Wounded Knee Remembered

 50 Years On, Legacy of Wounded Knee Uprising Lives in Indigenous Resistance

"We're not the subjugated and disenfranchised people that we were," said one Ponca elder who took part in the 1973 revolt. "Wounded Knee was an important beginning of that."

BRETT WILKINS

Feb 27, 2023

As many Native Americans on Monday marked the 50th anniversary of the militant occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, participants in the 1973 uprising and other activists linked the deadly revolt to modern-day Indigenous resistance, from Standing Rock to the #LandBack movement. 

On February 27, 1973 around 300 Oglala Lakota and members of the American Indian Movement (AIM), seething from centuries of injustices ranging from genocide to leniency for whites who committed crimes against Indians, occupied the hamlet of Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Reservation for more than two months. The uprising occurred during a period of increased Native American militancy and the rise of AIM, which first drew international attention in 1969 with the 19-month occupationof Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay.

"The Native people of this land after Wounded Knee, they had like a surge of new pride in being Native people," Dwain Camp, an 85-year-old Ponca elder who took part in the 1973 revolt, told The Associated Press.

 

 

https://www.commondreams.org/news/wounded-knee-occupation

Alone and Exploited. Migrant Children in the U.S.

  

Alone and Exploited.  Migrant Children in U.S.

Migrant children entering the U.S. alone are ending up in dangerous jobs that violate child labor laws — including in factories that make products for Cheetos and Fruit of the Loom.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/25/us/unaccompanied-migrant-child-workers-exploitation.html?

How to Seek Asylum Under New Proposed Biden Rules

How To Seek Asylum (Under Biden’s Proposed Asylum Transit Ban), In 12 Not-At-All-Easy Steps

Posted by Dara Lind | Feb 22, 2023 | Asylum, Humanitarian Protection

 

https://immigrationimpact.com/2023/02/22/steps-to-seek-asylum-biden-transit-ban/?

  

Don't Buy Greenwood Mushrooms

Ostrom Mushroom plant sold, but the workers’ fight continues. Help us track how mushrooms move across North America. We wrote to you earlier this month about Ostrom mushrooms in Sunnyside, WA and the David vs. Goliath battle workers were going through to get union representation and justice on the job. The situation has escalated.  The day after we sent out our alert, on February 14th, 2023 - ironically on Valentine’s Day - the workers were called into an all-team meeting and told that, effective at midnight, Ostrom was bought by Greenwood Mushrooms, a company owned by Windmill Farms. As a result, all of the Ostrom employees were immediately fired.  The workers were then given a letter offering "new" employment under the new management -- at lower wages, in less preferable jobs, and all under an arbitration agreement for any labor disputes. Workers were given only hours to sign.  Ostrom Mushrooms is being renamed "Greenwood Mushrooms Sunnyside." The Greenwood Mushrooms label is currently being used at Windmill Farms facilities in Pennsylvania and Canada. Windmill Farms is owned by InStar, a Canadian private equity firm.  We need your help to track how mushrooms are grown and sold across North America.   We need to know which brands of mushrooms are sold in which stores in the United States and Canada – including non-Sunnyside WA mushrooms. The Ostrom label may change to Greenwood Mushrooms, Windmill Mushrooms, store brand packaging or even a new label we haven’t heard of yet. Help us ensure they don't hide their labels or sell mushrooms under a different brand to avoid being accountable to their employees and consumers. Take 2 minutes to help us the next time you go grocery shopping: Check out the labeling on the mushrooms your store carries.   Snap a photo of the mushroom package, and if there is a box of loose mushrooms, snap a photo of that too. Send to ufw@ufw.org along with the store name, the location and the day you saw it. We’ve launched a website at www.ufw.org/ostrom so you can follow this campaign. Find the latest campaign media coverage, photos and videos; sign the pledge; see worker videos explaining their fight and more.  Please help these workers next time you go shopping and please reach out to your friends in other cities. An extra minute or two can help these Sunnyside mushroom workers in their fight to win their UFW contract.  Please share this campaign with friends and family.  Links to social media posts here: Facebook, Twitter & Instagram (TikTok coming soon)

 

Asylum Ban

 ‘Trump’s Asylum Ban Under A Different Name’: Democrats, Immigration Groups Slam Biden Proposal

Article: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-administration-asylum-proposal_n_63f658a9e4b0616708df00e5?    

