BAJI Reader 1

Promoting Social and Economic Justice for All

Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................3
The African Diaspora Speaks Out on Immigration
Black Voices Call for a New Approach to Immigration
Reform.........................................................................................4
Gerald Lenoir and Leah Wise
Faith Without Borders................................................................8
A Sacred Co-journeying Towards Just Immigration
Rev. Kelvin Sauls
Immigration Reform We Can Believe In.................................12
Ending Criminalization and Enforcement in our Communities
Marlon Peterson and Janis Rosheuvel
Do Not Tamper with the Constitution......................................16
Eric Ward
Statement of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration on
the Attacks on Birthright Citizenship and the Fourteenth
Amendment...............................................................................17
From Poverty to Prosperity......................................................18
The Roots Causes of Poverty and Migration in Haiti
Francesca Menes
We Stand with Haiti...................................................................22
A Statement from the Black Alliance for Just Immigration
The Liberian StoryA Search for Stability and Security......24
Oni Richards Waritay
2 www.blackalliance.org
Black Alliance for Just Immigration
The Black Alliance for Just Immigration was
founded in April 2006 to engage African
Americans and other communities in a
dialogue that leads to actions that challenge
U.S. immigration policy and the underlying
issues of race, racism and economic
inequity that frame it.
BAJI is an education and advocacy group
comprised of African Americans and black
immigrants from Africa, Latin America and
the Caribbean. BAJI provides a progressive
analysis and framework on immigration that
links the interests of African Americans with
those of immigrants of color. The analysis
emphasizes the impact of racism and
economic globalization on African American
and immigrant communities as a basis for
forging alliances across these communities.
BAJIs goals are:
1) to develop a core group of African
Americans who are prepared to actively
support immigrant rights;
2) to facilitate the building of relationships
and alliances between African American
and immigrant communities to further the
mutual cause of economic and social justice
for all.
Staff
Gerald Lenoir, Executive Director
Phil Hutchings, Senior Organizer
Opal Tometi, National Organizer and
Communications Director
Aja Minor, Program Associate
BAJI Reader Editorial Board
Jean Damu
Amarha Hicks, PhD
Wilson Riles, Jr.
Gerald Lenoir
BAJI Steering Committee
Alona Clifton
Ronald Colthirst
Denise Gums
Amarha Hicks, PhD
Nunu Kidane
Rev. Phillip Lawson
Leonard McNeil
Steven Pitts, PhD
Wilson Riles, Jr.
Angela Romero
Rev. Kelvin Sauls
Sharron Williams Gelobter, Esq.
Design and Layout: J. Lenoir
www.frontline-multimedia.com
Proofreader: Karen Dalton
The collected work 2011 BAJI
Articles and photos authors and
photographers or as indicated
Black Alliance for Just Immigration
1212 Broadway, Suite 812
Oakland, CA 94612
(510) 663-2254 (voice)
(510) 663-2257 (fax)
[email protected]
The BAJI reader is available online at www.
blackalliance.org.
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www.twitter.com/bajitweet

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BAJI Reader 3
Introduction
Introduction: The African
Diaspora Speaks Out on
Immigration
W
hile immigration reform legislation
is stalled in Congress and the Dream
Act was defeated last year, fair and
just immigration reform is still an urgent need
for the millions of undocumented immigrants
who are demonized and marginalized. In this
edition of the BAJI Reader, e African Di-
aspora Speaks Out on Immigration, a number
of African American, African, Afro-Latino and
Afro-Caribbean leaders write about various as-
pects of immigration reform from the perspec-
tive of their communities.
In the lead article, Black Call for New Ap-
proaches to Immigration Reform, U.S.-born
leaders Gerald Lenoir of the Black Alliance for
Just Immigration and Leah Wise of the South-
east Regional Economic Justice Network posit a
framework for looking at the issue of immigra-
tion from a black perspective, i.e., as African
American allies in the struggle for racial justice,
economic justice and immigrant rights.
In his article, Faith Without Borders: A Sacred
Co-journeying Towards Just Immigration, Rev.
Kelvin Sauls, an immigrant from South Africa,
brings a faith perspective to bear on the subject,
asserting that human dignity, not political ex-
pediency should be at the center of the discus-
sion on immigration reform. He cites Christian
and Islamic scriptures in making the case for a
faith not limited by, nor dened by borders.
In Do Not Tamper with the Constitution,
African American Eric Ward maintains that to
revoke the Fourteenth Amendment so that the
children of undocumented immigrants born in
the United States are noncitizens amounts to a
thinly disguised racist attack on the fundamen-
tal right of birthright citizenship.
e Statement of the Black Alliance for Just
Immigration on the Attacks on Birthright Citi-
zenship and the Fourteenth Amendment which
follows complements Eric Wards perspective.
Marlon Peterson and Janis Rosheuvel of Fami-
lies For Freedom in New York City take up the
cause of immigrants with criminal conviction
in Immigration Reform We Can Believe In:
Ending Criminalization and Enforcement in
our Communities. e authors argue that this
group is wrongly marginalized in the current
immigration reform debate.
From Poverty to Prosperity: e Root Causes
of Poverty and Migration is an article writ-
ten by Haitian activist Francesca Menes of the
Florida Immigrant Coalition. She puts the cur-
rent U.S. foreign and immigration policy toward
Haiti in its historical context.
We Stand with Haiti: e Statement of the
Black Alliance for Just Immigration calls for
support for the reconstruction of Haiti con-
trolled by the Haitian people, the restoration of
democracy in Haiti, the granting of humanitar-
ian parole and family visas to Haitians, and the
end to deportations of Haitians.
Oni Richards writes about the struggle of Libe-
rians for a renewal of Deferred Enforced Depar-
ture status in the United States in e Liberian
StoryA Search for Stability and Security. She
argues that the U.S. government owes Liberia a
debt as an ally and as an object of exploitation
by U.S. corporations.
It is crucial that the immigrant rights movement
consider the perspectives and issues of African
Americans and black immigrants on the various
matters related to immigration reform in order
to build stronger, more cohesive social move-
ment capable of winning fair and just reform.
e activists/authors represented here make
valuable contributions toward that end. Q
Gerald Lenoir
BAJI Executive Director
4 www.blackalliance.org
Black Voices Call for New
Approaches to Immigration
Reform
by Leah Wise and Gerald Lenoir
T
his article oers the perspectives of the
Black Alliance for Just Immigration
(BAJI) and the Southeast Regional Eco-
nomic Justice Network (REJN) on the struggle
for fair and just immigration reform and the
issues that the immigrant rights movement and
the social justice movement as a whole must
tackle to achieve it.
Its A New Day
Neoliberal globalization has changed the politi-
cal and economic landscape domestically and
internationallyand is forcing us to think and
work in new ways. e bankruptcy of unfet-
tered capitalism has been exposed and people
in every class are getting a taste of the insecurity
and lost wealth, if not hunger and homelessness,
experienced by the droves of people of color, ex-
treme poor, workers and others who have been
the primary casualties of the corporate driven
neoliberal agenda over the past 2 decades.
ere is now a broader base of people wanting
reform. Not enough, however, are addressing
the system of policies and institutions that are
the cause of our miseries and are still locked into
piecemeal strategies. Immigration is an urgent
issue precisely because 200 million people across
the globe have been propelled into migration
by these policies, by the wars, collapsed econo-
mies, destabilization, ruined environments, and
genocide they have engendered. Only 2% have
come to the US, yet their presence is transform-
ing local communities and base organizing, in
rural and urban areas alike. Rather than create
a Marshall plan to help these survivors [at home
and abroad] cope, nations, particularly in the
West, have criminalized many of them.
