San Diegans Unite to Oppose Arizona’s Anti-Immigrant LawCivil Rights, Faith, Labor and Political Leaders Condemn
Race-Baiting SB 1070
A broad and diverse range of faith and civil rights organizations and leaders are joining together to stand up in opposition to the irresponsible and inhumane SB 1070, signed into law in Arizona on Friday. The law turns unlawful presence, which is a federal civil law offense, into a state crime, and requires police to question and arrest people they suspect of being in the country illegally.
Please join our coalition of civil rights groups for a press conference highlighting the following:
· Arizona’s new law threatens the fundamental constitutional rights of border state residents to move
freely within the country; the law poses a special threat to the civil rights and liberties of people of color who live in and travel through Arizona.
· Though the law’s proponents claim that race and ethnicity alone cannot be cause for questions about immigration status, public officials are already asserting that illegal immigrants can be identified by the clothes they wear and the way they speak.
· The law also threatens public safety by undermining trust between police and the communities they are charged with protecting; when the police engage in immigration enforcement, community members are less apt to call them when they witness or suffer a crime.
· We need a humane and workable solution, not an irrational response to our broken immigration system; we need solutions that help our country move forward together rather than divide us.
What: Press Conference about Arizona’s Radical Anti-Immigrant Law, SB1070
When: Tuesday, April 27, 2010, 1:00 p.m.
Where: University of San Diego, Joan Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice
5998 Alcalá Park, San Diego, CA 92110-2492
Parking spaces are being reserved for media. Volunteers will direct you to them.
Enter through west entrance.
Who: Legal, faith, labor, and community leaders, including:
Bruce Abrams, Chair, San Diego Human Relations Commission
Richard Barrera, President, San Diego Unified School District
Rita Cepeda, President, Mesa College
Sr. RayMonda DuVall, Executive Director, Catholic Charities of San Diego
Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson, National United Church of Christ’s Minister for
Racial Justice
Imam Taha Hassane, Islamic Center of San Diego
Kevin Keenan, Executive Director, San Diego ACLU
Elizabeth Maldonado, Chair, San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium
Pedro Rios, Director, San Diego AFSC
Lei-Chala Wilson, President, NAACP of San Diego
See next page for a complete listing of all representatives who will be present.
All Participants
Bruce Abrams, Chair, and Danell Scarborough, San Diego Human Relations Commission
Richard Barrera, President, San Diego Unified School District
Nadia Bermudez, President, San Diego La Raza Lawyers Association
Rev. Gerald Brown, United African American Ministerial Action Council
Brigette Browning, President, Unite HERE Local 30
Rita Cepeda, President, Mesa College & Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities
Carmen Chavez, Executive Director, Casa Cornelia Law Center
Norma Chavez Peterson, Director, Justice Overcoming Boundaries
Rabbi Laurie Coskey, Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice of SD County
Ibrahaim Dayeh & Tyseer Odeh, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
Sandra Diaz, Business Representative, SEIU Local 1877
Sr. RayMonda DuVall, Executive Director, Catholic Charities
David Gardenswartz, Executive Committee, and Monica Bauer, Assistant Director,
Anti-Defamation League
Rev. Dr. Jamie Gates, Director, Pt. Loma Nazarene University’s Center for Justice &
Reconciliation and President, Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice of SD County
Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson, Minister for Racial Justice and Witness Ministries, National
United Church of Christ
Imam Taha Hassane, Islamic Center of San Diego & Interfaith Committee for Worker
Justice of SD County
Edgar Hopida, Council on American-Islamic Relations
Ginger Jacobs, American Immigration Lawyer Association
Kevin Keenan, Executive Director, San Diego ACLU
Dwight Lomayesva, Executive Director, American Indian Recruitment Program
Elizabeth Maldonado, Chair, San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium
Carlos Marquez, Director of Community Programs and Public Affairs, The San Diego
LGBT Center
Isidro Ortiz, Vice Chair, Education Consortium of San Diego County
Gail Perez, Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies, University San Diego
Nicole Murray Ramirez, San Diego Human Relations Commission
Pedro Rios, Director, San Diego AFSC
Rev. Madison Shockley, Pilgrim United Church of Christ & Justice Overcoming
Boundaries
Carmen Spurling, District Director, Office of Congressman Bob Filner
Victor Torres, Spokesperson, El Grupo
Ray Uzeta, Executive Director, Chicano Federation of San Diego County
Lei-Chala Wilson, President, NAACP of San Diego
Peter Zschiesche, Employee Rights Center, San Diego
David Valladolid, CEO Parent Institute for Quality Education
Antonio Pizano, CEO MAAC Project
Mesa Campus Conversation on Immigration and Education: A Film Screening of "Papers"
Wednesday
April 21, 2010
LRC - 11-1p.m.
6-8p.m.
-MOVIE NIGHTS ALL SEMESTER -
JOIN US!!!
I.S.S.O. And EWB@SDSU Take Education Into The Streets!!!
Come and join both organizations in their campaign of "College Recruiters for The underdeveloped communities of San Diego"!!!
The goal is to attend as many Schools in the city of San Diego and get students to apply for college. The deadline for applications is November 30th.
Come learn and see how you can get involved!
