Trump Administration’s Efforts to De-humanize Immigrants

This week, the Trump administration has put on full display their core belief that immigrants and refugees are not worthy of human dignity and respect. The president himself, while meeting with law enforcement officials, referred to immigrants as “animals.” His comments are consistent with his and his administration’s desire to cleanse the country of immigrants and refugees, and to deny the positive contributions that immigrants have made for generations. Furthermore, top national media outlets reported this week that the Trump administration was exploring the use of military bases for warehousing immigrant children detained at the border. While history is filled with tyrants who have spread hate and lies to justify their trails of blood and destruction, SIREN will not stand for history to repeat itself. “The United States of America is in crisis as its core values are being challenged by racist, anti-immigrant officials in the new administration. They have left no room for misinterpretation when they are callously referring to immigrants as below human, and when immigrant children are being stripped of their innocence. These are not the actions of a civil society. SIREN is more vested than ever in fighting this administration to ensure that immigrants and their children are treated humanely, with dignity and respect. We will continue to mobilize voters and educate the community about their rights until the hateful rhetoric and actions of this administration are stopped,” said Maricela Gutiérrez, Executive Director of SIREN.

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Los Esfuerzos de la Administración Trump para Deshumanizar a los Inmigrantes

Esta semana, la administración de Trump ha puesto de manifiesto su creencia fundamental de que los inmigrantes y refugiados no son dignos de la dignidad y el respeto. El propio presidente, mientras se reunía con oficiales de la ley, se refirió a los inmigrantes como "animales." Sus comentarios son consistentes con su deseo y la de su administración de limpiar el país de inmigrantes y refugiados, y de negar las contribuciones positivas que los inmigrantes han hecho por generaciones. Además, los principales medios de comunicación nacionales informaron esta semana que la administración Trump estaba explorando el uso de bases militares para el almacenamiento de niños inmigrantes detenidos en la frontera. Mientras que la historia está llena de tiranos que han difundido odio y mentiras para justificar sus rastros de sangre y destrucción, SIREN no tolerará que la historia se repita.  "Los Estados Unidos de América está en crisis ya que sus valores fundamentales están siendo desafiados por funcionarios racistas y anti- inmigrantes dentro de la administración Trump. No han dejado lugar a interpretaciones erróneas cuando se refieren cruelmente a los inmigrantes como inferiores a los humanos, y cuando a los niños inmigrantes se les despoja de su inocencia. Estas no son las acciones de una sociedad civil. SIREN está más comprometida que nunca en luchar contra esta administración para garantizar que los inmigrantes y sus hijos reciban un trato humano, con dignidad y respeto. Continuaremos movilizando a los votantes y educando a la comunidad sobre sus derechos hasta que se detengan la odiosa retórica y las acciones de esta administración ", dijo Maricela Gutiérrez, directora ejecutiva de SIREN.

Attorney General Sessions’ War on Immigrants/ La Guerra en Contra de los Inmigrantes

This past week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that 100% of immigrants apprehended at the border will be referred to the Department of Justice for prosecution, and that children will be separated from their parents and taken to the Department of Health and Human Services. This administration is trampling on the dignity and rights of immigrants and refugees, and we cannot stand for this!

As this administration continues to demonstrate its overt hatred for immigrants and refugees, now more than ever, we must mobilize to support those being targeted by the hate and vile of the Trump Administration.

Our nation’s history has demonstrated that the most powerful tool to utilize against hateful policies of the moment is proper access to legal representation. Despite the Attorney General’s position, the families being detained have rights as afforded by the laws of our nation, and together we must fight for them.

Locally, we must come together to provide our immigrant and refugees families with access to critical legal services.

If you would like to assist us in providing our immigrant and refugee community with access to legal representation, please donate to our Legal Defense Fund.

Every dollar you contribute will go directly to fund an immigration attorney that will advocate for those in need of our support.

Thank you for your support.

In solidarity,

Maricela Gutiérrez

Executive Director

SIREN
 

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La semana pasada, el Fiscal General Jeff Sessions anunció que el 100% de los inmigrantes detenidos en la frontera serán remitidos al Departamento de Justicia para su enjuiciamiento, y que los niños serán separados de sus padres y llevados al Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos. ¡Esta administración está pisoteando la dignidad y los derechos de inmigrantes y refugiados, y no podemos tolerar esto!