Social justice movements are challenged to:
ink macro and micro [global/national/
state/local] and long and short-term simulta-
neously, taking into account specic on-the-
ground circumstances and histories.
Learn to appreciate, respect and negotiate
vast diversities and tremendous complexities
that inclusivity requires.
Focus on causes structural impediments,
policies & practices and overlapping impacts,
rather than isolated disparities, which implies
intersectional analysis, or locating targets at the
intersections of the overlaps, to maximize im-
pact and building the broadest base of support.
Grapple with racism and wedge issues, in rec-
ognition of their historic role in defeating every
BAJI members gather at the U.S.-Mexico border wall near Tucson in 2007 as part of delegation that investigated the
human rights violations perpetrated by Border Patrol agents against migrants and Mexican citizens. Photo courtesy:
Black Alliance for Just Immigration
BAJI Reader 5
social movement, blatantly, as in the 1898 Wilm-
ington (NC) coup dtat and massacre, or more
subtly, as in the more recent use of demeaning
racially coded language and images (Willie
Horton, welfare queens) in political campaigns
or immigrants are taking jobs nobody wants
to thwart union campaigns.
Forge a new model of work that marries the
shaping and content of policy reforms with base
building practice that can galvanize communi-
ties across the nation into a powerful move-
ment. To us this means building an inclusive
peoples movement of scale, encompassing the
widespread and various sectors that have been
casualties of neoliberal policies, AND craing
and linking policy reforms in ways that benet
everyone.
Walk our talk. We must model the society
we say we are trying to build --be the justice we
want to live and exemplify accountabilityif we
are to have any authenticity and credibility to of-
fer real change. To the immigrant rights move-
ment, for example, black immigrantsAfricans,
Afro Latinos/as, Caribbeanshave been largely
invisible and excluded, both in participation,
leadership and issue priorities. Racism in the
immigrant rights movement is its Achilles heel.
If the movement is to forge and lead a disparate
and diverse base, then it must include the voices,
perspectives and leadership of the marginalized,
including the young, African descent immi-
grants and native born, as well as poor women.
Recognize that national policies must address
regional specicity if they are to have national
impact. National policy cannot rely on state
implementation when states rightswhich
governs political willand inadequate infra-
structure eclipses impact in the South and other
localities across the nation. e failure to ad-
dress the structural conditions in the South has
rendered the region the nations sinkhole, which
has dragged down wages, jobs, conditions and
the social safety net, pulling the nation towards
the Souths level of underdevelopment
How we respond as a progressive movement,
particularly in these times of economic crisis,
has everything to do with whether we can maxi-
mize a progressive movement that can win real
change that will bring us economic prosperity,
full political participation, social justice, ac-
countable democracy and peace for everyone,
or whether we become more fractured and weak
and lose the opportunity that the Obama victory
has promised us for the next 7 years. People of
color, particularly younger generations, are the
strategic center and mass baseof progressive
change in America. We have power collectively,
but none of us have power by ourselves. All for
one and one for all is not a new idea, but the
era of globalization and internet technology has
denitely given it new meaning and new pos-
sibility.
Race is at the Center of Immigrant Justice and
Reform
Race, racism, and the struggle for racial jus-
tice are central to the immigrant experience
and character of the movement for three main
reasons:
1) Globalization policies have been an engine
of racism, negatively impacting peoples of color
disproportionately.
2) Dierent understandings of race, identity,
and racism, ill equip most immigrants to enter
the racialized context of US society and politics,
especially in the South. Most immigrants lack
the savvy and organizing skills needed to ad-
dress systemic racism, particularly in ways that
enable them to build upon the successes of the
struggles for civil and human rights and Native
American sovereignty and to link with black
folk. Many come to the US with negative ste-
reotypes about African Americans and think Dr.
M.L. King, Jr. corrected discrimination once and
for all. We are seen as weak and powerless, in
short, as unworthy allies. We are not regarded
as the revolutionary change-makers who, along
with our allies, were the creative force behind
social transformation in this country. ey
dont know our sacrices and struggles succeed-
ed in dismantling U.S. apartheid and ignited a
successful anti-war movement along with other
social struggles that extended U.S. democracy,
civil rights and economic opportunity to many
6 www.blackalliance.org
more than us to women, immigrants, work-
ers, environmentalists, LGBT, the poor, and the
dierently-abled, most of whom are white.
ey also dont appreciate that our victories
were incomplete and have been unraveled by
administrations over the past 25 years. ese
views prevail even now that we have a black
president.
3) U.S. Immigration policies, structures and the
way they are implemented (e.g. racial proling)
themselves are discriminatory and exclusionary,
fraught with preferences and bias according to
race, class, gender and sexual orientation. ey
perpetuate white supremacy and racial dispari-
ties. ey allow employers, lenders, landlords,
politicians, bureaucrats, and the organized right
to exploit, abuse, and manipulate native and
foreign born people of color, driving a wedge
that poses the most urgent threat to progressive
politics in America. Just immigration cannot
be accomplished without addressing systemic
policies as well as individual, institutional and
structural racism.
Today, the struggle for immigrant rights is at
the cutting edge of the struggles for racial and
worker justice and to mounting a campaign to
scrap neoliberal policies across the board. is
recognition alone should be a uniting factor of
labor, civil rights and immigrant rights move-
ments. Addressing black exclusion from the
formal economy, the super exploitation of im-
migrants, and the structural impediments that
have perpetuated race/wealth/gender dispari-
ties in the U.S., most notably in the South, is at
the heart of linking just immigration policy to
sustainable economic recovery, one that installs
a new set of just economic relations and can win
broad support.
It will take native born blacks and immigrants
joining together to shape policies for mutual
benet, which means recognizing how our
struggles are intertwined and our successes are
dependent upon one another.
Towards this end the African American com-
munity must come to grips with the new reali-
ties of race in the U.S.--the black-white para-
digm has given way to a much more complex
picture, marked not only with rising Latino and
Asian populations that have brought people of
color majorities to several states, but with ethnic
constructs, such as Latino, that defy race as we
understand it. us, the political landscape
for organizing is new to everyone and to have
impact, we will have to learn together how to
organize and collaborate eectively in mutual
solidarity and equality.
A Human Rights Approach to Immigration
A holistic and comprehensive approach to just
immigration policy must:
Encompass values and principles that uphold
the dignity, rights, justice and prosperity (not
just opportunity) for everyone;
Be linked to economic recovery policy that al-
lows for the participation, decision-making, and
BAJI Reader 7
benet to everyone, particularly liing those on
the bottom;
Address all who are aected, including
African-descent immigrants and poor women.
