BARACK OBAMA INVOKES CESAR CHAVEZ / RUBEN NAVARRETE / THE DENVER POST
When Barack Obama took to praising the late Cesar Chavez during the presidential campaign, I saw it as nothing more than a cheesy ploy to win Latino votes. In fact, it looked like the laziest kind of ethnic pandering — throw out the name of a beloved figure and hope it buys some instant credibility. To court the Irish, mention John F. Kennedy. To woo African-Americans, bring up Martin Luther King Jr. And to score points with Latinos, try Chavez, the former leader of the United Farm Workers union. (…) Then there is Eliseo Medina (Consejero del IME 2003-2005), a former UFW field organizer who is now executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union. Medina is an Obama adviser. "It's a small universe," Shaw said. "I think Obama is very good at finding talented people." That part of the story has been woefully underreported.
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POR MUERTE DE PAISANOS CONDENAN ACTUACIÓN DE 3 NIVELES DE GOBIERNO / LUIS FIERRO / EL DIARIO DE JUAREZ (CHIHUAHUA)
Organizaciones de hispanos en Estados Unidos solicitaron al Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior (IME), órgano desconcentrado de laSecretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, que se pronuncie públicamente y condene la actuación de los tres niveles de gobierno en la entidad respecto de la muerte de siete paisanos en el municipio de Ojinaga.“Ojalá los consejeros del IME levanten la voz y que el IME sirva como medio para que las autoridades de Chihuahua por lo menos reembolsen los gastos funerarios a los familiares de los fallecidos, revisen el estado de las carreteras del estado, coloquen señalizaciones que adviertan de peligros tales como puentes derrumbados y carreteras a medio acabar, y patrullen los caminos del estado para salvaguardar la seguridad de los paisanos que viajen a México en esta temporada navideña”.
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PROTESTAN EN TEXAS POR NUEVOS REQUISITOS PARA OBTENER LICENCIA / FINANCIERO
Una coalición de legisladores locales de Texas y grupos de derechos civiles manifestaron hoy su oposición a los nuevos requerimientos impuestos en el estado a los inmigrantes extranjeros para tramitar y renovar una licencia de conducir. En rueda de prensa en Austin, la coalición denunció la política que desde el pasado 1 de octubre exige a todos los extranjeros demostrar que están de forma legal en el país para poder obtener o renovar una licencia de conducir en esta entidad.
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EXIGEN INVESTIGAR FUERZA EXCESIVA A INMIGRANTES / NUEVO EXCELSIOR
Una coalición defensora de los inmigrantes pidió hoy a la fiscalía estatal de Miami investigar el uso excesivo de fuerza de agentes de la Oficina de Inmigración y Aduanas (ICE) durante redadas que buscaban desmantelar una red de prostitución. Las organizaciones enviaron una carta al fiscal Alexander Acosta para exigirle investigar la redada del 19 de noviembre pasado en el sur de Florida, donde fueron detenidos 42 mexicanos y 35 ' La suma de acciones de estas redadas dirigidas a proteger víctimas de tráfico (de personas) han hecho víctimas de muchos en la comunidad de Homestead, creando un clima de miedo y desconfianza', señaló la misiva, según la versión digital del diario Miami Herald.
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REGULARIZAN A CIENTOS DE EX BRACEROS EN NL / DAVID CARRIZALES / LA JORNADA
Cientos de ex braceros acudieron ayer al Congreso de Nuevo León para recoger documentos que los acreditan como jornaleros agrícolas amparados por el convenio México-Estados Unidos (1942-1964), tras haber sido engañados por la lideresa priísta Guadalupe Gutiérrez. Diputados locales lograron que Gutiérrez devolviera los documentos de mil 900 ex braceros; sin embargo, el dirigente Ignacio Zapata afirma que los expedientes están incompletos.
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POLICÍA DE NY SIGUE BUSCANDO A MEXICANA / EL UNIVERSAL
La policía estatal registró exhaustivamente bosques, depósitos de basura y un tanque séptico cerca de la casa de un delincuente sexual convicto, quien la semana pasada fue visto al salir de un club nocturno con una mexicana que no ha aparecido desde entonces. Las autoridades intensificaron el lunes la búsqueda de Laura Garza, de 25 años, quien se había mudado recientemente del sur de Texas a Nueva York con la ilusión de ser bailarina. La joven conoció a Michael Mele la semana pasada en el club nocturno Marquee, de Manhattan. Salieron juntos en la madrugada del miércoles y fueron vistos dos horas después en la camioneta deportiva Infiniti del hombre a 113 kilómetros al norte de Manhattan, cerca de su departamento en Wallkill.
