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http://www.immigrationwatchdog.com/?p=6175

http://www.casademaryland.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=246 

Mar 31, 2008, by Jason Flanagan, The Examiner

BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Walter Abbott lost his house, his drywall company – twice – and now his freedom.

When he discovered Maryland funds pro-immigration group CASA de Maryland, he fired off an angry letter to Gov. Martin O’Malley containing a threat on the governor’s life.

“It was out of frustration,” Abbott said.

Now is he on home detention awaiting a trial. “[CASA] helps find them a job – an American’s job that they help take away. They took away my job,” said Abbott, 44, of Parkville.

Abbott epitomizes part of the hotly contested immigration debate.

Many people are furious that governments from the General Assembly to the city of Baltimore give millions of dollars to CASA de Maryland, which assists legal and illegal immigrants in finding work, social services and legal aid.

“The state cuts [Chesapeake] Bay funding in half but found millions for CASA’s new headquarters? That’s bordering on criminal if it’s not already criminal,” said Brad Botwin, director of Help Save Maryland, a group opposing illegal immigration.

However, CASA officials said taxpayers’ money should help anyone in need, even if they are here illegally.

“The government should serve everybody – [immigrants] are the house cleaners, the kids going to school. They are part of the community, and part of government’s role is to help the poor and vulnerable,” said Jennifer Freedman, director of development for CASA.

Some state lawmakers tried to halt CASA’s funding and introduce bills to curb illegal immigration. But those bills failed, while bills to support CASA’s efforts passed.

Del. Ron George, R-Anne Arundel, said groups such as CASA make Maryland friendly to illegal immigrants who burden the state’s infrastructure, such as the Motor Vehicle Administration. MVA was processing 1,000 driver’s license a month last year; now it is processing 2,000 a week due to illegal immigrants’ ease of obtaining licenses.

WHAT CASA DOES

CASA does provide humanitarian work such as AIDS/HIV testing, youth counseling and financial education to low-income immigrants, and is considered the largest and most organized group reaching the immigrant community.

But the political and legal aspect of CASA has many questioning government support.

A pamphlet by CASA tells immigrants not to say anything, answer the door or provide identification to immigration and law enforcement officials. CASA asks its members to carry a card saying the person will not speak and demands a lawyer.

Each time Freedman was asked why CASA serves illegal immigrants, she referred to CASA’s mission statement of helping all low-income immigrants.

“We can do that without asking immigration status,” she said.

When asked if CASA would report its clients if they were found to be here illegally, Freedman again said, “We serve everyone in need who walks through our door.”

She added that CASA’s policy is no different from other nonprofits like Catholic Charities, which did not return calls for comment on its policies.

At CASA’s Baltimore center, where immigrants can find work, a man who identified himself as Ennrique said, “The community here is united, and [CASA has] been helping the community.”

About 2 percent of the city’s population is Hispanic, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, which does not ask for immigration status, just ethnicity and place of birth.

WHO PAYS?

More than $2 million in money from local governments this year went to fund CASA, mostly from Montgomery, which has the highest Hispanic concentration in the state, according to the Census Bureau.

Baltimore City gave much less, mainly for grants to promote job placement and AIDS health education.

Mayor Sheila Dixon’s office did not return several calls for comment.

The state government doled out $628,000 in bonds and grants in 2005 and 2006, and is considering paying another $500,000 next fiscal year for CASA’s multicultural center in Prince George’s.

Since 2005 the project has received $4.2 million in tax credits for required renovations of the historic mansion the center will occupy.

“Why should we be taxed in order to fund groups of people who shouldn’t be eligible to be funded?” said Dee Hodges, president of the Baltimore-based Maryland Taxpayer’s Association.

No other Baltimore-area counties fund CASA, mainly because the group hasn’t solicited funding.

“Illegal means illegal, and citizens of [Anne Arundel] resent taxpayer dollars going to those who break the law,” said Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold, who opposed funding CASA but supports aid for groups that help people here legally.

WHAT TO DO

To deny CASA funding would be a great disservice to the community, advocates say. Less than half of CASA’s funding comes from governments, but the group uses the money to leverage private donations, Freedman said.

Some have suggested requiring CASA to ask for immigration status from its clients as a reasonable solution.

But CASA will not do such a thing, as it would go against its policy as a humanitarian organization, Freedman said.

