>Mime-Version: 1.0 >Approved-By: Nathan Newman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Date: Wed, 13 Sep 1995 17:40:04 -0700 >Reply-To: 187-L - Resisting and Organizing Against Prop 187 > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Sender: 187-L - Resisting and Organizing Against Prop 187 > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >From: Nathan Newman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Women's rights at US-Mexico Border (fwd) > >---------- Forwarded message ---------- >Date: Wed, 13 Sep 1995 17:27:14 -0700 >From: Moonshadow <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subject: Women's rights at US-Mexico Border > >Found the following on PeaceNet, and thought it would be of interest >to everyone here. > >......... Cynthia > > >>/* Written 8:44 AM Sep 7, 1995 by afscilemp in igc:wcw.ngo.doc */ >>/* ---------- "Women's rights at US-Mexico Border" ---------- */ >>WOMEN AT THE US-MEXICO BORDER: Violation of Women's Rights as >>Human Rights in Border Crossings. >> >>A Special Report of the >> >>American Friends Service Committee >> >>Immigration Law Enforcement Monitoring Project >> >>Houston, Texas >> >>September 1995 >> >>" There's a real double standard in the way they treat men and >>women migrants. They are a lot more suspicious of women. They >>accuse them of being pregnant and trying to come into the United >>States to have their baby or marry a gringo. >> >>It happened to a graduate [woman] student, it happened to the >>daughter of an ambassador representing his country in the United >>States and it happened to a beauty queen on a goodwill tour." >> >> >> Douglas Massey >> >> Professor of >> Sociology >> >> University of >> Pennsylvania >> >> San Diego Union >> Tribune >> >> August 10, 1995 >> >> >> >>PREFACE >> >> >>AFSC-ILEMP with the collaboration of local community organizations >>in four targeted areas--San Diego, Southern Arizona, the Rio >>Grande Valley and El Paso, Texas--has documented incidents of the >>abuse of authority in the enforcement of immigration laws. From >>our efforts, we have developed a working definition of the abuse >>of authority in the immigration context as "any action by an >>immigration official that, without regard to motive, intent or >>malice, tends to threaten the personal safety, trespass upon human >>dignity, and/or violate an inherent legal right." In the last two >>and a half years, 92 women have reported incidents of improper law >>enforcement practices by a variety of agencies engaged in >>immigration policing on the US-Mexico Border. >> >>THE REPORT >> >> >>The following report is a brief view of the abuse of >>authority/violation of rights in which gender was specified as >>female. This is by no means a scientific study, rather it is a >>collection of cases reported to the group of organizations >>previously mentioned. The statistics offer the collective >>experience of the women who decided to make their individual >>trauma part of the process of examining the nature of abuse of >>authority in border enforcement. These testimonies add to the >>worldwide concern regarding violence against women. These women's >>experience is an important dimension of the struggle to defend >>human dignity and rights and to assert women's rights as human >>rights. >> >>CASES REPORTED BY FEMALES >> >> >> I was traveling northward to see my husband. I was >> traveling with my father and my mother-in-law: she is >> a US citizen and my father is a legal permanent >> resident. I received Temporary Protected Status as a >> Salvadoran. At the Border Patrol checkpoint, my >> father explained that we were visiting my husband who >> was detained. The officer proceeded to ask questions as >> to why my husband was arrested, where, etc. The officer >> said that if I try to pass the checkpoint again, I would >> be deported. He said my card was expired, when in >> reality, my status was still legal ...We were >> detained for about 30 minutes as he questioned me. In my >> opinion, what he did was not right, not legal, because my >> status is still legal in this country. He did not >> have to ask me any question about my husband, why he was >> arrested, where, etc. I did not deserve this kind of >>harassment. >> >> Cameron >> County, >> Texas >> >> April >> 1995 >> >> >>Types of abuses >> >>>From January 1993 to August 1995, 346 abuses were reported by 92 >>women; that is, each woman suffered at least 3.7 different types >>of abuse in a single incident. >> >>One hundred and ninety-seven(197) or 56. 9% were psychological or >>verbal abuse. Fifty four or 15.6% were illegal or inappropriate >>seizure of a person like false arrest or illegal detention. >>Twenty-five or 7.2% were physical abuse, including rape. Twenty >>or 5.7% were seizure or destruction of property. Eighteen or >>5.2% were illegal or inappropriate searches, including body >>cavity searches. Fifteen or 4.3% were violations of due >>process. Eight or 2.3 % were cases specifically accusing women >>of crossing with the intent of illegally using public health >>services. Six or 2.5% were excluded from entering the country, >>even though they were entitled to do so. Two or .5% were >>subjected to the inappropriate use of non-lethal weapons such as >>pepper sprays. The remaining were in the category of others. >> >> >>1. Psychological or verbal abuse. >> >> Claudia D. eight months pregnant with their first child, >> and her husband were returning to El Paso, Texas from >> Juarez. As they pulled up to the inspection booth, they >> both declared their US citizenship. The US Customs agent >> looked into the car at them and immediately asked >> Claudia's husband: " Aren't you the guy I punched out >> yesterday" Surprised, her husband replied: "No, I do not >>think so." >> >> The agent then told Claudia in a very rough tone of voice. >> "Turn off the car and give me the keys!" She turned >> the key in the ignition, pulled it out and was about >> to hand it to the agent, when he reached into the car, >> grabbed her hand