Category: News

JHISN Newsletter 07/01/2023

Posted on July 1, 2023 by - News, Newsletter

Dear friends, 

As summer enters full bloom, we send warm thanks to you, our readers, for keeping us inspired. Immigration news is a political struggle over what gets reported and what gets ignored. Just over two weeks ago, an overcrowded ship packed with migrants from Pakistan, Syria, and Egypt, sank off the coast of Greece. Up to 750 people reportedly were onboard; only 104 survived. Hundreds of migrant women, children, and men drowned in one of the worst maritime disasters in modern history. News coverage of the devastating migrant shipwreck was brief and sparse.

Readers like you, and the attention you give to immigration news, keep us going. This week we offer you a story about the underreported political situation in Peru, written by a Peruvian-American New Yorker. And we update you about the justice work of Make the Road New York and their groundbreaking survey of recent asylum seekers in NYC.

Newsletter Highlights:
  1. Report on Peru’s current political situation
  2. 2023 survey of asylum seekers by MTRNY

1. Solidarity with our Peruvian Brothers and Sisters

 

“How many deaths do you want for your resignation? Assassin Dina, the people repudiate you!”  –Puno, Aymara song

Starting on December 7, 2022, Peru has experienced several months of savage violence unleashed by the repressive forces of the state. On that date, near noon, President Pedro Castillo carried out a failed coup attempt. He took this step after 15 months of frustration, as the majority in Congress (made up of Right and ultra-Right parties) prevented him from governing by voting down all of his bills and trying to impeach him. 

One hour after Castillo’s futile move to dissolve Congress, the police, the National Prosecutor, and a judge ordered his provisional detention while he was still a sitting president. Two hours after reading his speech, without following due process, Congress impeached him. At 3:53 pm, Castillo’s former ally and ex-minister Dina Boluarte was sworn in as president. She immediately received the support of the opposition bench, and she invited them to the government palace. Boluarte had once promised that she would resign if Castillo was impeached. Instead, she seized power by allying herself with the party that had lost the election. 

Castillo voters reacted with anger as they realized that this parliamentary coup from the Right had been planned in advance. Branding Boluarte a traitor, protesters demanded her resignation and the dissolution of Congress. Demonstrations in the central and southern provinces of the country were met with heavy repression, resulting in nearly 70 deaths, 49 of which were identified as extrajudicial executions by the New York Times. On December 10, in Andahuaylas, province of Apurimac-Chanca Nation, two people were killed and some 100 were injured. The regime declared a state of emergency for some regional governments (“departments”); on the 14th the declaration was extended nationwide. 

The state of emergency failed to prevent militant protests in the largely Indigenous departments of the South: Ayacucho, Cusco, Juliaca-Puno (Wari, Quechua, Aymara Nations, respectively), Arequipa, Moquegua, Tacna (also home to many Aymaras). Some Indigenous Nations of the tropical jungle regions also joined the demonstrations. The wave of Indigenous protesters was slandered by the regime as Shining Path followers, delinquents, and agents of drug traffickers or illegal miners. Criminalization was the pretext used by the regime to allow the police, backed by the military, to use deadly force. International human rights agencies have widely condemned this violation of international law.

During the month of January, residents of southern Peru converged on the capital, in what is known as the Taking of Lima. This time demonstrators demanded a Constituent Assembly to reform the laws so that Indigenous Nations could fully participate in decisions about their land and natural resources. Upon arrival in Lima, many protesters were arrested on suspicion of being delinquent terrorists. After the majority were freed, massive demonstrations converged from the shantytown outskirts of Lima known as the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Cones. During these long marches, lasting more than four hours in intense heat, the southerners and shantytown residents made their protests heard by the whole nation. With the help of food and shelter donations, and supported by growing national and international solidarity, the demonstrators’ ongoing protest in the capital has been powerful for months. There was a Second Takeover of Lima; a Third Takeover is scheduled for July 19, planned to include new demonstrators from the Northern region of Peru.

In the Andes mountain range, there are abundant natural resources such as copper, silver, gold, uranium, and lithium. Dozens of mining projects are in various stages of exploration, expansion, and execution by national and international mining companies. Many of these mines are located in the headwaters of river basins, where they pose serious environmental threats. Others are located on land belonging to Indigenous communities, whose claims and objections are routinely ignored. In many cases, Indigenous communities haven’t been consulted or informed at all. At the same time, mining companies have been receiving significant tax exemptions from the government, and often have outstanding tax debts forgiven by the congress.

During his term as president, Castillo visited almost all the southern provinces in conflict with mining companies. He appeared unwilling to authorize open-pit mining in the headwaters of basins without consulting the population. This alarmed the mining industry and its backers, especially since a large number of exploratory mining contracts expire in 2023-25. It seems clear that mining and other economic interest groups, represented by the political Right, wanted Castillo removed from office through a “soft coup” in order to protect their projects and profits. Using control over mass media to influence public opinion, they also mobilized their congressional majority to modify the Constitution, upsetting the balance of powers and creating a new Constitutional Court that they control. They were determined to get rid of Castillo, with or without his proclamation.