A medida que este gobierno continúa demostrando su odio manifiesto por los inmigrantes y los refugiados, ahora más que nunca, debemos movilizarnos para apoyar a aquellos que estan siendo atacados con del odio y la vileza de la Administración Trump.

La historia de nuestra nación ha demostrado que la herramienta más poderosa para utilizar contra las políticas de odio del momento es el acceso adecuado a la representación legal. A pesar de la posición del Fiscal General, las familias detenidas tienen derechos establecidos por las leyes de nuestra nación, y juntos debemos luchar por ellos.

Localmente, debemos unirnos para proporcionar a nuestras familias de inmigrantes y refugiados acceso a servicios legales críticos.

Si desea ayudarnos a brindarle a nuestra comunidad de inmigrantes y refugiados acceso a representación legal, los invitamos a hacer una donación a nuestro Fondo de Defensa Legal.

Cada dólar que usted contribuya irá directamente para financiar a un abogado de inmigración que luchará por aquellos que necesitan nuestro apoyo.

Gracias por su apoyo.

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SIREN Condemns Trump Administration’s Ending of TPS for Honduras

Press Contact:
Erik Schnabel, Communications Manager
erik@siren-bayarea.org

SIREN strongly condemns today’s action by the Trump Administration to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for people from Honduras. This end of legal status  Hondurans, which is effective 1/5/2020, impacts over 57,000 people. Even more outrageous, is that this is the second time in a week, and the sixth time since the beginning the year, that the Trump Administration has ended TPS for individuals needing protection. With his ending of TPS for Honduras, Nepal, El Salvador, Haití, Nicaragua and Sudan, he has ended TPS for more than 310,000 people this year. Many who have had their legal status ripped away from them through this callous act, have lived him for years, some as many as 20 years or more. People have raised their families here, contributed to our communities, and been our neighbors, only to find their only legal protection to continue their lives here ripped away without any thought or consideration of the impact on people’s lives. While the Department of Homeland Security, who made the recommendation to end TPS, says it studied conditions in Honduras before it made this decision, it's clear that Honduras continues to be impacted by many of the conditions that created TPS status originally, including rampant violence and numerous human rights violations on communities across the country. SIREN’s Executive Director Maricela Gutiérrez stated, “Today’s decision by the Trump Administration to end TPS for Hondurans is one more anti-immigrant outrage. Everyday, immigrants and communities of color are facing real consequences of this heartless Administration. We call on Congress to take serious actions to stop these attacks of these communities and begin to stand up to cruelty of Trump and his Administration. What we need is legislation that creates a permanent solution to TPS and ensures that people who have been living here, are able to stay here. SIREN continues to stand in solidarity with our Honduran community, and will continue to speak out to find a solution to this outrageous ending of TPS.”

Maricela Gutiérrez - Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network

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SIREN Condemns Texas-led Lawsuit that Seeks to End DACA/SIREN condena una demanda liderada por Texas que busca terminar con DACA

SIREN Condemns Texas-led Lawsuit that Seeks to End DACA

Press Contact:
Erik Schnabel
Communications Manager
erik@siren-bayarea.org

On Tuesday, news broke that seven states led by Texas filed a lawsuit in federal court to end the DACA program, claiming that DACA is unconstitutional and should be ended. SIREN strongly condemns this lawsuit, and wants to make it clear to concerned community members that nothing changes with DACA. Despite this new lawsuit, other federal court rulings in California and New York earlier this year allowed for DACA renewal applications to continue until further notice. These earlier rulings continue to be in place and DACA renewals are still be accepted. This new lawsuit by these seven states is just one more piece in the larger political game that DACA recipients have found themselves thrown into. Ultimately, it’s the Trump Administration ending of DACA, along with the U.S. Congress failure to advance meaningful legislation about DACA that has created this situation. SIREN’s Executive Director Maricela Gutiérrez commented “SIREN continues to stand strongly with DACA recipients and condemns these continuing political games with the future of these young people. We emphatically denounce this Texas-led lawsuit to end DACA as one more outrageous attempt to slow down the wheels of justice for young people who have benefited from DACA. We call on these states to drop their lawsuit, and for the Trump Administration and Congress to find a permanent legislative solution that ensures a path to citizenship for DACA recipients.” 