Because migration is a global phenomenon, just
immigration cannot be achieved by domestic
policy alone. e global nature of migration
and suggests that fair and just policies must ad-
dress:
1) e development needs in countries and
communities from which people were com-
pelled to depart;
2) Respect for and protection of human rights
of migrants in the countries where they arrive;
3) e infrastructure and development needs of
communities to which migrants come.
e right of people to stay in their own coun-
tries and to be productive, prosperous and safe
is a fundamental part of the UN Human Rights
Convention, which also requires that we chal-
lenge racial and religious proling, immigrant
raids, detentions and deportations without due
process; and the militarization of the US border.
e Far Right has championed these actions
in the name of national security, but they have
undermined the fundamental rights and politi-
cal space of us all.
e Need for A Southern Strategy
Interestingly, immigration from the Global
South and from other regions of the United
States has made the South an even more strate-
gic region for winning a progressive agenda in
America. Overwhelmingly black and white his-
torically, this still largely rural region has and is
undergoing stark transformation to one of vast
diversity where over 100 languages are spoken.
is new reality has brought both promise and
serious challenges.
e South has the fastest growing Latino popu-
lation in the nation AND the majority of Afri-
can Americans, many of whom reside in ma-
jority black districts. As evidenced in Obamas
election, the bastion of the conservative right is
undergoing political shis, due in large part to
the increase in majority minority counties and
voting patterns of young white voters. Yet, the
legacy of slavery--an economy of pollution, ex-
ploitation by outsiders and exclusion, primarily
through institutionalized perpetuation of white
supremacy--lingers. Barriers to black voting still
exist. And 287g, for example, has been imple-
mented aggressively and abusively in the South,
bringing local law enforcement into cooperation
with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
But serious tensions between African Americans
and immigrants have burst forth like geysers.
Instead of seeing the South as critical to national
transformation, many organizations and funders
regard it as peripheral.
Movement Building
If the immigrant rights movement is to over-
come its internal divisions and to build lasting
cross-racial and cross-community alliances
that wield power, it must broaden its strategic
outlook and willingly grapple with tough, com-
plicated problematics that defy quick xes and
sound bites. Here are a few of the many ques-
tions progressive movements must solve:
How do we take to scale educational strategies
that address the causes of global migration and
bridge multiple understandings of race, racism,
and identity?
How do we balance the deep and longer-term
work we all have to do to become authentic al-
lies with the urgency of immediate campaigns?
How is comprehensive, just immigration reform
linked to economic recovery that brings margin-
alized African Americans back into the formal
economy, benets everyone, and sustains the
planet? Q
Gerald Lenoir is the Executive Director of the
Black Alliance for Just Immigration. Leah Wise is
the former Executive Director and current Direc-
tor of Research and Popular Education of the
Southeast Regional Economic Justice Network.
8 www.blackalliance.org
Faith Without Borders:
A Sacred Co-journeying
Towards Just Immigration
by Rev. Kelvin Sauls
H
uman dignity, not political expedi-
ency must be the heart beat of the
anticipated immigration reform in
the United States. A human rights framework
must be foundational to the development of
immigration policy globally. Given the injus-
tice and discrimination experienced by im-
migrants in the United States, France, Russia,
Italy, China, etc, it is no longer acceptable to
talk about immigrant rights as separate from
human rights. Moreover, the othering of
immigrants devalues their sacredness, instead
of extending extravagant hospitality to new
neighbors in our homes, communities, and
places of work and worship. In a world where
migration willing and unwilling has be-
come an integral part of life, welcoming, lov-
ing, relating to, being with and co-journeying
with migrants, are opportunities to receive and
experience Gods grace.
Diverse faith traditions invite us on an ex-
traordinary sacred adventure towards both a
just legislation, and human destination. In the
Hebrew Scriptures, we witness Gods care and
concern for the immigrant. e Old Testament
reminds us we are to love and care for the im-
migrant in the same way we love and care for
ourselves (Exodus 22:21-22). us, oppression
of, discrimination towards, and exploitation
of immigrants are blasphemous! (Leviticus
19:33).
Instruction to secure the human rights of
immigrants is integral to Gods support for
the dignity and humanity of immigrants. is
common humanity requires respect whether
documented or not, citizen or immigrant
(Numbers 15:15b). Islams support is found in
these words from the Quran, do goodto
those in need. Neighbors who are near, neigh-
bors who are strangers, the companion by
your side, the wayfarer that you meet (4:36).
Our brothers and sisters in the Hindu faith are
charged with these words from the Taitiriya
Unpanishad, e guest is a representative of
God (1.11.2). Such religious alliances un-
derscore the sacred task of just treatment of
immigrants.
For Christians, the New Testament continues
African American ministers in Oakland, Calif. held a press conference in March 2010 in support of just immigration reform.
Photo credit; Gerald Lenoir
BAJI Reader 9
this divine discourse. us, for Christians,
God chose to become esh as a migrant in Je-
sus. Born homeless, dressed in strips of cloth,
and laid in a manger with hay as a blanket,
Jesus became a refugee to Africa. Political
oppression, economic instability, and unsafe
conditions forced Joseph to migrate to Egypt
with his family. Later in his life, Jesus engages
in countless border-crossing activities of heal-
ing and wholeness, restoration and reconcilia-
tion. Challenging religious complicity with the
discrimination and exploitation of immigrants,
Jesus introduces a faith without borders. is
border-crossing faith nds its incarnation in,
among other things, the transformation of
unjust laws and the transcendence of unfair
borders.
Enveloped in vulnerability and uncertainty, the
relocation of Joseph and Mary, plunged Jesus
into the middle of the immigrant and refu-
gee experience! Hence, as one who identies
himself with the immigrant in our midst, he
calls on His followers to provide extravagant
hospitality to the least of these (Matthew
25:38-40). Fellowship of Jesus Christ manifests
itself in acts of advocacy for the rights of, and
serving the needs of the least of these.
Arming the dignity and sacred worth of im-
migrants aord us the blessing to hear and see
the gospel made visible in the stories and lives
of immigrants. Discipleship in Jesus Christ is
inextricably linked with providing extravagant
hospitality and audacious hope to the least, the
last and the le out. Such can be the Christians
faithfulness to an immigrant-Savior. Such can
be the connectedness of biblically grounded
people of faith to our immigrant brothers and
sisters, a kinship that cannot be limited or
regulated by borders.
e vulnerability and insecurity, fragility and
fear that accompanied Joseph, Mary and Jesus,
are daily companions of immigrants locally
and globally. From discrimination and de-
privation to detention and deportation, our
immigrant brothers and sisters suer greatly.
Intentional violation of worker rights, result-
ing in exploitation, and indiscriminate federal
raids, threatens family unity and stability.
ese realities force immigrants into invisibil-
ity, criminal tendency, and thus, in the shad-
ows of society. Invisibility is sometimes used to
encourage and justify inhumane treatment.
Whether invisible or not, God loves the whole
world equally (John 3:16a). Moreover, God is
love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and
God in (them). If anyone says, I love God, yet
hates his brother/sister, he/she is a liar. For any-
Civil Rights Leader Rev. Joseph Lowery speaks at an event in Jackson, Mississippi sponsored by the Mississippi Immigrant Rights
Alliance (MIRA). Photo courtesy of the Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliance
10 www.blackalliance.org
one who does not love his brother/sister, whom
he/she has seen, cannot love God, whom he/
she has not seen. And he/she has given us this
command: Whoever loves God must also love
his brother/sister (1 John 4:7, 16b-21(NIV).
Just immigration reform starts with an analysis
of the impact of economic globalization and
corporate-backed foreign policies of the global
North towards the global South. Such analy-
sis will reveal the root causes of why so many
immigrants are forced to leave their homes
whether from rural to cities internally or
country to country internationally. Central to
just immigration reform is the transformation
of unjust global economic and trade policies.