 Observing the events in our home country, Peruvians around the world immediately rose up in solidarity with the claims of our compatriots. We’ve been protesting in the streets, and presenting letters to the Peruvian embassies and consulates, as well as to the United Nations and the Organization of American States (OAS). We have also sent donations to relatives of the deceased and injured. Since Peru’s mainstream press has shown itself to be dishonest, we’ve come to rely on an alternative press based on YouTubers, local radio stations, and social networks, so our connection with the interior of the country is now in real-time. 

It was through this alternative press we found out the Peruvian regime had signed a contract with the public relations firm Patriot Strategies to improve its image internationally. We in New York were also alerted that a delegation of businessmen and a group of artists from Cusco were arriving to attend Inti Raymi (the Festival of the Sun) at the United Palace Theater in upper Manhattan. A demonstration was organized outside the theater, and another action took place inside the theater at the moment when a government official spoke. Although the number of protesters inside the theater was small, most of the Peruvian public rejected the lies that the mayor of Cusco told on behalf of the government, this disruptive challenge broadcast on a Peruvian national channel was seen all over the world. Now compatriots in other countries are on alert to actively respond to any other attempts to sanitize an illegitimate and murderous government.

Nevertheless, in May, Boluarte and the Peruvian Congress authorized the entry of 1,000 US military troops to Peru starting June 1. There are already 10 military bases in Peru. Some leftist Peruvian legislators see the US military as endangering their country’s sovereignty. Former Foreign Affairs Minister Hector Bejar questioned the true intentions of the US military presence, saying that it is “part of a dissuasive policy to intimidate the Peruvian people who have announced new protests for July.” It’s obvious for most Peruvians that the entry of more troops is part of the hybrid war for lithium, uranium, and copper. 

Although there has been little coverage of these events in NY media, 20 members of Congress, including many progressive Latino members, signed a letter to President Biden in January asking him to end security assistance to the Peruvian government and to condemn the human rights violations committed by state security forces. Four of New York’s representatives were among the signers: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Adriano Espaillat, Nydia Velázquez, and Delia Ramirez. As an act of international solidarity, the US should follow the recommendations of The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to end the brutal repression and investigate and prosecute all who are responsible for the state violence.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

2. Keeping Up with Make the Road NY

At the end of May, Make the Road New York (MTRNY) announced the publication of a 60-page Spanish language “manual” for asylum seekers arriving in New York. The manual, called Casita, is written in a warm and informal style and aims to welcome by providing information and essential resources, including:

  • The basic rights of a person living in New York;
  • How to access available services and benefits; 
  • Legal issues including interacting with ICE;
  • Information on COVID-19, enrollment in public school, and more.

MTRNY is asking for $30 donations to help support the publication and distribution of Casita. 

Then at a June 6 press conference in Queens, MTRNY publicly presented the results of an unprecedented survey of recently arrived migrants. Entitled “Displaced and Dismissed: The Experiences of Migrants and Asylum Seekers in NYC 2023,” the report was based on interviews with 766 migrants between February and May 2023. Interviews were conducted by volunteers from MTRNY and Hester Street who met the ‘migrant buses’ sent by Gov. Abbott of Texas to NY’s Port Authority. 

This survey is the first of its kind and activists hope that it will help government officials to better assist recent migrants. 65% of respondents were from Venezuela, but other Latin American countries and African countries were also represented. 81% were under 40 years old; 43% were under 30; and 84% of those under 30 were traveling with their children. All wanted to stay in NYC and were eager to participate in the city’s life.

Other survey findings were that although almost all want to apply for asylum, 93% had not found a lawyer. 97% didn’t have work authorization and therefore couldn’t find jobs to become self-supporting. 72% had trouble paying for basic living expenses. 63% had no access to English classes for either adults or children. 59% had no access to transportation to help them seek employment. 97% were living in NYC shelters. 42% suffered from anxiety or depression.

All three city officials at the press conference—Comptroller Brad Lander, Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, and City Councilman Shekar Krishnan—pointed out failures of the city government. Lander said that despite the city’s expenditure of a lot of money and effort to secure shelter for migrants, it has been short-sighted to allocate only 1% of city money toward securing legal help for people to apply for asylum before their one-year deadline. This is crucial because the 6-month countdown for work authorization begins only after the asylum application is made. Both Public Advocate Williams and Councilman Krishnan said any public anger should be directed at the government and not at the migrants because the lack of services for city residents existed before the migrants arrived, and there is a crisis of systemic injustice and not a crisis of asylum seekers.

MTRNY had policy recommendations for the city: allocate $140 million for legal services, improve the transition from the shelter system to permanent housing, do not cut funds for adult literacy programs, and renew and expand the Low-Wage Worker Support (LWWS) as well as access to health care. Policy recommendations for the Biden administration: expedite work authorization for migrants, and send more federal resources to New York.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

In solidarity and with collective care, 

Jackson Heights Immigrant Solidarity Network (JHISN)

 

Follow @JHSolidarity on Facebook and Twitter and share this newsletter with friends, families, neighbors, networks, and colleagues so they can subscribe and receive news from JHISN. 

 

 

JHISN Newsletter 06/10/2023

Posted on June 10, 2023 by - News, Newsletter

Dear friends,

As the denizens of our city begin to breathe freely once more after the wind changed and the wildfire smoke dissipated, the climate problems highlight for us once more the challenge for immigrants in the service industry. Although everyone was advised to shelter at home for a few days, immigrant delivery workers kept working outside when the city’s air quality was the worst in the world on Wednesday. Despite the health advisories, delivery workers across all five boroughs could not afford to miss a day of work in the record-breaking harmful open air. Just as the Adams administration is struggling to create rulings that bring a fair wage to delivery workers, it is likewise struggling to aid the thousands of new immigrants being brought to the city by bus and plane, seeking asylum–our newsletter today highlights the problems facing the city in meeting our right-to-shelter requirements.

