Podcasts about detention watch network

This week's horoscope is short and sweet, so stay tuned for an extra special segment with Jessica in conversation with Dean Spade (https://linktr.ee/deanspade) about mutual aid and we can come together, for each other.

The trauma of state-sanctioned family separations is shared by victims of immigrant detention and the family policing system (also known as the child welfare system). Additionally, immigrant detentions are so intertwined with the prison industrial complex that they are nearly the same. Abolitionists must see these systems as connected if we want to create a successful strategy to dismantle them. This episode was recorded in the summer of 2024 and details the detention and separation policies of presidents Obama, Trump, and Biden. We discuss the call to Abolish ICE, prisoner uniforms on babies, and policies like SB4 in Texas that are being duplicated across the country. Episode Guest: Silky Shah is the executive director of Detention Watch Network, a national coalition building power to abolish immigration detention in the US. She is also the author of the recently published book,Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition (Haymarket Books, 2024). She has worked as an organizer on issues related to immigration detention, the prison industrial complex, and racial and migrant justice for over 20 years.Episode Notes: Support the work of upEND:upendmovement.org/donateSilky mentions the campaigns ofGrassroots Leadership andFamilies Belong Together. Learn more aboutDetention Watch Network. ReadUnbuild Walls by Silky Shah. 

This week on CounterSpin: Those with a beating heart can see the horror of Trump's plans to deputize wannabe vigilantes to denounce community members they suspect “don't belong here,” to send ICE into schools and churches to round folks up — police records or no — and ship them to detention centers, to ride roughshod over time-honored concepts of sanctuary. But on immigration, as on other things, corporate news media have shaped their narrative around right-wing frames, such that immigration itself is now not a human rights story, or even an economic one, but yet another story about “their” crimes and “our” safety. Horrible crimes attachable to brown and Black people? You don't have to ask the press corps twice! It was bad enough when the narrative was about distinguishing “good” immigrants from “bad” immigrants; we've now gone beyond that to “all immigrants” vs. “everyone else” — and if MAGA is now driving that train, elite media have been fueling it up for years. We'll talk about the attack on immigrants — and about the resistance to it — with Silky Shah, executive director at Detention Watch Network. Plus Janine Jackson takes a quick look at recent press coverage of oligarchs and the Washington Post‘s new mission statement.   The post Silky Shah on the Attack on Immigrants appeared first on KPFA.

SHOW NOTES We talk about the confirmation hearings, the release of the special counsels report and the vote in Chicago to help protect immigrants.  https://news.wttw.com/2025/01/15/chicago-city-council-votes-39-11-reject-push-scale-back-protections-undocumented https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-background-defense-secretary-confirmation-hearing-e160e10c86385a8beff110d9190fb34e https://www.reuters.com/world/biden-announces-israel-hamas-ceasefire-deal-2025-01-15/  https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/14/politics/takeaways-jack-smith-report-donald-trump/index.html For more information on Pete Hegseth's connection to the Crusades, see Dr. Susan Thistlethwaite's Substack, “Hegseth; The Tatooed Crusader.”  https://susanthistlethwaitewaite.substack.com/p/hegseth-the-tatooed-crusader?publication_id=1360431&post_id=154832528&isFreemail=true&r=4pgnh9&triedRedirect=true&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email  See also, Ben Samuels, “Trump's Defense Secretary Pick Supports Israel 'Killing Every Last Member of Hamas',” https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2025-01-14/ty-article/.premium/trumps-defense-secretary-pick-supports-israel-killing-every-last-member-of-hamas/00000194-65d5-db9d-a1b5-7fd7b4b20000  The quote from Diarmaid MacCulloch on the Crusades came from his book, Christianity, The First Three Thousand Years, (N.Y., Viking, 2010), p. 387.  In addition to his criticism of the Crusades and the Knights Templar (p. 386), see also, Justo L. González, The Story of Christianity, The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation, Vol. I of, (N.Y., Harper One, 2010), pp. 345-56) For information on his support of soldiers alleged to have committed war crimes, see:  Nik Popli, Pete Hegseth's Role in Trump's Controversial Pardons of Men Accused of War Crimes.” https://time.com/7176342/pete-hegseth-donald-trump-pardon-war-crimes-military/    ACTION STEPS Please support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and seek to end the Knesset's ban on its humanitarian activities:  https://www.unrwausa.org/hands-off-unrwa Please immediately contact your Senators to vote no on the Laken-Riley Act.  The vote may come as early as Saturday, January 18.  For more information on the Act, see the National Immigration Law Center's five points against the Act.  https://www.nilc.org/articles/nilc-opposes-the-h-r-29-the-laken-riley-act/  Detention Watch Network asks you to call or email your Senator and ask them to vote no.  https://actionnetwork.org/letters/no-to-s5-laken-riley  You can call the Capitol Switchboard at: 202-224-3121.  They suggest the following call script: "Hello, I am a constituent, and I urge the Senator to vote NO on the Laken Riley Act.”

“It's inherently a racial justice and economic justice fight,” says Silky Shah, executive director of Detention Watch Network. In this episode, Kelly talks with Silky about the threats posed by the incoming Trump administration, how organizers are preparing to defend immigrant communities, and what actions we can take to prepare and respond. Music: Son Monarcas, Curved Mirror & David Celeste You can find a transcript and show notes (including links to resources) here: truthout.org/series/movement-memos/ If you would like to support the show, you can donate here: bit.ly/TODonate If you would like to receive Truthout's newsletter, please sign up: bit.ly/TOnewsletter

Yvette Borja interviews Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network. They discuss why the immigrant justice movement needs abolition, the importance of transforming the economic infrastructures of local governments dependent on carceral systems, and how the growth of immigration detention and deportation was and is a critical part of the mass incarceration crisis.Learn more about Detention Watch Network: https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/ Support the podcast by becoming a monthly Patreon subscriber. You'll get access to the #litreview, a book club for Cachimbonas: https://patreon.com/radiocachimbona?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLinkFollow @radiocachimbona on Instagram, X, and Facebook Leave an Apple Podcast Review here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/radio-cachimbona/id1240386895Leave a Spotify Rating here: https://open.spotify.com/show/6Qqj1mYTNy5Cz3N4aGQqcr?si=ed40e7da7cd548ce

