Advocating Against Family Separation
There are lots of options, many highlighted elsewhere on this blog. Here is a summary Op Ed piece from the New York Times to inspire you. And remember, if you wanted to know how you’d have responded to the Holocaust, or to the internment of the Japanese Americans — you are doing it now. Act.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/24/opinion/border-kids-immigration-help.html
OWLS member Edie Rogoway has, through her contacts at Al Otro Lado, been notified of a family seeking asylum from Honduras who was in need of emergency sponsorship and housing. The OWLS network has provided! Alana Iturbide Simmons and her family have stepped up in the biggest way to offer housing. Joslyn Keating is coordinating donations of clothing and household goods. There is a PayPal donation account for money for transportation from California, and then for the expenses Alana and her family will have feeding and housing the family for six months.
Here’s what we know: mom is 29, has three children with her: two girls, ages 3 and 12, and one boy, age 9. They will be arriving within a week, with the clothes on their backs.
Here’s how to donate: https://www.paypal.me/HonduranFamily. Share this link with friends and family. Make it your birthday donation request.
If you have in-kind donations, they need: a bunk bed and bedding, gift cards for clothing, hygiene items, etc., a toddler bed, a car seat, toys. Contact Joslyn at joslyn.keating@gmail.com.
If you have social service contacts in Vancouver WA, or can help with occasional transportation to appointments, contact Alana at Alanaiturbide@yahoo.com.
And, watch the listserv for follow-up requests.
We received this message from our friends at Al Otro Lado. Response is needed by Friday:
Urgent Call for Remote Attorneys! Are you able to provide remote representation for individuals seeking parole from ICE Detention?
We are seeking representation for 20+ or more families and would like to have these attorneys identified by Friday if possible.
Attorneys do NOT need to be specialists in immigration law, but should have experience fighting for clients in hostile environments, including criminal defense, parole, bail, domestic violence survivor advocacy, and other setting. You do not need to speak Spanish. This would be representation ONLY before CBP and ICE and not EOIR (although you could consider taking the full case if you would like to!).
If you are another legal worker-including a legal assistant or law student—please also get in touch.
We would provide you with templates, detailed guidance, and access to technical assistance throughout this process. Please email me at probono@alotrolado.org if you are available.
This message came across the OWLS listserve yesterday. If you are looking for a way to respond to the images of toddlers fleeing through clouds of tear gas, this may be of interest to you. Al Otro Lado is one of the groups highlighted on earlier pages of this blog:
Forwarding from a friend (a US immigration attorney who lives in Tijuana):
Hey colleagues — so you may have gathered that the border apocalypse has descended upon us, well with the U.S. government throwing tear gas in the faces of three year olds and shooting refugees with rubber bullets.
Tijuana has transformed into a sprawling refugee camp. There are more than 4,000 refugees from the Exodus here, with thousands more to arrive in the coming two weeks. Al Otro Lado needs your help. It may take several weeks to three months for all of them to process through.
We need attorneys with asylum experience to help conduct know-your-rights charlas and consults with refugees identified as among the most vulnerable. We are also in need of LEGAL OBSERVERS (read: don’t need asylum experience) to monitor human rights at the port-of-entry as hundreds of refugees attempt to get on the “wait list” (which is illegal by the way, and one of the reasons we are suing them, but, exists nonetheless).
We have helpful training materials for you to prepare for your trip, materials for you to use in shelter presentations and consults, as well as materials on volunteer logistics, such as lodging, transportation, etc.
If you do not speak Spanish, that is okay. We have volunteer interpreters. If you want to bring your support staff, cool. Bring them. We need support from your support staff too. If you want to bring your mother, your cousin, your best friend from law school. Cool. We have work for them to do too.
We are in a moment of crisis, and even a few days of your time and expertise could help make a world of difference. Please complete the form at the link below:
Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization and Perkins Coie as sponsor invite you to volunteer with us at Citizenship Day!
WHO: Anyone who wants to help! Attorneys, legal staff, administrative staff, law students, and community members at large are all welcome to pitch in. For individuals who wish to volunteer with the application process, there will be a 2-hour training on Tuesday, September 18, 2018 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Stoel Rives LLP, 760 SW 9th Avenue, Suite 3000, Portland. Thank you Stoel Rives!
WHAT: Trained volunteers will help immigrant and refugee community members with applications for naturalization. Other volunteers are needed to help with organization, directing applicants to interpreters/volunteers assisting with applications, and food service, setup, and cleanup.
WHEN: Saturday, September 22, 2018 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. There are two shifts, (1) morning 9 a.m. to Noon, and (2) Noon – 3 p.m. You can also volunteer all day!
Click here to sign up to volunteer!
WHERE: IRCO Community Center, 10301 NE Glisan Street, Portland.
WHY: There are approximately 38,472 lawful permanent residents (LPRs) in the Portland metro area who are eligible for naturalization, and 8,382 reside in East Portland, where IRCO’s sites are located.
Questions? Contact Nanette Nielson (nnielson@perkinscoie.com) or Tara Ratliff (tratliff@perkinscoie.com).
APANO’s is committed to coordinating a robust network of respite shelter/housing and to crowdsource resources for the continued representation of all of the detained peoples at FDC Sheridan. Upon their release, our detained peoples will need medical care, housing, clothing, transportation assistance, toiletries, meals, and other resources, in order to be able to heal and gain strength for their immigration advocacy fights ahead.
Please fill out the volunteer form to assist with the respite network and an APANO South Asian Sheridan Support Committee Member or Field Organizer will be in touch with you.
We recently reached out to a number of groups to gather particularized information about their volunteer needs. We received the following update from Catholic Charities of Oregon:
While we are not serving people directly at the border, we are and have been consistently serving refugees and immigrants of all status. We would love to have our attorney colleagues at OWLS (and non-attorneys too) volunteer and contribute in the following ways. While monetary donations are always gratefully accepted, here are some other way they can help:
Immigration Legal Services:
Catholic Charities legal volunteers participate in the day-to-day operation of Immigration Legal Services under the supervision of an attorney or accredited representative. Legal volunteers assist clients with their humanitarian and family-based immigration applications and petitions at all stages of the case. Tasks include interviewing clients, translating personal declarations, drafting motions and memoranda on legal issues, and preparing evidence for submission to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Volunteers will also have the opportunity to work on motions and briefs for litigation in immigration court and attend immigration court proceedings. Volunteers work closely with attorney supervisors and receive regular one on one instruction and feedback related to their assignments. Catholic Charities requires a 12 hour/week commitment during regular office hours. If this option is not a good fit, our office also manages a pro bono attorney training and referral program for active members of the Oregon State Bar. Please email Sheridan Rueter at srueter@ccoregon.org if you are interested in volunteering with us. Thank you for your interest.Refugee Resettlement:
The RR Refugee Restart Kit request is attached. We are always looking for kitchen kits, bathroom kits, new pots and pans, and new underwear in various sizes (for male, female, adult, and child). We could also use cell phones that are unlocked, in good working condition without cracks, and preferably no more than a couple years old. Opportunities to volunteer with refugees can be found on our website and our next Refugee Services Volunteer Training is on August 13, 2018.
OWLS Unite Families 