Our City Struggles to Aid Arriving Migrants

“Asylum seekers and the rest of the unhoused population of NYC need permanent housing – they do not belong in jails.”—Murad Awawdeh, Executive Director of New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC)

Ever since busses of immigrants arrived in NYC, coming from Southern States–as a political stunt designed to challenge Sanctuary Cities’ humanitarian approach to immigration–the city has been struggling to find the best way to house and support the new asylum seekers. No one doubted there would be costs and difficulties. No one denies that supporting those fleeing their countries is challenging work. Both city government and Immigrant aid organizations have been stretched thin supporting the people who have traveled for months to claim asylum in the USA. 

Showing the scope of the challenge, Queens-based New Immigrant Community Empowerment (NICE) has been assisting about 1,000 newcomers each month. Executive Director Nilbia Coyote noted NICE has run out of space and there are not enough staff to provide help. Artists Athletes Activists, led by Power Malu, supports migrants who arrive at New York airports. Malu noted the organization spends about $30,000 every month, from private donations, to transport these asylum seekers to shelters and intake centers. But the city will not provide vans, buses, or reimbursement to help. In the same way the Republican governors bussing migrants North have blamed the Democrats for encouraging people to flock to the border, Mayor Adams’ staff have blamed activist groups for luring migrants to fly in with false promises of support.

A major positive force for new immigrants is New York’s right-to-shelter law. Established in 1981 in the case of Callahan vs. Carey, it requires the city to provide housing to all. Last month Mayor Adams asked a judge to reconsider the law because the scope of support required is not what was ever imagined at the time of the lawsuit. One of the lawyers who worked on the case over 40 years ago, Robert Hayes, said the effort to change the policy was cowardly and shameful.

The NYIC posted a number of articles in May showing an escalation of issues related to the right-to-shelter law. They discuss the plans to use upstate hotels as well as the restraining orders intended to prevent Adams from bussing asylum seekers to Orange County. There are also proposals to house people at Medgar Evers and York Colleges, the YMCA at Park Slope’s Armory, and a rec center in Staten Island. Additionally, there are thoughts to use an airfield in Jamaica Bay, a Post Office overflow warehouse at JFK, The Lincoln Correctional Facility just north of Central Park, and to leverage Rikers Island jail as possible places to house the newcomers.

Mayor Adams announced the importance of being “upfront that New York City cannot single-handedly provide care to everyone crossing our border.” In addition to the various housing plans that he and Governor Kathy Hochul have been considering, is a demand for the federal government to expedite work permits so the 70,000 newly arrived immigrants can fill about 10,000 open positions in farm work and food services.

While Adams says he is willing to consider all options, including the use of prisons, others like Manhattan Council Member Carlina Rivera believe it is “alarming to talk about using jail facilities for people who have not committed a crime,” pointing out there would not be flexibility for people to leave the island for work or appointments. Power Malu says these temporary locations are not worth the effort when finding empty apartments would be more effective. The short-term locations that have been used, like a police academy gym in Manhattan, keep the lights on all night and offer showers that give no privacy. The Lincoln Correctional Facility, which had been closed since 2019, was in use for a few days and then the plumbing broke and a number of people were relocated to Buffalo.

Over the last months, the city has been in conversation with the New York Disaster Interfaith Services (NYDIS) about a 2-year housing support contract. In conjunction with Project Hospitality and Interfaith Center of New York, NYDIS circulated a form to the city’s religious organizations to determine if their facilities are eligible to serve as a shelter. Catholic activist Félix Cepeda believes churches are better placed to provide refuge and there could be potential to use their properties…for a price. The cost is cheaper than standard shelter costs, but the spaces will only operate for 12 hours a day, so the NYDIS is also being contracted to provide day services. $35,000 will be paid per month to house 1,000 single men at 50 houses of worship throughout the city. Some financial help will come from FEMA as Congress has indicated they will assign $105 million to the NYC efforts to support migrants.

The entire process reveals the full range of approaches people have about dealing with the situation. From those who issue executive orders to block local hotels from housing asylum seekers to those who believe their communities are richer thanks to immigrants. Yvonne Griffin of Citizen Action New York believes for example that “Syracuse might not be a wealthy city, but we know how to look out for each other, and I know we can do the same for people seeking asylum”.

“[W]e should be saying, what can we, as a community, do to help? How can we pool together our resources to ensure those seeking refuge don’t have to keep running for their lives? How can we leverage what we have here to bring more resources into the community to help these individuals? And in the end, what do we need to do to treat these individuals with the dignity they deserve?”–Sal Curran, Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY, Inc. 

What Can We Do?

Follow @JHSolidarity on Facebook and Twitter and share this newsletter with friends, families, neighbors, networks, and colleagues so they can subscribe and receive news from JHISN. 