Silky Shah is the Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, a national coalition building power to abolish immigration detention in the U.S. She is author of the book "Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition." From Kamala Harris to Donald Trump on this podcast we look at the reality vs. the fearmongering on the issue of immigration. https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/ https://www.dominiquediprima.com/about/ First Things First w/Dominique DiPrima Streams Live Weekdays 6AM-9AM PDT Dominique DiPrima is currently the host and producer of First Things First with Dominique DiPrima on KBLA Talk 1580 where she is making radio history as the first African-American woman to host a commercial drive-time talk radio show in Los Angeles. https://www.dominiquediprima.com/about/

In her classic utopian science fiction novel The Dispossessed, Ursula K. Le Guin wrote, “Those who build walls are their own prisoners. I'm going to fulfill my proper function in the social organism. I'm going to unbuild walls.” Author Silky Shah has framed an entire book around that quote, and Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition couldn't have come at a better time. As the narratives about border and immigration continue to deteriorate with the election rhetoric, the longtime director of the Detention Watch Network talks withThe Border Chronicle about defying this inhumane status quo. Read or listen to more news from the border at theborderchronicle.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/border-chronicle/support

In this episode of CounterPunch Radio, Joshua Frank and Erik Wallenberg interview Silky Shah, author of Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition (Haymarket, 2024). Silky has been working as an organizer on issues related to racial and migrant justice for over two decades. Originally from Texas, she began fighting the expansion of immigrant jails on the US-Mexico border in the aftermath of 9/11. In 2009, she joined the staff of Detention Watch Network, a national coalition building power to abolish immigrant detention in the United States, and now serves as its executive director. More The post Silky Shah appeared first on CounterPunch.org.

President Joe Biden spoke Tuesday at the White House before signing an executive order that would temporarily halt asylum requests at the U.S.-Mexico border once the daily arrival rate surpasses 2,500 migrants. "The simple truth is there is a worldwide migrant crisis," said Biden. The order, which comes under the Immigration and Nationality Act, aims to address the migrant influx by suspending entry for those crossing the border unlawfully. The shutdown will be immediate, given the current numbers, and the border will reopen when the figures drop below 1,500 a day. However, reactions from immigration organizations have been critical. Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, expressed fury at the order, calling it a betrayal of the values President Biden once promised. She accused the administration of adopting an anti-immigration agenda by enacting policies that endanger migrants and align with right-wing ideologies. The order, Shah argued, not only narrows pathways for immigrants but cuts them off entirely, perpetuating a system that relies on mass incarceration and targets people of color. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Watch Part 2 of our interview with Detention Watch Network's Silky Shah about her new book, Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition.

Watch Part 2 of our interview with Detention Watch Network's Silky Shah about her new book, Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition.

We're in the midst of our May Day to Memorial Day membership drive.  We're asking you to join us in raising $25,000 - the cost to produce one episode.  Please contribute by making a one-time donation or make it monthly, goto lauraflanders.org/donate   As Angela says, "when vast numbers of people come together . . . this is how change happens."  Please come together with us now!  Thanks for listening and thanks for your continued support.When it comes to crime and migration, all sorts of politicians have justified mass detention and incarceration in the name of confronting a dangerous crisis. But what's real and what's fear mongering, and how can reformers counter the rhetoric to advance alternatives? In this episode, Laura Flanders and co-host Amir Khafagy speak with Silky Shah, Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, about her new book is “UNBUILD WALLS: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition”, and Aron Thorn, Senior Attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project's Beyond Borders Program about the road ahead. Texas Governor Greg Abbott's Operation Lone Star program and the state-based deportation process proposed in his state's Senate Bill SB4 could set the tone for the country. Activists can do their best to call out abuses, but what is really needed is an entirely new approach. What difference would an abolitionist lens make?“I find it very troubling that we have economies that are solely dependent on the exploitation of immigrant labor. This country depends on the exploitation of immigrant labor, yet you're seeing all these draconian measures, especially in places like Texas and now New York . . .” - Amir Khafagy“There's been some minor reforms here and there . . . I don't want to dismiss that, but none of it's been at the scale that it needs to be. There needs to be a real investment that doesn't just let the Republicans dictate the debate . . .” - Silky Shah“It's fascinating to see my colleagues in New York grappling with some of the same really difficult questions that border Texans have grappled with for a really long time. What does it look like to give meaningful support to folks who are coming here and seeking a better life?” - Aron ThornGuests:• Amir Khafagy (Co-host): Journalist, Report for America Member, Documented• Silky Shah: Director, Detention Watch Network; Author, Unbuild Walls• Aron Thorn: Senior Attorney, Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP), Beyond Borders Program Full Episode Notes are located HERE.  They include related episodes, articles, and more.Music In the Middle:  RUMTUM remix of “Mirage” by Captain Planet courtesy of Bastard Jazz Records..  "Steppin" and "The Gall" by Podington Bear. Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders, Sabrina Artel, David Neuman, Nat Needham, Rory O'Conner, Janet Hernandez, Sarah Miller and Jeannie Hopper, Nady Pina, Jordan Flaherty FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LFAndFriendsFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

Subscribe on Patreon and hear this week's full patron-exclusive episode here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/96110966 Beatrice speaks with Silky Shah about the negotiations between the Biden administration and Congress that would establish harmful new asylum and immigration policy, alongside billions in additional funding towards the ongoing genocide of Palestine. For more on Title 42, see our episode on the policy—also with Silky—from 2022 here: https://soundcloud.com/deathpanel/title-42-w-silky-shah-unlocked Silky is the executive director of Detention Watch Network. Find more on Detention Watch Network and the resources they have available here: https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/ Preorder Silky's forthcoming book, Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition here: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2213-unbuild-walls Get Health Communism here: www.versobooks.com/books/4081-health-communism Runtime 1:26:44, 8 January 2024

Hello dear listeners, we hope you are having a restful and revolutionary summer! We are coming to you with some exciting news. While we're taking a little summer hiatus before the next season starts in the fall, we will be re-releasing some of our favorite episodes from the last season. You'll be hearing from Envision Freedom Fund staff over the next few weeks as they reintroduce these episodes to you and we hope you will listen, listen again and share with a friend! And at the end of the summer, we'll be back with a brand new season of conversations about how we envision and bring to fruition freedom for all people. On this episode of Dismantling Injustice, Envision Freedom's communication manager, Julie Mente, steps in for Carl to continue unraveling the mystery of government budgets. Julie is joined by Gabriela Viera, senior advocacy manager at Detention Watch Network. They discuss the federal appropriation process - including Biden's proposed budget for the next fiscal year - and how they impact the rights and dignity of immigrants in the U.S. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dismantlinginjustice/support