DACA renewals are still being accepted and SIREN recommends that those who are eligible to come into renew or for a legal consultation. SIREN is holding upcoming DACA clinics on May 9, May 23, June 6 and June 20 from 2-7pm at our offices at 1415 Koll Circle, Suite 108 in San Jose, CA. You can register here.   

SIREN condena una demanda liderada por Texas que busca terminar con DACA

Contacto de prensa:
Erik Schnabel
Gerente de comunicaciones
erik@siren-bayarea.org

El martes, llegó la noticia de que siete estados encabezados por Texas presentaron una demanda en un tribunal federal para terminar el programa DACA, alegando que DACA es inconstitucional y debería ser terminado. SIREN condena firmemente esta demanda y quiere dejar en claro a los miembros de la comunidad preocupados que nada cambia con DACA. A pesar de esta nueva demanda, otras sentencias de los tribunales federales en California y Nueva York a principios de este año permitieron que las solicitudes de renovación de DACA continúen hasta nuevo aviso. Estas resoluciones anteriores continúan vigentes y las renovaciones de DACA aún se aceptan. Esta nueva demanda de estos siete estados es solo una pieza más en el juego político más grande en el que los receptores de DACA se han visto inmersos. En última instancia, es la finalización de DACA por parte de la Administración Trump, junto con el fracaso del Congreso de EE. UU. Para avanzar en una legislación significativa sobre DACA que ha creado esta situación. La directora ejecutiva de SIREN, Maricela Gutiérrez, comentó: "SIREN continúa apoyando firmemente a los destinatarios de DACA y condena estos continuos juegos políticos con el futuro de estos jóvenes. Denunciamos enfáticamente esta demanda liderada por Texas para terminar con DACA como un intento más escandaloso de desacelerar las ruedas de la justicia para los jóvenes que se han beneficiado de DACA. Hacemos un llamado a estos estados para que abandonen su demanda, y para que la Administración Trump y el Congreso encuentren una solución legislativa permanente que asegure un camino a la ciudadanía para los destinatarios de DACA ".

Las renovaciones de DACA aún se están aceptando y SIREN recomienda que aquellos que son elegibles para renovar o para una consulta legal. SIREN está organizando las próximas clínicas de DACA  es el 9 de mayo, el 23 de mayo, el 6 de junio y el 20 de junio de 2 a 7 pm en nuestras oficinas en 1415 Koll Circle, Suite 108 en San Jose, CA. Puede registrarse en aqui.



Maricela Gutiérrez - Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network
 

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Immigrant Services Agencies hold annual Citizenship Day in San Jose, invite all who are eligible to become U.S. Citizens to come out to learn how to become U.S. Citizens

Contact: Amanda Alvarado-Ford, Immigration Legal Services Manager, SIREN

amanda@siren-bayarea.org, 650-942-4602

**Press Release**

Saturday, April 28

9am-2pm

A coalition of immigrant service agencies, led by SIREN, and including Asian Law Alliance, Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, Center for Employment Training, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, San Jose City College, and the City of San Jose Office of Immigrant Affairs, invite people to come out for their annual Citizenship Day. Citizenship Day is generously funded by Santa Clara County Office of Immigrant Relations. The event will be held on Saturday, April 28, from 9am till 2pm at San Jose City College, at 2100 Moorpark Avenue in San Jose. 

People who attend will receive free assistance on becoming a U.S. Citizen. The Day will include an orientation on how to become a U.S. Citizen, legal consultation to determine eligibility, application assistance and study materials for the U.S. citizen test. Campus parking is available. 

Those attending should bring their Green Card and social security card, job history and home addresses for the last 5 years, a list of all trips taken outside the U.S. in the last 5 years, family information for all children and spouses (current and former), certified court records if arrested and/or cited, and 2017 Income Tax or proof of Public Benefits to apply for a Fee Waiver or Reduced Fee.

