TALLAHASSEE — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and South Florida Democrats plan to meet with Venezuelan exiles this week amid an ongoing stalemate in Congress over whether or not to offer protections to those who fled the South American country. Democrats have scheduled a forum on Thursday in Weston, a town that has seen an influx of Venezuelans…
Florida Democrats do the Math: Joe Gruters Immigrant Listening Tour is a farce. After Joe Gruters, the Chair of the Republican Party of Florida, issued a press release trumpeting an Immigration Listening Tour, Florida Democrats do the math. RPOF is holding a tour in cities that are majority white and Republican — ignoring immigrant communities…
All unaccompanied children have been removed from the Homestead migrant detention facility in Homestead, Florida, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) confirmed on Saturday. Homestead, which has been criticized by politicians for its treatment of unaccompanied minors, was the nation’s largest facility for migrant children, housing 14,300 unaccompanied minors since March 2018. (Read more…
State Senator Joe Gruters and Representative Cord Byrd announced Thursday that they’ll be embarking on a listening tour across seven cities in three days. “With another legislative session on the horizon, we believe it’s important to go straight to Floridians and hear their ideas on how we can further improve our immigration system,” Gruters and…
Congressional Democrats speak to the press after they visited a holding center for detained migrant children in Florida. (SEE the Video at CNN.com)
“Those of us who have lived through dictatorships understand what it’s like to live under constant fear, we understand what it means to be disappeared,” said Democratic Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell. “In South Florida, we always prepare for storms. We know when a storm is coming, we help each other out, we have a plan and…
On July 12, over 50 people attended Lights for Liberty sponsored by Indivisible Action SW Florida. The event was held at the United Congregational Church in Punta Gorda. Those in attendance called attention to the treatment of immigrant children in detention centers. The vigil resulted from reports of standing-room-only cells, infants going without diapers, and…
You’ve heard the phrase “follow the money.” It turns out that when it comes to child detention, the money trail is a foul one indeed. Companies and lobbyists stand to benefit. A number of companies have won lucrative contracts with the federal government to operate child detention shelters including the Office of Refugee Resettlement…
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday warned her caucus about President Donald Trump’s planned immigration raids this weekend, urging members to spread information about undocumented immigrants’ legal rights. Those mass arrests, first reported by The New York Times, are expected to begin Sunday in nearly a dozen metro areas. (Read more in Politico.com)
CharlotteDems.com Editor’s Note: The following letter by Charlotte Democratic Party Vice-Chair Teresa Jenkins was published in the Sun on Monday, July 1st. Editor: Jana Lipman’s article comparing the Obama and Trump administration’s detainment of migrant children inadequately addressed the parallels. Trump’s latest plan, to house undocumented children at a Japanese-American internment camp from World…
“What I would tell the Democrats is, you can’t expect people to show up for you if you, yourself, don’t show up,” Wambold said. “And what I tell my Latino brothers and sisters is if we don’t come to the table, we don’t have a voice. That means voting. So everything comes right down to…
Join your Democratic friends and neighbors for a “Lights for Liberty” event that seeks the reunification of separated families and the humane treatment of children seeking asylum. The event will be held on July 12 from 7:00 P.M. to 9:00 P.M. at the Congregational United Church, 1201 Aqui Esta, Punta Gorda. The U.S. government under this administration…
The administration has, for now, reversed its directive for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to start massive arrests of migrant families that have received deportation orders. Yet, this administration seems bound and determined to carry out these roundups in Atlanta, Chicago, Baltimore, Denver, Houston, LA, Miami, New Orleans, NYC, San Francisco, DC, and Newark. While, thankfully,…
As South Florida’s sheriffs and mayors prepared Friday for a looming immigration crisis manufactured by the federal government, U.S. Customs and Border Protection moved to downplay the possibility that planes filled with border-crossing families will begin touching down soon in Broward and Palm Beach counties. (Read more in Bradenton.com)
Editor’s Note: The following report was written by Charlotte County Democrat Judith Fincher, who joined in the Mother’s Day march at the Homestead Detention Facility for young immigrants in Homestead Florida. Photos are courtesy of Judith Fincher and Al Crespo. The motto of the United States is e plu·ri·bus u·num, meaning “Out of Many, One.…
The Trump administration plans to release hundreds of asylum-seeking migrants detained at the southern border to both Broward and Palm Beach counties in Florida every month, according to local officials who say they have been informed by the federal government. “Hundreds of immigrants will be arriving in Broward County on a weekly basis without designated…
Three members of Congress from Florida are calling for an investigation into a no-bid, $341 million contract recently awarded to the company that runs the Homestead detention center for migrant children. The award came as Gen. John Kelly, President Donald Trump’s former chief of staff, was joining the advisory board of the operator’s parent company. Kelly advocated…
Vielka Wambold of the Charlotte County Democratic Hispanic Caucus organized locals for the cause, which consisted of members of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Charlotte County, Englewood Indivisibles and unaffiliated residents. (Read more in Sun) (Read more in MiamiHerald.com)
Charlotte County Democratic Hispanic Caucus of Florida joins two local groups to participate in a Mother’s Day vigil at the Homestead Detention Center for migrant children. The other groups are the Immigration Justice Committee – Universalist Unitarian Fellowship of Charlotte County and the Immigration Action Group – SWFL Indivisible. Local participation is being organized by…
A sizable group of prominent Florida business owners joined the chorus of opposition for a so-called “Sanctuary Cities” ban. The letter (available here) was released today by FWD.us and signed by 44 business and community leaders and says Florida needs immigrants in its workforce. (Read more in FloridaPolitics.com)