in the Old Testament. For example, in Leviticus 19:33-34 "When a stranger lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The stranger living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were once strangers in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.”
The New Testament call to care for the stranger undergoes a paradigm shift. Jesus calls all to love the stranger among them not because they were once strangers in a strange land, but because in caring for the least among us we are caring for Christ himself.
“Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured” (Hebrews 13:1-3).
“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19).
“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8).
Immigration has been a part of the life and reflections in the congregations and the office of the Bishop of the NJ Synod – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). People from the congregations feel specially outraged about what is going on at the Elizabeth Detention Center. To warehouse people that already have suffered in their lives and came here hoping to be free is just unacceptable.
That’s why the Immigration Task Force of the NJ Synod – ELCA recently, proposed having monthly vigils in front of the Elizabeth Detention Center. So far one vigil was held, one was postponed due to bad weather and two more are already scheduled. The vigils happen on the third Sunday of the month, at 4:00 PM at the Elizabeth Detention Center. Our next vigil will be on Sunday, May 20th, at 4:00 pm. In June, due to Father’s Day, the vigil will be on Sunday the 10th, instead of the 17th. There is always a congregation responsible to prepare the vigil and any person or congregation that wants to join, can do it.
This is our way to pray for those inside, to show our wish to end this injustice and to help folks from the congregations to be aware of this situation and have the opportunity to get involved. If you want more information, or would like to join a vigil please call Cathy Malmstrom at 908-244-6733 or e-mail her at "mailto:catnjca@yahoo.com" catnjca@yahoo.com. You also might be inspired to do the same with your congregations, mosques or temples.
Article by Moacir Weirich, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church, Newark, NJ
When the last session of Congress ended without a comprehensive immigration bill, advocates and immigrants had high hopes for 2007. We thought immigration would be a priority and we would see a just and comprehensive reform bill.
Recently Rep. Luis Gutierrez, a Democrat from Illinois, and Rep. Jeff Flake, a Republican from Arizona sponsored HR 1645 also known as Security Through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy Act, more commonly known as the STRIVE Act of 2007. Though it addresses some important issues and could be a jumping off point for immigration reform, in many ways it fails to protect immigrants and asylum seekers.
Because of the mission of First Friends and IRATE I am concentrating on the provisions about immigration detention and its effect on families. STRIVE mandates improved detention standards and oversight, but it also calls for more detention facilities for immigrants (both asylum seekers and those without papers) despite the many reports of human rights violations in existing facilities. The STRIVE ACT of 2007 also supports the enforcement of federal immigration law by local police which will drastically increase the number of those detained and break up families. Most agree that the local police have their hands full now without adding immigration enforcement.
American Friends Service Committee recommends making detention standards into enforceable regulations. Now there no uniform standards ensure humane treatment for detainees. Often they are subject to arbitrary punishment. Common examples of this are: shackling detainees who have no criminal charges, denial of outdoor recreation as in Elizabeth, solitary confinement and lack of access to basic medical and legal needs. Since immigration detention facilities are largely unregulated with little outside oversight, detainees find that there is nowhere to turn with their grievances. Thanks to the work of Sunita Patel from Legal Service of New York, a group has been formed to work on the oversight issue and already that group has met with the Office of the Public Advocate in Trenton to work on the major grievances of immigrant detainees.
In the last two years, raids and roundups have become common practice. Detention has placed serious hardships on families and has torn many apart. Parents are separated from children and in many cases children are also detained in jail-like conditions. Since immigration is a federal question, persons can be incarcerated hundreds of miles from their homes which leads to depression and isolation. On some occasions, children are detained in separate facilities from their parents.
We believe that it is in the power and capability of the nation’s Congressional leaders to craft laws which ensure that immigrants and non-immigrants live with dignity and respect. We believe that family values can be maintained. We are calling for humane and productive reform of our immigration laws that allow this country to be the place that lives up to the meaning of the Statue of Liberty who lifts her lamp beside the golden door. Let the flame shine brightly.
Article by Geri Mulligan of IRATE
Report on Detention Watch Network Convention
Detention Watch Network held its 7th National Conference on 27-28 April 2007 at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. The event also served to commemorate DWN's ten-year anniversary. The conference theme was Spotlight On Detention: Making the Links, Fighting For Justice. Around two hundred people registered for this year's event.