Hello from Jay's COVID den!Mai would like you to know that she begged Jay to skip recording and rest after he tested positive for COVID, and did the same with Tammy a few weeks ago. They did not listen. Please don't follow their bad example!This week, Tammy and Jay chat with repeat guest Silky Shah, executive director of Detention Watch Network and longtime organizer for immigrant rights. [1:45] We start, though, with a discussion of “Veep,” which Jay has been rewatching—a show that continues to be relevant and prescient ten-plus years on. [14:40] Then we talk about Biden's disappointing policies on immigration, including the continuation of Title 42 and other policies designed to exclude asylum seekers, [50:00] and reflect on some small wins that follow years of organizing by groups like the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON). In this episode, we ask: How do anti-immigration policies actually worsen the same border conditions that some claim to be fighting through deterrence?  What makes immigration intersectional? How might the immigrant-rights movement adopt a broader framework of immigrant justice? For more, see: * More on the Biden administration's anti-immigrant moves, including a potential reinstatement of family detention * Hannah Dreier's NYT report about migrant child labor in the U.S.* The fire at a Juárez migrant detention center that killed dozens* A glimmer of good news: DHS expands protections for whistleblowers * The Tennessee GOP's attack on two Black legislatorsPlus, listen to Silky's August 2022 TTSG appearance, ​​Immigration's “catalyst moments,” and a September episode where we discuss Ron DeSantis's migrant-busing stunt: GOP cruelty gone wild. Thanks for listening! Subscribe on Patreon or Substack, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. Email us at timetosaygoodbyepod@gmail.com.  This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit goodbye.substack.com/subscribe

We're back with a brand new episode and new format! Maria and Julio break down the criminal arraignment of former President Donald Trump and discuss Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas' comments on immigration. Then, we dive into President Biden's immigration policy with Erika Pinheiro, executive director of Al Otro Lado, and Silky Shah, executive director of the Detention Watch Network. ITT Staff Picks: Dhruv Mehrotra writes about the potentially illegal tool that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is using to gather data from abortion clinics, elementary schools, and news organizations, in this article for WIRED. Alex Samuels talks about Biden's move to a more right-wing stance on immigration, in this article for FiveThirtyEight. “Although blanket coverage of Trump exposes viewers to his more unfavorable qualities, his political messages get through loud and clear. He gets to define the debate, his opponents, and even the people covering him. And both Trump and his staff are aware of this dynamic, which is why they always try to make him the center of attention. Human beings tend to remember sensational lies and smears, but can get fuzzy about the dry fact-checks that debunk them,” writes Adam Serwer in this article for The Atlantic. Photo credit: AP Photo/Fernando Llano

On this week's episode of Dismantling Injustice, Envision Freedom's communication manager, Julie Mente, steps in for Carl to continue unraveling the mystery of government budgets. Julie is joined by Gabriela Viera, senior advocacy manager at Detention Watch Network. They discuss the federal appropriation process - including Biden's proposed budget for the next fiscal year - and how they impact the rights and dignity of immigrants in the U.S.  Notes: To learn more about Detention Watch Network follow them at @detentionwatch and visit their website https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/. Check out the Defund Hate Campaign at @defundhatecampaign and their website https://defundhatenow.org/. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dismantlinginjustice/support

Según el Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC por sus siglas en inglés), los tres estados con mayor número de detenidos son Texas, 6,996, Louisiana, 3,436, y Arizona, 2,051. “No es de extrañar que los condados de Texas y el sur de California —puntos focales de las detenciones del ICE— fueron donde más aprehensiones se realizaron”, según el informe. Para conocer más detalles sobre este informe invitamos a Gabriela Viera, gerente de defensa Detention Watch Network. Escuche nuestra conversación a continuación.

Hello from Washington state! This week, we’re joined by Silky Shah, executive director of Detention Watch Network and repeat pod guest, to chat about immigration (and, briefly, Nathan Fielder’s bizarre new show, “The Rehearsal”). We start by diving into Caitlin Dickerson’s exhaustive report, in The Atlantic, on the Trump administration's family-separation policy. We reflect on the unique horrors of that period, while locating them in a longer history of cruelty toward immigrants, up to the present. Silky also outlines the current immigration landscape, including Biden’s continuation of Trump’s Title 42 policy (which blocks migration ostensibly on public-health grounds). She explains how the misguided theory of deterrence has governed immigration policy under both Democratic and Republican administrations, aided by skewed media narratives, and suggests what the immigrant-rights movement should do to prepare for the next mass-organizing moment. As always, please subscribe via Patreon and Substack to support the show and gain access to our Discord. Our global, 24/7 community of listeners is currently discussing Leo’s 21-year-old girlfriends, basketball, Seoul fashion, “The Rehearsal,” immigration policy, food in the PNW, and so much more. You can also follow us on Twitter and email us at timetosaygoodbyepod@gmail.com. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit goodbye.substack.com/subscribe

Immigration is a touchy subject in the United States. Immigrants coming into the US illegally are put into detention centers. That's because the US has had mandatory detention laws since the Clinton administration in 1996. These harsh immigration detention laws target immigrants from South and Central America, Middle East, and other minorities looking to migrate to the US. Detention Watch Network wants to abolish immigration detention in the United States. Find out how Detention Watch Network wants to dismantle the world's largest immigration detention system in the United States. Want to support Detention Watch Network? https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/ Find the episode on Great.com: https://great.com/great-talks-with/detention-watch-network/

We speak with Silky Shah about the Trump-era border restrictions the Biden administration has held onto, including deporting migrants under the pretense of keeping covid out of the US. Silky is the executive director of Detention Watch Network. You can follow her @silkys13 This episode was originally a patron exclusive posted May 16th. If you enjoy this episode consider supporting the show at patreon.com/deathpanelpod Pre-orders are now live for Bea and Artie's book! Pre-order HEALTH COMMUNISM here: bit.ly/3Af2YaJ Death Panel merch here (patrons get a discount code): www.deathpanel.net/merch join our Discord here: discord.com/invite/3KjKbB2 As always, support Death Panel at www.patreon.com/deathpanelpod

Subscribe on Patreon and hear this week's full patron-exclusive episode here: www.patreon.com/posts/66509165 We speak with Silky Shah about the Trump-era border restrictions the Biden administration has held onto, including deporting migrants under the pretense of keeping covid out of the US. Silky Shah is executive director of Detention Watch Network. Pre-orders are now live for Bea and Artie's book, Health Communism, out October 18th from Verso Books. Pre-order Health Communism here: bit.ly/3Af2YaJ Runtime 1:17:34, 16 May 2022

This week, we welcome a special guest to talk about the immigrant rights movement and immigration policy. Plus, Andy and Tammy channel Jay Energy and answer listener questions.  This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at goodbye.substack.com/subscribe

This week we're joined by Silky Shah (@silkys13) from the Detention Watch Network to talk about ongoing efforts to end immigration detention. In Matthew's neck of the woods a group of lawyers have written a letter to try and keep one detained court *open,* and the New Jersey Bar Association came out against a bill that would prevent ICE from expanding their detention practices within the state.  You can find out more about the Detention Watch Network here, follow them on Twitter @detentionwatch, like subscribe etc. etc. 

