Daily Archives: May 22, 2012

Vista, CA Father’s Death in AZ Desert Shows Need for TRUST Act

A Vista man died along the U.S. border with Mexico last month trying to return to his family after being deported. The body of Alfonso Martinez Sanchez, 39, was found on the Tohono O’odham Indian Reservation, his family and authorities said. The reservation stretches along the Arizona border and is a frequent route for thousands of migrants attempting to cross the border illegally. It is an unforgiving environment, part of the Sonoran desert, where temperatures can often soar to more than 100 degrees. Martinez was trying to return to his wife and five U.S.-born children, ages 5 to 18, said Juana Garcia Martinez, his wife. Martinez was the main bread winner and now the family is struggling to make ends meet, she said. “He knew that we needed him,” Garcia said. “He wanted to be here.”

Immigrants Lobby for TRUST Act in Sacramento

A morning rally is planned before the various groups fan out to talk with legislators. The rally, which will take place at the capitol building will include greetings and speeches from Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-SF and Sen. Kevin De Leon, D-LA. Dilkhwaz Ahmed traveled to Sacramento on Sunday to get a head start on the activities. She is executive director of El Cajon-based License to Freedom, which provides support services to refugee and immigrant survivors of domestic abuse. She is prepared to share client stories with decision makers who will consider AB 1081, a bill dubbed “TRUST Act,” which would allow communities to opt out of the federal immigration “Se Communities” program until county officials choose to rejoin under amended agreements that would provide protection for some immigrants including those who are victims of domestic violence. The program, currently in place in every country across the state, scans fingerprints to check for legal status and generally allows..

From a Brooklyn Street Corner, a Women’s Cleaning Cooperative Grows

From a Brooklyn Street Corner, s a Women’s Cleaning Cooperative Grows

 

New York Times Article By NADIA SUSSMAN

After years of waiting on a Brooklyn street corner trying to land jobs cleaning houses, cheap Teresa Bucio decided there had to be a better way to earn a living.

Like dozens of Latina immigrants, Ms. Bucio, 33, used to stand at the corner of Division and Marcy Avenues in Williamsburg every morning, hoping to be hired.

The intersection — a bare cement triangle overlooking a sunken stretch of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway — is an unusual all-women day labor site where residents of the heavily Hasidic neighborhood find people to clean their homes. Ligia Guallpa, an advocate for day laborers who has assisted women at the site for years, estimated that some 200 women congregated there over any given week, and many of them are illegal immigrants.