The conference incorporated interactive workshops, media training, and strategy sessions that allowed participants to not only increase their knowledge about specific issues regarding detention and deportation, but to also offer recommendations for intervention methods and identify action steps needed to implement those recommendations. There were two plenary sessions, three network strategy sessions, and 20 workshops, as well as seven optional lunch meetings.
The plenary sessions addressed building alliances on the path to [immigration] reform and garnering/engaging/ mobilizing/ public support for immigrant rights. Workshops varied in topic that included: an examination of Spiritual Care as a Human Right, utilizing Social Media and Emerging Technology as Innovative Tools for Social Change, Linking Research Efforts to Effective Advocacy, detention oversight, and personal testimony from previously detained families and individuals. Thus, deciding on workshops to attend proved to be quite difficult!
DWN also unveiled its new logo, web-page, and action plan. While it maintains its original mission, the new action plan has been categorized into three distinct objectives: grassroots educating and organizing, advocacy, and proactive communications. The action plan aims to provide specific resources and tools to promote social movement and network building. The new web-page will include cool new features such as a detailed map of detention facilities around the country and offices in those areas that provide legal services complete with contact info and a contact name; a [detention] story database; and toolkits for public use. DWN members and friends are asked to help maintain this new interactive web-page by advising DWN of any new facilities or service providers. A form will be available online. The revamped website will go live by summertime.
As a social worker, the opportunity to interact with such a diverse group of professionals, including, but not at all limited to attorneys, journalists, student activists, religious clergy, formerly detained individuals, and more, served as a testament to me of the need of individuals and groups of varying skill sets to collaborate in joint efforts to combat social injustice. It is very easy for us to get wrapped up in our work, and I personally found it refreshing to meet others with similar interests and to share best practices.
I have a newfound respect for the work and accomplishments of IRATE and similar organizations working to influence policy makers and bringing about change, with limited budgets and a staff of mostly volunteers. The messages that most resonated with me was the need to contextualize work within a human rights framework. All human beings are guaranteed basic human rights and those rights are not lost when we cross borders.
After eight exciting months, my journey with IRATE comes to a fruitful end...for now anyway. I suspect that I have fallen into a line of work that does not end just because your internship does. Still, I would like to thank all of you, especially Geri Mulligan and Richard Bedell, for helping me to further develop my political consciousness, but most importantly for the wonderful example you all set for our community.
"Peace can only exist where human rights are respected." -- Dalai Lama
Kemi Akinjiola was awarded a scholarship by the DWN Conference Committee to participate in this year's event. In return, she volunteered as a note-taker for conference workshop and strategy sessions.
Article by Kemi Akinjiola, graduate student in the Monmouth University Social Work Program and intern with First Friends.
Asylum News (March and April of 2007 published by Human Rights First) reports on hurdles faced by Iraqi Refugees. Two million Iraqis have fled Iraq – some targeted because of their ties to the US. Only 537 have sought asylum in the US. They face the usual hurdles that all asylum seekers here face – detention in immigration jails such as Elizabeth Detention Center. There are bizarre twists to US law under the Patriot and the Real ID law that block many applications from Iraq and other countries troubled by factional warfare. For example, if a family member was kidnapped and the family paid the ransom – the applicant will be denied asylum for supporting a terrorist organization by paying the ransom. Or, to cite another example,if the applicant is a medical practitioner and treated a member of a terrorist organization, he/she will be denied asylum. However on April 17 and 18, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights held a conference in Geneva, Switzerland. There the US State Department announced that the US could resettle up to 25,000 Iraqi refugees.
On March 6, a lawsuit was filed by the University of Texas School of Law Immigration Clinic and the Texas ACLU against the Department of Homeland Security on behalf of the 10 children detained at the T. Don Hutto Residential Center in Taylor Texas.
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants, Jorge T. Bustamante is scheduled to visit the US from April 30 to May 16. He will visit three detention facilities including the Monmouth County Jail to assess treatment of asylum seekers. On May 3rd, despite the fact that he had scheduled a visit to the T. Don Hutto Residential Center in Taylor Texas, he was not allowed to enter the facility. We hope he makes out better at Monmouth. North Korea isn’t the only country that is suspicious of visits from UN Inspectors.