Maria is joined by Marcela Hernandez, organizing director with Detention Watch Network, and Mustafa Jumale, co-founder of Black Immigrant Collective, to discuss immigration policy and the intensifying situations in Haiti and Cuba. They unpack the Biden Administration's immigration proposals, and the ways that anti-Blackness permeates the U.S. immigration system. We also hear from Patrice Lawrence, co-director of the UndocuBlack Network. ITT Staff Picks:For Teen Vogue, Silky Shah, executive director of Detention Watch Network, shares her organization's strategies for shutting down ICE facilities in local communities. Rowaida Abdelaziz, reporter for Huffpost, writes about racism Black immigrants face within the immigration system: “[they] are disproportionately detained, receive higher bond costs, and say they face racist treatment within detention centers.”Instead of military intervention, Daniel Larison writes that the the U.S. should provide Haiti with humanitarian aid and assist in the investigation of Jovenel Moïse's assassination. Photo credit: AP Photo/Emilio Espejel See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Join Amna Akbar, Aziz Rana, Darakshan Raja, and Silky Shah for a discussion of how the War on Terror fuels our deportation machine and how to dismantle both. Immigrant and racial justice organizers are calling for the abolition of the war on terror and the deportation machine. This panel will discuss how recent campaigns change the terrain of debates within policy spheres and create new openings for organizing. The panel will analyze developments within contemporary abolitionist organizing and put it in conversation with the internationalism of 20th century left social movements. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Speakers: Silky Shah is the Executive Director of Detention Watch Network, a national coalition building power to abolish immigration detention in the United States. She has worked as an organizer on issues related to immigration detention, the prison industrial complex, and racial and migrant justice for nearly 20 years. Darakshan Raja is the co-director of the Justice For Muslims Collective, a community-based organization that works to dismantle structural Islamophobia through community organizing and empowerment, raising political consciousness and narrative shifting, and building strategic alliances across movements. Aziz Rana is a professor of law at Cornell University, and his research focuses on how shifting notions of race, citizenship, and empire have shaped American legal and political identity. He is the author of The Two Faces of American Freedom (Harvard University Press, 2014). Amna Akbar is a professor of law at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. She writes about policing and social movements, with a focus on grassroots demands for social change. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Watch the live event recording: https://youtu.be/o2IER14CyMA Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

A record breaking number of migrant children and teenagers have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border this year. As in years before, many children make the perilous journey without their parents only to face an uncertain future. Why they do it is complicated. Guests:Lomi Kriel is a journalist with the ProPublica-Texas Tribune Investigative Initiative. Setareh Ghandehari is the advocacy director at Detention Watch Network.

On a Tuesday in May, several dozen people gathered in front of an administrative building in Woodstock, Illinois, a town of about 25,000 people, 54 miles northwest of Chicago. Organizers held up signs that read: “Community not cages,” and “Cancel the ICE contract.”The McHenry County Board would meet inside that building later that evening. On their voting agenda was a resolution to phase out the county jail's contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement — also known as ICE — and stop detaining undocumented immigrants.Immigration advocates around the county, like those in Woodstock, have waited since January for President Joe Biden to address immigration detention after he announced changes to contracts between the Department of Justice and private prisons. Biden said his goal is to end racial disparities and pave the way for fair sentencing. Related: Immigration rights activists call on Biden to end private detentionMost recently, the administration terminated its contracts with two county jails, the Bristol County Sheriff's Office in Massachusetts and the Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia — both under federal investigation for allegations of abuse against immigrants in their custody. Many advocates applauded the move as a first step.But without any federal mandate to end immigration detention in county jails and private detention centers, advocates will continue to look to local and state lawmakers to act, said Silky Shah, executive director at Detention Watch Network, an advocacy group against immigration detention. “It's so important whenever you have these fights at the local level to show the impact of detention in your community, to signal to the federal government, ‘Hey, actually this is not OK and this shouldn't be happening.'”Silky Shah, executive director, Detention Watch NetworkPublic pressure is increasing, she said.“It's so important whenever you have these fights at the local level to show the impact of detention in your community, to signal to the federal government, ‘Hey, actually this is not OK, and this shouldn't be happening,'” she said. Related: Biden's day one promise to end 'Remain in Mexico' may go unfilledPushing for statewide measuresIn April, Essex County in New Jersey canceled its ICE contract. Other states, including California, Maryland and New York are pushing for statewide measures to prevent counties from entering contracts with ICE.Canceling existing contracts can be a tough sell, especially when these communities have depended on those federal dollars and the jobs that come with running detention centers, Shah said. But the pandemic did decrease the number of immigrants being detained nationwide, Shah said. That has left people wondering whether the same amount of detention centers are necessary.“With COVID, there was a reduction in the number of people detained for a bunch of reasons because the border was closed because a lot of people were continuing to be deported, and [there were] less enforcement operations,” she said. Related: A therapists' network supports immigrants, advocates during pandemicStill, In Illinois, the McHenry County Board voted to keep their county jail's partnership with ICE. The jail has beds for 250 immigrants. The county receives $95 a day from the federal government for each detainee in custody. But during the pandemic, many of those went unused. According to county data, for the fiscal year 2020, the jail's average daily number of undocumented immigrant detainees was 189, compared to 279 and 275, for 2019 and 2018, respectively. It was a contentious debate. The majority of board members weren't convinced that ending the ICE contract would make a difference. Instead, they'd prefer to wait for the federal government to issue a mandate. “This county board does not have the ability to solve the immigration problem in this country, and that's why I'm not voting to eliminate the contract that we have with ICE."Joseph Gottemoller, board member, McHenry County“This county board does not have the ability to solve the immigration problem in this country, and that's why I'm not voting to eliminate the contract that we have with ICE,” said county board member Joseph Gottemoller.Others were concerned about where the detainees would go if the contract ends, and if moving detainees across state lines to other states would be an inconvenience for their families. “To send people someplace else — I will be voting no on this for that fact alone. The money is not the issue to me, I believe we can cut budgets,” said Jim Kearns, another board member. Immigration advocates gather outside the county building in McHenry County, Woodstock, Illinois on Tuesday, May 18, 2021. Credit: Courtesy of David Volden Related: ICE gets sued to release immigrant detainees amid COVID-19A moral issueUndocumented immigrants like Johannes Favi said this is a moral issue, and that more board members should have voted to end the contract. Favi is an immigrant from Benin who spent close to a year detained at the Jerome Combs Detention Center in Kankakee, another Illinois county jail that contracts with ICE. He also wants to see ICE contracts end — and detention altogether. He drove to Woodstock from his home in Indiana to speak at the meeting.   "I know [migrant detention] is wrong. And if nobody stands to do something against it, well, it'll keep happening."Johannes Favi, immigrant from Benin now living in Indiana“I do that because for me, it's just common sense to fight for what is right. And I've lived it. So I know this is wrong. And if nobody stands to do something against it, well, it'll keep happening,” Favi said. Amanda Hall, co-founder of the Coalition to Cancel the ICE Contract in McHenry County, and who lives in Woodstock, said many community members also supported ending the contract. Those community members want everyone to be respected and recognized, she said. “Having ICE in our community causes fear and causes trauma ... it's not something that should be allowed."Amanda Hall, co-founder, Coalition to Cancel the ICE Contract in McHenry County“Having ICE in our community causes fear and causes trauma ... it's not something that should be allowed,” Hall said.The outcome was disappointing, said Maria Valdez, a volunteer with the Elgin Coalition for Immigrant Rights, a member of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. But it's important to keep the momentum going, she said. The movement in Woodstock captivated community members who had never been involved in organizing before. “So, I think that a silver lining of this is that it mobilizes people, right? It makes people feel angry, more passionate and engaged to be able to push for something.”Valdez is hopeful change will come. She and other organizers want more counties and states to join the movement and show the federal government this is necessary. "It is always a good time to do the right thing."Maria Valdez, volunteer, Elgin Coalition for Immigrant Rights“So is it a good time? It is always a good time to do the right thing. And are we going to win? I think we have a good chance,” she said. 

