Border Angels Weekly Newsletter
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WOW – this year has been one for the books! We came across numerous challenges, not only due to the pandemic, but also due to the non-stop attacks on migrants from the administration. Many community members were left unemployed due to the impact of the pandemic; undocumented immigrant workers were left out of the stimulus package and were not afforded support by the federal government.
We were fortunate to be able to join our partners from the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium to provide undocumented families with some financial support. We were also able to help over 60 migrants bond out from immigration detention. Day laborers were supported with Know Your Rights information, access to legal consultations and with care packages to ensure that they could safely go on with their work.
Migrants arriving at the Southern Border were faced with additional challenges. Asylum processing stopped and more migrant families were forced to stay in Mexico. This added further pressure and strain on shelters in Tijuana and immigrant rights activists.
Our supporters and volunteers are like family to us. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you all for the love and kindness you have shown us through your support of our programming.
As we always say, we can’t do any of this without you all.
Together we can accomplish so much – we can heal from 2020 and continue advocating for the rights of all migrants in 2021.
We wish you all Happy Holidays and a Prosperous New Year!
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THE FIGHT CONTINUES
During the last four years we have witnessed the incessant attacks on immigrant communities. DACA recipients were threatened with deportation as the outgoing Trump administration ruthlessly attempted to undo the program.
Our own Executive Director, Dulce Garcia, joined many other DACAmented advocates to push back against these attacks. As the efforts to dissolve DACA made their way through the courts – all the way to the US Supreme Court – Dulce and other DACA recipients responded with litigation and national organizing.
Dulce was part of a team of Dreamers that sued the Trump administration when DACA processing was terminated in September 2017. She succeeded in ensuring that DACA recipients could continue renewing their deferred action status. Because of her efforts, thousands of young immigrants were able to continue providing for their families and working towards their dream.
As the administration continued its litigation efforts, Dulce went to SCOTUS on November 12, 2019 to defend DACA. We stand with her and all DACA recipients in the fight for justice.
Thousands are still caught in a political limbo, not knowing what their future will hold. In 2021 we will continue to not let uncertainty and fear stop us from demanding just immigration policies for all.
Donating to Border Angels will allow us to continue advocating for change that is aligned with our values. We know that we have a long road ahead of us, and we need your support.
Will you walk with us to bring more love and justice to the border region?
Join us in solidarity and in community, to continue strategically advocating for all undocumented immigrants in the US.
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If you didn't get a chance to make a donation, there is still time!
Make a difference and donate today.
Visit our website: www.borderangels.org
Please make checks payable to:
Border Angels
2258 Island Ave
San Diego, CA 92102
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The replenishment of supplies was much needed in the areas that we ventured to on 12/19/20. We traveled through hills and valleys on an all-day mission that gave everyone on our team a better understanding of what's truly going on. We witnessed a lot of eye-opening scenes, all which reminded us of why we are out there.
We found a lot of consumed supplies during this water drop – further reinforcing the need for water drops. With education and experience, we evolve to assist with the most crucial of needs.
Thank you to everyone that has supported this program, including those that have shared our work on social media. We are counting down the days until we can welcome new volunteers to our treks!
For any questions about Water Drops, reach out to Water Drop Program Co-Director James Cordero at [email protected].
Thank you for your continued support!
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Familias Reunidas
Bond Program
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There are over 200 ICE facilities across the US. In California there are over 4,300 migrants in immigration detention on a daily basis. And, that did not change given the gravity of the pandemic and the increased chance of people incarcerated contracting the novel virus.
Finding ways to support people detained by ICE became even more important this year. Helping migrants bond out of detention is life-saving.
Our Familias Reunidas Bond Fund was launched in December 2019 and it has supported the release of 69 migrants from 14 different countries.
These migrants were detained at either the Adelanto facility (Los Angeles County), Imperial Regional detention center (Imperial County) or at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego County.
We hope to see an increase in contributions to our bond fund so we can help more migrants reunite with their loved ones and community. Immigration bonds can range from $1,500 to $20,000 – this is a huge financial burden on migrant families and many remain detained because they can’t afford to pay the bond. Migrants from African countries are given the highest bonds at disproportionate rates.
It is unjust and unfair.
Migrants are scared of dying in immigration detention. Let’s uplift their struggle and remind them that there are a lot of people advocating for their rights.
Will you join us in continuing to spread awareness about folks in detention?