I.S.S.O. Meets every Tuesday
at 4:00p.m.
San Diego Mesa College Campus
info: yb4justice@gmail.com
EWB Meets every Friday
at 10:00a.m.
San Diego State University Campus
info: ewb.sdsu@gmail.com
Education Now! End Wars, Start Educating!Come Join I.S.S.O and Students from the San Diego Region To the National Dream Act Event At San Diego State University!September 23rd, 2009 At 12:00p.m.
Rally
For the Dream Act!
HERE ARE SOME STORIES OF THE PARTICIPANTS IN OUR DECEMBER DREAM ACT CAMPAIGN
WE DREAM WE ACT
Stories about the dream act written by those who it will affect most. Please take the time to read them.
If you have a story you would like to share please email us at student@issosandiego.org or use the contact us form. Thank you.
My Story
My story, (as I have decided to start it) begins at age 15 living in Mexico as a young kid. That kid is now a man who writes this paper hoping it will serve its purpose.
Living on your own when you are a kid is no joke; you will take hits from all flanks, especially the ones you don’t expect. Living in Mexico as a 15 year old, I faced decisions that will most definitely shape my life, and luckily I was able to take the right turns, grip tight from the opportunities, and be able to recognize the treacherous roads. I was only 14 when my parents died, and having the lack of any worthwhile siblings, I became an independent young man, too young, yet independent. Living on my own and having two jobs to barely be able to eat would have been a pretty good load, but you know how it goes, “when you want to be great, pretty good is actually pretty bad”, and I wanted to be great, I still want to, so my decision to go to school was made without hesitation, and I threw a little extra, cycling.
But I’ll tell you what my days were like 6 days a week. 6 am wake up and ride my bike for an hour and change, roughly 20 miles, go directly to work and start my work day at around 8 o’clock, work was an assistant to a gas plumber, it was a tough job if I do say so. This would continue until school started at 4:00 pm, which meant whipping the dirt off my face and rushing to school which ended at 9:30. At ten I had another job, I was a waiter at a pizzeria right next to my morning job, which was only till midnight. Where did I live? in a shack not too distant from work. But my earnings were never ever enough, 100 dollars a month will never be enough, at least not in Mexico. They were enough to keep me standing, but not enough to keep the hunger away every single day. Have you ever eaten the rubbery ends on a chicken leg? you know the part that feels like plastic when you bite into it? Neither had I until those days. It must have been November, and it was a weekend, so I would not be fed at work, and without a cent in my pocket or a bite to eat at home, it would become one of the most important weekends of my life. When you are in this kind of situation and your stomach starts hurting from hunger at 10 am you know you are in for a long one. What to do what to do? Walk the streets and look for anything. I walked and walked without much luck, did I beg? Never, I could die of hunger but I’ll never lose my pride. Found a couple of coins, which bought me a piece of bread, and that is how I went to sleep. The next morning I rushed to work, got an advance on my pay for the week, and immediately went to buy a roasted chicken, I did not stop eating until there were only bones left, the rubbery parts were gone too, and you know what? They have never tasted better. Every time I eat chicken I think about that weekend, and the chicken legs.
Did I learn anything during this period in my life? I learned everything I needed to learn to make it through, and then some. But luckily this didn’t last too long and at age 15 I moved to the United States, with my mind set on a better life. Since then I have encountered many more obstacles, as well as opportunities, which I have taken advantage of, because I want a great life, a life worthwhile, a life worth the work that I’ve put in.
Today I am 22, a student athlete attending a university studying psychology, running track and field with a full tuition scholarship which cost me a lot of training and a few medals. I supporting myself, which is not as fun as it may sound like. My earnings have gone up, I now earn 5 times more than what I used to when I was 14, yet it is barely enough to make it through. I take nothing that I have not earned, I am a successful individual, I work hard every day, and as far as I am concerned I am a great member of my community, yet I am not considered to be a part of this thriving society.
I keep wondering what it is that I am, am I a person without 9 essential digits? A person without a few documents? And will these documents make me better to the eyes of the law? I guess that just being a person that wants to succeed and give back will never be enough. I keep waiting for an answer to that one, I wait and I keep my eyes wide open, because I am running out of time and out of energy, it has been eight years since I started, and it would be great to see a bit of a change. Anyone out there?
The challenges of being an undocumented college student
I am just a human being with an eagerness for intellectual growth. I want to get an education to help my family and help this nation. With education come limitations, this is true for students who lack documentation. Because I lack 9 digits, I cannot legally work, get a driver's license, get financial aid, or get an internship without being asked about a background check. It is not the background check I fear, because my criminal record is quite clear. My fear is that they'll find that I am not supposed to be here. Constantly I am being reminded about my situation. When I apply for scholarships I must make sure they don't ask for proof of legal documentation. How many times have I felt discouraged? How many times have I felt like giving up? To be quite frank, many, many times.... So what keeps me going? What is my motivation? My drive to keep going is other students in my situation. And future college students who also want to strive for their education. My fellow college classmates who are putting their best effort. They have not given up, so my question is, why should I? I have family, friends, and classmates who look up to me, so my decision is that I cannot give up for them and for me, I dream of one day being able to work and serve the United States which I call home. So what do I ask of you? To please support the Dream Act!