Just as no one chooses their skin color, no one chooses what country they are born in or what language they grow up speaking. That's something I was reminded of in my discussion with Sarah on immigration, and yet it's something that gives many of us great privilege that we have done nothing to deserve. Chances are if you're reading this, you've benefited from some of that privilege yourself. Sarah is back this week to share about how we can harness that privilege to help those around us. In Part 1 of our conversation last week, Sarah spent a lot of time answering all the questions I had about immigration policy in the US. I'll be honest - I didn't know half as much as I thought I did about this topic! It was so great to learn from someone who has not only done her research and has the statistics to prove it, but from someone who's on the frontlines and sees the ins and outs of our current immigration setup on a daily basis. That's what Sarah is chatting about with us today - she's sharing the frontline work she and her team do through Casa de Paz. This organization has grown leaps and bounds since Sarah first started it nearly 9 years ago, and the work that they do is truly admirable. The best part about it, though? We can all be involved from wherever we're at! Sarah is providing us with some ways that we can contribute to correcting this broken system, whether it's with The Casa or elsewhere. She's got all kinds of resources for us on how we can become more educated and take a stand for our fellow human beings. Because that's what this is really all about, isn't it? Links from the show: Shop Nu Leaf Naturals - Use code HIPPIE20 for 20% off: https://nuleafnaturals.com/ (https://nuleafnaturals.com/) Casa de Paz Pen Pal Program: https://www.casadepazcolorado.org/volunteer “Safe Passage on City Streets” by Dorothy T. Samuel: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7707837-safe-passage-on-city-streets Metro Denver Sanctuary Coalition: https://www.metrodenversanctuary.org/ (https://www.metrodenversanctuary.org/) Freedom For Immigrants: https://www.freedomforimmigrants.org/ (https://www.freedomforimmigrants.org/) Detention Watch Network: https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/ (https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/) Casa de Paz Online Volunteer Training: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScYIlGb2g7dvbmiJ8QB3piCOxfgaWCPxLvC1oZ_9cWVCfLM_A/viewform “Little Bee” by Chris Cleave: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6948436-little-bee (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6948436-little-bee) Brene Brown Podcast: https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-with-drs-john-and-julie-gottman-on-what-makes-love-last/ (https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-with-drs-john-and-julie-gottman-on-what-makes-love-last/) Dr. Dray YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnxmUrGMtpQT844Yd_l7Zyg (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnxmUrGMtpQT844Yd_l7Zyg) CeraVe Skincare: https://www.cerave.com/ (https://www.cerave.com/) Connect with Mackenzie: Instagram: @theheartfelthippie // @the.enlightenme.podcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theheartfelthippie/ (https://www.facebook.com/theheartfelthippie/) Website: http://www.heartfelthippie.com (www.heartfelthippie.com) Email: mackenzie.heartfelthippie@gmail.com Connect with Sarah: Website: https://www.casadepazcolorado.org/ (https://www.casadepazcolorado.org/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CasaDePazCo/ (https://www.facebook.com/CasaDePazCo/) Instagram: @casadepazco Book: https://www.casadepazcolorado.org/book (https://www.casadepazcolorado.org/book)

