1. For a detailed report of government practices and policies post September 11, 2001 see Cheryl Little and Kathie Klarreich, “Securing Our Borders: Post 9/11 Scapegoating of Immigrants,” Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center, April 2005.
2. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, “ICE Fugitive Operations Teams arrests more than 30,000 in FY2007,” News Release, December 4, 2007. See also, Ruth Morris, “Crackdown boosts arrests of fugitive immigrants in Florida,” South Florida Sun-Sentinel, December 5, 2007.
3. Roughly 64% are held in county or city jails and about 84% are without lawyers. The recent surge in immigration detention has greatly benefitted private prison companies, like Corrections Corporations of America and the GEO group, whose stocks increased sharply following President Bush’s proposal in February 2006 to increase spending on ICE detention. See e.g., Leslie Berestein, “A once ailing private-prison sector is now a revenue maker,” The Copley News Service, May 9, 2008.
4. See e.g., Fear and Loathing: Immigration Editions, “Special Report Documents Rhetoric and Hysteria Surrounding Illegal Immigration on Cable News,” Press Release, Media Matters, May 21, 2008.
5. Although family unity is the cornerstone of our immigration laws, extra-ordinarily long backlogs for family-based immigration petitions keep families apart for years. At the end of fiscal year 2003, over 1.2 million green card applications were pending. Testimony of Demetrios G. Papademetriou, Senate Hearing on “Evaluating a Temporary Guest Worker Proposal,” February 12, 2004.
6. The Santa Rosa County Sheriff is working with Florida’s Walton County and Okaloosa County Sheriffs to target undocumented workers in Florida’s Panhandle. Press Release, Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, March 10, 2008.
7. Louis Cooper, “Santa Rosa going after undocumented workers,” The Pensacola News Journal, February 24, 2008.
8. Palm Bay immigrant ordinances fail,” Orlando Business Journal, August 18, 2006; Linda Jump, “Palm Bay Council Nixes Immigration ordinance,” Florida Today, August 18, 2006; “Central Florida Nixes Immigration Ordinance,” Local 6.com, August 18, 2006; “Illegal Immigration: Arrest Controversy,” Central Florida News 13, September 5, 2006.
9. Warrantless raids of Hispanic homes by ICE and a Tennessee county sheriff have been challenged in court. Julia Preston, “No need for a warrant, You’re an Immigrant,” The New York Times, October 14, 2007.
10. S. Brady Calhoun, “Illegals gone from Bay County; Sheriff takes credit,” Florida Freedom Newspaper, January 29, 2008.
11. Beth Reinhard, “Judge on spot for way he treats illegals.” The Miami Herald, March 14, 2006.
12. After 9/11 the Chief of Florida’s Department of Law Enforcement asked DHS to grant its 40,000 police officers the power to interrogate, arrest and detain immigrants suspected of violating civil immigration laws. Although this was not done, in the fall of 2002 Florida was the first state to enter into an agreement with Immigration to deputize local law enforcement officers to act as immigration agents.
13. Letter to Julie Myers, Assistant Secretary U.S. ICE, from U.S. Congressman Jeff Miller, August 23, 2007.
14. These include the Florida counties of Duval, Manatee, Santa Rosa, Lee and Bay.
15. Mancha, a U.S. citizen from Mexico, described to the House Judiciary Committee how armed ICE officers knocked down their door without a warrant and demanded to see her mother’s immigration paper. She didn’t need a green card because she was born in Florida, Mancha told lawmakers. Ben Evans, “Immigration enforcement tactics criticized at House hearing,” The Associated Press, February 13, 2008.
16. Anna Gorman, “LA civil rights attorney files claims over federal immigration raid,” Los Angeles Times, April 25, 2008; “114 U.S. Citizens and Lawful Residents File Damage Claims,” Center for Human Rights Press Release, April 25, 2008.
17. Julia Preston, “No Need for a Warrant, You’re an Immigrant,” The New York Times, October 14, 2007.
18. “Top 10 Migration Issues of 2007,” Migration Information Source, Migration Policy Institute, December 2007.
19. See e.g., “What happens when immigrants go away,” Editorial, The Miami Herald, October 2, 2007; Ken Belson and Jill P. Capuzzo, “Towns Rethink Laws Against Illegal Immigrants,” The New York Times, September 25, 2007; Julie Preston, “Judge voids ordinance on Illegal Immigrants,” The New York Times, July 27, 2007.
