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MINIMUM WAGE — The private prison industry profits handsomely off of our nation’s love of detaining immigrants. The Florida-based GEO Group, which operates the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington, "made $18.6 million in profits from the facility" in 2018, Gene Johnson writes for the Associated Press. But rather than pay minimum wage to detainees performing work in the facility — a cost they could have easily afforded — GEO paid detainees only $1 a day. On Wednesday, a federal jury determined that the company must now pay minimum wage, and "will now consider how much the immigrant detainees who worked at the facility are owed — an amount expected to run into the millions." Good. NORTHBOUND — Edgar H. Clemente of the Associated Press tells the humanizing stories of families across Central America and the Caribbean trekking north through Mexico. "Better to run the risk, maybe one can make it (to the U.S.), than to be there caged without work, without a place to work, without food, without anything," said Dayana Flores, a young mother from Honduras. Added Mexican Carlos Fuentes, whose children were targeted by gangs: "We’re out of money and so we decided to come with the caravan and thank God they haven’t detained us." Over at Reuters, Jose Torres and Lizbeth Diaz report that the majority of the latest caravan members are families with young children. Some of these migrants aim to reach Mexico City, "where they hope the asylum process might be faster, while others say they seek to make it to the United States."
FAITH AND COMMUNITY — In communities across the U.S., churches partnering with resettlement agencies like World Relief are among the first to welcome Afghans as newcomers. And "some believe their outpouring of hospitality in 2021 may represent an attitude shift among evangelicals towards refugees," reports Heather Sells of CBN News. Such is the case in North Texas, where hundreds of church volunteers have signed up for training to support the new wave of Afghan refugees in the next few months. "I think there’s a shift that’s taking place," said Northwood Church Pastor Bob Roberts. "We’re coming back to who we are — and we’ve always cared about people." For the second episode of our multi-part series about Afghan resettlement for Only in America, I spoke to Madhu Sharma of The International Institute of Akron about their work in the wake of the Afghan evacuation. Here’s today’s roundup of local stories:
‘LET’S NOT LET THEM DOWN’ — The U.S. must do more for our Afghan allies, writes Ahmed Mushref, a former interpreter for the U.S. military in Iraq, in an op-ed for the Military Times. In 2010, Mushref and his family were able to relocate to Houston on a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) and build roots there, starting an interpretation business and managing the refugee services program at Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston. But since the Trump administration slashed refugee admissions, resettlement organizations are in desperate need of more resources to accommodate Afghans — and Mushref urges the Biden administration to prioritize helping these organizations rebuild capacity. "When I look at my two little girls, I’m filled with gratitude that we made it out of Iraq alive," he writes. "Our Afghan allies deserve the same protection … Let’s not let them down." |