Last month President Joe Biden instructed the Department of Justice to end contract renewals with private prisons as a first step to end racial disparities and pave the way to fair sentencing. But Biden, who ran on promises to make sweeping changes to immigration policy, left private immigration detention untouched, allowing the Department of Homeland Security to continue renewing contracts with these private facilities. For years, immigrants in detention and advocacy groups have documented a lack of oversight and physical and mental abuse at the facilities. Today, about 80% of immigrants in detention centers are in private detention, according to an American Civil Liberties Union report. Advocates say that ending the migrant detention system is one more piece of the puzzle in achieving racial justice and ending migrant abuse. In 2020, 170,000 people cycled through detention, which is an unusually low number compared to other years. The pandemic, along with former President Donald Trump's tough policies on immigration contributed to those lower numbers. Policies like the Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as “Remain in Mexico,” kept asylum-seekers on the Mexican side of the US-Mexico border. Related: Reuniting families after Trump's zero-tolerance immigration policy Still, detention continues to be a lucrative business.The US government used to oversee immigration detention. But that changed after 9/11 with the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Immigration detention expanded after that, and US officials turned to private prison companies to manage this work. The companies jumped right in. “They [companies] started seeing the federal government as a place to have these more lucrative contracts,” said Silky Shah, executive director of the Detention Watch Network, an immigration detention advocacy group.The group has tracked the increasing privatization of the detention system during the Trump administration, with more multimillion-dollar contracts signed by key companies such as CoreCivic Inc and GEO Group. Related: The winding journey to reunite families separated at the US borderDuring the pandemic, many immigration detention centers have also become COVID-19 hot spots. These private companies say they take safety seriously, especially during the pandemic. Immigrants are given face masks and medical attention, they say. But addressing abuse and neglect is only the beginning of a much larger detention problem, Shah said.It's also about racial justice.“What we know about these systems [is] that [they] disproportionately target people of color and Black people, and we're seeing that even now, in the context of who is currently in detention and who is being deported."Silky Shah, executive director, Detention Watch Network“What we know about these systems [is] that [they] disproportionately target people of color and Black people, and we're seeing that even now, in the context of who is currently in detention and who is being deported,” she said. Biden said he wants to address racial inequity inside detention centers, too. But unwinding these contracts might be more of a battle. Last August, the Trump administration renewed contracts with GEO Group and CoreCivic, Inc., in Texas, to run two facilities for an additional 10 years. Any steps Biden takes now need clear deadlines to phase out these and other private contracts, said Jesse Franzblau, a policy analyst with the National Immigrant Justice Center, which provides direct legal services to immigrants. Franzblau said giving these companies a two-year deadline is reasonable, and the federal government has the authority to do so. “But they need direction from above to start carrying that out,” he said. Advocates also stress the fact that nearly one-third of immigrants held in detention centers don't have a criminal record. And many others have minor nonviolent offenses. Shah points to other options. “There are models that include GPS monitoring that are just alternative forms of detention. And so, I think the alternatives that do work are, one, people should just be with their families,” she said. GPS monitoring involves ankle bracelets to track people while their immigration cases go through the courts. States like California and Florida do this more than other states, although the practice has also come under scrutiny. Shah said it's possible that Biden could be holding back on dealing with immigration detention as a way to leverage his other immigration goals. But with Alejandro Mayorkas' recent appointment to secretary of Homeland Security, along with Biden's recent executive orders addressing deportations and travel bans, Shah said there could be some shifts in how the agency operates around detention. Still, advocates like Shah and Franzblau say ending contracts with private detention centers is only a fractional part of a larger, problematic system. There are other aspects to address — like county jails. An executive order phasing out private contracts might not apply to county jails that also contract with the federal government to detain immigrants.  Johannes Favi is an immigration rights activist.  Credit: David Volden This impacts people such as Johannes Favi, 33, from Benin. “It's just horrible to live in detention, you know, you just want to give up on everything."Johannes Favi, former migrant detainee“It's just horrible to live in detention, you know, you just want to give up on everything,” he said. Favi overstayed a 2013 visitor visa and was in the process of applying for a green card, which his wife, a US citizen, sponsored. During a court hearing for a previous financial crime he pled guilty to, immigration officials arrested him. He spent 10 months in a county jail, 60 miles south of Chicago. He was released in 2020, right as the coronavirus pandemic began to spread inside that facility. Favi is now living in Indianapolis, Indiana, and continues to advocate for detained immigrants. For him, detention — privatized or not — is the same. “So, I really wish the Biden administration can break the whole system down, you know, detention for profit, you know, private detention, county jail.”For now, immigrants like Favi and those working to dismantle the detention system altogether will wait to see how — and when — Biden might change it. 

In this post-election special (thank god it's over), we look at how the election has affected Asian American communities, and also how immigration issues in particular have played out for the incoming Biden administration. We check in with Alvina Wong, Campaign & Organizing Director of the Asian Pacific Environmental Network, and Shaw San Liu, executive director of the Chinese Progressive Association, about how the election played out for AAPI voters in California, including the fight around Proposition 15, a ballot measure that would have raised taxes on high-priced commercial properties. We also talk to Jerry Vattamala, Democracy Program Director with the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, about the group's extensive exit polling data on Asian Americans in New York, Florida, Georgia and ten other states plus Washington, DC. Not surprisingly, Biden won a significant majority of the overall Asian American vote, but there were pockets of Trump support, as well as some ethnic variations in voters' choices. Finally, we examine one of the critical issues Biden will have to deal with once he enters office: addressing the longstanding inequities in the detention system and undoing the disastrous policies that Trump has put in place over the last four years at the southern border. Yet many of the human rights violations that are occurring now with immigrant detention and deportation were prevalent under the Obama administration as well--that is, they happened when Biden was vice president. We talk to Silky Shah, executive director of the Detention Watch Network, about how much activists can expect from a Biden administration when it comes to addressing the mass incarceration and deportation of immigrants. Image: Yin Zhao --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/asiapacificforum/support

