Cleveland

Deb from Cleveland Jobs of Justice spoke to us virtually about worker justice issues and activism relating to the immigrant community. Historically, NAFTA decimated companies in South America and Mexico which led to loss of jobs and therefore, a surge in immigration to the US to find work (along with violence, bad conditions, and other reasons). Deb's work focused on how US companies take advantage of workers from South America and Mexico. Franchises, such as Dunkin' Donuts, participate in e-verify (checks if workers have legal status) which creates a barrier for immigrants trying to find employment. Cleveland Jobs with Justice organized boycotts against this.

Some of Deb's other larger initiatives include the 1) immigrant defense funds which helped pay the large bonds, that are unjustly set, for immigrants who aren't able to pay 2) the DACA Planning group which focused on bringing awareness to Dreamers and the Dream Act, and 3) the court monitoring project which focused on having advocates present in immigration courtrooms to monitor and push for lesser sentences. The court monitoring project also focuses on mitigating the damages that immigration court can make because unlike judicial courts, immigration courts are run by the administrative branch of the government meaning that those going through it are not allowed due process and they have different rights than those who go through judicial courts. But similar to judicial court, bail bond is entirely up to the whim of the judge which leads to unfairly high bonds for immigrants who have no way of paying such monumental amounts. Immigration court also has a very long wait time as hearings are being schedule 4-6 years out and the people who have been detained before going to immigration court already have bias against them as someone who has done something "wrong", so monitoring may lessen the negative bias and effects of immigration court through public pressure. Along with these initiatives, Deb and her group has also actively participated in civil disobedience and protests ("We Belong Together Action" in D.C).

Anne Smith and Sharon Shumaker are very active members of their Church and community in the Cleveland Area. Their work is focused on providing sanctuary for undocumented immigrants in the area. They shared the story of one very involved individual in the community, Lenore, who was informed during her weekly ICE check-in that she would be deported. This individual was affiliated with a group called "Hola" which supported the local Mexican community. She could apply for a U-Visa as the victim of a crime which would be her first step towards documentation but because of her status, she had to seek sanctuary from ICE before she could apply. She was given an ankle monitor from ICE and therefore lived day by day with uncertainty and fear at the church, separated from her kids. Not only did the ankle monitor track her every move, but it was demoralizing. Anne and Sharon's church provided her recreational activities, support and resources to alleviate her situation. Eventually, she was fortunately able to obtain her U-Visa and get it approved. Right now, she is on the path to citizenship with her husband.

Anne and Sharon also shared a story of three Congolese men who had grown to be as close as brothers through their shared hardships. Their village was attacked and some of their families murdered so they traveled from West Africa to Ecuador to California to seek asylum in the U.S. However, they were arrested instead and thrown into a cell so small they had to stand to fit in before being shackled and flown to Youngstown, OH where they spent 5 months in their county jail/detention center. When their time came for immigration court, the judge would not give the men asylum because they couldn't name the exact person who attacked them and each was bonded at 15k, which Anne and Sharon's church helped to raise. The three men came to live at the church where they were taught English by teachers and had access to resources the church had. They were unable to obtain work permits but they were able to make money through odd jobs and eventually got good enough at English to take courses at tri-C. Eventually, two of the brothers drifted apart from the church. To this day, the church has lost contact with them and they were last known to be in Buffalo heading towards Canada while the third one is still close with the Church and the members.

One large topic that we discussed with Anne and Sharon was the mental health of the communities. Sharon is actually a bilingual therapist so she was very knowledgeable about the necessity of having therapy and other mental health resources available to immigrant communities. Yet there are very limited mental health resources that are readily accessible to the population, especially the undocumented immigrant community where many of them can face trauma, depression, anxiety, and more as they flee their country and try to make a living in the U.S. There have been more progressive mental health boards in Lake County; however, Anne and Sharon has been trying to further explore what they can do in this field.

Andrew Matthay (Andy) works with the Catholic Charity Diocese of Cleveland: Office of Migration/Immigration Services on border issues and immigration reform. On the first day in Cleveland, he came to speak to us and share his knowledge of the issues present in our immigration system. More specifically, Andy went in depth about refugee status and asylum seeking. According to Andy, there are 20.7 million refugees along with 4.1 million asylum seekers worldwide as of right now. Refugees are individuals who have fled their home country and are unable and/or unwilling to return due to persecution, safety concerns, and fear. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and/or the state that the particular individual flees to to escape persecution are the ones who evaluate whether or not that individual is a refugee. One can be persecuted based on race, religion, political opinion, nationality, and/or social group. Before a refugee can be resettled they have to be vetted by the UN and the nations where they could potentially be resettled. This can take years. Every year the US sets a refugee limit of how many they can take into the country with this year's ceiling being 125k. Asylum seekers are individuals who seek international protection once they have reached the border. To get asylum you have to provide proof that you have fled some form of persecution, and as we know, if you're coming from South and Central America, it can be difficult to gain asylum.