To register for English, Spanish or Vietnamese, please visit www.e-immigrate.usor call (408) 444-9975. Priority will be given to those who register

Who: People interested in becoming U.S. Citizens

What: Citizenship Day with information and assistance on how to become a U.S. Citizen

When: Saturday, April 28, 9am-2pm

Where: San Jose City College, 2100 Moorpark Ave., San Jose, CA

Maricela Gutiérrez - Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network
http://siren.nationbuilder.com/

Donate to SIREN and give the gift of opportunity.
The opportunity to LEAD. DREAM. VOTE. 

SIREN Condemns the Termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Nepal

Media Contact: Erik Schnabel, Communications Manager

erik@siren-bayarea.org

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it would be terminating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for people from Nepal who had been granted this status after the devastating earthquake that hit that country in 2015. The termination will take effect June 24, 2019. This announcement follows a trend by the Trump Administration to end TPS for the nationals of almost every country this has been applied to, including people from El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua, Liberia, and Sudan. What is clear to those of us who support people from these countries is that the decision to end TPS for Nepal, just as the decision to end TPS for other countries, was not based on facts or changes in the country conditions that originally created the need for this protection. Rather this is one more step in the Trump Administration’s war on immigrants, that is disproportionately being waged on people of color and immigrants from the Global South. 

SIREN condemns in the strongest terms the termination of TPS for people from Nepal, just as it has condemned the ending of TPS for people from every country that has been ended. SIREN’s Executive Director Maricela Gutiérrez made the following statement, “We are once again calling out the Trump Administration for its callous ending of TPS for people from another country, this time for the Nepali community. Each one of these decisions is devastating for people who have lived in our communities, been our neighbors and co-workers, and who want nothing more than to stay in their adopted homelands. It’s clear that the Trump Administration does not govern on the basis of facts or compassion. But if there was any doubt, today shows this once more. We call on DHS and the Trump Administration to reconsider its decision to end TPS for Nepal, just as we condemn the end of TPS for all people who have seen the possibility of continuing to live in their adopted country legally ended overnight. We also urge Congress to act immediately with compassion to pass a permanent solution to the people that are finding the end to their ability to stay in the U.S. legally when their TPS status is ended.”



Maricela Gutiérrez - Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network
 

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The opportunity to LEAD. DREAM. VOTE. 
 

Services, Immigrants Rights, and Education Network (SIREN) Applauds Latest DACA Court Decision

Media Contact: Erik Schnabel,
Communications Manager
erik@siren-bayarea.org

SIREN applauds the latest decision  by a federal court in the District of Columbia that ruled that the Trump Administration ending of DACA was unlawful unless they came up with a better argument as to why they ended it. The decision by federal judge U.S. District Judge John Bates was another slap in the face to the Trump Administration in its decision to end DACA. For the third time, a federal judge have reprimanded Trump Administration for ending DACA, and called the Administration out for how it ended it. What is different about this new decision by Judge Bates, is that it opens up the possibility that the federal government will have to start accepting new DACA applications, whereas the two previous decisions were just about renewing DACA applications. Unfortunately, nothing happens right away, as Judge Bates has given the U.S. Department of Homeland Security 90 days to come up with a valid reason for why it ended DACA. However even though new applications cannot yet be submitted, thanks to the previous decisions by federal courts in California and New York, DACA renewal applications are still being accepted. 

While there is no immediate change that comes from the decision right away, SIREN is optimistic that eventually there will be movement to open up the possibility of the federal government accepting new DACA applications. SIREN demands DHS and the federal government accept the judge’s decision and allow for new applications to begin to be accepted. SIREN’s Executive Director Maricela Gutiérrez stated, “Those of us that work with DACA eligible individuals are extremely pleased that another federal judge has called out the Trump Administration for its heartless and unreasonable decision to end DACA. For the third time, a federal judge has stated what we all know: that Trump’s decision was not based on any reason other than his hatred for the immigrant community. Trump has been using DACA youth as a political tool in his war against immigrants. We urge DHS and the Trump Administration to give into reality and to stop playing games with DACA youth, and ultimately for Congress to act to grant DREAMers a permanent path to citizenship so they can stay in the U.S., their country.”

Maricela Gutierrez - Executive Director
Services, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network

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The opportunity to LEAD. DREAM. VOTE.