 

JHISN Newsletter 05/20/2023

Posted on May 20, 2023 by - News, Newsletter

Dear friends,

As corporate media headlines flare about Title 42’s termination, we try to offer some clarity about President Biden’s national immigration policies. Reckoning with the abdication—and the criminality—of this Democratic administration’s immigration politics is increasingly urgent. And as Memorial Day approaches, we report on a local act of remembrance led by Jackson Heights-based NICE (New Immigrant Community Empowerment), honoring immigrant workers who have died while performing their jobs.     

Newsletter highlights:
  1. What’s really going on? Update on national immigration policy
  2. NICE marks Dia del Trabajador Caido (Workers Memorial Day)

1. Biden’s New Immigration Policies Violate the Law

“The people are not the problem. Rather, the causes that drive families and individuals to cross borders and the short-sighted and unrealistic ways that politicians respond to them are the problem.” –Amnesty International 

After the horrors of World War II, the US played a major role in convincing the UN General Assembly to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as the centerpiece of international law. Article 14 states, “Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.” The US also promoted the humanitarian provisions of the Geneva Refugee Convention, which Congress made part of domestic law in the Refugee Act of 1980. But today the US is breaking its promises—and the international and domestic laws that protect asylum seekers and refugees. 

The US often announces itself as a nation of immigrants, but it is at the same time a hotbed of xenophobia. Deciding which immigrants from where and how many are “acceptable” is a constant seesaw battle, especially during periods of massive migration like our own. Currently, one thing everyone seems to agree on is that the immigration system is “broken.” But there is no unity in Congress on how to remedy the disgraceful mess.

In January 2021, President Biden sent a proposal for immigration reform to Congress incorporating his campaign promises to provide legal status to millions of immigrants, and reduce cruelty at the southern border. That bill went nowhere. Now Biden has pivoted to a new set of policies, mainly using executive orders. He is taking a “carrot and stick” approach: offering seemingly generous new ways to enter the country, paired with stiff enforcement to deter entry.

Human Rights First has documented eight separate ways that the new policies break international and US laws. The laws violated include Article 14 and Section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the Geneva Convention, the 1951 Refugee Convention, and Section 1158 of Title 8. Although there are current legal challenges from both the left and the right, the new policies nevertheless went into effect at midnight on May 11, the minute Title 42 ended.

Below are the specific policies, their real-life impacts, and how they violate established US and international laws:

The CBPOne app requires an asylum seeker located in Central and Northern Mexico to make an appointment at a US port of entry to present their claim. The app is intended to reduce wait time and crowding at the border. It assumes asylum seekers have a smartphone or access to the internet and can read one of five languages. The app is often inaccessible, has a limited number of appointments available, and uses facial recognition which often fails to identify non-white faces. The app raises privacy, discrimination, and surveillance concerns because data will be collected and stored even before a person enters the US. Mandatory use of the app violates the internationally accepted right to seek asylum—an unconditional principle also embedded in US law as noted above. 

Asylum seekers who enter without permission and who lack a legal basis to remain will be returned to their country of origin and will have a 5-year ban on reentry based on Title 8. Their only hope to avoid deportation is a “credible fear” interview while in CBP custody, held with limited access to legal counsel. International asylum law specifically requires that people not be returned to countries where they will be subjected to persecution (refoulement). “UNHCR [the UN refugee agency] is particularly concerned that … this [policy] would lead to cases of refoulement—the forced return of people to situations where their lives and safety would be at risk—which is prohibited under international law.” –UNHCR

Parole for Venezuelans, Nicaraguans, Haitians, and Cubans. Up to 30,000 people per month can come to the US for two years and receive work authorization—IF they have an eligible sponsor, pass vetting and background checks, and can afford a plane ticket. This limits entry to migrants with connections in the US and the means to secure visas and plane tickets. Venezuelans, Nicaraguans, Haitians, and Cubans who cross Panama, Mexico, or the US border are ineligible for parole and will be expelled to Mexico, which has agreed to receive up to 30,000 people per month. This policy is a blatant violation of the international right to seek asylum. It also endangers lives. There have been over 13,000 attacks against migrants and asylum seekers in Mexico.

“U.S. policies returning asylum seekers to Mexico have resulted in unspeakable danger and harm, while the Mexican asylum system has consistently failed to protect people fleeing persecution.”  –Meg McCarthy, Executive Director of National Immigrant Justice Center

Creation of new processing centers.  In Colombia, Guatemala, and perhaps other countries, migrants will supposedly be able to apply for legal entry into the US before they make the difficult journey. These centers aren’t operational yet and require the use of the infamous CBPOne app. It’s unclear if people from Honduras and El Salvador will get access to a center.

Migrants passing through other countries en route to US who do not first claim asylum there will be ineligible to claim asylum at the US border. This violates the international right to seek asylum as well as Section 1158 of Title 8 of the United States Code. This section clearly states that people can apply for asylum no matter how they enter the US.

1500 active-duty US soldiers have been deployed to the border to relieve Border Protection officers of administrative duties. This is further militarization of the border. Their presence will undoubtedly frighten people. It treats migrants as a security threat.

It’s notable that other countries, including Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, and Belize, have provided legal status to an increased number of migrants, basing their policies on the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection. Canada, Mexico, and Spain have also expanded refugee resettlement and temporary work opportunities. Mexico and Guatemala have ramped up their asylum systems, partly based on collaboration and funding agreements with the US. 

The new Biden Administration rules will be in effect for two years—May 11, 2023 to May 11, 2025. What happens then?