AMLO Argues for Ending "U S" Embargo of Cuba

 Mexican President Vows Global Push to End 'Inhumane' US Embargo of Cuba

One peace group praised AMLO for "once again providing such an important voice against U.S. imperialism and bullying."

KENNY STANCIL

Feb 13, 2023

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador vowed over the weekend to lead a worldwide movement to end the 61-year U.S. embargo of Cuba.

"We are going to continue demanding the removal, the elimination of the blockade against Cuba, which is inhumane," López Obrador, popularly known as AMLO, said Saturday in a speech attended by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel.

https://www.commondreams.org/amlo-vows-global-push-end-us-embargo-cuba

Biden, the Border, and Catholic Teaching on Immigration

 

Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, CLINIC board member and chairman of the migration committee for the U.S. Catholic bishops, was invited to an unexpected car ride with President Biden during his recent trip to El Paso, Texas. During their conversation, Bishop Seitz shared with the president about the realities facing vulnerable migrants at the border. Click here to read more

https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2023/01/09/bishop-seitz-president-biden-244489 

 

Choosing Democracy: MLK: Saving the Soul of America

Choosing Democracy: MLK: Saving the Soul of America:   MLK: Saving the Soul of America JANUARY 16, 2023  BY  MAURICE ISSERMAN       On Martin Luther King Day, leftists remember that his heart w...

WHY FARMWORKER LEGALIZATION FAILED

The Reality Check: WHY FARMWORKER LEGALIZATION FAILED: WHY FARMWORKER LEGALIZATION FAILED The Farm Workforce Modernization Act's failure to become law reveals critical divisions within the im...

AMLO’s Four Years in Power Have Been a Success

 BY

KURT HACKBARTH

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador rose to power on the promise of massive redistribution. So far, he has nationalized lithium stores and lifted the minimum wage by 20%. But to secure these reforms he’ll need to transform the power structures of the Mexican state and media.

Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico's president, fist raised, greets attendees during a rally in Mexico City, Mexico, on November 27, 2022. (Jeoffrey Guillemard / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

 

https://jacobin.com/2023/01/amlo-mexico-redistribution-success-government-transformation

 

To Know the Road

 

El Paso Responds to Migrant Crisis - Congress Not

 

Migrants in El Paso face uncertainty after Supreme Court allows Title 42 to remain in effect amid legal challenges

• DECEMBER 28, 2022
•  FRANCISCANS FOR JUSTICE
• IN IMMIGRATION

By Leyla Santiago, Rosa Flores and Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN

The future for migrants waiting in El Paso, Texas, after crossing the US-Mexico border remains uncertain following the Supreme Court’s Wednesday decision that allows federal officials to continue expelling migrants before they have received an asylum hearing.

“We were hoping for something else,” said Rosanni Rodríguez, a Venezuelan migrant, when told of the court decision.

Rodriguez huddled with her two children on a chilly El Paso sidewalk on Tuesday, wearing a jacket provided by a local church. She and her children attempted to cross into the US once already, but were sent back to Mexico, where they were robbed and picked up by immigration officials as they slept on the ground of a city plaza, she said.Rodríguez is among the tens of thousands of migrants who have surged to the southern border despite the uncertain future of Title 42, a Trump-era policy which allows US authorities to swiftly return most migrants back across the border.

The controversial order was set to end December 21 but remains in legal limbo after the Supreme Court issued an order Wednesday allowing the policy to remain in effect while legal challenges play out – a process that could stretch out for at least several months.

“They won’t give us the opportunity to be able to cross legally,” said Rodríguez. “That’s what we wanted – to be able to cross legally – but you can’t.”

Several Republican-led states urged the Supreme Court to step in and block a lower court’s decision to terminate the policy. In addition to placing the order’s termination on hold, the court said it would take up the state’s appeal in its upcoming term, which begins in February.

Title 42 was put in place by the Center for Disease Control in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. Officials at the time argued the public health order was intended to curb the spread of Covid-19, but immigration advocates argue the policy is being used to effectively halt immigration at the US-Mexico border.

Dylan Corbett, the executive director of Hope Border Institute that assists with running some of El Paso’s shelters, warned Tuesday that he expects the Supreme Court decision “will extend the bottleneck at the border, create unsustainable pressure on border enforcement and lead to more deaths.”

Supreme Court Republican Judges Leave Title 42 in Place

 Migrant Expulsion Policy Must Stay in Place for Now, Supreme Court Says. NYT.

