America's Voice Blog

Posted 07/22/10 at 11:27am By Jackie Mahendra

Netroots Nation Immigration Panels: Take 2

I posted this up earlier in the week, but I wanted to make sure folks here in Vegas got a shot to join us for these fabulous immigration panels, screenings, and discussions at Netroots Nation. Please stop by, and say hello in the comments or on twitter!

Note that we'll be showing off some original America's Voice video at Friday's 3pm immigration film screening with Justin Krebs. We'll be helping out with the Immigration Caucus on Friday at noon, and we'll be giving away Vegas-inspired DREAM Act scratch cards in the registration packets. Don't forget to see if you've won and to sign the DREAM Act petition to our leaders in Washington -- we'll be delivering a copy to Senate Majority Leader Reid right here in Vegas!

Also, check out this year's immigration blogger scholars-- welcome to Vegas, to our talented scholars!

From the America's Voice team, Adam Luna will be speaking Thursday at 3pm on a panel with former Police Chief Arturo Venegas and Arizona State Rep Kyrsten Sinema entitled, "Immigration Reform’s Strange Bedfellows: The Surprising Consensus that Reform will Improve American Jobs and Bolster Our Economy," and yours truly will be on a panel Saturday at 4pm with Markos, founder and publisher of Daily Kos, and Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), who's been fighting for immigration reform in what's become ground zero of the nation's immigration debate. It's called, How Immigration Reform Sustains a Progressive Majority.

Full schedule below the jump...

Click here to read more.
Posted 07/09/10 at 12:40pm By Jackie Mahendra

Coming to a Farm Near You: Steven Colbert?

That's right, you heard me. Stephen Colbert has accepted the United Farm Workers' creative challenge to Americans of all stripes to head out to the fields and try their hands at picking fruit, if they want their danged jobs back so badly.

The campaign details are over at TakeOurJobs.org, where would-be farmworkers get matched with struggling growers and immigrant trainers.

Watch Colbert's segment and see UFW's Arturo Rodriguez explain what the campaign is all about, as well as how to say "Yes We Can-wich" in Spanish. (You won't want to miss that).

The Take Our Jobs campaign has received tons of media attention for the way it directly challenges the oft-repeated claim that immigrants are simply "taking American jobs" instead of contributing to and strengthening our economy and our food security.

A couple recent headlines: Colbert teams up with UFW over immigration (AP), Farmers Tackle Immigration Issues (Miriam Jordan, Wall Street Journal), Farmworkers to Colbert: Immigration worries? Work in fields (Dylan Smith, Tucson Sentinel).

It's even spawned DIY-videos and tales of bloggers (like The Unapologetic Mexican) and journalists (like Teresa Puente) heading out to the fields to take on anti-immigrant rhetoric.

The Tucson Sentinel's Dylan Smith writes: 

The "Take Our Jobs" site asks interested parties to supply their name and area code to streamline the hiring process. It cautions, however, that "duties may include tilling the soil, transplanting, weeding, thinning, picking, cutting, sorting & packing of harvested produce. May set up & operate irrigation equip. Work is performed outside in all weather conditions (Summertime 90+ degree weather) & is physically demanding requiring workers to bend, stoop, lift & carry up to 50 lbs on a regular basis."

Click here to read more.
Posted 06/16/10 at 04:42pm By Jackie Mahendra

Salma Hayek Speaks Out on AZ Immigration Law, SB 1070

salma hayek

Via MTV Tr3s' arts and culture blog, Blogamole, Salma Hayek is the latest celebrity to speak out against Arizona's controversial immigration law, SB 1070:

The Mexicana, who is now a naturalized U.S. citizen, gave this candid response to Mexican news agency Notimex when asked about SB 1070:

“What surprises me is the lack of humanity with which they are treating the immigrants," she said. "What I can’t understand is how the United States, which is considered a hero around the world that helps other countries, doesn’t help the foreigners who enter their country. It’s a contradiction.”

According to Blogamole, this is not the first time the actress has used her fame to protest injustice.

Back in May, 2006, la actriz publicly criticized a bill being considered by the U.S. House of Representatives that would make being an illegal immigrant in the U.S. a felony. Hayek Pinault shared this response with the New York Daily News:

"As a human being, I find this situation intolerable. As an immigrant, I find it offensive. And as an American citizen, I find it disheartening."

If celebrity appeals to humanity get brushed aside, however, Arizona's SB 1070 may just end up sinking Arizon'as economy, judging by the looming foreclosure crisis and tanking tourism.

Posted 06/09/10 at 03:35pm By Maria Ponce

Mom’s for Family Unity Campaign Screens Award-Winning Film “Entre Nos”

This week, in partnership with Center for American Progress, Reform Immigration for America Campaign, Indiepix Studios and the filmmakers of the award-winning film “Entre Nos” launched the "Moms for Family Unity" campaign.

To kick off the campaign, we screened the film in Washington D.C this past Monday at E Street Cinema, where hundreds of supporters joined us. 