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IMMIGRATION REFORM FACES DELAYS / SUSAN CARROLL, STEWART POWELL / HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Sour economy, political climate may stall effort. Join the debate in our immigration forum Keep up with the issues on the Immigration page President-elect Barack Obama pledged to make comprehensive immigration reform a priority in his first term in the White House, but the nation's worsening economic woes may force delays on the campaign promise, experts said. Some members of Congress also said the timetable for reform may have to await a better economy and a more receptive political climate to providing legal status to illegal immigrants in the U.S. Other congressional leaders urged quick action on immigration reform, which has stalled in recent years amid fierce opposition.
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ANITA ÁLVAREZ NOMBRA A SUS ADJUNTOS / MATTHEW WALBERG / DIARIO HOY
La primera mujer, y la primera persona hispana, en desempeñar el cargo de fiscal estatal para el Condado de Cook, seleccionó tres caras conocidas el lunes para ocupar puestos como sus principales adjuntos. Una semana después de asumir el cargo, Anita Álvarez nombró a dos funcionarios de alto nivel y con acceso a las interioridades de la dependencia para llenar los dos puestos administrativos principales bajo la dirección de ella, y a su jefe de campaña, un ex fiscal estatal asistente, le indicó que sería designado para el tercer puesto. Álvarez, una fiscal de carrera con 22 años de experiencia en el cargo, durante su campaña esquivó ataques de ser parte de una camarilla política, y dijo que estaba muy lejos de pertenecer a la vieja guardia.
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NAPOLITANO DEPARTURE LEAVES ZEALOTS IN CHARGE / ARIZONA DAILY STAR
If Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona is confirmed as homeland security secretary, she will leave behind a state in full Republican control, with immigration zealots embedded in both legislative houses, and too few moderates to go around. That is the down side of President-elect Barack Obama's decision to bring Napolitano to Washington. For years, she has been the most powerful voice of reason in a state that continues to hatch some of the dumbest, cruelest ideas anywhere for getting tough on immigrants. This is the border state that brought us the Minutemen, where duly elected Yosemite Sams keep thinking up new ways to brand illegal immigrants as a class of undesirables and criminals. Their goal is to make immigrants' lives so miserable that they have no choice but to abandon their lives, jobs and families and move away. One of Napolitano's major achievements for two terms has been simply to veto bill after bill on the xenophobes' long wish list. Those many noxious measures would have required the police to become federal immigration enforcers, denied day laborers' speech rights, rejected the 14th Amendment guarantee of citizenship to children born in the United States, created a state militia, allowed the police to arrest the undocumented for trespassing and made English the official language.
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OPPONENTS CALL NEW DRIVER'S LICENSE RULES FOR FOREIGN NATIONALS 'INSTITUTIONALIZED RACISM' / EMILY RAMSHAW / THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
Opponents of strict new driver’s license requirements for foreign nationals are calling on state leaders to rescind the rules, which will make immigrants’ licenses and identification cards look visibly different from those issued to U.S. citizens. Under the new requirements, which were approved by Texas’ Public Safety Commission and went into effect Oct. 1, foreign nationals are forced to provide documentation of their immigration status before getting a license and each time they renew.
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DPS POLICY ON 'VISITOR' LICENSES DRAWS FIRE / JANET ELLIOTT / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS
Edwin Palacio arrived in the United States from the Philippines in 1993 and was granted political asylum two years later. Since then he has worked for computer companies and received security clearances to audit private and government information systems. But the 54-year-old Austin resident is now identified as a “temporary visitor” on his new Texas driver's license, which he worries will hamper him and his wife from getting a home mortgage. Palacio joined a group of lawmakers and civil rights advocates Tuesday in calling on the governing board of the Texas Department of Public Safety to rescind the new policy requiring noncitizens to renew their licenses annually and provide documentation that they are in the country legally.