and wrenched the keys out of her >> hand. She uttered a small cry of pain. The >> conversation was becoming heated and Claudia was >> "panicking." He approached her and the agent put his >>hand on his gun and said, " Get into the car, NOW!" >> >> Two more agents came running over, also with their hand on >> their guns. One of the two agents asked the first one. >> "Is it him?" The first agent replied "No, it just >> looks like him." After about ten minutes of being >>detained there, they were allowed to leave. >> >> At home, Claudia's husband noticed her hand was still >> hurting her, but worse than that, she was still >> extremely nervous and upset and couldn't calm down. >> They went to a hospital where medical staff diagnosed >> Claudia with early contractions as a result of her >> anxiety and stress. They were able to stabilize her on >> an out-patient bias and they returned home. Her doctor >> ordered her to stay in bed until the early >> contractions stopped and ordered medications. Claudia >> commented that everything happened so fast that she got >>"scared" and "shaky" before she knew it. >> >> Zaragosa >> Bridge, >> >> El >> Paso, >> Texas >> >> March, >> 1994 >> >> >>Of the 346 abuses reported, the largest number ,197 or 56.9%, were >>incidents in which the person(s) were subjected to undue >>psychological or verbal abuse when an immigration authority used >>racial or ethnic insults, rude or abusive language, threats or >>coercion and/or submitted the victim(s) to prolonged, aggressive >>interrogation techniques, and/or sexually explicit language. >> >>2. Deprivation of Liberty. >> >> >> >> Fourteen year-old Jessica(who weighs about 100 pounds and >> stands 5 feet tall) and her mother, Martha were driving >> back into the US when they were questioned by two >> female immigration inspectors. Martha showed her legal >> permanent resident card and Jessica said "US citizen." >> One of the agents immediately came to the passenger >> side of the car, pulled Jessica out and handcuffed >> her. She cried out to her mother, but Martha was being >> surrounded by five or six officers. Jessica was >> repeatedly "kneeded" and kicked by the first agent as >> she shoved and pulled her into the INS office. During >> this attack Jessica was verbally abused and repeatedly >> called a "bitch." Martha was being escorted into >> the office several steps behind her handcuffed daughter >> and witnessed the treatment Jessica received. Jessica >> was placed in a private room where she was >> questioned by the first agent and another unidentified >> male officer. This male agent grabbed Jessica by >> the back of the neck, lifting her off a chair and shoving >> her face into a corner. Jessica was still handcuffed and >> kept crying out to her mother and telling the >> officers that she was a US citizen. Her mother sat >> outside the room and heard her daughters >> screams for help but was unable to go to her. >> >> >> Otay Mesa >> Port of >> Entry >> >> San >> Ysidro, >> California >> >> >> May, 1995 >> >> >>The second largest group of reported abuses, 60 or 17.3%, were >>incidents in which women were deprived of their personal liberty >>due to an inappropriate action by an official. As a consequence, >>a victim or victims were subjected to either unlawful temporary >>detention, false arrest, deprivation of food/water/medical >>attention/etc., while detained, deported or illegally excluded >>from entering. >> >>3. Physical abuse >> >> Juanita Gomez and her cousin Ana crossed through a hole >> in the border fence between Nogales, Sonora and >> Nogales, Arizona. They were crossing a street with >> two other friends when US Border Patrol agent Larry D. >> Selders stopped them, asked for their papers, and then >> only detained the two women. Selders put both >> women into the Border Patrol vehicle and after questioning >> them about their documents again, and hearing the >> women reply that they had none, he then >> propositioned them, saying that if one of them had sex >> with him he would let them both go without taking >>them to the Border Patrol Station. They refused. >> >> Selders then let Ana go and drove away with Juanita. She >> reports that once they were alone, Selders raped >> her. He then told Juanita not to say anything to anyone >> and that he would then not do anything else to her. He >> drove her back to Nogales. Juanita, very upset, went >> to report the incident to the Mexican Consulate in >>Nogales where Ana had already reported the abduction. >> >> Selders was originally charged with rape and kidnapping. >> The charges were dropped to "attempted transporting >> of persons for immoral purposes...while he was >> married..." in exchange for a "no contest" plea. He was >> sentenced to one year in prison, eligible for parole in >> six months. During this time, Selders was on paid >> administrative leave form the Border Patrol; he resigned >>in August 1994. >> >> Nogales >> ,Arizona >> >> September >> 1993 >> >> >>The next most reported group of abuses, 25 or 7.2%, were those >>incidents in which the improper law enforcement action resulted in >>serious bodily injury, including rape. In these cases, the >>following actions caused the victim(s) bodily harm: the >>inappropriate use of firearms, the use of excessive force, sexual >>assault, reckless/dangerous treatment in transportation once >>arrested and/or negligence in pursuing a person considered >>suspect. Five were undocumented women. >> >>4. Confiscation/Destruction of Property. >> >> >> >> Ana Beatriz de Santiago, a beauty queen from Ciudad >> Guzman, Jalisco in Mexico, was on her way to >> Mesa, Arizona on a goodwill tour for her organization. >> At the port of entry in Andrade, California, she was > [EMAIL PROTECTED] Michael Golden Institute for the study of: Organic Evolution and the Equitable Distribution of Wealth Department of Biology Grossmont College 8800 Grossmont College Drive El Cajon, CA 92020 (619)465-1700 x332 voice mail: (619) 465-1700 ask operator for voice mail; then x3064