After spending almost his entire adult life in a cell, Chanthon Bun was released from San Quentin State Prison in California earlier this month. Officials dropped him off at a bus stop three miles away. Bun had not expected to go free — rather, he expected to leave prison and go straight into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. Bun arrived in the United States as a child refugee in 1986 after his family fled the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. He entered the prison system at 18 for the armed robbery of a computer store. Though Bun, now 41, has legal permanent residency in the US, his felony conviction made him a target for potential deportation once he had completed his prison sentence. But ICE was not there to pick up Bun when he was released July 1, and that may be because of the coronavirus pandemic. Prison-to-ICE transfers are routine in the US for some non-citizen immigrants who have charges or convictions. Every year, thousands of immigrants are released from prison and put into ICE detention, where they face deportation. Immigrant rights advocates have fought this policy for years. But it has come under renewed scrutiny with the pandemic as many detention centers throughout the country have experienced coronavirus outbreaks. As of July 10, 3,090 detainees have tested positive at detention centers nationwide, among a total detained population of about 22,600. Many advocates and detainees believe that total is an undercount because of a dearth in testing. Bun was already feeling sick with symptoms of COVID-19 before his release from San Quentin. The prison is experiencing a severe outbreak of the virus, with more than one-third of the inmates and staff testing positive. Related: 'Emergency releases' from prison reduce risk of virus spread, criminal justice expert saysBun's condition made his lawyer nervous. “We were deeply concerned, and I was getting letters from Bun as he was watching the outbreak spread around him,” said Anoop Prasad, a longtime immigration lawyer with Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Asian Law Caucus, a nonprofit based in San Francisco. “He was increasingly panicked and felt like a sitting duck sitting in a cell, and it was a matter of time before COVID came and got him.” Prasad also worried that Bun's transfer to an immigration detention center could be deadly and dangerous to others. “We knew very well that if he gets transferred to ICE, he very well may infect other people and he very well may not survive.”Anoop Prasad, staff attorney, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Asian Law Caucus “We knew very well that if he gets transferred to ICE, he very well may infect other people and he very well may not survive,” Prasad said.  Social distancing in detentionA growing number of groups that advocate for immigrants' rights are also highlighting these risks. "Folks should be released to their family members, where they can shelter in place. There is no social distancing in a crowded detention center,” said Luis Suarez, field advocacy director of Detention Watch Network, a coalition of immigrant rights organizations.Weeks before Bun's release, Prasad and others launched a public campaign, holding rallies and phone banks to stop the authorities from handing over Bun and other inmates to ICE.   Immigrant rights advocates in San Francisco demanded the release of Chanthon Bun from San Quentin State Prison, along with other inmates showing symptoms of the coronavirus. Credit: Courtesy of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Asian Law Caucus Meanwhile, an ICE agent informed Bun that he would be picked up from prison and taken into ICE custody. “Inside, we all know about the ICE holds,” Bun said, referring to ICE's requests to law enforcement officials to detain immigrants in jail or prison until they can be transferred to ICE's custody. The public pressure campaign seemed to work: ICE did not pick up Bun. He was so sure ICE agents would detain him that he hadn't arranged for any friends or family to meet him at the bus stop, even after two decades in prison.  “I had my medication ready ... because I knew I was really sick. I was getting ready for myself, to protect myself when I got to ICE.”Chanthon Bun, recently released from prison“That was the biggest surprise ever,” Bun said. “I had put together a safety pack for myself to go to ICE. I had collected a little hand sanitizer. I had my medication ready ... because I knew I was really sick. I was getting ready for myself, to protect myself when I got to ICE.”Related: California governor halts deportation of 2 Cambodian refugees, thwarting Trump administrationSome California lawmakers have also pressured local prison officials and California's governor, Gavin Newsom, to stop the prison-to-ICE transfers because of the risks during a pandemic. San Quentin was largely virus-free until a larger transfer of inmates occurred in May from a prison with many positive cases in Chino, California. The number of people with the virus at San Quentin escalated rapidly after that transfer.  In an early July hearing before California's senator, lawmakers grilled Ralph Diaz, who runs the state's Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, about the ICE transfers. Diaz said the current policy would not change. “If an individual has served their term and their term is up and there is a hold or a warrant by ICE as a pickup, then they are picked up by ICE just like any law enforcement agency,” Diaz said. ICE didn't respond to interview requests about the transfers or Bun's case and why the agency did not pick him up.Life after prisonFor the moment, Bun is happy to be out of prison, yet he still faces the threat of deportation. The day he was released, he headed straight to a church in San Francisco to protect himself from potential contact with ICE. The government agency's policy includes churches on its list of hands-off “sensitive locations.” The name and location of the church are undisclosed.  Related: The sanctuary church movement is on the rise again in California He is also recuperating from the virus, for which he tested positive after he was released. His spiking fever has eased. Now, it's “the cough and body pains,” Bun said. Volunteer nurses are monitoring his conditions as he self-quarantines in a living area connected to the church. For Bun, it's a surreal new chapter in his life. Before coming to the US, he and his family were resettled as refugees, after fleeing Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge's genocide during the 1970s and spending time in exile in Thailand and the Phillippines.  Chanthon Bun, middle, and his family shortly after arriving in the United States in the early 1980s after fleeing Cambodia and the genocide carried out by the Khmer Rouge.  Credit: Courtesy of Chanthon Bun During Cambodia's brutal Khmer Rouge regime, Bun knew relatives who were murdered. He said he arrived to the US traumatized.“I don't think the United States was ready for kids like me. I got in trouble a lot, right? And people didn't understand why. When I was scared, I fought. When I thought I could get away, I ran.”Chanthon Bun, Cambodian refugee“I don't think the United States was ready for kids like me,” he said. “I got in trouble a lot, right? And people didn't understand why. When I was scared, I fought. When I thought I could get away, I ran.” Years passed, and Bun never applied to become a US citizen.“I never thought about doing that,” he said.Then, at 18, he entered prison, where he maintained his green card, or legal permanent residency. Yet, as a non-citizen, his conviction, for second-degree robbery, makes him a target for ICE.Bun said it feels strange to seek shelter from ICE when he has spent almost all of his life in the US.“This is my country now, too. I've been here since I was a kid," he said. "I know everything about this country. So, how am I different than you?” In the meantime, Bun said that he is thinking of the community he built in San Quentin, including other immigrants like himself, who face twin threats: deportation and now COVID-19.“There's a lot of immunocompromised older gentlemen in those buildings so I'm praying that they survive this,” he said.

In the 26th episode of “The Activist Files,” Senior Staff Attorney Ghita Schwarz and Bertha Justice Fellow Lupe Aguirre are in conversation about how their work fighting abusive immigration practices has shifted during the pandemic. They discuss the injustices and inhumanity of the immigration detention system, particularly the conditions immigrants are experiencing during the pandemic, including 40 people living in one room and sleeping on rusted metal beds, the inability to social distance, and immigrants being threatened with pepper spray for protesting the right to make a mask. Ghita and Lupe also examine the economics that come into play when rural Southern towns rely on detention centers to support the local economy. They close by highlighting the advocacy around the #FreeThemAll campaign.Resources: ·      Dada v. Witte (LA)·      Williams v. Horton (AL)·      Tamayo Espinoza v. Witte (MS)·      Detention Watch Network·      #FreeThemAll·      Los Angeles Times: Detainees at Otay Mesa Detention Center were offered masks, but only if they signed contracts