Research, through statistics and stories, reveal
that debt, trade, environmental and develop-
ment policies of the West towards former
colonies and developing countries cause the
unwilling departure of immigrants from their
communities. Just reform must include debt
cancellation, worker-centered labor policies,
and sustainable development.
Additionally, the growing militarization of
borders and proliferation of privatized deten-
tion centers further increase the suering and
inhumane treatment of immigrants and border
communities. Securing borders through con-
structing walls, disrespecting sacred lands, and
disregarding the human rights of immigrants,
without addressing the root causes of global
migration, are short-sighted and morally de-
cient. In response to this biblical mandate to
treat all as neighbors, we welcome and work
with migrants. Moreover, we live with and
learn from migrants as sacred incarnations of
God!

Our calling as followers of Jesus the Christ
is to stand in solidarity with our immigrant
neighbors and to advocate for justice on their
behalf. As an ordained clergy in covenant
with a global community of faith consisting
of, and founded by immigrants, advocacy for
just immigration is multi-faceted. e United
Methodist Church arms the inherent dignity,
value, and human rights of all immigrants
regardless of their legal status.
According to the denominations policy on
global migration, Attitudes toward migrants are
usually conditioned todayby nation-state con-
siderations expressed in the language of us and
themor we the home folks and they the
intruder/alien. A benecent attitude sometimes
prevails: We will allow x number of them to
come among us provided they acknowledge
our generosity and become like us; so long, of
course, as they do not threaten our comfort. In
Rev. Kelvin Sauls makes his point at a BAJI gathering in Los Angeles, December 2010. Photo credit; Eric Van Dyke
BAJI Reader 11
the biblical understanding, it is not about us
and them, but about one people of God, called
to seek justice and share equitablyChristians
do not approach the issue of migration from the
perspective of tribe or nation, but from within a
faith community of love and welcome
ough nations have the right to secure their
borders, the primary concern for Christians is
the welfare and dignity of immigrants, as well
as the vitality and wellness of communities.
e Apostle Paul reminds us that when one
member suers, all members suer as well (1
Corinthians 12:26).
e solidarity we share through Christ elimi-
nates the boundaries and barriers that exclude
and isolate. e sojourners we are called to
love are our brothers and sisters, our mothers
and fathers, our sons and daughters; indeed,
they are us. God did not create illegal human
beings, nor anchor babies!
Black immigrants in the United States con-
tinue to be rendered invisible, voiceless and
disempowered. e consequences of such
strategies are discrimination through prol-
ing, and deprivation from social services.
Detention and deportation follow soon and
swily. Divide-and-conquer, mis-education,
and misunderstanding continue to be tools of
disempowerment within the African Diaspora
in the United States. e opportunity before us
is to view the struggle for just immigration as
a common struggle for a more equal and fair
society.
e struggle for equal treatment under the
law for immigrants of African, Caribbean and
Latino descent and African Americans are
inextricably linked. We must refuse the temp-
tation of allowing ourselves to be pitted against
each other. It is no longer acceptable to discuss
immigrants rights separate from civil and hu-
man rights. e immigrant rights movement
must urgently join forces with the unnished
agenda of the civil rights movement, to forge
a new global human rights movement! Such
a movement will possess the power to propel
the integrity and possibility of the Mahatma-
Martin-Mandela-message beyond the borders
of any one nation.
We must organize and mobilize to take out the
complex three-headed monster of global mi-
gration, immigration and emigration. Mobiliz-
ing and strategizing economically, spiritually
and politically are critical leveraging building
blocks. None of us can aord the arrogance
of our ignorance, nor the ignorance of our
arrogance. e situation is too dire for such
weapons of mass distraction. e ostrichsyn-
drome, burying our heads in the sand, is not
an option any longer! is is the time to sound
the alarm, not hit the snooze button.
In the words of Dr. Martin Luther, Jr., it is
possible in history to be too late with the right
answers. Jesus broadly inclusive vision of
Gods Kin-dom invites us to attain and ac-
tualize a faith not limited by, nor dened by
borders. Our future depends on it. Our faith
demands it! Q
We must organize...to take out the complex three-headed
monster of global migration, immigration and emigration.
Mobilizing and strategizing economically, spiritually and
politically are critical leveraging building blocks.
Rev. Kelvin Sauls is a co-founder of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration. He works as the
Executive Director of New Ministries of the California-Pacifc Conference of the United Method-
ist Church.
12 www.blackalliance.org
by Marlon Peterson and Janis Rosheuvel
I
n a news conference in June 2009, Presi-
dent Obama speaking on comprehensive
immigration reform, with Senator John
McCain sitting to his le, said in a conciliatory
tone, is is a nation of immigrants... Were
going to create a stronger nation for our chil-
dren and grandchildren. As he exited stage
le, millions of children who had their mother
or father deported, or whose parents were fac-
ing deportation, likely wondered, Is he think-
ing about me when he talks about making this
nation stronger?

e concept of comprehensive immigration
reform has in recent memory conveniently
neglected people with criminal convictions
who have been severely impacted by the
draconian immigration policies initiated with
the sweeping overhaul of immigration laws
in 1996. People who have had interactions
with the criminal justice system are oen only
mentioned in this debate as scapegoats to fuel
anti-immigrant sentiment. Speaking up for
people with criminal convictions is a no-no in
politics, if you want a career in that arena so
steeped in tough on crime mantras.
Many national immigration advocacy groups
also mute their voices when it comes to im-
migrants with convictions, oen resigned
that this group will be the rst marginalized
in the conversation on reform and the last
to get relief from these harsh laws. Some say
on one hand that the undocumented farm
worker whose labor and humanity is exploited
at below minimum wage in the scathing sun
of Arizona is more worthy of staying with
her children in this country than the person
convicted of a crime. Others argue that people
with permanent residency status who have
criminal convictions are more worthy of relief.
Who is more deserving of the chance to keep
their family together?
Ask that question to the nine-year-old girl
whose father was taken away from her in a
home raid in the middle of the night. Speak-
ing of her experience with deportation, she
said, e INS (Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, or ICE) took my dad away from
me when I was in kindergarten. ey came to
my house early in the morning and took him
while I was sleeping. My mother told me they
took him in his bathrobe. ey should at least
consider the children before breaking up any
Immigration Reform We Can Believe In:
Ending Criminalization and Enforcement in our
Communities
Families for Freedom and other organizations in New York orga-
nized and stopped the deportation of Jean Montrevils, a father of
four from Haiti.
BAJI Reader 13
families. Do you think she feels any child or
family should have to face the absurd question
of who is more deserving of a family life?
For families at risk of deportation, asking this
kind of question is an exercise in folly. In-
deed, the real questions to be asking are: How
has increasing policing and enforcement of
criminal and immigration laws torn millions
of families apart? How are the lives of people
of color criminalized in our society? Who
benets from the mass incarceration of people
of color? In fact, we should also pay attention
to the communities that are overwhelmingly
aected by this type of family separation.
