interfaithimmigration.org

Welcome to the IIC Webinar on May 5, 2014

What Can the Administration Do for Immigrants?

Call and Webinar will begin at 4:00 p.m. EST

For audio, please dial 805-399-1000 and enter access code 104402

* The audio and visual portions are NOT linked. You must dial this number to hear the audio portion of the webinar.

4:00 Welcome & overview: Jen Smyers, CWS

4:05 Facts on Deportation Numbers and Policies that Have Driven the Deportation Surge: Neema Singh Guliani, ACLU

4:15 Detention reform: Rosalynd Erney, Lutheran Immigration & Refugee Service

4:20 Dangerous Deportation Practices at the Border: Mary Small, JRS

4:30 Addressing Deportations with Case by Case Advocacy: Erika Andiola

4:35 Administrative Relief from Deportations: Jose Patino

4:40 Utilizing Film in Mobilizing Communities: Sahar Driver, Active Voice

4:50 Q &A

AGENDA

What’s Happening in the House?

“Give Us a Vote” Discharge Petition on HR 15• Needs 218 signatures to bring to a vote• Has 191 – all Democrats

As House leadership continues to refuse to bring immigration reform up for a vote, and as Republicans are predicting that they might win control of both the House and Senate in November, it is becoming less and less likely that the House will vote on immigration reform this year.

What can be accomplished this year?

Every day that the House delays, 1,100 individuals are deported from their families and communities by the Administration.

There are bold, concrete actions that President Obama can and must take to stop the pain that families and communities face due to deportations. The President has the authority to change deportation policies, and to provide our undocumented community members opportunities to stay in the United States without fear of deportation. Such action could look similar to the recent Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in which undocumented individuals who came to the U.S. as children can apply to temporarily be able to travel and work legally.

2 million: Historical Perspective

Trend 1: Increase in Immigration Detainers (“ICE Holds”)

What Happened Between 2007 and

2012?

• Nationwide Rollout of Secure Communities

• Expansion of Criminal Alien Program

• Continuation of 287(g)

Immigration Detainers: FY 07 vs FY12

Trend 1: Increase in Immigration Detainers (“ICE Holds”)

• Roughly 1/3 of Detainers Result in Deportation

• Efforts in CA, NY, LA, NM, FL, DC, and IL to limit detainers

• Case Study: CA Trust Act• 28 out of 38 detainers were

not honored after the Trust Act in Sonoma

Trend 2: Increase in Deportations without Hearings

Trend 3: Targeting of Individuals With No Criminal History or Only Immigration Offenses“98 percent of all ICE FY 2013 removals, a total of 360,313, met one of more of ICE’s stated civil enforcement priorities.”

-ICE 2013 Annual Report

*30% of individuals with convictions had ONLY immigration offenses

Focus on the “Border”?“In the Obama years, all of the increase in deportations has involved people picked up within 100 miles of the border, most of whom have just recently crossed over.”

-Los Angeles Times, 4/1/14

Who are these so-called border crossers?

• Individuals living within 100 miles of the border

• Individuals with US citizen, LPR, DACA family

• Individuals who have lived in the US for decades

• Individuals fleeing violence

11

Potential Areas to Focus Reform

• Limiting State and Local Enforcement through Detainer Reform

• Ensuring all individuals get a hearing and are screened

• Reforming border practices• Limiting the categories of individuals who are

“priorities”

12

Immigration Detention• Detained populations include asylum seekers,

survivors of torture & trafficking, and persons with mental disabilities

• Fiscal year 2012: 478,000 persons detained by ICE, the largest number in history