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TACTICS USED IN U.S. RAIDS DRAW CLAIMS OF BRUTALITY / DAMIEN CAVE, YOLANNE ALMANZAR / THE NEW YORK TIMES
Advocates for immigrants here demanded an investigation Tuesday into a series of federal raids last month that they said left at least six Guatemalan men bloodied and bruised in a roundup of nearly 100 people. Immigration and Customs Enforcement denied all accusations of misconduct by agents in the raids on Nov. 19 in three South Florida counties, noting that the operation focused on sex trafficking and led to charges against seven people and the release of several women. But lawyers working with other detainees said they were concerned that the agency was using human trafficking laws as a front for broader operations, and a cover for harsh tactics. “There is a way that these operations should be conducted,” said Jose Rodriguez, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Miami-Dade County. “And this is not it.” At a news conference, Mr. Rodriguez and others said agents had relied on vaguely worded warrants to invade people’s homes and arrest nearly anyone who looked Hispanic. In all, according to the federal agency, 77 illegal immigrants were detained in the operation, and only a handful appear to have been charged with a crime.
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ACLU ALLEGES RIGHTS ABUSES / MARIA SACCHETTI / BOSTON GLOBE
Immigrants jailed for deportation in Massachusetts are often subject to harsh conditions, including inadequate medical care, harassment, and overcrowding, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts said in a report to be released today. The report alleges that state and county jails and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement are failing to oversee the detainees' treatment. "There's no one watching over them, so there's no real incentive to make sure that the immigration detainees' rights are protected," said Laura Rótolo, staff attorney at the ACLU of Massachusetts and the lead researcher on the 22-month investigation. "They are not protecting people's fundamental rights."
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3 SOUGHT IN APPARENT HATE KILLING IN NYC / COLLEEN LONG / ORLANDO SENTINEL
Authorities opened a homicide investigation Tuesday into a vicious attack on an Ecuadorean immigrant whose assailants shouted anti-gay and anti-Hispanic slurs, then beat him with a baseball bat and kicked him. Jose Sucuzhanay, 31, was attacked as he walked arm in arm with his 38-year-old brother early Sunday in Brooklyn. He had been listed in critical condition after undergoing brain surgery at Elmhurst Hospital in neighboring Queens.
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PARENTS OF IMMIGRANT SHOT BY AGENT FILE SUIT / SEAN HOLSTEGE / THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC
The parents of an illegal immigrant from Mexico who was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the agent Tuesday. The lawsuit, the impact of which could be felt along the entire border, comes a month after an Arizona jury deadlocked for the second time in the prosecution of agent Nicholas Corbett on murder charges. The suit, filed in federal court in Tucson, alleges that Corbett, 41, expressed a hatred of Latinos when he lived in Pennsylvania before joining the Border Patrol.
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AGRIPROCESSORS WORKER EXPECTED TO PLEAD GUILTY / CHICAGO TRIBUNE
A former human resources employee at a northeast Iowa kosher slaughterhouse is expected to plead guilty this week to federal charges. Karina Pilar Freund is charged with conspiracy to harbor undocumented immigrants and harboring, aiding and abetting the harboring of undocumented immigrants for profit.
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FUTURO DE UNA INMIGRANTE SIGUE SIN DETERMINARSE / FRANCISCO CASTRO / DIARIO HOY
Atrás quedó el uso del brazalete electrónico que debió portar en su tobillo por varios meses, después de que fuera detenida en un operativo de la Oficina de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas (ICE) en la fábrica en que trabajaba. Pero Flora, aún no se siente libre del todo. "Estamos encerrados. No en la cárcel, pero en casa", dijo la inmigrante de 36 años de edad, durante una entrevista en la vivienda que comparte con su familia. Flora, quien pidió no publicar su apellido, y docenas de sus compañeros fueron detenidos en febrero en la fábrica Micro Solutions Enterprises, en Van Nuys. A la detención, dijo, le siguieron meses de incertidumbre legal, que aún continúan. "Estamos en proceso. Sigo asistiendo a corte", dijo Flora. Mientras tanto, no se le permite trabajar y está sujeta a visitas mensuales de parte de una firma contratada por ICE, la cual supervisa que ella permanezca en la dirección que dio a la corte. También, cada mes asiste a reuniones con sus ex compañeros de trabajo que son organizadas por la Coalición para los Derechos Humanos de los Inmigrantes de Los Ángeles (CHIRLA).
