Below is the speech given at the labor caucus at the Democratic National Convention by Olivia Vazquez from Juntos.
My name is Olivia Vazquez. I’m here as an undocumented immigrant and a youth organizer at Juntos. Even though I’m here to talk to you as a DACA recipient, I am also here to talk to you as someone from a family of workers and I want you to see me as that.
My mother has worked in restaurants for 15 years. Read more
Puro Philadelphia #Not1More #DNCinPHL pic.twitter.com/iitidzR7T3
— Not1More (@Not1_More) July 25, 2016
On the first day of the DNC, 500 people marched to demand Democrats be the “anti-Trump” on immigration. That means the candidates calling for an immediate moratorium on deportations, DHS shutting down the Berks family detention center 60 miles west of Philadelphia, and the President dismantling the expansion of ICE to actively demonstrate their expressed commitment to immigrant rights and to stand in sharp contrast to the attacks launched by Clinton’s opponent during his acceptance speech.
Before it was an issue taken up by candidates, immigrant rights groups were already pushing the President to make immigration policy more humane. After the Supreme Court allowed the injunction on the deferred action deportation relief program to continue in US vs Texas, the national #Not1More campaign launched a petition that now has over 50,000 individual signatures calling on the President to act on immigration and issue a moratorium on deportations. Read more
Daughter comforting her mother as she blocks 676 in Philadelphia #Not1More #DismantleICE pic.twitter.com/pkevW1aR2i
— Juntos (@Vamos_Juntos_) June 28, 2016
BREAKING: Philadelphia blocks main expressway to call for #MoratoriumNow. https://t.co/3T3MVZSlIM #Not1More pic.twitter.com/uCEvG06NqJ
— Not1More (@Not1_More) June 28, 2016
City Stands as Bright Spot Amidst Week of ICE Intimidation and Terror
“On his first day in office, newly elected Mayor Kenney reaffirmed that the City of Philadelphia is in fact the city of brotherly love. As ICE raids sew new levels of fear in our communities, Mayor Kenney is making sure local officials have nothing to do with it, ” explains Erika Almiron, director of Juntos. Read more
Editor’s note: The following is a statement by the Philadelphia Family Unity Network (en Español aquí)
The recent killing of Kathryn Steinle in San Francisco by Francisco Sanchez is a terrible and senseless tragedy. The pain her family must be experiencing is unimaginable, and they should be afforded the respect and decency of mourning in their own chosen way. Read more
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Protest at ICE Building, 1600 Callowhill St., Philadelphia, PA
December 11, 2013 – Philadelphia, PA
A group of undocumented Philadelphians and supporters have just blocked all the exits for deportation vehicles at the downtown Philadelphia ICE office, just as they prepared to transfer immigrant detainees.
The action comes on the Eve of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, as community members led a procession to ICE headquarters to speak out against President Obama’s deportation dragnet programs. Under a banner that read “Not One More Deportation,” Philadelphia residents are calling for an end to the collaboration between local police and immigration authorities called “Secure Communities” or “S-SCOMM.” Early in 2014, the Philadelphia City Council will be holding a hearing to review the chilling effect on immigrant communities and the negative impact on public safety caused by Immigration (ICE) Holds, one of the ways in which police and ICE collaborate under S-COMM. Read more
Source: Metro.us
Americans traditionally treat Independence Day as an observance of the country’s hard-won freedom and liberties.
But activists point out that for undocumented immigrants in the U.S., there’s nothing to celebrate this Fourth of July.
Members of New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia, an interfaith immigrants rights coalition, will on Wednesday host an “un-barbecue” at the Liberty Bell, with empty grills, plates and picnic baskets symbolizing the lack of freedom faced by the city’s immigrants.
Seventy-five people representing 13 faith communities on June 22 kicked off a 40-day campaign of fasting and prayer, calling for an end to local deportation policies and for federal movement on humane immigration reform.
Source: Kate Woodsome, VOANews.com
Barbecues and fireworks symbolic of America’s fight for freedom are a tradition of Independence Day celebrations in the United States. But this year, immigration activists in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the birthplace of America, are marking July 4 by fasting.
The interfaith immigrant rights group the New Sanctuary Movement staged a so-called “un-barbecue” on Wednesday, setting up empty plates, picnic baskets and grills around the iconic Liberty Bell to draw attention to the freedoms that aren’t shared with undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
“It’s no picnic for the immigrant community in this country. They’re still lacking that liberty and justice,” said Peter Pedemonti, director of the New Sanctuary Movement and one of dozens of activists fasting for 40 days in the name of immigration reform.
“People are being separated from their families every day,” he said, noting that 1,000 undocumented immigrants are deported daily from the U.S. “That’s certainly not the liberty and justice I think our forefathers imagined and that people throughout history have struggled and fought for.”
Since 2008, the City of Philadelphia has granted ICE access to its police database, allowing ICE officials to search for individuals by country of origin in order to target foreign-born individuals.
On June 22, over 65 immigrants, allies, and religious leaders and 13 faith communities in Philadelphia began “40 Days of Fasting, Action, and Prayer” to demand an end to the collaboration between the Philadelphia Police Department and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The fast, organized by the New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia (NSM), seeks to pressure Philadelphia officials to end local policies that result in mass deportation. Even if federal comprehensive immigration reform is passed by Congress, millions will be excluded from achieving citizenship and local deportation programs will continue to separate families and endanger public safety. In addition to participating in Secure Communities, Philadelphia is unique in granting ICE direct and unprecedented access to the local police’s electronic database. Read more