• Over $2 billion spent on immigration detention; $5 million per day

• 34,000 persons detained each day; 84% lack attorneys

- LIRS 2011 report Unlocking Liberty- LIRS’ guide to detention visitation

13

Recommendations on Detention Practices• Increase community-based alternatives to

detention• End arbitrary detention with individualized

assessments• Bond hearings and meaningful custody review• Operate under most recent detention

standards to improve conditions• Improve oversight and accountability

- www.detentionwatchnetwork.org- http://cambio-us.org

14

Dangerous Deportation PracticesEnd all night-time deportations: When deportations happen at night, when shelters are closed, migrants are especially vulnerable to attack, extortion or exploitation. End family separation during the deportation process: Deportation practices should not needlessly separate family members. Do not deport individuals to particularly dangerous locations: Male migrants are increasingly deported to border towns that are very dangerous. Return all belongings prior to deportation: All belongings should be returned to migrants, especially money, identity documents, medications, and cell phones. Provide prior notification to Mexican authorities of people with special needs: The U.S. should provide information to Mexican officials in-advance of deportations of unaccompanied children, pregnant women, people with disabilities, people with serious medical conditions and elderly individuals. Provide opportunities for border NGO input: A clear, transparent process for NGOs to provide input to U.S. officials in advance of renegotiations of repartiation policies.

15

Not1MoreThe Not1More Campaign is rooted in the community members demand for administrative relief to stop deportations and dismantle the mass deportation infrastructure

• Not One More Deportation• Not One More Family Separation• Not One More County honoring ICE Detainer Holds with Secure

Communities• Not One More 287 (g) program where local police are trained by ICE

to enforce immigration

Primarily led by the National Day Labor Organizing Network and their partner organizations, the Not1More efforts continues to gain more support from ally groups

16

Case by Case Advocacy To Stop Deportations

17

Case by Case Advocacy To Stop Deportations

• Everyday 1,100 people are deported, together we have to work to stop deportations and one way to do that is case by case

• Stopping individual deportations keeps families together

• Lifts up the individual stories and raises public consciousness around why our community and family should not be separated

• Shows our power as a movement as we collect smaller individual victories of keeping families together

• Strengthens the movement to stop deportations

18

Case by Case Advocacy to Stop Deportations

Maria Del Rosario Rodriguez Varela • Lived in the United States for over 18 years, since she was 14 years

old. • She and her daughter, Cynthia, a U.S. citizen, were at home in their

pajamas when ICE raided their house in Phoenix, Arizona. • Maria was deported within two hours of her arrest. • ICE has categorized Ms. Rosario as priority for deportation due to

an immigration-related conviction at the border from 15 years ago, when she attempted to cross the border using false documents.

• In March 2014, Maria joined 150 deportees crossing the border to return home asking for humanitarian parole. Maria was detained at the entry point and is now in immigrant detention in San Luis, Arizona.

Cynthia continues to fight for her mother’s release and is now one of the participants of the hungers strike in front of the White House.

19

Case by Case Advocacy against Deportations

Elder Gomez-Lopez • Father of two young children and a community leader • He fled Guatemala after he was shot in the stomach by gang members,

leaving him with a colostomy bag. • He has now been in Eloy Detention Center for nearly 3 years, where he

has suffered severe and ongoing health issues• Elder and his mother, Anselma, are desperate and afraid that that Elder

will be killed when he reaches Guatemala or die first in detention. • The negative factors according to ICE in Elder’s case include a prior re-

entry and a misdemeanor conviction for transporting stolen property from when he was young, at least 10 years ago.

Elder’s mother, Anselma, just completed a 90 mile walk from the Phoenix ICE office to the Eloy detention center, and has come to Washington D.C. from Phoenix, Arizona in a bus to support the hunger strike participants and help highlight her son’s case

20

Administrative Relief from Deportations

21

Religious Leaders and Civil Disobedience to Stop Deportations

• February 17th two United Methodist Bishops, General Secretary of the United Methodist Women, the United Church of Christ Washington Office Director, Director of the Franciscan Action Network, Director of Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach and twenty other Ecumenical Faith Leaders

• March 27th United Methodist Bishop Sally Dyck was arrested at a rally to stop deportations in Chicago along with other faith leaders and immigrant leaders

• April 4th San Francisco Civil Disobedience clergy members who were arrested include Rev. Richard Smith of St. John Evangelist Episcopal Church, and Rabbi Mike Rothbaum, of Bend the Arc: A Jewish Partnership for Justice

22

February 17- DC and March 27- Chicago Civil Disobediences

23

Not1More Actions at the White House

24

May 1st Action at the White House

25

Next Steps• Continued Case by Case Advocacy to keep families

together and build the movement for stopping deportations

• Continue to tell the stories, have community members who have been impacted by deportations come speak at your congregation and tell their story

• Escalate advocacy efforts and pressure on the White House and Department of Homeland Security with more letters, calls and actions

• Spread the Word: Call In Day to the White House for Mother’s Day May 8th

26

Utilizing Film in Mobilizing Communities

27

WHO IS DAYANI CRISTAL?What you can do to prevent migrant deaths on the border

Get your network to host a screening of Who is Dayani Cristal?

