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UPDATED: Resistance to Operation Streamline in San Diego, Assembly-Line Injustice for Immigrants

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The uproar over the Trump administration’s immigration policies continues unabated.

Over the weekend there were protests in big cities and small towns across the 50 states. (See San Diego coverage here.)  Sister demonstrations took place in London, Munich, Paris, Hamburg, Tokyo, and others cities around the globe.

Starting today, San Diego and nearby points will be the focus of more protests and non-violent civil disobedience in response to the ramping up of the Justice Department’s Operation Streamline, which applies a one-size-fits-all approach in assembly-line court proceedings for migrants.

Busses and caravan with labor and faith activists came to San Diego from Orange County, Los Angeles and Pheonix to a start-up rally in Chicano Park.

  [Read more…]

Photo Galleries: Families Belong Together Marches in San Diego and Around the Nation

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While President Trump played golf on Saturday, people gathered for events protesting his immigration policies in 780 events nationwide, covering all 50 states and 85% of the congressional districts in the county.

Counts included 35,000 in Washington DC, over 60,000 in Chicago, 30,000 in New York and San Francisco, and 55,000 in Los Angeles.

The downtown San Diego rally, starting at Waterfront Park had roughly 4,000 people show up. Over 300 came to make their voices heard in deep red Temecula.   [Read more…]

Immigration Protests Continue Nationwide | Progressive Activist Calendar June 29-July 9, 2018

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It ain’t over till it’s over. Protests, rallies, and phone calls continue as people express their outrage at inhumane and racist policies.

San Diegans protesting the Trump administration’s “zero-tolerance” policy towards immigrants and separation of families at the border picketed the Customs & Border Protection (CBP) Sector Headquarters in Chula Vista yesterday.

CBP security personnel by the entranceway heard 2+ hours a recording of the children crying after being forcibly taken from their parent(s). An 800# was prominently displayed offering free legal advice for employees refusing to separate families.

Nearly 600 women were arrested in Washington DC on Thursday, as they staged a sit-in in the atrium of the Hart Senate Office building.   [Read more…]

No SCOTUS Appointment while Trump under Criminal Investigation

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Time for Democrats to go on the offense

Remember how Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Merrick Garlanded Obama’s Supreme Court pick? Let’s do McConnell one better:

Any Trump SCOTUS pick is void while he and his campaign are under a criminal investigation for obstruction and conspiracy against the United States.
  [Read more…]

Travel Ban Ruling by the Supreme Court Gets a Passionate Response in San Diego

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This week the Supreme Court was asked to stand up for the rights of the vulnerable against the biases of the powerful — and failed, not once, but three times. Conservatives on the bench prevailed each time, ruling against Muslims, women, and public sector workers.

In Washington DC, San Diego, and cities around the country opponents of the administration’s travel ban took to the streets to express their disapproval of the ruling in Trump v. Hawaii. Comparisons with earlier wrongful rulings, like the Dredd Scott case upholding slavery were made in speeches and rallies, mostly near Federal buildings.

The mood at the demonstration in downtown San Diego was one of profound sadness and determination. It was, in many ways, more powerful than much bigger protests I’ve attended in past decades.   [Read more…]

Day of Action – #StandWithMuslims in San Diego – Protest on Supreme Court Travel Ban Ruling

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Today! Tuesday 6/26 @ 7:30 pm * U.S. Courthouse 880 Front Street, Downtown

This morning, the Supreme Court issued its decision to uphold the Trump v. Hawai’i Muslim Ban case.

From the Facebook call to action:

It is crucial that San Diego makes a public, strong and visible presence like our sisters and brothers will be doing across the country who care about Muslim, Immigrant and Refugee communities and oppose Trump’s White Nationalist agenda. the Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans – PANA, CAIR San Diego and Pillars of the Community are coalition partners of the #NoMuslimBanEver campaign and are calling for a national day of action.   [Read more…]

The Civility Distraction: Sorry, We Can’t All Be Friends, Right Now.

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There’s rampant pearl-clutching and whataboutism in punditland currently, stemming from incidents where public officials have been rebuked by private citizens.  

Engaging in that particular debate is a waste of time. We’re past that point in our national discourse.