People of color who are disproportionately
overrepresented in prisons and jails in the U.S.
are also the face of deportation. In New York
State, approximately 63% of the foreign-born
incarcerated population is either from Colum-
bia, Cuba, Guyana, Jamaica, or Mexico with
one-quarter born in the Dominican Repub-
lic. If we dig a little deeper, we discover that
about 75% of the people in New York State
prisons come from New York City. With so
many people coming from a highly concen-
trated area (and these are only New York State
statistics!) and over 50,000 people deported
to the Caribbean within the past 10 years,
we get a picture of the human rights crisis
of deportation happening in our midst. As
fathers and increasingly mothers are sent back
to their native countries, how are we creating
the stronger nation to which President Obama
alluded if we are leaving multitudes of children
without parents?

Current immigration policy and practice also
exemplies why real reform is so desperately
needed. Policies like the State Criminal Alien
Assistance Program (SCAAP), which allows
the federal government to reimburse states
for costs they incur for incarcerating criminal
aliens (under which NY State received $492
million between 1995-2004); the Anti-terror-
ism and Eective Death Penalty Act, the Illegal
Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility
Act (which, among other things, eliminated
the ability of most immigration defendants
to be released on bond even if they are not
considered a ight risk) subject immigrants to
second-class status whether documented or
not.
Further, the now infamous 287g program
deputizes local law enforcement ocers and
makes them immigration agents. With no
mandate and little requisite knowledge, train-
ing, or experience in dealing with the enforce-
ment of immigration laws, they routinely turn
non-citizens into victims of racial proling,
resulting in increased stop and frisks, arrests,
lock downs and deportations. Reform needs
to comprehensively undermine this expanding
constellation of terror on our communities, a
system that writer Roberto Lavato has dubbed,
Juan Crow.
is term comprehensive, according to Web-
sters International Edition, means all inclu-
sive needs to be taken literally. Comprehen-
sive reform needs to include reliefs that take
into account the stories of all families that are
impacted by the current brutality of immigra-
tion laws. It needs to recognize the rights of all
American children from immigrant families.
Todays immigration system tears U.S. citizen
children from their parents, destroying the
family. Many times families are subsequently
forced to endure harsh economic and psycho-
logical hardship. Americas children deserve
better for their future. e government can-
not continue to deny them the right to family
unity.

To be sure, the issues of family unity, mass
incarceration, criminalization, felony disen-
14 www.blackalliance.org
franchisement, racial proling and hyper-
policing/enforcement are at the heart of what
Families for Freedom (FFF) and our allies
across the country believe immigration reform
must urgently address. Founded in September
2002, FFF is a New York City-based immigrant
advocacy organization of families aected by
deportation. It is a multi-ethnic defense net-
work by and for immigrants facing and ght-
ing deportation. We are immigrant prisoners
(detainees), former immigrant prisoners, their
loved ones, or individuals at risk of depor-
tation. We come from dozens of countries,
across continents.
FFF seeks to repeal the laws that are tearing
apart homes and neighborhoods, to build the
power of immigrant communities as commu-
nities of color, and to provide a guiding voice
in the growing movement for immigrant rights
as human rights. Because this is who we are,
we believe we must ght for our loved ones-
-people with criminal convictions as well as
those we are undocumented--who are most
oen marginalized in the debate on immigra-
tion reform.
As part of a growing movement for real com-
prehensive immigration reform, FFF has
joined forces with the NY-based New Agenda
for Broad Immigration Reform (NABIR-pro-
nounced neighbor) a diverse coalition of grass-
roots, advocacy, and faith-based organizations
uniting behind the principle that all -- not just
some -- immigrants must have the opportunity
to live lawfully in the United States, free from
fears and threats of deportation.
is movement rejects the notion that crimi-
nal convictions and other statutory bars should
determine whether immigrants can remain
here to work and to be with their families. And
it insists on an end to the aggressive enforce-
ment measures and unjust deportations that
continue to devastate our communities. We
call for the elimination of mandatory deten-
tion and demand that the hallmarks of Ameri-
can justice, including fundamental notions
of fairness and due process, be restored to all
immigration processes and proceedings.
Consistent with these principles, we seek to
educate, empower, and mobilize immigrants,
faith leaders, civil rights advocates, business
and labor organizations, and others to ght for
true immigration reform. rough practical
solutions grounded in community knowledge,
we work to transform our immigration system
and to ensure basic human rights and protec-
tions for all immigrant families.

As the immigrant rights movement looks
toward new opportunities for reform, it is
striking that deportations under President
Obama are higher than under his predecessor.
If we are to address the mounting devastation
wrought by deportation on our families and
communities, we must organize to demand of
our President real change for all families. Mass
movement induces mass change. e mass of
people, including the politically unattractive,
the policy makers, social justice advocates and
community members can bring about reforms
we can all believe in. Q
Marlon Peterson is an advocate for social justice
that utilizes his talents as a writer, speaker, and
organizer. His unique experiences as a son of
immigrants, a formerly incarcerated person,
and youth mentor, motivate him. He cur-
rently volunteers at Families for Freedom. To
learn more about Marlon check out his blog at
pensfromthepen1.blogspot.com.

Janis Rosheuvel was born in Georgetown, Guy-
ana and is the Executive Director of Families for
Freedom, a NY-based multiethnic network of
immigrant families facing and ghting deporta-
tion through community support, education and
organizing. Find more information on Families
for Freedom at: www.familiesforfreedom.org.
BAJI Reader 15
16 www.blackalliance.org
Do not tamper with the Constitution
By Eric Ward
R
atied in 1868 aer a long bloody civil war over slavery, the 14th Amendment granted citi-
zenship to any person born in the United States, compelled states to adhere to due process
and ensured equal protection under the law. is last clause confers on all people not
just citizens the right to such protection.
At the start of this year, some of our nations top state legislators joined hands in Washington,
D.C., with the legal institute of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) to un-
dercut the 14th Amendment. (FAIR has been listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law
Center.)
Altering the 14th Amendments citizenship clause would amount to redening what it means to
be an American by modifying the terms of citizenship on barely concealed racial grounds. ese
state elected ocials argue that trashing the 14th Amendment is crucial to controlling our nations
borders. But immigration reform cannot be achieved by undermining the individual liberties of
American citizens. Attempts by state-level politicians to do so in the past have been disastrous to
American democracy.
For instance, state anti-immigrant laws that require proof of citizenship have had a signicant
negative impact on the African-American community. Professor Tim Vercellotti of Rutgers
University has found that the African-American vote was suppressed by 5.7 percent in states that
demand voter identication.
While people of good conscience may reasonably disagree over the nations immigration policies,
eorts to tamper with the 14th Amendment must be rejected. Anyone born here deserves to be a
citizen. is approach has worked well for 143 years. Millions of American families of every color
have beneted from the generosity of spirit that the citizenship clause oers. ere is no good
reason to revoke it now.
Eric Ward, the national eld director for the Center for New Community, writes for the website
Imagine 2050 (imagine2050.newcomm.org). He can be reached at [email protected]. is
article was originally published in e Progressive Magazine. Q
Eric Ward is the former national feld director for the Center for New Community. This article
was originally published in The Progressive Magazine.