WHAT CAN WE DO?

2. Fallen Workers Day Organized by NICE

“We work to live, not to die.” –NICE Facebook (May 1, 2023)

 Holding a black banner printed with the names of the dead, members of New Immigrant Community Empowerment (NICE) gathered on April 28 to mourn and to mobilize. Dia del Trabajador Caido (‘Fallen Workers Day’ or ‘Workers Memorial Day’) is an annual public event honoring NYC workers who have died on the job, and calling for increased safety and protections, especially in the construction industry.

 NICE, based in Jackson Heights, supported the seven-year fight to pass Carlos’ Law, finally signed by Governor Hochul in December 2022. The legislation increases the criminal liability of employers whose workers are killed or seriously injured in the workplace. The law was named after Carlos Moncayo, a 22-year-old Ecuadorian immigrant living in Queens who was killed while doing construction work in 2015.   

 Worker safety and worker deaths are immigrant justice issues. The annual 2023 Deadly Skyline report produced by NYCOSH—the NY Committee for Occupational Safety and Health—reveals fatality statistics in NY’s construction industry: in New York City, 20 workers died at their jobs, a 54% increase from the previous year. And while an estimated 10% of construction workers in New York State are Latinx, over 25% of fatalities were among Latinx workers. Immigrant workers are disproportionately dying on construction sites—and non-union sites in particular, according to NYCOSH, accounted for 86% of worker deaths in 2018. Even getting an accurate count of worker deaths and injuries has been a political battle. Not until Queens State Senator Jessica Ramos successfully sponsored legislation in 2021 requiring a statewide death registry for construction workers, did the Department of Labor belatedly begin to gather fatality statistics in a public database.    

 To remember is to keep alive. We support the necessary political work that NICE, NYCOSH, the Manhattan Justice Workers Collaborative, and their allies are doing to keep alive the struggle for a safe and accountable workplace. And to honor the living memory of immigrant workers who have been sacrificed while doing their job.  

WHAT CAN WE DO?
  • Donate to NICE if you are able, and follow NICE social media @NICE4Workers.
  • Support the online Worker Hotline for reporting workplace crimes—including health & safety issues—against low-income workers, organized by the Manhattan Justice for Workers Collaborative.

 

In solidarity and with collective care,

Jackson Heights Immigrant Solidarity Network (JHISN)

 

Follow @JHSolidarity on Facebook and Twitter and share this newsletter with friends, families, neighbors, networks, and colleagues so they can subscribe and receive news from JHISN. 

 

 

JHISN Newsletter 05/06/2023

Posted on May 6, 2023 by - News, Newsletter

Dear friends,

As spring blooms all around us, JHISN offers two local stories with significance for our majority immigrant neighborhoods. First, we update you on the latest twist in statewide redistricting plans, and the failure to make changes to district maps fought for by immigrant communities in Queens. Next, we report on recent solidarity work by Damayan Migrant Workers Association, in conjunction with the People’s Forum.  

Newsletter highlights:
  1. South Asian community in Queens challenges district maps
  2. Damayan’s work in Filipino community

1. Status Quo for Queens State Assembly Districts Angers South Asians

“These maps are nonsensical and will hurt all of the residents in our neighborhood. It sends a message to us all that our community yet again is not cared for.”—Anjali Seegobin, Civil Engagement Coordinator, South Queens Women’s March

On Monday, April 24, the New York State Legislature overwhelmingly approved State Assembly District lines that are substantially unchanged by the recent redistricting battles, and therefore continue to divide Asian American communities into multiple districts. Advocates from the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities in Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park held a protest rally on Monday morning before the final vote. They said the maps protect incumbency and ignore all of the community input provided during public hearings.

“This is supposed to be an independent process designed to protect communities of interest, but instead the [Redistricting] Commission protected incumbency, maintaining the same lines the legislature would have drawn themselves.” –AALDEF Press Release 

In 2022, the NY Independent Redistricting Commission (NYIRC) was charged with producing new maps for the Assembly districts after political activists challenged in court the maps drawn after the 2020 Census. At multiple public hearings, community representatives voiced displeasure and stated their preferences. Primary among the protesters were South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities in Queens. They charged that their community was split among four voting districts, and urged the NYIRC to consolidate them into a single Assembly district to ensure full representation for their issues. The NYIRC presented its draft maps in December 2022, which did include most of the communities in a single 24th Assembly District. The following February, community members praised the NYIRC’s plan. However, the final maps approved by the legislature in April 2023 had been changed back to the original districts—dividing and diluting South Asian community power.

The need for a unified district is urgent because Asian Americans are the fastest growing racial group in NYC and the country. Since the 2010 census, the Asian population grew by 43% in Brooklyn, 29% in Queens, and 24% in Manhattan. “The new district lines at all levels must reflect the tremendous growth in this community and the demographic shifts that have occurred over the last decade. The proposed NYIRC map does not do this and has unfairly and potentially illegally divided Asian American communities of interest throughout New York City.”

In March 2023, JHISN wrote about the redistricting of the NY City Council and noted that complaints about the City Council districts are the same as those for the State Assembly districts. In February 2023, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) sued the NY City Districting Commission, the NY City Board of Elections and the NY State Board of Elections because the City Council district maps deny “any reasonable chance for fair and effective representation” of the Asian American community.