Our fearless leader is openly proposing ending the rule of law. For asylum seekers. (For now) No judges, no juries. Just some guys with badges administering ‘justice’ to people regularly characterized as less than human who have fled injustice at great personal cost.   [Read more…]

Text of Senator Kamala Harris’ Speech Outside Core Civic Otay Mesa Detention Center

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Following is a speech given by U.S. Senator Kamala Harris on Friday.

So let’s shout for the children and families. Let’s shout for them. So, first of all, I want to thank everyone for coming out and for all the work that everyone has been doing to give voice to these families, to these children, and to this issue.

I was just in there, I got a tour of that detention facility and then I sat down and spoke for some time and visited with the mothers who are there. And my heart is broken. These mothers, these mothers have given testimony, if you will, have given the stories, have shared their stories, their personal stories that are a story of a human rights abuse being committed by the United States government.

And we are so much better than this and what we have got to do is fight against this. This is contrary to all of the principles that we hold dear and that give us a sense of who we are when we are proud to be Americans, but we have no reason to be proud of this. We have no reason to be proud of this.

This is a situation where the United States government and this administration brought upon itself and the reputation of the American public, brought upon us, without a request, shame. Shame.

  [Read more…]

Otay Mesa Detention Center – Chant and Response: “We are with you. We hear you. We will not forget you.”

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“Estamos contigos. Les oyemos. No les olvidamos.”

By Kathy Stadler

With so many events taking place around the immigration travesty, it seems one may have gone under-noticed. During the PICO California statewide day of action today, it was clear that the people being detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, could hear the protesters outside and tried to make contact – shouting and drumming.

PICO California, “the largest multi-racial faith-based community-organizing network in the state” organized a statewide weekend of action that began on Friday evening at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church. Faith leaders, PICO volunteers, and others came from across the state (including but not limited to Redondo Beach, Santa Ana, San Francisco, Bakersfield, and Fresno) for the Let Our Children Go action.

Friday evening included a vigil, interfaith service, and a training in non-violent civil disobedience. Many folks spent the night at the church and started organizing early Saturday for the action at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. Posters and noisemakers were made, blessings were written to send to people inside the Center, peacekeeping was organized, more tactics of non-violent civil disobedience were taught. Just after noon, hundreds headed to the Detention Center.   [Read more…]

Photo Galleries: A Weekend of #KeepFamiliesTogether Demonstrations Throughout San Diego County

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Eds Note: This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

In San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, Chula Vista, downtown San Diego, and Escondido, people throughout the region this weekend raised their voices in opposition to the zero tolerance and family separation policies of the Trump administration.

At 9 am on Saturday, people began gathering in San Diego’s Community Concourse. By 10am, the place was jammed, and police blocked off Third Street to handle the overflow crowds. After a couple of hours of speaks and music, the crowd marched down Broadway to Front Street and rallied in front of the Federal Building housing the ICE offices for San Diego. Local media estimates of the crowd size put it north of 5000 people.

I’ve been going to demonstrations for five decades, and this was one of the best organized I’ve ever seen. It started on time, the public address system was actually good enough to cover the whole area, and the security people were friendly, well organized and helpful.    [Read more…]

Immigration Protests: The Whole World is Watching | Progressive Activist Calendar June 22-July 2, 2018

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Protests Set for Three Cities in San Diego County As Trump’s Psychosis Continues

The Trump administration’s policies on immigration have fired up local activists, with protests set for Escondido, San Ysidro, and downtown San Diego this weekend.

Another round of demonstrations is in the works for next weekend, coinciding with actions in over 400 cities being organized by Move-On. See calendar further down in the story for details.

And while a substantial part of the U.S. looks on in horror at the cruelty and chaos within the administration, the rest of the world is taking notice.   [Read more…]

Immigrants as Hostages: The GOP’s Midterm Election Strategy

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Plus: Listings of ways you can help in San Diego

I laughed when late-night host Steven Colbert said the President folded like an origami Trump Casino on the child separation issue. The joke, however, is on us. The immigration policies of the administration remain fundamentally unchanged. And it has nothing to do with comprehensive reforms or building the great wall of Donald.

The motivation for those policies, exploiting a fear of the “other” manifested as racism remains. Donald Trump has overruled GOP strategists who thought campaigning on the strength of the economy and tax cuts was the ticket to victory (defined as not losing too many seats) in November 2018.

The specter of immigrant “gangsters, drug deals, rapists and welfare cheats” ‘infecting’ America will be the core GOP strategy this fall, whether the (few) remaining rational people in the party like it or not.   [Read more…]

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