The temporary stay in lifting the pandemic rule known as Title 42 is a provisional victory for 19 states, led mostly by Republicans, that had sought to keep it in place on the border.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said on Tuesday that a pandemic-era health measure that restricted migration at the southern border would remain in place for the time being, delaying the potential for a huge increase in unlawful crossings.

In a brief unsigned order, the justices halted a trial judge’s ruling that would have lifted the measure, known as Title 42, which has allowed even migrants who might otherwise qualify for asylum to be swiftly expelled at the border.

The court said that it would hear arguments in the case in February and that the stay would remain in place pending a ruling. The justices said they would address only the question of whether the 19 mainly Republican-led states that had sought the stay could pursue their challenge to the measure.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Neil M. Gorsuch and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.

The White House indicated that it would comply with the Supreme Court’s order and prepare for its review. “At the same time, we are advancing our preparations to manage the border in a secure, orderly and humane way when Title 42 eventually lifts and will continue expanding legal pathways for immigration,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said. 

Note: Title 42 was established because the Trump Administration said there was a health crisis at the border. Covid. 

 

 

Migrants, Humans in Need.

Migrant children in El Paso, Texas. 

Migrants in El Paso: Humans in Need, Not an invasion 

On this December 18, International Migrants Day we recommit our efforts to amplify the voices of those seeking refuge and asylum at our borders and redouble our support to those human rights defenders at the U.S.-Mexico border. From the editors

Over the weekend (December 9,10) the El Paso Sector experienced a major surge in illegal crossings, with a 3-day average of 2,460 daily encounters, primarily through the downtown area of El Paso. CNN

Español: https://tribunodelpueblo.org/migrantes-en-el-paso-son-humanos-sr-abbot-no-invasores/ 

The Crisis on the Southern Border

 

On International Migrants' Day, NNIRR calls for immediate humanitarian assistance and human rights commitments to the increasing number of migrants and asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border. Dear Duane: El Paso, Texas. As we commemorate International Migrants' Day today, the El Paso border region is immersed in a humanitarian and protection crisis. Thousands of migrants and asylum-seekers are arriving each day in the Paso del Norte region in search of safety, escaping from economic and political violence, and seeking to reunite with their families. They are primarily from Venezuela, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Ecuador – countries that have been beset by recurring social and economic disasters. With the Covid-era Title 42 set to end in a few days, we urge the Biden Administration to reinstate real commitments and guarantee the right to seek asylum at the border. This must include infusing resources to support refugees, asylum-seekers, trafficked persons, and other migrants in vulnerable situations. We must ensure immediate access to food, shelter, healthcare, and other life-saving services.  Since last week, migrants have converged under the Santa Fe bridge connecting Ciudad Juarez with El Paso, Texas.  They are dangerously crossing freeways and waiting in long lines, in severe weather conditions, to turn themselves over to Border Patrol officers. Shelters are at capacity, and people are being released onto the streets without sweaters, blankets, or identifications. Most urgently, they need food and water, warm clothing, information, and resources to cover vital expenses such as paying for safe places to sleep. In the face of this crisis, the Texas Governor has announced that his administration will begin targeting the El Paso community organizations that provide humanitarian aid like shelter, food, and legal services –essentially persecuting those helping to facilitate compliance with international human rights obligations. These attempts to “criminalize” and intimidate local organizations and undermine their humanitarian efforts are part of a cynical part of his strategy to enforce more restrictive border policies and normalize dangerous and xenophobic narratives that threaten human rights activism in the United States. All at the cost of the lives of migrants, asylum seekers, and their families.  We need immediate action at multiple levels – not promises that can be bureaucratically tied up for weeks and months. We urge the Biden Administration to delay no further and to work with city officials, non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders to put in place  supports for safe, orderly, and dignified reception of migrants and asylum seekers that includes the following: Set up offices for processing claims in the main ports of entry to guarantee orderly and efficient access to asylum procedures and the principle of non-refoulment. Create a photo ID for provisional documentation that confirms and acknowledges the individual’s intent to seek asylum in the US while their case is pending. Coordinate with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to assist with reception and referral procedures. Ensure immediate rights-based and gender-sensitive access to medical care. Ensure protection from retribution for civil society organizations and human rights defenders who assist migrants in distress, providing shelter, aid, food,  water, and other assistance.  Finally, it is time to take a holistic approach to migration by creating pathways for regular migration. Long-term and rights-respecting options for migration are urgently needed to address the adverse drivers of migration and prevent more tragedies for people on the move.   Please support our response efforts on the ground. Donate to NNIRR here. We need your support and solidarity more than ever. NNIRR. Donate to NNIRR today! TWEET STORM for #InternationalMigrantsDay Join NNIRR and our partners for a tweet storm today for #InternationalMigrantsDay by donating or by tweeting or retweeting our messages. Suggested tweets: This #InternationalMigrantsDay, we remember the migrants who’ve perished in search of safety and a better future. To prevent more deaths, I’m urging @POTUS to make asylum accessible and safe for all people. #RestoreAsylumNow #4RightsatBorders On #InternationalMigrantsDay, we remind @POTUS of his domestic and international obligations to protect the human rights of all children and guarantee due process within the immigration system. It’s time #4RightsatBorders and to ##StandUp4Migrants On #InternationalMigrantsDay, we’re calling on @POTUS to protect the rights of Indigenous, Black, and all migrants at the border. #RestoreAsylumNow #StandUp4Migrants

