Friday Immigration News Roundup

Is the Department of Homeland Security ignoring domestic terrorism? (Photo : USACEpublicaffairs/Flickr)

As the Sikh community of Oak Park Wisconsin waits anxiously to return to their temple after the shooting that killed six worshippers, Adam Serwer in Mother Jones talks to former Department of Homeland Security analyst Daryl Johnson who says that by cutting monitoring of right wing extremists the agency may have missed signs from shooter Wade Michael Page

“Why hasn’t Congress held any hearings, particularly the Homeland Security committee, on the radicalization of white supremacists? We’ve had numerous things happen in the past three years, and yet [Congressman] Peter King [R-NY] is still preoccupied with the Muslim extremist threat,” he says. “What is it going to take for Congress to have a hearing on white supremacist radicalization and developing a strategy for how to counter it?”

Serwer also links to a chilling chart by the Southern Poverty Law Center detailing the rise of American racist and nativist groups.

If you’re like me, you’re in the middle of celebrating NationalHealthCenterWeek. Graciela Soto Perez writes in the Visalia-Times:

Community clinics and health centers provide high-quality care to more than 5 million Californians each year, many of whom are uninsured or underinsured. Our health centers have a long history of providing primary care to underserved communities, including our state’s migrant farmworker community. In California, our migrant health centers provide services to more than 480,000 farmworkers and their families throughout the year.

She goes on to laud the new grants from The Department of Health and Human Services that will help health centers in California increase the reach of their services.

On Wednesday, six activists parked themselves inside Florida senator Bill Nelson’s office, refusing to leave until he intervened in the impending deportation of undocumented Argentinian immigrant Claudio Rojas who is on the 18th day of a hunger strike. After having two of the six arrested, Nelson wrote a letter, Thursday, to US Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano saying

“I’m told Mr. Rojas has been in the U.S. about 12 years and has a wife and two children who are dependent upon him…I’m requesting you review this case and determine whether prosecutorial discretion is applicable.” (via The Miami Herald)

Activists say the letter doesn’t go far enough. No word yet on Rojas’ fate.

Finally, as part of our coverage on the lead-up to the launch of the deferred action program on August 15th we put out a call via our Twitter account (@fi2w) asking for information about workshops being held in your area. Many people got back to us. Here are some upcoming ones:

New York Workshops via NYSYLC

For any questions or concerns please email info@nysylc.org

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Staten Island Deferred Action Workshop | Taller de Accion Diferida en Staten Island

Saint Mary’s of The Assumption Church

2230 Richmond Ter, Staten Island, New York 10302

Time: 6:00-8pm

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Deferred Action Legal Assistance Registration For Dreamers

St. Mary’s Church

440 Grand Street (between Pitt St. and Attorney St.) – Manhattan

Time: 12 pm to 6 pm

Thursday, August 16, 2012

East Harlem Deferred Action Workshop | Taller de Accion Diferida en East Harlem

LSA New Friends Committee

333 East 115th Street, New York, New York 10029

Time: 6:30pm to 8:30pm

 

Philadelphia Workshops via Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians

Thursdays August 16, and 23

10-11 a.m.

Consulate of Mexico

The Bourse Building, Suite 310

111 S. Independence Mall East (5th St. near Chestnut St.)

Philadelphia, PA 19106

Philadelphia Workshop via Juntos

When: Wednesday, August 15th, 2012 at 6pm

Where: Juntos’ office, 2029 S. 8th St. on the corner of 8thand Snyder in South Philadelphia

Please send information on other deferred action workshops to aaron@feetin2worlds.org.

Feet in 2 Worlds is supported by the New York Community Trust and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation with additional support from the Ralph E. Odgen Foundation and the Sirus Fund. 

 

AboutAaron Leaf
Aaron Leaf is a writer, editor, and digital producer based in New York with a special interest in African politics, immigrant diasporas, and the future of cities. Raised in Canada, he has lived on four continents and has written for a wide variety of publications. Recent bylines include Al Jazeera America, The Nation, The Globe and Mail and The Guardian.