Latino USA

Two Villages Bridged by Immigrants

Alex Avila — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:03:53 +0000

The death of Ecuadoran immigrant Marcelo Lucero by White teenagers more than a year ago brought national attention to the village of Patchogue, Long Island. Stories of ethnic tensions arose between a mostly White local population, and recent arrivals of Latino immigrants. WSHU Reporter Charles Lane took a deeper look into Patchogue’s immigrant community and found a connection so strong that he traveled to Gualeceo, Ecuador to see their home village for himself.

And New York’s City Bar Justice Center director Lynn M. Kelly talks about a new report showing nearly 40 percent of those detained by federal immigration authorities have strong legal claims to have their deportations cancelled.

Report from the City Bar Justice Center (pdf)

Alex Avila — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:01:04 +0000

866-bios

Alex Avila — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:58:50 +0000

Lynn M. Kelley is the executive director of the City Bar Justice Center based in New York.

Charles Lane is a multi-media reporter working for WSHU, Long Island’s public radio station. His work has been funded by the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Robeson Fund for Independent Media.

From Patchogue, LI to Gualeceo, Ecuador

Alex Avila — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:47:47 +0000

New townhouses in Gualeceo, Ecuador remain empty as their owners live and work some 3000 miles away. (Photo by C. Lane.)" title="gualeceotownhouse" width="575" class="size-full wp-image-6753" />

New townhouses in Gualeceo, Ecuador remain empty as their owners live and work some 3000 miles away. (Photo by C. Lane.)

Patchogue is located in New York’s Long Island. The village has been in the news lately, but not in a good way. Reports of local teens “hunting” Latino immigrants and roughing them up in recent years surfaced. This harassment of immigrants eventually resulted in the death of local resident Marcelo Lucero at the hands of several White teenagers.

On November 5, one of those teens, Nicholas Hausch, pled guilty to four charges stemming from his role in the attack that killed Lucero. Hausch agreed to testify against the other six defendants in exchange for leniency. He now faces the next 5 to 25 years in prison.

Maya Sanguicia and Jessica Ullua gaze on boys passing by on their motorbikes. Motorbikes are a status symbol in Gualaceo. (Photo by C. Lane)" title="gualeceogirls" width="225" class="size-full wp-image-6757" />

Maya Sanguicia and Jessica Ullua gaze on boys passing by on their motorbikes. Motorbikes are a status symbol in Gualaceo. (Photo by C. Lane)

Recently, WSHU radio producer and reporter Charles Lane decided to go beyond the headlines and take a closer look at the Latino immigrant community in Patchogue. What he found was an Ecuadoran community that had strong ties to its home base.

Lane traveled to Gualeceo, Ecuador and saw the economic prosperity that having remittances from North America bring to this community. Despite the economic benefits, however, families often are torn apart.

Watch a slideshow from Gualeceo, Ecuador produced by Charles Lane.

A 3,000 Mile Bridge from NPR's Latino USA on Vimeo.

Detained Without Counsel

Alex Avila — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:22:37 +0000

The number of people held in detention centers has tripled over the past decade according to Amnesty International. As federal immigration authorities have
detained more immigrants facing deportation there have been efforts to streamline the deportation process. Usually a hearing is held, the immigrant may not understand their defenses to removal, and a ruling is quickly rendered without legal counsel present.

City Bar Center Executive Director Lynn M. Kelly." title="kelly" width="200" class="size-full wp-image-6743" />

City Bar Center Executive Director Lynn M. Kelly.

A new report by the City Bar Justice Center based in New York says nearly 40 percent of all detained immigrants interviewed in NYC’s Varick detention facility
have valid legal claims to remain in the country and defend against removal.

Lynn M. Kelly is the executive director of the City Bar Justice Center. She spoke with Latino USA’s Maria Hinojosa.

Thousands of Nicaraguans Flee Hurricane Ida

Alex Avila — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:38:49 +0000

November 5, 2009 - By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS - MANAGUA, Nicaragua (AP) — Newly born Hurricane Ida ripped into Nicaragua’s Atlantic coast on Thursday after forcing more than 2,000 people to flee their homes and knocking out power to some parts of the impoverished region.

The hurricane struck land about 75 miles (125 kilometers) north of Bluefields. It was forecast to weaken while cutting across Honduras before possibly emerging over open water on Saturday — a still-tentative path that could carry it near Mexico’s resort of Cancun by midweek.

Ida had winds of 75 mph (120 kph), according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center, and it was moving to the northwest at 6 mph (9 kph).

It could dump as much as 20 inches (500 millimeters) of rain in parts as it crosses eastern Nicaragua, with the risk of flash floods and mudslides, according to the Miami-based center.

FULL STORY

Honduran Congress Slow to Debate Presidential Deal

Alex Avila — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:11:04 +0000

November 2, 2009 - By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS - TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — The leadership of Honduras’ Congress will meet Tuesday to begin consideration of an accord that could reinstate ousted President Manuel Zelaya, but no date has been set for bringing the issue to the floor.

Congressman Carlos Lara Watson told HRN Radio late Monday that he and other legislative leaders would decide when to submit the measure to the full Congress for debate. He said the leaders also would consult the courts and prosecutors.

Under the U.S.-brokered pact, lawmakers must decide on whether Zelaya should serve the remaining three months of his term, a decision that could end the country’s debilitating, 4-month-old political crisis.

Congressional president Jose Alfredo Saavedra said earlier Monday he would not be rushed despite calls from diplomats not to delay the vote. He said he wanted to consult first with the Supreme Court, which ordered Zelaya’s June 28 ouster.

FULL STORY

Panama Builds Smuggling Monitoring Facilities

Alex Avila — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:05:29 +0000

November 2, 2009 - By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS - PANAMA CITY (AP) — Panama’s government is building four air and sea monitoring stations to fight trafficking of drugs, weapons and migrants.

The bases are to be located on the Pacific coast on routes used to smuggle drugs and transport laundered money.

Assistant Interior Minister Alejandro Garuz said Monday the sites will be manned by the national police, border agents and other government agencies.

He says the bases are a completely Panamanian initiative and the United States will not be involved.

FULL STORY

Border Crossing Bureaucracy

Alex Avila — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:09:21 +0000

Most airline travelers know to watch what they say while negotiating cumbersome airport security. Even jokes can be taken seriously. But few people remember that a similar environment occurs at the border ports of entry. Mexican civil rights attorney Gustavo de la Rosa Hickerson learned this the hard way when he was taken into protective custody simply for mentioning that the drug war in Mexico sometimes made him fearful for his life. Also, Story Corps Historias features two Latino political families: The Salazar Family of Colorado and the Grijalva Family of Arizona. And writer Jesse Katz’s little league baseball infused memoir, The Opposite Field.

Story Corps Historia (en español)

Alex Avila — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:45:09 +0000