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Other ways to support
Border Angels
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Donate your classic car to Border Angels. Your generous gift has the potential to raise hundreds and even thousands of dollars that will go towards saving lives in the desert, freeing loved ones from detention centers, and helping migrant families in Tijuana.
The trusted vehicle donation program makes it easy with free pick-up and takes great care in finding the right buyer to get top dollar for it. Plus, they handle all the paperwork! Whether your vehicle sells for $500 or less, for more than $500, or for more than $5,000, you will be provided with the proper paperwork and tax receipts.
Call 855-500-RIDE (855-500-7433) or donate online at https://careasy.org/home#NP-donation-form
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On Thursday, January 21, the Strauss Center will host Dulce Garcia, Executive Director of Border Angels, for a virtual talk. This webinar is part of their Brumley Speaker Series.
Attendees must have a Zoom account to join the webinar.
Registration details coming soon!
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Border angels fight to save lives in the deserts of the Southwest
By: Roberto Camacho
"For more than three decades, Border Angels has assisted immigrant populations in Southern California. Since 1986, the San Diego-based nonprofit has served the county’s immigrant community through various migrant outreach programs, including day laborer outreach and legal assistance. However, the organization is perhaps best known for its Water Drop Program, which provides life-saving assistance for migrants by placing bottled water and supplies in the deserts and remote mountain areas surrounding San Diego and Imperial Counties, as well as the areas located around the U.S.- Mexico border.
For Jacqueline Arellano, co-director of the water drop program for Border Angels, the deserts of Southern California are like a second home. Arellano was born and raised in the rural town of El Centro in Imperial County, 114 miles east of San Diego. Growing up, she was well aware of the desert’s unforgiving nature and the dangerous trek thousands of migrants make every year when crossing the border from Mexico into the U.S. A child of immigrants herself, for Arellano, the topic of immigration hit particularly close to home and made her a perfect candidate for the position."
Arellano began volunteering with Border Angels in 2014, helping procure supplies for the organization. In 2016, she began going on water drops when they opened up to the public. Shortly after in 2017, she took over as water drop director for the organization. The following year, as the program expanded its size and scope, she began sharing that responsibility with James Cordero. As co-directors of the program, Arellano and Cordero are well-versed in the labyrinth of dusty washes, the twisting canyons, and towering mountain ranges that migrants regularly traverse while crossing the border."
https://www.prismreports.org/article/2020/12/30/border-angels-fight-to-save-lives-in-the-deserts-of-the-southwest
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Trump leaves mark on immigration policy, some of it lasting
By: Ben Fox
"WASHINGTON (AP) — When President Donald Trump was running for reelection, foreign-born U.S. residents were rushing to get their American citizenship before it might be too late.
“I didn’t know what would happen if Trump got a second term,” said Victoria Abramowska, who became a citizen in Maine this fall, “after all the crazy things he did already.”
Her fears weren’t unfounded. The Trump administration was more hostile to immigration and immigrants than any administration in decades, making it harder for people to visit, live or work in the United States and seeking to reduce the number illegally entering the country.
Many of the administration’s immigration actions can be quickly undone by Joe Biden when he becomes president on Jan. 20. Yet Trump’s legacy on immigration won’t be easily erased.
People were denied the opportunity to apply for asylum and returned to dangerous conditions at home. Children were traumatized by being separated from their families. Trump’s signature border wall went up in environmentally sensitive areas."
https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-politics-immigration-united-states-a5bfcbea280a468b431a02e82c15a150
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Undocumented immigrant children must be released promptly, court rules
By: Bob Egelko
"Immigrant children caught crossing the border with their parents must be released to relatives or adult sponsors in the U.S. as soon as possible under a 1997 legal settlement, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, rejecting the Trump administration’s attempt to discard the agreement.
The Flores settlement — the result of a lawsuit filed in 1985 by Jenny Flores, a 15-year-old girl who had fled El Salvador — requires immigration officials to place youngsters in the “least restrictive setting available” and release them “without unnecessary delay” to a parent, adult relative or guardian. If none of those is available, they must be freed from confinement and placed with a licensed program that provides education and social services.
The Trump administration asked a federal judge in Los Angeles to end the settlement in August 2019, saying it was unworkable because of an influx of immigrants at the Mexico border and was no longer needed because of new regulations limiting confinement of migrant children. U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee disagreed with both arguments, and on Tuesday the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld key points of her ruling, though not all of it"
https://www.sfchronicle.com/nation/article/Undocumented-immigrant-children-must-be-released-15834838.php
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