Click here to read more.
Posted 06/08/10 at 02:55pm By Mahwish Khan

Join us in Vegas? Apply NOW for Netroots Nation Immigration Scholarships

NOTE: You will apply at the DFA website.

Watch out, Vegas! 

This year, America’s Voice is teaming up with Democracy for America (DFA), Netroots Nation 2010, and National Council of La Raza (NCLR) to send 20 grassroots immigration bloggers and advocates to Netroots Nation 2010, awarding them the opportunity to participate in four days of insightful panels, training sessions and networking opportunities, and the opportunity to share their unique perspectives on immigration with the larger progressive community.

Because we like to mix it up, the process this year is a little different from last year -- scholars will be chosen during the final round of DFA's scholarship process, by judges from each of our organizations.  Though rounds 1 and 2 of DFA's process are already over, there are still several days to apply for Round Three, which will be judged through June 13. Scholarship winners will be announced in mid-June -- so stay tuned to see who the lucky winners are.

Whether you're a community organizer or a blogger who writes on immigration, please APPLY NOW and help us spread the word!

You can also check out last year's bloggers here.

Fine print: Scholarships will include 1 all-access pass to the conference, flight, hotel accommodations, and a couple of meals and events sponsored by DFA. Please check the box indicating that you're interested in our scholarship. Encourage your friends and family members to vote for you on the DFA website!

Posted 05/18/10 at 10:00am By Jackie Mahendra

Kobe Bryant’s Wife Wears “Do I Look Legal?” Tee to Protest AZ Law As ACLU Files Suit

Via Hoopnotes.com, Lakers star Kobe Bryant's wife, Vanessa, took a jab at Coach Phil Jackson, who has refused to denounce Arizona's "papers-please" law, even after Los Suns made a strong statement earlier this month. Vanessa Bryant, pictured to the right here, is sporting a "Do I look illegal?" tee.

Arizona's Governor, Jan Brewer, has admitted that she has no clue what an "illegal immigrant looks like," but she didn't let that stop her from signing the controversial legislation, SB 1070, into law.

In fact, yesterday a coalition of civil liberties and civil rights organizations, including the ACLU, NAACP, NILC, and MALDEF, filed suit to block the law. According to the ACLU:

It is practically impossible to think of any legitimate way police could develop a suspicion that someone is here unlawfully without racial profiling. Under this law, people who look "foreign" are more likely to be stopped for minor infractions like having a broken taillight, jaywalking or having an overgrown lawn — and then asked for their papers if police believe, just by looking at them, that they could be in the country unlawfully. That means that U.S. citizens and noncitizens alike will be required to carry papers on them at all times.

S.B. 1070 would essentially turn Arizona into a police state, where merely looking "foreign" authorizes the police to treat you as potential criminal suspect. Which is why many top law enforcement officials oppose this law. Time reports:

Chief John Harris of Sahuarita, the current president of the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police, said he opposed the law before Governor Jan Brewer signed it and still does today. He listed his objections: Immigration has traditionally been a federal issue, and the police already have "manpower and budget issues" that will only get worse under the law. "[…] He's also concerned that victims may not report crimes to his officers.

Already, state governments across the country are considering laws similar to Arizona's. It's our hope that the lawsuit filed today will show that such laws will not pass constitutional muster in court, and passing more laws like it will be futile. S.B. 1070 is un-American and undermines our values of fairness and equality for all people. 

For a rundownon the specific challenges, check out Andrea Nill's, "The Four Major Legal Challenges The ACLU Has Brought Against Arizona’s Immigration Law."

ACLU also makes the case in a new video:

Posted 05/13/10 at 04:35pm By Jackie Mahendra

So Far, Bud Selig Ignores Calls to Move All-Star Game from Arizona

Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig is reportedly ignoring calls and even formal requests asking him to move the 2011 All-Star Game from it’s scheduled location: Phoenix, Arizona.

Unless you're boycotting the news, you know that Arizona recently passed legislation, SB 1070, that would force police officers to ask to see the papers of anyone who looks “reasonably suspicious," while checking on loud music violations, tall weeds, or barking dogs.  

Mr. Selig, at least publicly, appears unconcerned. Touting baseball’s record of minority hiring, he says:

"Apparently all the people around and in minority communities think we're doing OK. That's the issue, and that's the answer," he said. "I told the clubs today: 'Be proud of what we've done.' They are. We should. And that's our answer. We control our own fate, and we've done very well."

But Selig is dodging the issue – the question is not about how many Hispanic ball players there are in Major League Baseball (a whole lot), but how much Major League Baseball will do to protect and defend the rights of those minorities who are the backbone one of America’s favorite pastime (so far... nada).

Given that Baseball does have more Hispanic players than any other sport in the country, it’s unthinkable that Major League Baseball's Commissioner remains silent on Arizona – especially since basketball took a strong stand, with Phoenix’s “Los Sons” receiving widespread recognition for their public condemnation of SB 1070. 

Ozzie Guillen, manager of the White Sox, had this to say when he heard about the outrageous law:

"We're not doing anything wrong here. We come here just to work."