“The council map continues the historic oppression and silencing of our community—but we won’t be quiet. We demand the representation we deserve. We belong here as much as anyone else and should be allowed to take part in the decision making of the city we give so much to.” –Jagpreet Singh, Political Director, Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM)

The question now is how will the decision about the Assembly districts affect the City Council districts? We will continue to follow this story.

2. Damayan’s Vital Work Continues 

“A hate crime on one person of color is a hate crime towards the whole community. And a helping hand towards one of us, uplifts us all.”—Damayan

JHISN has written about the anti-Asian violence that has impacted the people and the political landscape of NYC. In April, Damayan Migrant Workers Association convened at The People’s Forum to understand the root causes of that problem, as well as build solidarity and identify resources of support.

Cecille Lai, who survived a violent and racially motivated attack in Corona in early March against her and her son, was one of the panelists for an event that highlighted how anti-Asian violence was a significant issue for elderly women. Speakers emphasized the importance of alliance-building with people of color who are not necessarily part of the Filipino community that Damayan represents. Two of the three attackers have since been arrested and have been charged with assault as a hate crime. 

In addition to solidarity work, Damayan also hosts free legal clinics, and in April worked with legal partners to provide labor and immigration consultations. One of those partners, Take Root Justice, is allied with local groups Adhikaar and DRUM as well as working with the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, and the MinKwon Center for Community Action.

Finally, Damayan continues its crucial work to sustain Baklas, their “break-free campaign against labor trafficking and modern day slavery.” The Baklas campaign trains people who were victims of trafficking to become leaders in the anti-trafficking program. On May 13, the Baklas Film Series will present “Maimai” and host a panel discussion. The film is about MaiMai Cahumnas, a Filipina migrant worker mother, and labor trafficking survivor, and her family’s story of forced migration, separation, and reunification.

WHAT CAN WE DO?
  • Register and attend the film screening of “Maimai” on Saturday, May 13, 11am to 4pm, at The People’s Forum, 320 W. 37th Street between 8th and 9th Aves.

In solidarity and with collective care,

Jackson Heights Immigrant Solidarity Network (JHISN) 

 

Follow @JHSolidarity on Facebook and Twitter and share this newsletter with friends, families, neighbors, networks, and colleagues so they can subscribe and receive news from JHISN. 

 

 

JHISN Newsletter 04/08/2023

Posted on April 8, 2023 by - News, Newsletter

Dear friends,

We offer two stories this week of immigrant justice struggles here in New York City. First, we report on Mayor Adams’ betrayal of a hard-won agreement between street vendors and the City to decrease harassment and increase new permits for vendors. We then take a brief look at the brewing battle for a fair and equitable 2024 NYC budget that protects essential services for all New Yorkers.  

Finally, with grief and outrage, we mark the deaths of 39 migrants in a blaze inside a detention center just across the border from El Paso, Texas, on March 27. The fatal fire is the latest evidence of the inhumane conditions in which growing numbers of asylum seekers and refugees are being held in Mexico, under pressure from the US government to stall their entry into the US.  

Newsletter highlights:
  1. Adams administration undermines agreement with street vendors
  2. A People’s Budget for NYC fiscal year 2024

1. Street Vendors Under Attack

“We are not a public safety issue. We are vendors, and we are what makes New York City great.” –Guadalupe Sosa, longtime Harlem street vendor

Street vendors’ epic struggle for economic survival and respect on NYC streets has recently suffered a sharp setback. The bad news for vendors—almost all immigrants—began with a March 8 news conference, at which Flushing City Councilmember Sandra Ung launched a petition in English, Chinese, and Korean demanding strict enforcement of city street vending regulations. In particular, Ung called for clearing out a downtown Flushing no-vending zone approved by the Council in 2018. Standing alongside the executive director of the Flushing Business Improvement District (BID), with a group of like-minded brick-and-mortar business people, Ung characterized Flushing’s crowded street vendor scene as a threat to public safety. She described “out of control” street vending as a vector for counterfeit goods, live seafood, and illegal cannabis.

Quickly seizing the opening provided by Ung, the Adams administration suddenly transferred enforcement of street vending regulations from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) to the Sanitation Department (DSNY) and its police force, effective April 1. DSNY has been heavily criticized in the past for summarily crushing street vendor property in its garbage trucks.

Putting vendors at the mercy of the DSNY Police undermines a careful agreement reached by vendors, the City Council, and Mayor de Blasio in 2021. This plan included the formation of a Street Vendor Advisory Board with a range of stakeholders, de-emphasis on police action, and substantial increases in the number of vending permits, which have been almost impossible to get for decades. Before April 1, the spirit of this agreement had already been violated by the Adams administration, which implemented major increases in inspections and ticketing. New permits, meanwhile, have been repeatedly delayed.

Street vendor advocates responded to the latest development with shock and anger. “What message is the administration sending us? Are they considering us trash that needs to be picked up?” asked Mohamed Attia, executive director of the Street Vendor Project (SVP). Vendors complained that neither the Advisory Board nor the City Council had been consulted about Adams’ change.