BAJI Reader 17
Statement of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration
on the Attacks on Birthright Citizenship and the
Fourteenth Amendment
A
s state legislators throughout the United States begin to attack birthright citizenship and
undermine the integrity of the Fourteenth Amendment the Black Alliance for Just Immi-
gration oers the following statement:
e Black Alliance for Just Immigration condemns any attempts to reinterpret the Fourteenth
Amendment by denying birthright citizenship to anyone born in the United States despite their
parents citizenship status. As an organization and movement comprised of African Americans,
African immigrants, Caribbean immigrants and Afro-Latinos residing in the United States we
know that this kind of denial of basic citizenship rights to children will further disenfranchise
communities of color and create a class of stateless youth.
ese attempts to undermine the Fourteenth Amendment are unconstitutional and are part of the
tradition of racism and xenophobia that our ancestors have fought hard to dismantle. Further-
more, the attack on the Fourteenth Amendment marks an unfortunate shi in our political dis-
course and only signies that we are moving further from real solutions to our complex national
and global concerns. Moreover, this type of xenophobic discourse does not begin to address the
root causes of migration and is not congruent with the realties of the disastrous eects of global-
ization, which is the principle cause of modern day migratory patterns.
e Black Alliance for Just Immigration will stand with immigrant communities in Arizona and
across the country in opposing the reinterpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment and in assert-
ing the birthright citizenship rights of children of undocumented immigrants. Q
Veterans of the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Summer meet with immigrant rights activists in Phoenix in 2010.
Photo credit: Gerald Lenoir
18 www.blackalliance.org
From Poverty to Prosperity: The Roots Causes of
Poverty and Migration in Haiti
by Francesca Menes
Introduction
O
n January 1, 1804, a revolution led by slaves against colonialism and slavery was the very
rst successful Black movement in the world resulting in an independent state. On Janu-
ary 1, 2010, the Republic of Haiti celebrated its 206th year of Independence. Tragically, on
January 12, 2010 at 4:53 pm, this beautiful, mountainous Pearl of the Antilles was brought to its
knees by a major natural disaster--this time by a 7.0 earthquake.
In the wake of the recent earthquake, the international community has come to the immediate
aid of Haiti. Cuba and Venezuela were some of the rst-responder nations to the catastrophe,
sending doctors and medical equipment to assist with the wounded. Not too far behind was the
United States. e U.S. sent aid, governmental organizations, and the military. Of course this is
not the rst time there has been such a massive military presence in Haiti by the U.S. government.
Unfortunately, this is a well-designed strategy for U.S.-Haiti relations. Anytime conditions in
Haiti have been unstable, the American government has sent the military in to protect democ-
racy and protect American and foreign interests.
U.S. Occupations of Haiti
On July 28, 1915, three hundred and thirty
United States Marines, led by Admiral Wil-
liam B. Caperton entered Port-au-Prince,
Haiti. is was the rst U.S. occupation of
Haiti which consequently lasted 19 years.
During the occupation, the U.S. government
led by then-President Woodrow Wilson,
initiated several administrative changes. e
most signicant change was the redraing
of the Republic of Haitis Constitution. e
U.S. (through its puppet-president Philippe
Sudr Dartiguenave) amended the constitu-
tion repealing the article that was set forth by
Jean-Jacque Dessalines in 1804, forbidding
land ownership by foreigners. Additionally, the
U.S. created the Army of Haiti (Forces Armes
dAyiti) whose primary purpose was to main-
tain stability in the Republic. Ultimately, on
August 7, 1933, Haiti and the U.S. signed an
agreement on the withdrawal of U.S. troops
from the country, which eventually ended the
rst U.S. occupation of Haiti.

On December 16, 1990, Father Jean-Bertrand
Aristide became the rst democratically
elected President of Haiti. On February 7,
1991, Aristide was sworn in as President and
subsequently on September 30, 1991 President
Aristide was overthrown by a coup dtat led by
Haitis military chief, Lt. Gen. Raoul Cedras. In
September 1994 as of result of the coup, some
twenty thousand U.S. troops entered Haiti to
assist with the return of the overthrown Presi-
dent Aristide. is came to be known as U.S.
Operation Uphold Democracy that ocially
ended on March 31, 1995.
In addition to Operation Uphold Democracy
in 1994, the United Nations has continued to
have a presence in Haiti since the ousting of
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2004. MI-
NUSTAH (French: Mission des Nations Unies
pour la Stabilisation en Hati; English: United
Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti) is led
by the Brazilian Army. e current UN mis-
sion is authorized until October 15, 2010. is
peacekeeping mission has been criticized
since its inception. MINUSTAH has conduct-
BAJI Reader 19
ed raids in the many slums of the capital and
have killed many innocent civilians in the pro-
cess. On July 6, 2005, MINUSTAH carried out
a raid in the slum of Cit Soleil, which resulted
in the death of about 23 people. In addition to
Cit Soleil, there have been reports of a cam-
paign of political cleansing in the slum of Bel
Air. Reports from pro-Lavalas sources, as well
as journalists such as Kevin Pina, contend that
the raid targeted civilians and was an attempt
to destroy the popular support for Haitis
exiled former leader, Jean-Bertrand Aristide,
before scheduled upcoming elections.
Haiti is known to the world as the poorest
country in the Western Hemisphere. Its a
nation full of political instability and corrup-
tion. Many observers believe there is no way
that Haiti can ever be salvaged or developed.
Nations that enter declare they enter Haiti
to strengthen democratic institutions and to
promote peace and prosperity. Yet brutal dicta-
tors such as Jean-Claude Baby Doc Duvalier,
the former dictator of Haiti, who succeeded
his father Papa Doc, remains free and un-
prosecuted for the criminal acts he committed
while in power.
Additionally, the countrys infrastructure was
in shambles and now as a result of the hur-
ricanes of 2000 and 2004 and the earthquakes
of January 2010, the infrastructure in Haiti
has completely collapsed. Meanwhile, the U.S.
continues to occupy Haiti in the wake of the
earthquake and remains completely oblivious
to the needs of the people of Haiti. e U.S. is
much more concerned with stopping a poten-
tial migration of Haitians into the U.S.
Economic Globalization and Migration
Trends
When attempting to understand migration
trends of Haitians, it is pertinent to understand
the root causes of migration. Many Haitians
who risk their lives to get on a boat and make
the conscious decision to leave Haiti do not do
it by choice, but rather out of necessity. John
Maxwell in his article, Racism and Poverty
states: When large numbers of people are
reduced to eating dirt..., it is impossible to
imagine poverty any more absolute, any more
desperate, any more inhuman and degrading.
About 80% of Haitis population is unem-
ployed and living on less than a dollar a day.
In a population of about 9 million people,
6.2 million lives in poverty. Additionally, as a
result of the policies of the International Mon-
etary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB),
Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) were
instituted. rough conditionalities, SAPs
commonly implement internal changes such as
privatization and deregulation (which gener-
ally leads to less accountability and oversight).
is leads to the privatization of health care
(we have all seen how well its going in the
U.S.), the privatization of education, and all
other social programs. All in all, SAP pro-
20 www.blackalliance.org
grams do not provide oversight and mecha-
nisms of accountability. Everything is trans-
ferred from public to private hands, where the
interests is not in serving the population, but
in personal gain.
Economic globalization is another factor that
has a tremendous eect on increasing poverty
rates in Haiti. e biggest problems that eco-
nomic globalization creates is: 1) Brain Drain
-- this is in response to the opportunities in
richer countries such as the U.S., Canada,
and France. Because of this, many Haitians
leave and never come back and 2) Sweatshops
-- foreign businesses invest in Haiti to take
advantage of lower wage rates and to exploit
workers.
