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News and Updates
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Border Patrol braces for budget cuts 3/10/13 PDN reporter, Paul Gottlieb, quotes Jim Buckley, bpfree.org webmaster, as thinking that's a good thing. Read Peninsula Daily News article.
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Mass Release of Immigrants Is Tied to Impending Cuts 2/27/13 Federal immigration officials have released hundreds of detainees from detention centers around the country in recent days in a highly unusual effort to save money as automatic budget cuts loom in Washington, officials said Tuesday. - Read article in the New York Times. May be a good opportunity to take a close look at these private prisons - in Arizona and in Port Angeles.
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Federal Agencies' Meet on Border Patrol Policy 2/5/13 Representatives from three federal agencies will take input at a meeting tonight on a new Border Patrol policy under which agents no longer provide language assistance to local law enforcement agencies, according to the Peninsula Daily News. The meeting is open to the public from 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. at the Longhouse at Peninsula College in Port Angeles
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Legal Clinics Sponsored by the Skagit Immigrant Rights Council a Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Legal Clinics will be held at Skagit Valley College on March 21 Also, there is a Citizenship legal clinic on Saturday, April 27. For details, please contact Donna Rieper at 416-7095 Ext 226.
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Important Victory for Border Communities 12/13/12 Breaking news! We at NWIRP are SO PROUD to announce an important victory. Today, the Department of Homeland Security announced that they will halt the practice of using Border Patrol agents as "interpreters" in routine law enforcement matters. This policy change won't just affect Washington residents - it will affect border regions throughout the country. Earlier this year, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and two cooperating attorneys filed a complaint on behalf of six individuals who had been detained and placed in removal proceedings by Border Patrol agents after the agents had apparently been called to the scene to provide "interpretation" for other law enforcement agencies. You may remember the horrifying stories from earlier this spring, through this New York Times article. The complaint NWIRP filed was a critical part of the advocacy efforts that prompted this policy change. "We are grateful for the courage of the clients who spoke up against this discriminatory practice and who have helped bring about a change of policy that will affect communities throughout the country." said NWIRP Executive Director, Jorge L. Barón.
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11/30/12
United We Dream Full story in the New York Times. Locally, an invitation to start a meet and work together with others from Washington state to see that we get comprehensive immigration reform in order to legalize YOUR status and that of family members. Connect with Jim Justice, Chair, Skagit Immigrant Rights Council
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11/9/12
Election Good News for Immigration Reform
Now let's get prepared and organized.
Many young people throughout the state need legal assistance to apply for this process so we're again mobilizing with our partners to help. Youth can meet with an attorney for free to have their applications reviewed and questions answered at our next Deferred Action workshop on Saturday, November 17. Find details here. November or December, 2012 - The Dept of Justice announced that it will facilitate a meeting at Peninsula College in Port Angeles so that the Border Patrol can announce some new policies. The exact date in November or December has not yet been announced. Stay tuned for details.
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11/5/12 New Facility in Port Townsend Construction has begun for a 1,700 sq.ft office and a secure vehicle impound lot - for a single "customs officer" - at Point Hudson in Port Townsend. "Of course the Border Patrol, a sister agency, could stop in once in a while" we are told, but this huge office and impound lot are for one customs officer who has had a much, much smaller office at the Post Office up town for years.
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 "Customs Officer" Office
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Secure Impound Lot
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8/6/12 Good article by Kathy Mulady in the Equal Voice News on Border Patrol issues in Forks. - Libby
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6/17/12
Obama Administration Relaxes Immigration Policy for Youth
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6/1/12
Breaking News: Federal Agency Rules Against Use of Border Patrol Agents as Interpreters The practice of Forest Service officers’ requesting language interpretation and security backup from Border Patrol agents during stops of Spanish-speaking people is discriminatory, according to a federal administrative ruling made public this week.
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 BP "Assist" in Sequim back in February |
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The ruling, by Joe Leonard Jr., assistant secretary for civil rights of the Department of Agriculture, said requesting interpretation assistance was "merely an excuse to target Latino individuals for immigration enforcement." The ruling came in response to a claim by the companion of a Mexican man who drowned in a river on the Olympic Peninsula last year after a Border Patrol officer, summoned by a Forest Service officer, chased the man into the woods. The couple had been stopped on Olympic National Forest land while picking salal, an evergreen shrub used in floral arrangements. The ruling included disciplinary actions against some employees, and it ordered the Forest Service to create new guidelines for dealing with people who speak limited English.
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5/30/12 Border Patrol Ready To Move Into $9.8 Million HQ
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 Matthew Ryan Williams for The New York Times Jose Hernandez picking salal, an ornamental shrub, near Forks, WA
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5/23/12
Washington State Commission on Hispanic Affairs Meeting in Forks ********** 4/27/12
NWIRP and ACLU Class Action Lawsuit Against Border Patrol Through this lawsuit we hope the federal courts will intervene and force the Border Patrol to put a stop to abusive practices that violate our Constitution. Details, meet the Plaintiffs, and learn more about the lawsuit at NWIRP Nice article by Mike Carter in the Seattle Times too.
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Report by OneAmerica and U of WA
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Why Our Communities Are Less Secure Starting Today We were deeply disappointed to learn last week that the controversial Secure Communities program will be activated throughout Washington starting today. There has been no public announcement, of course, but this is par for the course for this flawed program that has been shrouded in secrecy and misinformation since its inception.