20. See e.g., Bill Kaczor, “Immigration bills get first heaving, but time running short,” The Associated Press, April 8, 2008; “Plans for legislation cover wide spectrum,” The Miami Herald, March 31, 2008; Helena Poleo, “Bills Boost Power Over Immigration,” The Miami Herald, February 17, 2008; Niala Boodhoo and Beth Reinhard, “ State proposals target undocumented workers,” The Miami Herald, February 7, 2007; Laura Wides-Munoz, “State Reps. Offer a Slew of Bills to Combat Illegal Immigration,” The Associated Press, February 5, 2008.
21. David Bacon, “In Mississippi, Work is Now a Felony for Undocumented Immigrants,” http://dbacon.igc.org, April 27, 2008.
22. The family’s name has been changed to protect their confidentiality.
23. Declaration of LQ to Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center, May 2, 2006.
24. On March 1, 2003, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), along with 21 other cabinet level agencies, was reorganized under the newly created Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Among the departments formed within DHS to handle enforcement action are the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They are referred to in this report by their acronyms CBP and ICE, respectively. References to INS predate DHS’s creation.
25. See e.g., Ray Henry, “Children Stranded After Immigration Raid, The Associated Press, March 7, 2007; David Montgomery, “Poster Child,” The Washington Post, May 20, 2007; “One Year after the New Bedford raid, has anything changed?,” ACLU Mass Rights Blog, March 6, 2008.
26. See e.g., Julia Preston, “Immigration Quandary: A Mother Torn from her Baby,” New York Times, November 17, 2007; Dianna Smith, “Haitians targeted unfairly in immigration sweeps, advocates say,” Naples Daily News, February 27, 2005; Dianna Smith, “Arrest of Illegals’ leave behind shattered lives,” Naples Daily News, February 27, 2005; Waveny Ann Moore, “As Immigration status divides families, ‘You can feel the fear’,” St. Petersburg Times, July 30, 2007; Ana Mendez, “Immigration chaos tears a family apart,” The Miami Herald, March 7, 2007.
27. See e.g., Julia Preston, “Immigration Quandary: A Mother Torn from her Baby,” New York Times, November 17, 2007; Ana Ceron, “Jupiter family tries to survive as mom fights deportation,” Palm Beach Post, July 21, 2007; Alfonso Chardy, “Detained Haitian mom set free, The Miami Herald, October 27, 2007. After much public criticism ICE released new guidelines, mostly applicable to large raids. The guidelines instruct officers how to respond when they encounter single parents, pregnant women, nursing mothers and the like.
28. ICE claims that they intended to leave the two boys with their father before they learned that he had a criminal history. Alfonso Chardy, “US-born kids were in foster care as parents fought deportation,” The Miami Herald, July 27, 2007.
29. Alfonso Chardy, “US-born kids were in foster care as parents fought deportation,” The Miami Herald, July 27, 2007.
30. Declaration of Blanca Banegas-Benites to Florida Immigration Advocacy Center, March 23, 2007; Alfonso Chardy, “Sent Away,” The Miami Herald, July 27, 2007.
31. See “Treatment of Immigration Detainees Housed at Immigration and Customs Enforcement Facilities,” Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, OIG-07-01, December 2006. The report notes that one detainee had to spend 16 days just trying to get permission to call his attorney. Half a dozen others had to file grievances in order to get permission to call their families and let them know they were in ICE detention.
32. See e.g., Spencer S. Hsu and Krissah Williams, “Illegal Workers Arrested in 6-State ID Theft Sweep,” The Washington Post, December 13, 2006; Roxana Hegeman, “Immigration raids May Affect Meat Prices,” The Associated Press; Ray Henry, “Children stranded After Immigration Raid,” The Washington Post, March 7, 2007; N.C. Aizenman, “Pleading to Stay a Family; Raids on Illegal Immigrants Have Their U.S.-Born Children Fearing Separation—and Some Are Lobbying Capitol Hill,” The Washington Post, April 2, 2007.
33. Randy Capps, Rosa Maria Castañeda, Ajay Chaudry, Robert Santos, “Paying the Price: The Impact of Immigration Raids on America’s Children,” The Urban Institute for the National Council of La Raza, 2007.
34. Randy Capps, Rosa Maria Castañeda, Ajay Chaudry, Robert Santos, “Paying the Price: The Impact of Immigration Raids on America’s Children,” The Urban Institute for the National Council of La Raza, 2007.
35. Randy Capps, Rosa Maria Castañeda, Ajay Chaudry, Robert Santos, “Paying the Price: The Impact of Immigration Raids on America’s Children,” The Urban Institute for the National Council of La Raza, 2007.