Shortly after the mayor signaled his intentions, a March 16 demonstration at City Hall promoted a different path: full and immediate implementation of the 2021 street vendor agreement. This event was attended by many politicians, including Councilmembers Shekar Krishnan, Oswald Feliz, Shahana Hanif, and Tiffany Cabán. At another protest on March 22, after Adams’ plan was formalized, protesters demanded its reversal. Organized by Councilmember Sandy Nurse, chair of the Sanitation Committee, the demonstration included Alexa Aviles, Pierina Sanchez, and Queens reps Jennifer Gutierrez and Julie Won. Street vendors also have elected allies at the state level, where Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas and state Senator Jessica Ramos have been promoting matching bills that would uncap vending permits, create a fair and equitable street vending licensing program, and expunge the records of vendor violations.

The issues surrounding street vendors have exposed differences along class and ideological lines within NYC immigrant communities. While members of the City Council’s Progressive Caucus from immigrant families have strongly supported the vendors, other immigrant Democrats, like Sandra Ung and her predecessor Peter Koo, have taken the side of brick-and-mortar businesses and “law and order.” Ung, elected in 2021, is carefully navigating the political cross-currents in her district. Speaking about changes in Asian voting patterns in the city, she commented, “I recognized at the very early stage that my constituents, the community, their views are probably not going to be aligned with the progressive caucus stances.”

Immigrant street vendors have more immediate concerns. They are worried about becoming enmeshed in the legal system. And they feel that their economic survival is imperiled. As vendor Guadalupe Sosa puts it, “It’s traumatizing and heartbreaking when you spend your savings and all your time preparing your merchandise or cooking what you sell just for the health department to come alongside with NYPD to dump or confiscate your merchandise into a garbage truck.” 

WHAT CAN WE DO?

2. Immigrant Justice Groups Support a People’s Budget

“Budgets are moral documents.” –attributed to Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Financial budgets are maps of action priorities, worldly statements of what will be valued and what will not. In February, Mayor Adams released a preliminary fiscal year 2024 NYC budget that defunds and devalues core city services including libraries, education, CUNY, and pre-K for 3-year-olds. Just days ago, on April 4, he ordered another round of 4% cuts for almost all city agencies—on top of two previous rounds last year of mandatory 3% cuts. One of the administration’s justifications for the new cuts is the unexpected costs of the city’s migrant crisis.

Local immigration groups including DRUM (Desis Rising Up and Moving) and Make The Road NY are fighting back with the People’s Budget #CareNotCuts. The coalition of groups supporting a People’s Budget campaign state clearly:

“These harmful cuts most deeply impact low-income New Yorkers of color who rely on the City’s public safety net, schools, and institutions. The Mayor’s budget cuts are unacceptable for a city that is home to the most billionaires in the world …. In the long run, divesting from these necessities will make NYC a less safe, stable, healthy, and desirable place to live.”

In response to the Mayor’s proposed cuts in the preliminary $102.7 billion budget, the City Council announced this week that they’ve identified $1.3 billion in taxpayer monies that the city can use to avoid additional cuts to core services. A budget agreement between the Mayor and the City Council must be reached by July 1. Join immigrant justice and local progressive groups in demanding a fair and just budget that meets the needs of all New Yorkers.

WHAT CAN WE DO?
  • Use this Action Network link to send an e-letter to Mayor Adams and the City Council in support of a People’s Budget.

 

In solidarity and with collective care,

Jackson Heights Immigrant Solidarity Network (JHISN)

Follow @JHSolidarity on Facebook and Twitter and share this newsletter with friends, families, neighbors, networks, and colleagues so they can subscribe and receive news from JHISN. 

 

 

JHISN Newsletter 03/25/2023

Posted on March 25, 2023 by - News, Newsletter

Dear friends, 

With Ramadan starting and spring officially arrived, we send wishes to all for collective blooming and community health. Three years ago this month, with the city shutting down and the pandemic spreading fast in our neighborhoods, JHISN launched a weekly e-newsletter as a form of local solidarity and mutual aid. We thank you for the support and solidarity you have shared in return. To those who still bear the loss of beloveds in the pandemic, and to all whose own health has been threatened or diminished, we offer our collective embrace.

This week’s newsletter is all about the local. The postponement—for now—by the Adams administration of a promised wage hike fought for by delivery workers. An update on the new program that allows local groups to sponsor refugees, including here in Jackson Heights. And the statewide campaign to secure health insurance for immigrants, led by legislation sponsored by Queens Assembly member Jessica González-Rojas.  

Newsletter highlights:
  1. Fair wages for NYC delivery workers: the struggle continues
  2. Community Sponsorship Hub welcomes new refugees
  3. #Coverage4All promotes health insurance for immigrant workers 


1. Deliverista Wage Hike Under Attack

In 2021, after a powerful struggle in the streets by Los Deliveristas Unidos (LDU), the New York City Council passed legislation establishing a minimum wage for delivery workers—one of the few such laws in the US. The base wage is intended to be equivalent to that of ride-hail drivers like those at Uber and Lyft. The Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) was tasked by the Council with calculating the new hourly rate, taking into account waiting time, delivery rates, and other factors. Regulations were supposed to be published this January 1, taking effect on February 15.

In November, after conducting a detailed analysis, the DCWP proposed a $23.82-an-hour minimum wage. This was a major increase from deliveristas’ current hourly average of $7.09 before tips. App workers looked forward to a dramatic improvement in their standard of living. But the delivery companies resisted. DoorDash New York, for instance, submitted a comment arguing that the new minimum wage “will likely result in substantial new costs that will need to be passed along to consumers…and many NYC families will likely no longer be able to afford delivery services.”