CASA’s remedy is to enforce current immigration laws, not create new ones that anti-immigration supporters say are needed to compensate for failing federal laws.

“We recognize it’s a broken system and we look to the federal government for comprehensive immigration reform,” Freedman said.

Others say no matter what CASA does, all of its funding should be cut.

“There should be no CASA de Maryland,” Abbott said.

jflanagan@baltimoreexmainer.com

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23799465/

LANGLEY PARK, Md. - A new day-labor center being planned in Langley Park has some contractors in Prince George’s County crying foul. According to CASA de Maryland, Langley Park is the biggest unofficial day-labor site in the nation. CASA, which provides education, job training and legal help to immigrants, is planning the new job center in Langley Park to provide “a strong employment placement program.”

“Unofficial hiring sites are a risk for both the workers and the employers, and we believe that in having an official hiring center, we are able to mitigate that risk and essentially create a safe space,” said Jennifer Freedman, of CASA.

A September opening is planned for the county’s first workers center, located at New Hampshire Avenue and University Boulevard. The $700,000 renovation of the location will be shared by the county, state and federal governments.

Some contractors operating small businesses in Prince George’s County object if the center is going to serve illegal immigrants. Randall Washington Jr., of RJ Washington Construction, said giving employment to people who are in the country illegally rather than unemployed people in the county legally is unfair.

Freedman said CASA does not require any documentation. They serve anyone who walks into one of their centers.

Petey Green, the president of the Prince George’s County Black Chamber of Commerce, supports the labor center. He said he hopes the county can avoid a crackdown on illegal immigrants like the one in Prince William County, Va.

CASA de Maryland currently operates four job centers in Montgomery County and one in Baltimore. They have the support of Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson for the Langley Park site, but getting it built could prove to be a challenge.

Diamondbackonline

Chanting “let immigrant children earn the right to learn,” nearly 50 students and advocates rallied on McKeldin Mall yesterday in a show of support for two state bills that would allow children of illegal immigrants to receive in-state tuition.

The bills, which have raised controversy among lawmakers and system officials alike, would add Maryland to a list of 10 other states that allow undocumented youth who have spent two years in the state school system to pay in-state tuition - more than $7,000 less per semester than out-of-state tuition. Despite the controversy, university officials have remained mum on the bills.

Ann Wylie, university President Dan Mote’s chief of staff, said that the university would not take a stance because “it’s a Board of Regents decision. We have no authority to make judgments of who gets in-state and who gets out-of-state tuition.”

If students feel strongly enough about the issue, they can raise it in the University Senate, she said. If the senate votes on the issue, Mote will take it seriously, she said.

Students of the university and surrounding colleges, along with local middle and high school students, arrived by way of crowded vans provided by Casa De Maryland, a non-profit organization that provides services to illegal immigrants and helped organize the protest.

Wielding signs that read “education not deportation,” “justicia” and “your kids deserve an education,” the protesters shouted personal testimonies and political pleas for what they see as a just law.

“It is unbelievable that in a country that is a voice of democracy, we hear every day in the voice of the president that [immigrants should not be accepted],” said a priest in his opening remarks in Spanish. “Before we are Christian, we have to be human.”

Prince George’s District 2 Councilman Will Campos and University System of Maryland Chancellor Brit Kirwan have both testified in Annapolis in favor of the bills. Opponents of the legislation have introduced their own bill, which would explicitly prohibit the children of illegal immigrants from receiving in-state tuition - a measure Kirwan said is redundant because federal law already prohibits this.

In a February interview, Sen. Andrew Harris, the opposition bill’s sponsor, said he views in-state tuition as a scholarship - a privilege he does not want to award to undocumented youth.

Student Regent Richard Scott and Student Government Association President Andrew Friedson also support the bills.

“According to the bill, they will have resided in the state for a significant period of time and will have paid taxes in the state,” said Friedson. “The reason why people get in-state tuition is because you’ve paid taxes to support the state. The same premise would hold true - it seems to me to make sense.”

But for high school students who just want an affordable education, the politics of the situation seem irrelevant.

“We already know what we want to be; I want to be a graphic designer,” said Edda, a child of an illegal immigrant who is undocumented herself. “I’m here to help people … who want to come to college.”

Edda, whose last name is not disclosed because she is a minor, said she arrived in the U.S. three years ago. The Montgomery County high school freshman spent five years in Guatemala without her parents before they could afford to fly her and her siblings to Maryland.