Humanitarian parole and the Afghan evacuation is also something that Andy informed us about. When people fled Afghanistan, the U.S. government gave Afghans entry into country for two years (Afghan Parolee). They then have to apply for humanitarian parolee status. Once one's Afghan parolee status expires, they are now "illegal." There could be children born in camps with no where to go and are therefore "stateless." Today, Andy continues to do more work with helping the resettlement of refugees.

Fatima is a former student of Case Western University who studied International Studies and grew up in New Orleans as a Dreamer. Fatima and her mother migrated to the U.S from Honduras in hopes of escaping the unhealthy relationship her mom had with her dad, generational trauma and finding better education and opportunities. Throughout her childhood, Fatima's mother worked long hours to support them and often didn't have time to raise her. Fatima eventually learned English through watching cartoons as a child and eventually became the interpreter for her mom as her mom still doesn't speak English as well as Fatima.

As she got older, Fatima was finally able to work to help support her mother when she applied for DACA. She was then able to be granted scholarships for college. However, when Trump started to rescind DACA, Fatima began to get afraid that she can lose her right to study and get deported at any time.

This led to Fatima's work involving immigration reform and activism throughout her college career. She actively participated and spoke at rallies, was the leader of organizations, etc. Fatima was even chosen for the Clean Dream Act to speak more about immigration reform to senators. Her story shows her hard work, resiliency, and passion. Moreover, Fatima spoke a lot about the significance of mental health pertaining to her and the community as a whole. Fatima struggled with being tokenized on her campus and developed mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, imposter syndrome, and burnout which makes the issue of mental health and the efforts in making mental health accessible and less stigmatized more personal to her. Now, Fatima is actively working towards attending Law School and becoming a legal citizen through her mom claiming her as a legal resident when she became one.

Maryam Sy was born and raised in France, where her parents had emigrated after leaving Africa. As of today, Maryam has lived in the states for 17 years with her husband, after emigrating from France where Muslims (especially Black Muslims) are made to feel unwelcome. She started working with the Ohio Immigrants Alliance on a campaign called "Reunite U.S." during the Trump administration so that families and communities can be reunited. "Reunite U.S" welcomes people who emigrate to the U.S and defends people who are trying to escape deportation.

In addition to the work Maryam has done with her campaign and the Ohio Immigrants Alliance, she also focuses on advocacy for Mauritanian human rights and justice. Due to the genocide that occurred in Mauritania in 1989, where the government tried to get rid of the Black population of Maurtianians, many Mauritanians fled to the United States in hopes of obtaining asylum. Many of them actually settled in Ohio. A majority of those who fled to the United States as victims were not granted asylum though, especially because the United States doesn't classify what happened in 1989 as a genocide for political reasons, and instead they were granted a stay on their deportation that lasted for years and even decades before the Trump administration began to deport them. Many of those who were deported back to Mauritania were imprisoned. Those who weren't find it impossible to find work outside of essentially indentured servitude because in 2008 the Mauritanian government wiped many of them out of the census so that there would be no record of Black Mauritanians in government records. The people who have been wiped from government records are being called the "Ghosts of Mauritania". Knowing what waits many Mauritanians if they were to be deported back to Mauritania, Maryam has worked to help them escape deportation.

Currently, Maryam is working on documentaries and interviews as she tries to collect information for solutions and awareness. She hopes for collaboration with other organizations and future meetings with senators so reform and change can be executed in the current immigration system.

The Fresh Mark Raid in 2018 was one of the largest raids in Ohio history with over 100 people involved and some of their children were in school at the time while their parents were detained at their workplace. In a militarized raid, ICE locked down the whole plant and detained anyone who was of color, whether they had documents or not. They were taken to Brookland Heights in Cleveland where they were held. Sister Rene and the 1st Christian Church in Salem, Ohio went to Cleveland to go and alleviate the situation along with taking care of the children who had been left behind by providing them and others who were scared a safe place that night. By the end of the day, most families were reunited as many were released, because they had papers, illnesses, or were heavily pregnant. Some had to wear ankle monitors. Those who weren't released were either deported or held until being released at a later date. A federal case was actually started against the management at Fresh Market and those willing to testify in detention have earned legal status but the case has yet to go through the court. Some who gained legal status through the case went back to working for Fresh Market. Others didn't and found other jobs, and some just left Salem altogether and disappeared after the whole ordeal. Despite local law enforcement's effort to not bother the immigrant community in Salem, the relative pro immigration attitude that Sister Rene says is present there, and the fact that 10% of the city's population is Latinx, the Fresh Market Raid still occurred.

Today, Sister Rene and the St. Paul Center Parish Volunteers do a lot of work in supporting the local immigrant community by teaching English, coaching, tutoring, assisting at medical appointments, school registration/orientation, and more. Although she doesn't help people with false documents fill out forms, she helps them in the other ways. Sister Rene's church also has a Spanish speaking priest so that the large population of practicing immigrants can attend church service in a language they understand. Many of the community members are from Guatemala.