Turning Outrage into Action
Reuters/Adrees Latif
I am outraged and heartbroken about what's happening on our southern border. Separating children from parents --many of whom are fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries -- is inhumane and goes against decades of immigration policy that granted refugees the chance to petition the U.S. government for asylum.
But there are things that we as ordinary citizens can do to show we are opposed to the horrific separation of families.
DONATE: One of the leading groups working to fund legal help for separated families is The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES). Your donation will be used to pay the bond — typically between $1,500 and $10,000 —for parents currently being held in detention, and to pay for legal services for immigrant children in Texas’ court system.
VOLUNTEER: The Texas Civil Rights Project is looking for people who speak Spanish, Mam, Q’eqchi’ or K’iche’ to help translate for families and their children who have been separated, as well as volunteers to help with the legal intake process. The group, which gets a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, recently filed an emergency request with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to fight the family separation policy.
If you speak Spanish fluently, you can help translate (over the phone) for lawyers who don’t speak Spanish but have time to represent immigrant clients. Training is available for most of these opportunities.
https://bit.ly/2tkKxju
PROTEST: Moveon.org on nationwide rallies to keep families together. Click here to learn more. Another local group that is organizing on the issue is Berkeley Indivisible, including a protest outside of ICE offices in San Francisco held today.
Families Belong Together Action Planning Meeting
Friday, June 22, 5:30-7:30 PM
Location: National Nurses United, 155 Grand Ave in Oakland
Join Bay Resistance, Mujeres Unidas y Activas, Faith in Action, California Nurses Association, and other Bay Area social justice groups to learn about the background of human rights abuses at the border and the ongoing work of immigrant-led organizations. And brainstorm powerful actions we can take in the Bay Area and beyond.
Saturday, June 23, 2018, 10-11:30 am
Location: [The plaza formerly known as] Justin Herman Plaza, Embarcadero – SF
Let Our People Go! - Protest at the Richmond Detention Center
Sunday, July 8, 11 AM-12 PM
Location: West County Detention Facility, 5555 Giant Highway, Richmond
Another local group that has been heavily involved with immigration issues is ACLU People Power Berkeley.
CALL YOUR SENATORS: Contact your elected officials and urge them to support the Keep Families Together Act, and make sure it comes to a vote.
WRITE AN OP-ED: The world needs to know about this moral outrage, no matter how many ways the Trump administration finds to excuse it. Write a letter to the editor in your local newspaper or news site.