“My mom was a big example to me because she would study and go to college,” said Edda, who has a B average in school. “It’s an example for me to keep trying and go to college.”

Campos, who was an immigrant himself, echoed Edda’s views with a touch more sophistication.

“Stay the course. Keep fighting,” he told protesters. “This law will eventually pass, if not this year, then the next.”

NEWS RELEASE 

February 4, 2008

FREDERICK CO., MD - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began a four-week training course here today for 36 officers from five law enforcement agencies in Maryland and Northern Virginia which are seeking participation in ICE’s 287(g) program.

ICE’s 287(g) program provides in-depth training on a variety of enforcement topics including immigration law, intercultural relations, and how to use Department of Homeland Security databases to help positively identify criminals and immigration violators. Once the Memoranda of Agreement (MOAs) are signed by ICE and the local law enforcement approving entity, the trained officers and deputies will be authorized, under ICE supervision, to use the skills learned to initiate removal proceedings on those, encountered during their normal course of duties, found to be here in the country illegally.

Multiple agencies are represented in this second training class of 2008 and the 36 officers will add to the more than 600 officers already trained through the 287(g) program.

• Frederick County Sheriff’s Office (MD) - 26 deputies
• Manassas Police Department (VA) - 1 officer
• Manassas Park Police Department (VA) - 1 officer
• Prince William County Police Department (VA) - 6 officers
• Prince William County Sheriff’s Office (VA) - 2 deputies

All five agencies will have trained officers and deputies who will work closely with ICE investigators targeting criminal activity. Additionally, the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office will have a jail component. The deputies assigned to the detention center would be able to determine the immigration status of those processed through the facility.

“The public benefits from these partnerships because we are combining our law enforcement resources to identify and remove criminals preying on our communities,” said Sheriff (ret.) Jim Pendergraph, executive director for ICE’s Office of State & Local Coordination. “Not only will the criminal element be removed from our streets, but possibly from the country as well.”

“I am looking forward to our new partnership with ICE,” said Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins. “This program is a benefit to the citizens of Frederick County and will greatly enhance our efforts in both national security and removing criminal aliens from our community.”

The 287(g) program is named after the section of law under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) that authorizes ICE to train local officers to enforce immigration law. The program has received more than $25 million dollars for training and other associated costs under the current FY 2008 budget - up from just over $15 million the program received last fiscal year. Currently, 34 local enforcement agencies spanning the nation have signed MOAs with ICE and more than 600 officers have been trained and certified to enforce immigration law. The officers from those agencies are credited for identifying more than 40,000 with possible immigration violations in the past two years.

The 287g program is only one component under the ICE ACCESS (Agreements of Cooperation in Communities to Enhance Safety and Security) umbrella of services offered for assistance to local law enforcement officers. ICE ACCESS provides local law enforcement agencies an opportunity to team with ICE to combat specific challenges in their communities.

Other ICE ACCESS enforcement options include the creation of local task forces targeting specific challenges like gangs or document fraud, the presence of a Criminal Alien Program (CAP) team in local detention facilities to identify criminal aliens, or training to utilize the ICE Law Enforcement Support Center (LESC) which provides officers the ability to inquire about a person’s immigration and criminal history.

Law enforcement agencies interested in reviewing the myriad of enforcement programs under the ICE ACCESS program are encouraged to call their local ICE office or visit www.ice.gov for more information.

March 12, 2008

MONTGOMERY VILLAGE, MD — A 44 year old woman who was out for a walk around 11:30pm was approached by a Hispanic male with a knife.  The woman was forced to a lower stairwell landing in a nearby apartment building and forcibly raped.  The woman fought back against her attacker and he fled on foot.

The suspect is described as an Hispanic male, 30-40 years of age.  5′11 to 6′0 in height and weighing roughly 220 lbs.  He was said to be wearing a brown button down shirt and blue jeans.  His hair was in pony tail and he may have a fresh scratch on the right side of his face.

In much the same way that a bad marriage is not healthy if one partner is in it for what they can get out of it, and the other is co-dependent on that partner. Illegal immigration is unhealthy for the co-dependent country involved.