Support NNIRR! And as 2022 comes to a close, we hope you will take another quick action and support NNIRR in your year-end giving. We rely on grassroots donations to fuel our work for human rights! Please give a gift today. You can become a sustainer or give a one-time donation. Every contribution makes a difference. We are deeply grateful for your solidarity and partnership. Donate to NNIRR today!

The Reality Check: ILL HARVEST: TREATING FARMWORKERS ON THEIR TERMS

The Reality Check: ILL HARVEST: TREATING FARMWORKERS ON THEIR TERMS:  ILL HARVEST TREATING FARMWORKERS ON THEIR TERMS For California's indigenous farmworker population, healthcare that respects their tradi...

Farm workers need legal status NOW.

Congress: Farm workers need legal status NOW Farm workers across America are pushing Congress togive farm workers legal status before the end of the year. Farm workers have proven themselves essential to America's communities, economy and food supply over and over again - putting their lives at risk to keep America fed.  Giving the farm workers who feed us the legal status they have earned is crucial to America's food security. Given the result of the midterms, this lame duck session is the last shot to get something done for farm workers before the House of Representatives falls into Republican hands. We need Congress to pass the Farm Workforce Modernization Act NOW.   The week before Thanksgiving, 19-year Mairi, a farm worker from Delano, California, came to Washington D.C. to ask Congress to act. Her parents, also farm workers, are undocumented and need Congress to pass legislation before the end of the year. Below is some of what Mairi told Members of Congress during her first trip to our nation's capital.  "I've been working in the fields since I was 12 years old," said Mairi. "Undocumented farm workers live with constant fear of being separated from their families. A few years ago, my neighbors were on their way to work when they were followed by ICE. They were scared of being separated from their family, so they drove away and ended up crashing and passing away. They left 6 kids behind, the youngest being 6 years old."  Mairi is referring to the 2018 deaths of two farm workers - Santos Hilario Garcia and Marcelina Garcia Profecto  - who were killed during a high-speed pursuit by ICE agents after dropping their teenage daughter off at school. As long as farm workers live without legal status, they will be vulnerable to exploitation and intimidation on the job - and tragedies like the deaths of Mairi's neighbors will continue. Congress must act before it's too late. "Farm workers deserve to be legalized," said Mairi. "They are essential workers who deserve to be recognized."   Please join the UFW in telling Congress that farm workers deserve legal status. We need our friends and allies across the nation to be ready to help us get the Farm Workforce Modernization Act across the finish line. Can we count on you? Sign the pledge today.

 

Tamales for Student Aid

 

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Tamale Fundraiser for Student Aid

 

Migrant Shelters in Mexico Need Assistance

 Please support our Migrant Emergency Fund!

Right now, migrant shelters across Mexico are at capacity and on the verge of collapse. Under a new legal provision by the Biden administration, tens-of-thousands of asylum seekers are being rejected from the United States and sent back to Mexico.

In response to the Republican governors' cruel political stunt of bussing and even flying thousands of asylum seekers from southern states to sanctuary cities across the country, the Biden administration announced a new migration enforcement process. This has once again forced tens-of-thousands of migrants back to Mexico.

The Mexico government has accepted these migrants, but is not offering them any support. Migrants and their families are urgently depending on shelters for their basic needs: meals, a safe place to sleep, and medical care.