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MÁS MEXICANOS SE RESISTEN A EMIGRAR A EEUU POR LA CRISIS / DIARIO HOY
El flujo migratorio de mexicanos hacia Estados Unidos empezó a disminuir en los últimos tres años debido al cambio demográfico en las dos naciones, y en el último año, a la crisis económica en el país del norte, informó ayer la cancillería mexicana. "En los flujos migratorios de México hacia Estados Unidos, en los últimos tres años hay una tendencia a la baja", dijo en conferencia de prensa Carlos Rico, subsecretario para América del Norte. De acuerdo con el funcionario, en los últimos años unos 300,000 mexicanos cruzan la frontera norte anualmente para trabajar en Estados Unidos, una cifra que va a la baja y que dista de los cerca de 500,000 que llegaban a internarse en esa nación en los primeros años de esta década.
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ECONOMY FORCING MANY MEXICANS TO LEAVE UNITED STATES / CHRIS HAWLEY / USA TODAY
When her 3-year-old son begs for pizza, or when her family is shivering through a subfreezing night in the Mexican highlands — those are the moments when Rosario Araujo misses America the most. Three months ago, Araujo and her husband, José Zavala, were still living comfortably, though illegally, in a suburb of Phoenix. He hung drywall for $10 an hour; she was a housekeeper. Their version of the American dream was modest: a small apartment, a washing machine and an occasional night out with their two American-born kids.
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RETURNING MIGRANTS FIND MEXICO, THEMSELVES UNREADY TO ADAPT / CHRIS HAWLEY / ARIZONA REPUBLIC
When her 3-year-old son begs for pizza, or when her family is shivering through yet another night in the Mexican highlands, those are the moments when Rosario Araujo misses America the most. Just three months ago, Araujo and her husband, José Zavala, were still living comfortably, though illegally, as migrant workers in Gilbert. He hung drywall for $10 an hour, and she cleaned houses. They had a small apartment, a washing machine and an occasional night out with their two American-born children. (…)Even in bad times, most illegal immigrants - they number 11.9 million, according to Pew Hispanic Center estimates - are staying put. U.S. salaries average about four times as high as those in Mexico, and Mexico's flat job market and drug-war violence have made home inhospitable.(…) The impact in Mexico could be enormous because the country has long depended on emigration as a kind of safety valve for the economy, which doesn't produce enough jobs for those entering the labor force. Espinosa said the government is trying to prepare schools and social agencies for an influx of poor migrants.
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EAST L.A., LATINO HEARTLAND, REVIVES ITS DREAM OF CITYHOOD / DANIEL B. WOOD / THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
(…) The mostly Latin community here was immortalized by the 1987 Cheech and Chong comedy film "Born in East L.A.," in which the pot-smoking protagonists have repeated run-ins with US immigration officials. Crammed tightly into 7.4 square miles, East Los Angeles is to Mexican-Americans what Harlem is to African-Americans: ethnic symbol, social center, and cultural capital. First stop north of the border for thousands of immigrants, the gritty urban area is the birthplace of world boxing champion Oscar de la Hoya and home to many Latino luminaries including Cheech Marin, one half of the comedy duo. Now unincorporated, with a population of 130,000 and a median income of $28,000, East L.A. would be poised to take the national lead in Latino political power, which has been increasingly flexing its muscle every new US election. "There are probably 100 city regions packed with Latinos just like us who would look over their shoulder, take pride and try to replicate us in this political new era created by Barack Obama," says Mr. Gonzales, who is president of the East Los Angeles Residents Association, the prime mover behind the effort.
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NUEVA YORK SE PREPARA PARA RECIBIR A LA GUADALUPANA / DIARIO LA ESTRELLA
La ciudad de Nueva York se prepara para recibir la imagen de la Virgen de Guadalupe y San Diego luego de una peregrinación que se inició hace más de dos meses desde la Basílica de Guadalupe en la ciudad México. Desde el pasado 5 de octubre devotos de la virgen salieron en peregrinación, cruzando la frontera para recorrer unos seis mil kilómetros llevando "el fuego de la esperanza" que pasa de mano en mano mientras recorren camino y promueven la fe por la virgen morena.