Almost daily we hear how our crashing economy is causing an exodus of illegals returning to their homelands when the work, money, and handouts runs out. Many of these are represented in the media as hardship stories built to display the “poor undocumented worker”, “poor businesses”, and in some cases “poor community” who are being affected by the loss. While no one can dispute the effect this loss has on those elements, they are in essence, no different then those who are co-dependent marriage partners who suddenly find themselves struggling to learn to survive.

What needs to be understood, and understood firmly, is that illegal immigrants are not here “for better or for worse”. They will not hang around when this country struggles. They will not hang around if the country falls. Their loyalty is not to this country at all and they will return home to the place their loyalty lies, or move on to another country that has what they desire. In this case money, work, and someone to take care of them.

American citizens and many legal immigrants have a deep loyalty to the United States. No matter how hard it gets in the nation, they will hold on, they will struggle through, and they will work to improve the situation of the home they love unconditionally. “For better or for worse” is not even a thought for them, it’s a way of life.

Just as one would not support a loved on, or friend in an unhealthy relationship. America needs to not support this unhealthy relationship that’s been created by illegal immigrants and their advocates. Americans need to support and advocate for healthy relationships with Citizens and legal immigrants who had a deep unseated love for this country. Who will stick with her through thick and thin, no matter how thin it gets. It is that, and that alone that makes for a healthy relationship and a healthy nation.
As for the “woe is me” tales, well just like the co-dependent partner learns to live again. These co-dependent individuals, businesses, and communities will also learn to live again. In many cases they will learn to be stronger, stabler, and healthier then before when they were in the unhealthy relationship. In some cases they might not ever break the bonds of co-dependency but above all they will learn what the signs of co-dependency are and be able to advocate against it, while helping awake other co-dependents to be able to survive the “life without” too.

Hispanic exodus is under way
Workers leave Lee as jobs disappear
The News Press
March 9, 2008

In this case, cold, hard statistics don’t tell the story.

“I am not aware of anyone who would track that locally,” said Glen Solier, business development specialist for the Lee County Department of Economic Development.

“Those people are off the grid. Undocumented,” said Susanna Patterson, economic analyst for the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation.

But the oh-so-human snapshots of everyday living are revealing.

Like a weekend soccer league down from 32 teams to 25 because more than 100 players have had to leave.

Or a church that has cut two Sunday services to one because about 200 former members have returned to their homeland.

Or the western-wear clothier who gave up one of his three shopping center units and said business is off by 40 percent because customers are gone.

Put these and other pictures together and the collage tells the story of Hispanics who are leaving Southwest Florida to find work or to return to the support of their families back home.

“There is a loss in the number of Hispanics in our communities,” said Robert Selle, director of the Amigos Center, which aids Hispanics with immigration issues and offers other services in Lee County. “The underlying reason is economic; the same reason they came here in the first place.”

Population drain

The loss comes from a good portion of Lee County’s population. The U.S. Census Bureau listed the county’s Hispanic population at more than 90,000 - about 16 percent of Lee’s 571,000 population - in 2006.

What the statistics further show is that work is gone. Unemployment in the Fort Myers-Cape Coral region has risen this past year, from 2.7 percent to 6.3 percent.

Many of the lost jobs are in construction, which has been put on hold as the sluggish market struggles with a glut of unsold houses.

Because many Hispanic construction workers are believed to be illegal immigrants, because construction and agricultural workers are a mobile population anyway, because many are single with families back in their native lands, and because their leaving was often spur-of-the-moment, no governmental or social service agency is keeping accurate records of this exodus.

Lee County School District reported a loss of Hispanics in all grades totaling 388 pupils through January of this school year - this after growing by almost 3,000 Hispanic students a year earlier.

But the white student population dropped as well. The big difference was while dropout rates tend to increase as the year goes on in the upper grades, the Hispanic population was the only one also to lose ground in the kindergarten through fifth-grade range. It fell by 87 pupils - an indication their families moved from the district, according to Michael Smith, director of planning, growth and school capacity.

“Many workers in the construction industry and related industry are leaving the area and following the money,” said Barbara Hartman, spokeswoman for the state’s Career and Service Center in Fort Myers. “It seems to be an increasing number of people who are temporarily relocating. I wish we did track that.”

Hartman said she knows people are leaving because they tell counselors when they come in seeking work, saying they need the higher construction industry wages, which begin at $10 to $11 an hour for the most unskilled, to maintain their standard of living……..

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