A measure backed by the U.S. is the Haitian
Hemispheric Opportunity through Partner-
ship Encouragement (HOPE) Act of 2006.
Ultimately, this act created an avenue for in-
crease economic development in Haiti, as well
as, exploitation of Haitian workers. In 2008,
HOPE II was passed which required Haiti to
establish an independent labor ombudsmans
oce and a program operated by the Interna-
tional Labor Organization to assess compli-
ance with core labor rights and Haitis labor
laws in the countrys apparel factories. Now
with the additions made to HOPE II, the U.S.
created some form of accountability to worker
exploitation. One of the signicant changes
that was made was the increase of Haitis mini-
mum wage from 70 gourdes to 200 gourdes
(1.75 USD to 5.50 USD), which was strongly
opposed by Haitian Industrialists.
e State of Haiti: Natural Disaster
Before the earthquakes on January 12, 2010,
the masses of Haiti were homeless, suering
from malnutrition and hunger, which was
due,in part, to the hurricanes, oods, mud-
slides and food crises. Although many of the
problems stem from the natural disasters that
have damaged the island, they can also be
traced to the racism and classism that exist in
the nation. Haitis most serious social problem
is the economic gap between the impover-
ished Creole-speaking black majority and the
French-speaking mulattos, 1% of whom own
nearly half the countrys wealth.
In August 2008, four major storms ravaged
Haiti (Tropical Storm Fay and Hanna and Hur-
ricane Gustav and Ike) killing hundreds and
displacing hundreds of thousands. e storms
caused ooding in all ten of the departments
in Haiti. e storms destroyed approximately
one-third of the countrys rice crop, where
in many parts farming is the only means of
survival. e livelihoods of many were de-
stroyed and the food crisis in Haiti was exac-
erbated. Regrettably the circumstances have
not changed one bit in regards to the 2010
earthquakes in Haiti. In spite of the massive
inux of aid into Haiti, many are still hungry,
not receiving the proper medical care and are
living in sheet-covered tents.
Some community leaders in Miami have stated
that the classism is evident in Haiti. Some have
come back with reports that many of the mass-
es are suering from starvation and shockingly
others are actually overeating.
To be fair, not all of the response to the earth-
quake has been poor. ere have been a
couple of huge things that came out in re-
sponse to the disaster. e rst was the grant-
ing of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to
undocumented Haitians by the Obama Ad-
ministration shortly aer the earthquake. TPS
campaigns have been organized by many
Economic globalization is another factor that has a
tremendous effect on increasing poverty rates in Haiti.
BAJI Reader 21
organizations nationally and a few internation-
ally since the storms of 2000 and 2004.
e second positive that has come out of the
catastrophe has been that Haitis debt to the
World Bank and the International Monetary
Fund totaling over $300 million was cancelled.
In the U.S. this eort has been led for years
by many organizations, one of which is very
invested in the campaign for debt cancella-
tion, Jubilee USA Network. is organization
has worked closely with Congress, specically,
Rep. Maxine Waters to introduce the Jubilee
Act for Responsible Lending and Expanded
Debt Cancellation Act. Now that Haitis debt
has been cancelled, we must look to the future
for the development and sustainability of Haiti.
Upward Bound: Whats in Haitis Future?
To say that we can predict what the future
holds for Haiti would be a massive stretch.
However, I do not believe its a stretch to think
about what we would like to see for the future
of Haiti. Ayiti Cherim translates into My
Darling Haiti, Haiti is a beautiful island with
an equally rich and beautiful history. Haiti
was once a prosperous country and I truly
believe with the right attention, it will have its
day. Specically, I am suggesting the follow-
ing policy considerations to address critical
concerns for sustainability in Haiti:
1) Poverty Alleviation: We, the international
community, need to recognize that Haiti is
poor. We cannot only say it, but we must
acknowledge it and gure out the root causes
to its poverty. With the knowledge gained, we
must then nd applicable solutions. We must
nd solutions to address the issues of defores-
tation, clean water, and reliable electricity.
2) Political Instability: Acknowledge the politi-
cal instability in Haiti, which in turn should
lead to the formulation of policies to deal with
Haitian migrants as we have done with other
groups. e denial rate for Haitian political
asylum is about 85-90%. Yet almost every day
a Haitian is killed for political reasons or takes
a life-threatening journey to the U.S. to escape
political persecution.
3) Economic Reform: ere is a need for a
massive overhauling of Haitis political and
economic structure. Instead of the U.S. and the
United Nations sending in troops to protect
democracy, how about the U.S. and the rest
of the international community sending in
developers to assist with the reformation of
the economic system in Haiti? One of the
biggest things Haiti lacks is a system of taxes.
is has been the primary attraction for many
who come to Haiti to make a quick buck. It
is imperative for a country to have a system of
taxes to assist with the economic stability of
the country.
4) Sovereignty: Haiti is an independent na-
tion, yet with the continuous occupation of the
nation and the never-ending parade of troops,
many would believe otherwise. Haitians must
be allowed to run their own country without
interference from other nations. e interna-
tional community needs to take a step back
instead of kidnapping presidents and install-
ing puppet presidents.
Although at the present moment, Haiti is suf-
fering, it is not in vain. Haiti will one day get
o its knees and stand up on its two feet. It will
have righted all of its wrong and be a prosper-
ous nation. e day will come when the people
will not ee their home, but will rejoice in the
beauty that is Haiti. e day will come where
the doctors, engineers, and entrepreneurs will
come home and the brain drain will end. With
this renewed spirit, a new dawn of economic
prosperity and political stability is on the hori-
zon. Q
Francesca Menes is a Cum Laude graduate of Florida
International University and a former Ronald E. McNair
Scholar. She is currently a community organizer living in
Miami, FL working for the Florida Immigrant Coalition.
22 www.blackalliance.org
We Stand with Haiti
A Statement from the Black
Alliance for Just Immigration
T
he earthquake that hit Haiti in January
2010 was a devastating blow to a coun-
try that has weathered many natural
and manmade disasters since it gained its
independence in 1804. Like Katrina in New
Orleans in 2005, the disaster in Haiti uncov-
ered the underlying racism and economic
exploitation that the people of Haiti have been
suering under for centuries.
e reason 80% of the Haitian people were
living in poverty before the earthquake is that
their democracy and their economy have been
subverted time and time again by the actions
of the United States, France and other Western
nations. As a result, millions of unemployed
and impoverished Haitians resided in and
around the capital city of Port-au-Prince in
substandard, earthquake-prone housing.
And like New Orleans, black people are being
demonized, criminalized and marginalized by
the U.S. government, U.N. authorities, right
wing pundits and the U.S. media. ey have
been called devil worshippers, rioters and loot-
ers. ere is much talk in the media about the
endemic corruption in Haiti with not a peep
about the U.S. complicity in condoning and
supporting dictator aer dictator and in back-
ing the 2004 overthrow and kidnapping of Jean
Bertrand Aristide, the democratically elected
president of Haiti. Nothing is said about the
long history of U.S. corporations exploiting
Haitian workers in the foreign-owned sweat-
shops and factories.
Show Your Solidarity
As U.S. citizens and residents, we cannot allow
our government to continue its misuse and
abuse of Haiti. We must stand for justice for
the Haitian people.