Go to www.whoisdayanicristal.com or Contact Sahar Driver, Active Voice, sahar@activevoice.net.

You can also reserve a night in your local theatre for using the Gathr platform (http://gathr.us/films/who-is-dayani-cristal). Gathr is an on-demand theatrical service that allows you to reserve tickets in advance; if you get enough reservations, they’ll bring the film to you!

IIC Contacts by organization• African American Ministers in Action:

Leslie Malachi, lmalachi@pfaw.org• American Baptist Home Mission

Societies of the American Baptist Churches, USA:

Aundreia Alexander,

Audreia.Alexander@abhms.org• American Friends Service

Committee: Lia Lindsey, llindsey@afsc.org

• American Jewish Committee: Chelsea Hanson, hansonc@ajc.org

• Bread for the World Institute: Andrew Wainer, awainer@bread.org

• Church World Service: Jen Smyers, jsmyers@churchworldservice.org

• Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach: Chloe Schwabe,

cschwabe@columban.org • Conference of Major Superiors of

Men: Eli McCarthy emccarthy@cmsm.org

• Daughters of Charity: Mary Ellen Lacey, Maryellen.lacy@doc.org

• Disciples of Christ: Sharon Stanley-Rea, sstanley@dhm.disciples.org

• Episcopal Church: Katie Conway, kconway@episcopalchurch.org

• Franciscan Action Network: Marie Lucey, lucey@franciscanaction.org

• Friends Committee on National Legislation: Ruth Flower, flower@fcnl.org

• HIAS: Liza Lieberman, liza.lieberman@hias.org

• Interfaith Worker Justice: Michael Livingston, mlivingston@iwj.org

• Irish Apostolate USA: Geri Garvey, administrator@usairish.org

• Islamic Information Center: Hajar Hosseini, hosseini@islamicinformationcenter.org

• Jesuit Refugee Service/USA, Mary Small, msmall@jesuit.org

• Jewish Council for Public Affairs: Elyssa Koidin, ekoidin@thejcpa.org

• Leadership Conference of Women Religious: Ann Scholz, SSND ascholz@lcwr.org

• Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service: Nora Skelly, nskelly@lirs.org

• Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns: Judy Coode, jcoode@maryknoll.org

• Mennonite Central Committee: Tammy Alexander, talexander@mcc.org

• Muslim Public Affairs Council: Hoda Elshishtawy, hoda@mpac.org

• Sisters of the Good Shepherd: Larry Couch, lclobbyist@gsadvocacy.org

• NETWORK: Ashley Wilson, awilson@networklobby.org

• Pax Christi: Scott Wright,

scott@tassc.org• PICO: Dan Gordon,

dwhitman@piconetwork.org • Presbyterian Church, USA: Melissa

Gee, melissa.davis@pcusa.org• Sisters of Mercy of the Americas:

Ryan Murphy, rmurphy@sistersofmercy.org

• Sojourners: Ivone Guillen, iguillen@sojo.net

• 3P Human Security: Tom Brenneman, brenneman_tom@hotmail.com

• T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster

rkahntroster@truah.org • Union for Reform Judaism: Sarah

Krinsky, skrinsky@rac.org• Unitarian Universalist Association:

Jen Toth, JToth@uua.org• United Church of Christ: Rev. Mari

Castellanos, castellm@ucc.org• United Methodist Church: Bill Mefford,

bmefford@umc-gbcs.org• UNITED SIHKS: Harpreet Singh,

harpreet.singh@unitedsikhs.org• U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops:

Kevin Appleby, kappleby@usccb.org• U.S. Jesuit Conference, Shaina Aber,

saber@jesuit.org• World Relief: Jenny Yang,

JGYang@wr.org