Many law enforcement agencies throughout the country and our region have wanted to maintain a separation between policing and immigration enforcement, understanding the problematic nature of this partnership. ICE is not respecting the decisions of local jurisdictions in this regard, and our communities are likely to be less secure as a result.
In solidarity,
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3/23/12 Occupy Port Townsend brings youth, new ideas and humor to the voice of the 99 and with non violent tactics, like the recent occupation of Bank of America in Port Townsend, in which bank employees and even the armed guards are respected, recruited and supported. See the front page of the 3/21/12 Leader. "Everybody should be buying them (the guards) cups of coffee." Jack Range, Occupy spokesman, was quoted as saying. "It looks cold out there.” . |
 Picture from Occupy Port Townsend |
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Father John Topel and Scott Wilson on stage
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3/14/12
"Immigration: Why Should I Care?"
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Leader Inserts Pro-Border Patrol Propaganda The PT Leader, in its 3/14/12 issue, inserted a pro-US Border Patrol article (not produced by the Leader) that looks like something produced by USBP public relations - "Living on the Peninsula, Spring 2012". Alex Hepler has written a letter to the leader asking some of the questions we have been asking for years. Leader Editor, Scott Wilson, says he will run the letter in next week's Leader. "Most of the content of Living on the Peninsula is produced by the Sequim Gazette," writes Wilson. "The Leader does not have editorial control over those articles, and we do not see them prior to publication." Scott Wilson also points out that he has run "editorials in opposition to the Border Patrol's overzealous pursuit of its perceived mission on the Olympic Peninsula, and questioning the expanded station in Port Angeles." Maybe, in addition to running Alex's letter next week, the Leader will follow up on Alex's questions about the Border Patrol and do it's own investigative reporting that we know the Leader can do.
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Border Patrol Announcement This morning the Peninsula Daily News reported that the Border Patrol announced that they arrested 16 people in the Blain Sector last month - two of which were "Mexican nationals in the Forks area" arrested Jan. 21 after a "traffic-stop request for assistance from a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputy and a Quinault Tribal Police Department officer." On the surface, at least, the new Chief, Cumbow, appears to be acting on good faith to "engage in community outreach". But we wonder how this admittedly incomplete report relates to reality. What happened to the two "Mexican nationals"? How many others were arrested but not reported? what's the relationship between the Border Patrol and the Sheriff and Tribal Police?
If you have any details or more information Reporting on the BP reporting will tend to make them more honest. They can't not report arrests that they know we know about.
2/18/12 - "Agents apprehended two citizens of Guatemala as a result of a vehicle stop near Forks." Why was the vehicle stopped by federal agents? As you know- mysterious traffic stops have been going on for months now. This is just the part I know from searching the web. - Alex
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Deportation - Shattered Families Jennifer Hemsley, an advocate for undocumented persons, asked that we post this powerful Nightline story about the children of the deported. She also sent along a comprehensive Deportation Manual by the AECF which we will keep linked from our resources page
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2/7/12 This Week in BP News on the Olympic Peninsula Paul Gottlieb in the Peninsula Daily News has beed doing a good job reporting on the Border Patrol on the Peninsula. First an article about the very significant job the Forks Human Rights Group has done "with cellphones and cameras" documenting the activities of Border Patrol agents. |
 Photo by Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News |
And then, today, an in depth article about the BP's new chief, Jay Cumbow. It's a pretty positive article reporting that Cumbow is "eager to engage in 'community outreach' ... to allay ... criticism". We hope so but, as they say, we are from Missouri. With 60 or 70 agents on the Peninsula (including allied federal agents under Homeland Security control) the feds overwhelm local police and sheriff departments. We have reported that the Border Patrol has not |
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cooperated with the Port Townsend police and sheriff departments. Rather they act more like an "occupying force" which engenders a "visceral" response", according to the sheriff. So we don't know if our local police and sheriff can really "partner" with the much larger and much better funded Border Patrol or if the relationship will be one of attempted bribery and cooptation. We do applaud Agent Cumbow's stated willingness to meet with the community.
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BP "Assist" in Sequim |
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We would also hope that Agent Cumbow reverses the policy of secrecy that led to the Border Patrol squelching the Freedom Of Information Act request filed by the Peninsula Daily News. We will follow the issue, see if the Border Patrol becomes more transparent about their activities and arrests and see if the PDN re-files the FOIA request. Meanwhile we will support and promote the Forks Human Rights Group efforts to document what the Border Patrol is doing.
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1/29/12 New agent in charge of Port Angeles Border Patrol The Border Patrol’s Blaine Sector office last week announced that Jay Cumbow is the new head agent of the Port Angeles station, which covers Clallam and Jefferson counties. Read more in the Peninsula Daily News.
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1/23/12 The Forks Human Rights group has developed an important analysis of recent Border Patrol activities in and around Forks. Read the letter and supporting documents and help support our neighbors in Forks. 1/22/12 "Immigration as a Moral Issue" A class on "Immigration as a Moral Issue" begins Tuesday, 1/24/12, at 4 pm at the Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 2333 San Juan Avenue, Port Townsend, WA. The class is the first in a series of six that will deal with:
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact Kate at 360 385 3705 or katiegagefranco@gmail.com. See you next Tuesday.
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