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TAMALES TODAY: THE HOLIDAY FARE CAN BE FOUND PREMADE AT MANY MEXICAN MARKETS BUT WHERE TO GO? A BEE TASTING PANEL HAS SUGGESTIONS / GINA KIM / SACRAMENTO BEE
Making tamales is a holiday tradition for many area families. Getting together to spread and fold, spread and fold, and spread and fold until there are enough of the cornhusk-wrapped treats for everyone to eat and take home can be a labor of love. But when you want just one or two of the steamed pockets of perfection, you pass on the time-consuming process of making them, and head instead to a Mexican market where they can be picked up for a few dollars. We tried the pork tamales at 10 spots in the Sacramento area and found the ones we liked best.
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DENUNCIAN EXTORSIONES ANTE MÓDULOS DEL PROGRAMA PAISANO / ELDA GARCÍA / IMAGEN (ZACATECAS)
La Comisión Estatal de Derechos Humanos (CEDH) registra hasta el momento cinco quejas emitidas por presunta extorsión a migrantes, ajenas al estado.Juan Carlos Martínez, Quinto Visitador de Asuntos del Migrante de la CEDH, informó que las querellas fueron realizadas “por migrantes que van en tránsito”, pero que tuvieron la confianza de presentar su querella ante los auxiliares de la comisión en los módulos.
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DESTINARÁN $18 MILLONES PARA APOYO A MIGRANTES / ARALY CASTAÑÓN / EL DIARIO DE JUÁREZ (CHIHUAHUA)
El presupuesto de apoyo a migrantes de la Coordinadora Municipal aumentará el siguiente año más del 100 por ciento, dio a conocer la encargada del departamento, Adriana Cruz. Afirmó que para el 2009 se contempla ejercer 18 millones de pesos, mientras que en éste fueron 7 millones de pesos que se agotaron cuatro meses antes de finalizar el año. Esa cantidad representa un incremento de más del 157 por ciento en relación con el que se ejerció este año, agregó. Explicó que la Coordinadora Municipal de Atención al Migrante ofrece apoyo de traslado a sus lugares de origen y se les proporcionan viáticos.
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REGRESA JOVEN ASESINADO EN EU A SU TIERRA / ESAÚ GONZÁLEZ / EL CORREO DE GUANAJUATO
Un indocumentado originario de la comunidad Rancho Nuevo de la Cruz en Abasolo, fue asesinado a golpes luego de salir de un baile en los Estados Unidos. El hombre fue sepultado el viernes pasado. El cuerpo de José Alberto Rivera Dimas de 23 años, fue traído de la ciudad de Georgia. De acuerdo a los datos obtenidos, la víctima se encontraba en un baile y al salir fue agredido por varios jóvenes de aspecto ‘cholo’, los que comenzaron a golpearlo hasta causarle lesiones en diversas partes del cuerpo, especialmente en la cabeza.
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ONTARIO UNVEILS NEW RIGHTS FOR TEMP WORKERS / TANYA TALAGA / TORONTO STAR
Temporary workers in Ontario say they no longer feel like second-class citizens now that the government has introduced legislation to stop unscrupulous employers from taking advantage of a growing segment of the workforce. There are nearly 700,000 temporary jobs throughout the province and for years temp workers – many new Canadians or women – have fought to get basic employment rights. Improving the Employment Standards Act is part of the Ontario government's ambitious anti-poverty strategy, unveiled last week. Ontario is vowing to reduce child poverty by 25 per cent in five years. If passed, new legislation introduced today by Labour Minister Peter Fonseca should help to even the playing field by bolstering temp workers' rights in everything from holiday and termination pay to more contract information and stopping the practice of temp agencies charging prohibitive fees to workers. (….) Mexican immigrant Andrea Galindo, 21, has worked for five temp agencies over the last two years. She makes about $10 hourly waitressing in banquet halls. If all the proposed changes become law, Galindo said she will feel happier about work. "I feel like my rights are being protected," she said. Galindo is tired of losing about $10 each paycheque for "fees" she feels are unnecessary. "If I only work four or five hours one weekend and they take $10, then I only make $40," Galindo said. She prefers to work on her own, teaching Spanish. "It is way better. I know I can make money without paying to work."
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