Following their parents arrest, children felt abandoned and evidenced signs of “emotional trauma, psychological duress, and mental health problems.” The Urban Institute has recommended that our government release parents to their children and that Congress hold hearings on the consequences of ICE raids on children. Randy Capps, Rosa Maria Castañeda, Ajay Chaudry, Robert Santos, “Paying the Price: The Impact of Immigration Raids on America’s Children,” The Urban Institute for the National Council of La Raza, 2007.
36. See e.g., Julia Preston, “Measures Would Offer Legal Status to Illegal Immigrant Student,” The New York Times, September 20, 2007.
37. “I think in this case it’s clear there should be an exception made because you have a situation where somebody has been 15, as much as 18 years who has been exemplary and through no fault of his or in other cases her responsibility. There’s no question that there should be an exception made.” Lou Dobbs, CNN July 31, 2007.
38. Kathy Kiely, “Children Caught in the Immigration Crossfire.” USA Today, October 7, 2007.
39. The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act would permit students to gain conditional residency for six years, provided they have resided in the United States for at least 5 years prior to enactment, came to the U.S. before the age of 16, they graduated from high school or were admitted to an institution of higher learning, and they are of good moral character. After six years they could become permanent residents once they completed two years of college or served two years in the military. The Migration Policy Institute estimates that about 360,000 students could now be eligible for protection from deportation if the DREAM Act were to pass.
40. Last fall former Congressman Tom Tancredo (R-CO) asked federal authorities to arrest students who participated in a staff briefing in the DREAM Act because he suspected that some were illegal. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), who was sponsoring the DREAM Act, advised Tancredo that the legal status of the relevant students had been resolved. Tancredo responded that he did not expect Durbin to be able to “tell the difference between legal residents and illegal aliens.” Klause Marre, “Durbin blasts Tancredo on immigration,” October 25, 2007. http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/durbin-blasts-tancredo-on-immigration-2007-10-24.html.
41. A Broward County, Florida traffic court judge who was short listed for promotion routinely asked defendants about their legal status and, on at least one occasion, turned an immigrant over to ICE. Hispanic attorneys and judges protested. See e.g., Beth Reinhard,” Judge on spot for way he treats illegals,” The Miami Herald, March 14, 2004; Beth Reinhard, “Judges urged to act proper with minorities,” The Miami Herald, March 14, 2006.
42. Deborah Baker, “Student’s deportation sparks protest,” The Associated Press, March 5, 2008.
43. This mother of three was arrested as she left her church in Greenacres in her car that had a broken taillight.
44. Dianna Smith, “Haitians shaken by arrest of churchgoer,” Palm Beach Post, February 29, 2008. Some pastors are advising their parishioners to go to Canada, where Haitians are exempt from deportation.
45. S. Brady Calhoun, “Illegals gone from Bay County; Sheriff takes credit,” Florida Freedom Newspaper, January 29, 2008.
46. Tal Abbady, “Letter sends a scare into immigrants at Deerfield complex,” The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, October 20, 2007. The condo President resigned about a week after posting her notice, but some traumatized residents moved away nonetheless.
47. Tal Abbady, “Letter sends a scare into immigrants at Deerfield complex,” The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, October 20, 2007.
48. Statement of Anne, June 30, 2006.
49. See e.g., Bill Kaczor, “Immigration bills get first heaving, but time running short,” The Associated Press, April 8, 2008; “Plans for legislation cover wide spectrum,” The Miami Herald, March 31, 2008; Helena Poleo, “Bills Boost Power Over Immigration,” The Miami Herald, February 17, 2008; Niala Boodhoo and Beth Reinhard, “ State proposals target undocumented workers,” The Miami Herald, February 7, 2007; Laura Wides-Munoz, “State Reps. Offer a Slew of Bills to Combat Illegal Immigration,” The Associated Press, February 5, 2008.
50. “‘Racist’ Computer Game Targets Immigrants,” Top News, CBS 5, April 13, 2006. By contrast, a video game, ICED!, was produced by the non-profit group Breakthrough. Its goal is to create empathy for immigrants.
51. Randal C. Archibold, “Illegal Immigrants Slain in an Attack in Arizona,” The New York Times, February 9, 2007.
52. Andres Amerikaner, “Criminals targeting migrant fears,” The Miami Herald, June 21, 2007.
53. See e.g., Casey Woods, “Opposing an ‘Invasion,’ The Miami Herald, March 31, 2008.
54. “When Hate Becomes Hurt,” Newsweek, March 10, 2008.
55. Letter to Honorable John Conyers, Jr., Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representative, from Peter R. Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget Office, April 4, 2008 http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/91xx/doc9100/hr4088ltr.pdf
