Immigration advocates respond to Sheriff Jones’ 287(g) statement | wbir.com

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Several immigrant-advocacy groups have now responded to a pointed statement from Knox County Sheriff J.J. Jones Wednesday morning, vowing to enforce federal immigration laws. "We feel disappointed of his poor choice of words," said Kukuly Uriarte, an immigrant living in Knoxville and advocate for immigration reform. After a year of limited statements about 287(g), Sheriff Jones published his opinion on his website Wednesday morning. The note followed a decision from U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, which did not approve the county’s application for the program. ICE cited "resource concerns," including the sequester, as the reason for denying Knox County’s application. "Once again, the federal government has used sequestration as a smokescreen to shirk its responsibilities for providing safety and security to its citizens by denying Knox County the 287(g) corrections model," the sheriff wrote on his website.

Perspectives: Worker Centers and the AFL-CIO National Convention – Law at the Margins

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On September 8, the AFL-CIO will kick off its national convention in Los Angeles.  The last time it was held in L.A. was in 1999, case when the AFL-CIO announced its historic declaration for a legalization program for all undocumented immigrants, increased workplace protection for immigrant workers and an end to employer sanction laws, which it supported back in 1986 as part of the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA).  The national convention this year in LA will also be a historic one.  With union density at around 12% (the private sector below 7%), the labor movement today is in a state of crisis.  As the recent deep recession, or depression as some economists have labeled it, has shown us, the labor movement is really the only safety net that we have in this country for the working class.

VICTORY! ICE denies Knox County 287(g) agreement – Blog – TN Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition – TIRRC

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Last year, Sheriff Jimmy "J.J." Jones of Knox County announced he would be pursuing a 287(g) agreement–deputizing local sheriff’s deputies as federal immigration agents. For the last year, immigrant community leaders and allies have been tirelessly organizing and advocating against the program. And we did it! We just got confirmation that ICE will not be signing the 287(g) agreement in Knoxville (see notice below).  This victory comes after a year of powerful rallies and marches, fearless civil disobedience, and strong grassroots advocacy. It also comes on the heels of the termination of the program in Davidson County, a program finally abandoned after a 5-year community campaign. Read more about the fight against 287(g) in Knox County here. See the letter we submitted to DHS just a few weeks before the notice was given to Sheriff J.J. Jones here. 

Charges in car wash raid expected to be unsealed

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"This was not an enforcement of targeting illegal immigration or illegal immigrants. It was a criminal investigation," said ICE spokesperson Barbara Gonzalez. Eric Falbe, general counsel for Danny’s Family Car Wash, says the company is cooperating with investigators. He declined further comment. "My husband doesn’t have a criminal record.  My husband has dedicated his life to being a gymnast and bicyclist and to be with his children.  Is that being a criminal?" asked Laura Torres. "Laura’s husband was deported 10 years ago and came back. I don’t think that is something that makes someone dangerous to the community. To me, that means that he wanted to be here with his family and he wanted to work," added Tania Unzueta of the National Day Labor Organizing Network.

Car Wash Raid, and it’s Implications | DRM Action Coalition

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“We are… going after businesses that are a magnet for unauthorized workers, ” said Andrew Munoz, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  Munoz was explaining the events of Saturday, where 13 Danny’s Family car washes were hit in an all-day raid by ICE. “Since 2009, ICE has kind of shifted its work site enforcement strategy so we focus now on the arrest of the employers and managers (and) supervisors rather than coming in with these large scale enforcement actions that focus solely on workers.” Said Amber Cargile, ICE spokeswoman. While ICE was quick to point out that the raid was not the Joe Arpaio-style immigration raids to arrest and prosecute laborers that Maricopa County has become accustomed to, the workers at the car washes were still detained.

Phoenix Car Wash Raid Rounds Up 223 In Immigration Fraud Case | Fox News Latino

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Federal immigration agents raided several branches of a car wash business in Phoenix, rounding up 223 workers as part of a two-year investigation into immigration fraud. Federal agents on Saturday swarmed 16 locations of Danny’s Family Car Washing and the company’s staffing service provider, HR Betty. The investigating agency, site U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the case targets the owners and leaders of the two businesses and that multiple people face charges of criminal immigration fraud, identity theft and financial violations. Fourteen people were arrested on criminal charges, four were U.S. citizens and 10 were Mexican nationals.