“Thank you. To all the people that signed petitions, that came out to rallies, all the organizations that have supported me, Thank you from the bottom of my heart. The detention centre is still full, with kids and families. It’s not fair. It’s not fair that police are working with immigration to arrest people. We need change now. I hope that people in the community will continue to fight for justice for immigrants and refugees.†Alvaro Orozco, May 31, 2011
This Saturday, Montrealers are taking to the pavement to strengthen the foundations of their own Solidarity City. At noon, the third annual Status for All march in support of undocumented migrants and immigrants to Canada facing precarious living conditions will kick off at the corner of Jean Talon and Boyer.
Hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants from the Philippines are stranded in Sabah, Malaysia without government recognition or legal rights. They’ve become a vital part of the local economy, but without documentation or paperwork they can’t get support from either government. One young man told Al Jazeera, “I was born here, so I guess I am Malaysian”, but he lives without citizenship or recognition. These young people are left vulnerable after the Malaysian government rounds up and deports their parents who are immigrated without legal documentation. While their children are sometimes forced into crime to earn a living, negative stereotypes poison chances for gaining ground. As another non-citizen in Sabah explained, “We have no documents. It’s easy to blame things on us.” Al Jazeera’s Marga Ortigas reports from Sabah, Malaysia.
By Axel Caballero, Brave New Foundation, May 18 2011
Georgia is the latest state to pass an anti-immigrant bill like SB1070, with Governor Nathan Deal expected to sign it tomorrow. Georgia is also home to the largest private prison in the country. Coincidence? Not even close. It’s hardly a secret that private prison corporations like Corrections Corporation of America and The GEO group, along with right-wing lobbying group ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) and a few pocketed state legislators like Russell Pearce in Arizona, have been at it — deliberately promoting and designing laws aimed at incarcerating immigrants and turning the prison system into an incredibly lucrative business.
Police in Mexico’s southern Chiapas state have found 513 migrants inside two trailers bound for the United States. Chiapas state police discovered the migrants on Tuesday while using X-ray equipment on the vehicles at a checkpoint in the outskirts of city of Tuxtla Gutierrez, the National Immigration Institute said in a statement. Police have also arrested four people accused of smuggling the migrants, who are from Central and South America and Asia, Chiapas state prosecutors said in a statement.