Migrant shelters in Mexico do not receive funding from the Mexican government and are run entirely by civil society. Because of this, their resources are limited and they depend on the support of volunteers and the generosity of the international community.

Global Exchange members, partners and allies have helped raised over $40,000 in the past year to support shelters during hard times in Mexico.

It’s time to stand up in support of migrant families searching for a new life away from violence, poverty and displacement. Please join us in supporting shelters, who are doing their best to deal with the consequences of the crises in Haiti, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Colombia and Venezuela. 

Please support our Migrant Emergency Fund now and help migrant shelters in Mexico deal with the latest crisis caused by the new U.S. migration enforcement policies.

In Solidarity and Action 

Marco Castillo
Director of the Bi-National Program and
Co-Executive Director

Latino Voting-- Votar es Poder !

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, November 5, 2022 

Hispanic / Latino Community Organizations Unite to Encourage
Latinos in the Greater Sacramento Region to Vote this November 8^th

 Sacramento, CA – Hispanic / Latino Community Leaders and Community Organizations throughout the Greater Sacramento Region who serve this often-ignored community are calling for all Latinos to let their voices be heard during the upcoming elections next Tuesday, November 8, 2022.

Only 27% of Latino registered voters turned out to vote during the primary elections that’s 12% below Sacramento’s County average for all registered voters. That’s why, many local Latino/Hispanic organizations representing various points of view in the community with a legacy of advocacy and representation for Latinos in the region are uniting to plead with all who identify as Latinos to cast their vote in person or by mail.

“We need to end the myth that Latinos/as are unaware or indifferent to the importance of our vote. It’s time that we utilize this critical tool to amplify our voice. Latinos/as are no longer a sleeping giant. Let’s get loud. Vote,” states Cathy Rodriguez Aguirre, President/CEO of the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

As the nation’s largest minority group, the Latino community can play a key role in elections.

“We must vote for experienced leaders who can address issues like economic growth, job creation, education, voting rights, health care accessibility, language access, transparency, discrimination, and social justice,” states Marty Puentes, President of LULAC.

Our participation is necessary to safeguard the vulnerable portions of our society. But this can only happen if everyone turns out to vote this Tuesday, November 8, 2022. Regardless of party affiliation, the entire community must galvanize the electorate and vote.

“The power within the Latino community can be most effective at the ballot box. We must use our vote as our voice… without our participation in this election, our voice will not be heard,” states Alexis R. Arriaga, President of United Latinos Promoviendo Accion Civica.

¡Comunidad! The future is in your hands – VOTE ON TUESDAY NOVEMBER 8, 2022.

In Unity,

La Familia Counseling Center
Latino Economic Council
Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Cien Amigos
Latino Center of Art and Culture
Brown Issues
United Latinos of Sacramento
Benito Juarez Association
LULAC – League of United Latin American Citizens
Latino Coalition for a Healthy CA
Teatro Nagual
Bridge Network Corporation

 

SPANISH BELOW

DECLARACION PARA LOS MEDIOS DE COMUNICACION

Para Difusión Inmediata
Sábado 5 de noviembre de 2022

Elections: Which Side are you on ?

 

We’re one week out from this election, and it comes down to recognizing who is on our side. Ask yourself: Who are the candidates trying to solve problems, and who are the ones just trying to stoke fear and division? Who supports public education, and who is trying to ban books and engage in culture wars? Who is protecting freedoms like a women’s right to reproductive health, and who is undermining our democracy?  Check out the GOP plan for the economy. They want to: Raise prescription drug costs. Increase healthcare premiums. Cut Medicare and Social Security benefits. Cancel student loan forgiveness. Drive up inflation and the deficit by cutting taxes for the rich. Look how well that worked for the last U.K. prime minister. The AFT has endorsed the problem-solvers—the lawmakers and candidates who are working to solve the problems that keep us up at night: inflation, the costs of prescription drugs and gas, the struggle for a better life, potential cuts to Social Security and Medicare, global climate change, the need to strengthen public education, and threats to and our freedoms and our democracy. On the other side, we have the problem-makers—the lawmakers who use anger and fear to divide people and want to slash Social Security and Medicare, roll back freedoms, allow Big Oil to gouge us at the pump and Big Pharma to gouge us at the pharmacy, and stop student debt forgiveness. Their answer to everything seems to be to cut taxes for the rich.  Everything is on the ballot this year. Thank you. In unity, Randi Weingarten AFT President