¡Alto Arizona!

Phoenix To March Against Family Separation and SB1070

For Immediate Release
Contacts:
Carlos Garcia, Puente Arizona
Caroline Picker, Puente Arizona

Phoenix To March Against Family Separation and SB1070
We Unite to Demand the End of S-COMM in AZ, say Migrant Families and Allies

Who: Puente Human Rights Movement
What: March for Dignity
Where: Leaving Indian Steel Park, Indian School and 3rd St., Phoenix
When: Saturday, July 28th at 9 am

On Saturday July 28th, Puente Arizona and concerned community members will march to demand dignity and an end to family separation. In light of the recent Supreme Court decision that upheld the racial profiling provision of SB1070, migrant communities and their allies are demanding that President Obama stop the deportation of SB1070’s victims by ending Arizona’s access to federal deportation program Secure Communities.

Carlos Garcia of the Puente Human Rights Movement says, “Every day, our families are torn apart because ICE collaborates with SB1070 and Arpaio and we are not going to stand for it any longer. President Obama has the power to stop the human rights crisis in Arizona in its tracks.  We march on July 28th to show him that our communities are stronger than hate.”

Please contact us for comment or questions.

• Online Petition demanding that President Obama stop SB1070 by refusing to deport its victims: http://bit.ly/potus1070
• Video Call to Action: http://bit.ly/1070calltoaction

Why the term 'Illegal Immigrant' is a Slur

Posted: 07/06/2012 9:31 am | By Charles Garcia, CEO, Garcia Trujillo | Source: HuffingtonPost.com

Last month's Supreme Court decision in the landmark Arizona immigration case was groundbreaking for what it omitted: the words "illegal immigrants" and "illegal aliens," except when quoting other sources. The court's nonjudgmental language established a humanistic approach to our current restructuring of immigration policy.

When you label someone an "illegal alien" or "illegal immigrant" or just plain "illegal," you are effectively saying the individual, as opposed to the actions the person has taken, is unlawful. The terms imply the very existence of an unauthorized migrant in America is criminal.

In this country, there is still a presumption of innocence that requires a jury to convict someone of a crime. If you don't pay your taxes, are you an illegal? What if you get a speeding ticket? A murder conviction? No. You're still not an illegal. Even alleged terrorists and child molesters aren't labeled illegals.

By becoming judge, jury and executioner, you dehumanize the individual and generate animosity toward them. New York Times editorial writer Lawrence Downes says "illegal" is often "a code word for racial and ethnic hatred."

After Arizona, a Struggle Continues

Source: TheNewYorkTimes.com | Published: July 1, 2012

Editorial

The Supreme Court ruling on Arizona’s immigration law shredded the law’s radical premise — that a state can write its own foreign policy, impose its own criminal punishments on the undocumented, set its own enforcement priorities and oblige the federal government to go along. That should be the final warning to Arizona and copycat states like Alabama: stop concocting criminal dragnets for civil violators. It’s not your job and you can’t do it.

But the ruling has not ended the struggle for civil rights in immigrant communities, or the fear on the ground, especially among Latinos. Far from it. It poses serious challenges to the Obama administration, responsible law-enforcement officials and immigrant advocates to keep up efforts to limit the damage when legislatures and police officers — not just in Arizona — run amok.

Press Release: California Senate Passes Anti-Arizona Bill Secure Communites Wings Clipped

Tonatierra/Comites de Defensa Del Barrio Press Release
Contact: Salvador Reza   602 446-9928

The Barrio Defense Committees applaud California Legislature for standing up to Janet Napolitano’s Secure Communities and nipping in the bud any ideas of SB1070 type laws in the State of California.

“We expect our Arizona Legislators to do the same in the next legislative session,” said Sendy Vargas after hearing the news. Sendy works with the Barrio Defense Committees throughout the Valley preparing people to know their rights whenever they are stopped under SB1070 or Secure Communities.