Towards that end, BAJI calls on the people in
the United States to support these measures:
1. e U.S. government and U.S. relief agen-
cies should expedite development aid to Haiti
to alleviate the health, housing and employ-
ment crises that grip the country;
2. e people of Haiti must be directly in-
volved in planning and carry out the relief
and rebuilding eort. e rebuilding eort
should vigorously seek the development of a
sustainable economy not a sweatshop-based
manufacturing platform for the benet of for-
eign, multinational corporations. e Haitian
BAJI Reader 23
poor must also benet from the employment
that will be generated and must be paid liv-
able wages;
3. Now and in the future, the U.S. government
should expedite the applications of Haitians
in the U.S. who have applied for family visas
to bring their family members fro Haiti to the
United States.
4. e U.S. government should grant at least
60,000 Humanitarian Parole visas to Haitians
who have suered because of the earthquake,
especially those in need of intensive medical
care. No Haitians should be treated as crimi-
nals and should not be put in detention centers
at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba or in the United
States for attempting to migrate to the United
States.
5. ose Haitians in the United States with
Temporary Protected Status should have the
ability to apply for permanent residency.
6. e United States should immediately halt
the deportation of Haitians who are deemed to
be criminal.
7. e United States government should sup-
port the restoration of democracy in Haiti and
the return of the democratically elected presi-
dent of Haiti, Jean Bertrand Aristide, who was
deposed in 2004 with U.S. assistance. Q
The United States government should support the
restoration of democracy in Haiti and the return of
the democratically elected president of Haiti, Jean
Bertrand Aristide.
24 www.blackalliance.org
The Liberian Story: A Search
for Stability and Security
by Oni Richards Waritay
F
or many immigrants, insecurity, humili-
ation and unpredictability is a way of life.
e human desire to establish roots and
gain stability seems impossible as our lives
continue to be interrupted and placed in disar-
ray, keeping us in a constant state of starting
over. Human migration by choice is a natural
course of life that has happened since humans
inhabited this planet. Forced migration how-
ever, is unnatural and oen the result of insuf-
ferable consequences. Despite this, immigrants
in the latter category are oen looked upon
unfavorably and their stories never fully told or
understood. Understanding their escape from
hardships and yearning for security and peace
is shunned in favor of seeing them solely as
nuisances that society needs to rid itself of.
ere are many stories, but I would like to fo-
cus on the story of a group of immigrants from
a tiny country on the West Coast of Africa:
Liberia. is story of immigration is particu-
larly unique due to Liberias history, which is
inextricably linked to that of the United States.
Liberia, Africas rst republic, was founded and
colonized by freed American slaves and the
American Colonization Society who arrived in
1822.
During World War II, Liberias invaluable
natural resources and strategically placed ter-
ritory was sought out and utilized by the U.S.
government to store war supplies, construct
military bases and transport American soldiers.
When the price of rubber became a threat to
the U.S. automobile industry, America and the
Firestone Corporation turned to Liberia where
they received an incredulous deal of a 99-year
lease on one million acres of prime rubber
producing land for ve cents an acre. e
United States has consistently beneted from
its relationship with Liberia and continues to
be deeply involved in the aairs of this nation.
To ensure Liberias allegiance, the U.S. govern-
ment provided millions of dollars in high inter-
est loans to the country, even when these loans
were clearly not being used for the growth
and development of the nation and its people.
Instead of funding healthcare and education,
these loans were oen utilized by the ruling
parties to further oppress their citizens and en-
hance their defense capabilities. ese factors
are important in understanding how inten-
tional underdevelopment of a nation and its
people and the exploitation of resources with
help from outside players contribute, in part, to
poverty, violence and subsequently, migration.
It is comprehensible that people would prefer
to remain in their homes, where they are sur-
rounded by the familiar, including their lan-
guage, culture and family. When this is made
impossible, the push and pull factors of mi-
gration need to be examined and addressed.
Instead of creating policies that punish and
humiliate immigrants, it would be more
benecial to create policies that support their
ability to survive in their place of origin or
place of current domain. Liberian immigrants
were pushed out of their homes and country
when a long brewing civil war erupted.
In 1989, Charles Taylor escaped from a U.S.
BAJI Executive Director Gerald Lenoir met the Liberian Ambas-
sador to the U.S. Milton Nathaniel Barnes at an event sponsored
by the Citizens and Friends of Liberia. Photo by Alona Clion
BAJI Reader 25
prison and began a brutal civil war in Liberia
where 200,000 people were killed and another
800,000 displaced from their homes. Despite
Liberias unique history and alliance with the
United States in the past, the U.S. failed to
intervene and help prevent or stop this civil
war. As many as 700,000 Liberians became
refugees around the world and many of these
refugees landed in the United States. Some of
the Liberians who arrived were rst given Tem-
porary Protected Status (TPS) in 1991. Liberian
TPS was then extended each year until 2007.
In 2007, President Bush granted an 18-month
extension, DED (Deferred Enforced Depar-
ture) and in 2009, President Obama granted
another 12-month extension. en in March
2010, President Obama granted an additional
18-month extension until September 2011.
is title of Deferred Enforced Departure
attached to anyone would cause anxiety and
distress. Liberians live with this daily as they
await their fate every 12-18 months. is
constant game of wait and see if DED will be
renewed and extended takes an immense toll
on the mental, physical and emotional health of
a people who have already suered tremendous
pain and suering. It would be inhumane for
the U.S. government to enforce a mass deporta-
tion to a country that is slowly trying to recover
from a 13 year long civil war where unemploy-
ment, recurring violence, continuing human
rights violations, lack of adequate health and
educational facilities and high levels of illit-
eracy prevail.
Aer escaping a brutal civil war, Liberians
have tried to pick up the broken pieces of their
lives and put them back together by starting
families, opening businesses, going to school,
buying homes and a host of other successes.
Liberians, like many immigrants and many U.S.
citizens, are hard working, law-abiding, tax-
paying people who have individually and col-
lectively become an integral part of this society.
Additionally, the Liberian economy and people
depend largely on remittances from those liv-
ing and working here. Liberia is unprepared to
absorb thousands of its citizens and this mass
inux could overburden its edgling facilities
and possibly lead to more chaos and conict.
If the United States is sincere in supporting
development and peace eorts in Liberia, it
would be counter-productive to deport thou-
sands of people at such a fragile time in the
countrys revitalization. Deporting already
traumatized people to this situation is unjust.
is expulsion will negatively impact the U.S.
economy as millions of dollars will be spent to
enforce it.
Providing permanent status to the Liberians
living in the U.S. would be a political, economic
and moral victory for the U.S. Until this can be
achieved, the President should renew Deferred
Enforced Departure to Liberians for an addi-
tional two years when it expires in 2012.
Liberia has served the interests of the U.S. for
many years, and now the U.S. should work in
the interest of Liberia and its people. is story
of immigration is one of many. Next time you
meet an immigrant, do not assume that you
know their story or why they are here. Learn
the facts and maybe then you, too, will be
inspired to join the ght for a just immigration
policy that will focus on the person rather than
the interests of corporations and governments.
Lets work to ensure free movement and fair
treatment for all people. Q
Oni Richards Waritay is a Liberian citizen living in United States. She has been doing advocacy work on
the issues of the status of Liberian refugees through the Hebrew Immigrant Aids Society and the Migra-
tion Council in Philadelphia.