Everything you always wanted to know about marijuana policy in Texas but were too stoned to ask. Plus, we write a love letter to Andrea Grimes and her "Texas is the last stop" Medium piece, we get inspired by DeRay McKesson of "Pod Save the People," and we explore whether telling the stories of asylum-seekers who are under attack by the Tr*mp administration amounts to "tragedy porn." PRESENTING SPONSOR: Austin School of Yoga. http://www.austinschoolofyoga.com/ Join the Austin School of Yoga team for a free class and info session at Castle Hill Fitness Downtown Austin on Saturday, March 30 at 3 p.m. Designed with the cornerstones of self-care, curiosity and compassion, the 200-hour teacher training starts this April. Discover your own voice, whether or not you plan to teach. And for a limited time, if you refer someone who signs up for the training, you'll receive a FREE 5-class pass to Castle Hill Fitness. So tell your friends. Go to http://www.austinschoolofyoga.com/ for more info. https://www.castlehillfitness.com/downtown-austin/events/1549/austin-school-of-yoga-meet-greet THIS WEEK'S GUEST: Heather Fazio, Director of Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy http://www.texasmarijuanapolicy.org/heather-fazio-director/ Petition: Ask Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to support sensible marijuana policy: http://www.texasmarijuanapolicy.org/2019/03/19/petition-ask-lt-gov-dan-patrick-to-support-sensible-marijuana-law-reform/ Help fund Texans for Medical Marijuana's efforts to make changes to Texas marijuana policy: https://bit.ly/2CzxZJE SH*T TO DO: Tell your reps to #defundhate and stop the increase in spending on Tr*mp's anti-immigrant agenda. The latest budget proposes a number of increases in funding for ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and CBP (US Customs & Border Protection) and asks for a 300% budget increase for family detention. Click this link to sign up against this budget by Friday, March 22: https://www.google.com/url?q=https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe82PWv8hS9yCYTkBF9mtaRN5j_sdfEBLSx7tuhuLkAS6La2A/viewform&source=gmail&ust=1553283435923000&usg=AFQjCNGuKdRxwgBBTnK-9dKFPi-C8-q4mw Read the full letter: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L4WggvZfURhmd1UUpvaDlweufDT3lLUL7dfbSuJ5uj4/edit Nerd out on the full budget analysis here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_A_vfx8JquHacNR0G_W_UMnpuAiBnrCJCojh83UX1o0/edit Follow the Detention Watch Network for the latest actions: https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/defundhate https://twitter.com/detentionwatch https://www.facebook.com/DetentionWatchNetwork FOLLOW ROUSER: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RouserTX Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rousertx/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RouserTX?lang=en Friday newsletter T-GIF: https://www.rousertx.com/tgif/ LINKS WE MENTIONED: Houston's Drag Queen Story Hour is no more, due to harassment: https://www.houstoniamag.com/articles/2019/3/19/drag-queen-story-time-houston-public-library-sylvester-turner-freed-montrose “Texas is the last stop” essay by Andrea Grimes: https://medium.com/@andreagrimes/texas-is-the-last-stop-5d724ff816a2 Austin Bat Cave: https://austinbatcave.org/ Alexa Ura, TX Tribune: https://www.texastribune.org/about/staff/alexa-ura/ & https://twitter.com/alexazura Ann Gerhart, Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/ann-gerhart/?utm_term=.5e4922a7ba24 & https://twitter.com/anngerhart Chris Harris, Just Liberty: https://twitter.com/chrisharris101 & https://justliberty.org/team-view/chris-harris/ DeRay McKesson, Crooked Media's “Pod Save the People”: https://crooked.com/podcast-series/pod-save-the-people/ & https://twitter.com/deray DeRay's book: On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/586471/on-the-other-side-of-freedom-by-deray-mckesson/9780525560326 DeRay testifying at 2017 Austin City Council Meeting on Police Union Contract: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkindrvwUec About HR6, The Dream & Promise Act: https://www.pri.org/stories/2019-03-21/sweeping-immigration-bill-won-t-pass-it-s-still-major-win Austin City Council Meeting Schedule (we gotta show up!): http://www.austintexas.gov/department/city-council/council-meetings Protestors rally around immigrants hiding in Austin churches: https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Protestors-rally-around-immigrants-hiding-in-13701320.php End Family Separation and Detention Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/endfamilyseparation/ Your daily reminder that seeking asylum is legal: https://www.facebook.com/michael.benavides1/posts/10219449881100176 Austin Sanctuary Network: https://austinsanctuarynetwork.org/ FAQ on ICE's “sensitive locations” policy: https://www.ice.gov/ero/enforcement/sensitive-loc Crystal City Internment Camp: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_City_Internment_Camp Friends of Crystal City: https://www.facebook.com/FriendsofCrystalCity/ March 30th event in Crystal City and Dilly. For those who cannot attend the March 30 event - asking volunteers to help gather 10,000 origami cranes to be strung together in chains on fences around the Dilly site. http://www.rafu.com/2019/03/through-the-fire-crystal-city-sparks-protest-at-south-texas-family-residential-center/?fbclid=IwAR0teH0PA5v_cibmLGlilpWA7Fy9jbW4h4rRE1Y1VRpcZWLLTnHjJGoaS6w How to fold a paper crane: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfnyopxdJXQ Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy: http://www.texasmarijuanapolicy.org/ Texas Compassionate Use Act: http://www.texasmarijuanapolicy.org/2015/06/01/texas_compassionate_use_act_2015/ National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws: https://norml.org/ Pending marijuana legislation in Texas: http://www.texasmarijuanapolicy.org/2019legislation/ Petition: Ask Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to support sensible marijuana policy: http://www.texasmarijuanapolicy.org/2019/03/19/petition-ask-lt-gov-dan-patrick-to-support-sensible-marijuana-law-reform/ Help fund Texans for Medical Marijuana's efforts to make changes to Texas marijuana policy: https://bit.ly/2CzxZJE The Farm Bill, hemp legalization and the status of CBD: An explainer: https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2018/12/14/the-farm-bill-hemp-and-cbd-explainer/ Hemp descheduled in Texas: https://greenlotushemp.com/2019/03/06/hemp-descheduled-in-texas-paves-way-for-senate-bill1240/ Civil asset forfeiture nets Texas police millions: https://www.texastribune.org/2018/12/07/texas-civil-asset-forfeiture-legislature/ Tr*mp is putting refugee children in black sites: https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2019/03/trump-is-putting-refugee-children-in-blacksites.html

The program features Noticias Sin Fronteras, News from the Americas, a commentrary from Mumia Abu Jamal from Prison Radio, a conversation with Detention Watch Network on what's being done to End Family Detention and we'll hear the poetry of ‪#‎Chicano‬ poets Auturo Mantecon, Charles Mariano and Francisco X. Alarcón & New Book.