Bowing to the app companies, the Adams administration let the legal deadline for the minimum wage law pass with no implementation. No raise for deliveristas. And then on March 2, the DWCP suddenly proposed a new, lower pay rate—$17.96 this year, rising to $19.96 in 2025. Their rationale for the reduction was that delivery workers sometimes connect with more than one app, and might collect waiting pay from more than one employer. But the new proposal is actually a direct gift from the mayor to the app companies. Not only has the proposed minimum wage been lowered, but its implementation has been stalled for an unknown period. As THE CITY reports, “The turnabout…kicks off another rulemaking and public hearing, scheduled for April 7.”

Comptroller Brad Lander, who sponsored the delivery worker wage law during his time on the City Council, was harshly critical of the administration’s delay and wage-cutting tactics:

“Every day deferred violates the law …. The only thing that has come out of this prolonged process is the weakening of standards at the behest of massive Silicon Valley gig companies. DCWP should not give in to corporate bullying. The delivery workers who were so critical to our city during the pandemic deserve their due, now.”

Fahd Ahmed of JH-based DRUM (Desis Rising Up and Moving) agreed, criticizing “pressure from the corporations.” For their part, Los Deliveristas Unidos has no intention of passively accepting the administration’s downgrade. Delivery worker Sergio Ache told THE CITY that he is “keeping the faith.” “This is not over,” he insists. “Just like the companies organized to oppose the original rule, we need to keep organizing to win a fair wage.”

WHAT CAN WE DO?

 

2. Community Sponsorship Hub to Administer the Welcome Corps

As you read in our 2/25 article “Biden Team Introduces the ‘Welcome Corps,’” the US government launched a new program in January to enable small groups of individuals to sponsor migrants already approved for resettlement. During a webinar about refugee resettlement on 2/27, JHISN learned that the Welcome Corps program will be administered by a consortium led by the Community Sponsorship Hub (CSH) with funding provided by the US government: “The Community Sponsorship Hub Welcome Corps exists to grow the role of communities in the protection, welcome and integration of refugees and other forcibly displaced people.”

CSH will train the sponsor groups signed up through Welcome Corps, and will rely on the expertise of the five organizations in the consortium that have long experience assisting refugees: CWS (Church World Service), IRC (International Refugee Committee), IRAP (International Refugee Admissions Program), IRIS (Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services), and Welcome.US. These organizations will provide assistance in preparing the Welcome Plan, and offer guidance in securing funding and housing.

CSH began in September 2021 (with financial backing from Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Inc.) as a response to the needs of Afghan refugees. Its goal was to enable local communities to participate directly in welcoming and integrating refugees into society through sponsorship. CSH’s Sponsorship Circles claim a track record of success assisting Afghan refugees (since 2021) and Ukrainian refugees (since 2022).

WHAT CAN WE DO?

 

3. A New York ‘Disgrace’: Many Immigrant New Yorkers Excluded from Health Coverage

“Immigrants make up 54% of essential workers in New York and 70% of undocumented workers are employed in essential businesses. These New Yorkers contribute billions in taxes and economic productivity, yet do not reap benefits like accessing state health coverage options.” –Gustavo Rivera and Jessica González-Rojas

At least 8,200 New Yorkers have reportedly died from COVID-19 because they did not have health insurance. Over 425,000 New York state residents are ineligible for public health care programs due to immigration status, and 250,000 remain uninsured. Eight out of ten New Yorkers believe immigration status should not be a barrier to quality healthcare, so New York could be leading the country by providing immigrant access to health services. But other states are leading the way.

California, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, Washington state, and Washington DC have all initiated legislation to provide health coverage to people regardless of immigration status while extending to folks of different ages and income brackets. Each state approached this issue differently, but Colorado and Washington took a path that Governor Hochul had previously indicated New York could follow: securing a section 1332 waiver of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to allow federal funds for the ACA to provide insurance coverage to undocumented immigrants.

In 2015 New York secured federal support for ACA funds to cover “lawfully present” immigrants—but not undocumented workers—in a health coverage program now called the Essential Plan. The Essential Plan Trust Fund Account currently has a $9 billion surplus that is estimated to grow by $2 billion more in a year. Federal rules require these funds can only be spent on health insurance coverage.

Last year advocates supported a “Coverage for All” bill that would request a 1332 waiver for New York to cover undocumented immigrants. Instead, Hochul expanded Medicare to cover undocumented seniors over age 65. In February 2023, Queens Assemblywoman Jessica González-Rojas reintroduced the “Coverage for All” bill which also has support from NYC Comptroller Brad Lander.

The statewide #Coverage4all campaign continues to advocate for the bill’s passage and recently exceeded its goal to add 1,500 supportive comments to the bill. At the beginning of March, immigrant New Yorkers hand-delivered pill bottles to the Governor with notes inside prescribing #Coverage4All. This week a caravan and rally to support the initiative were organized in Long Island as well as a March to Albany. There is still time to demand that Governor Hochul request this important waiver from the federal government. 

WHAT CAN WE DO?

 

In solidarity and with collective care,

Jackson Heights Immigrant Solidarity Network (JHISN)

Follow @JHSolidarity on Facebook and Twitter and share this newsletter with friends, families, neighbors, networks, and colleagues so they can subscribe and receive news from JHISN.