And Cubs fans, in partnership with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR), have a whole new website dedicated to persuading owner Tom Ricketts to move the Cubs' spring training out of Arizona to protest the law. Read the letter and sign their petition, which asks Ricketts to move spring training to Florida:

Dear Tom Ricketts,

As Cubs fans we urge you to move the team's Spring training camp to Naples, Florida.

We want a winning team and Florida produces winners--16 of the last 19 World Series winners trained in Florida. The weather is better for pitchers, which is better for hitters and better for building a winning team.

We also want a team that shows it respects all of the team's fans and players. The recent extreme law that passed in Arizona is an invitation to racial profiling and harassment of Arizona residents and anybody who visits the state—including Cubs players, their families and their fans.

Baseball is America’s past time, but Arizona is not honoring American values. Please do what’s best for the Cubs and the fans and move spring training from Arizona to Florida.

Meanwhile, Mexico's top soccer teams have cancelled games in Arizona, tourism is tanking (even the RNC has said "no gracias" to Phoenix for their conference), and a wide array of Arizona religious leaders are demanding a more reasonable and just immigration debate.

So where's Selig?

Posted 05/07/10 at 02:41pm By Mahwish Khan

In DC or AZ? Watch a Film and Catch Up on the Immigration Debate!

Lots going on, and lots to see. If you're in Washington, DC, or Tempe, Arizona, be sure to check out any of these films on immigration. Here's a round-up:

First, the 8-part documentary film on immigration, How Democracy Works Now, is going to be shown from May 12th to June 10th here in Washington, DC, at the Goethe Institute.  For those of you who didn’t get to read our post when the 8th story aired on HBO or still unfamiliar with the film’s background, here’s a little breakdown:

Each of the eight STORIES is a stand-alone feature film. Together, they trace the evolution of a complicated Grand Bargain, and the evolving roles of players on both sides. From the heady days before 9/11, through a year inside Senator Sam Brownback's office, to the competition between upstart House staffers and established Senate offices racing to design an immigration bill, the arc builds to the true story of the last great immigration legislative battles, led by Senator Ted Kennedy, of 2006 and 2007.

Note: If you make it to the film on May 12, you’ might even get to rub elbows with the filmmakers at the opening reception.  Check out the film schedule to decide which parts sound most interesting to you, and don't forget to buy tickets – at $7 a show, it’s a steal!

But that’s not the only film event going on. At CAP Headquarters on Thursday, May 13 at 7:00 PM, Reform Immigration FOR America campaign and Brave New Foundation are hosting a screening  of "In Their Boots: Second Battle," which will be followed by a panel discussion on immigrants in the military with Richard Ray Perez, the executive producer of the film, Louis Caldera, a senior fellow at CAP and a local veteran.

Here’s the synopsis: The wives of two U.S. service members cannot stay in the country their husbands proudly served — and in one case died for. Check it out here.

Click here to read more.
Posted 05/05/10 at 01:39pm By Mahwish Khan

Phoenix Suns to Wear Jerseys That “Honor the Latino Community,” Denounce New Arizona Law

The Phoenix Suns, who have made it to Game 2 against the San Antonio Spurs, are making a strong political statement by sporting basketball jerseys that will read "Los Sons" to “honor the Latino community and the diversity of our league, the state of Arizona, and our nation."

The jerseys are, according to J.A. Adande at ESPN, usually worn for the "Noche Latina" program, which is one recognizing "the NBA’s fans and players from across Latin America and U.S. Hispanic communities." The program was first launched during the 2006 – 2007 season, and was an initiative, as described on the NBA website, that would celebrate "the NBA’s unique and dynamic fan base with a focus on our Spanish-speaking communities."

According to John Amato at Crooks and Liars, the decision to wear the jerseys was left to the players (though suggested to them by Robert Sarver, the team’s owner), and was also fully supported by the team they will be facing tonight, the San Antonio Spurs.  Steve Nash, Phoenix guard, had this to say about the Arizona law in the locker room following practice last night:

"I think the law is very misguided. I think it is unfortunately to the detriment to our society and our civil liberties and I think it is very important for us to stand up for things we believe in," Nash said of the bill. "I think the law obviously can target opportunities for racial profiling. Things we don't want to see and don't need to see in 2010."

Click here to read more.
Posted 05/04/10 at 05:04pm By Mahwish Khan

Opportunity Agenda Hosts “Immigrants in America: A Hollywood Perspective” in LA

Following the success of their arts and culture event in New York last month, the Opportunity Agenda, Paley Center for Media, Unbound Philanthropy, and a number of other organizations (including America's Voice) hosted an event last night called, "Immigrants in America: A Hollywood Perspective."

Since late 2009, the Opportunity Agenda has been focused on integrating arts, culture and new media to "promote the inclusion, integration, and human rights of immigrants in the United States." By hosting events on the issue, they hope to connect the politics and policy of the immigration debate to the way the issue is framed -- and can be framed -- in culture and through the arts. Check out this video which explains:

Click here to read more.