Due to the threats of COVID-19, since February, the No More Deaths Keep Tucson Together Legal Clinic has focused its efforts on preparing humanitarian parole requests and motions for bonds for more than 50 of our clients detained at La Palma, Eloy & Florence, AZ ICE detention facilities. Court dates are set and then cancelled, re-set and then cancelled. Meanwhile, precautions against the spread of the pandemic in cramped detention centers are abysmal. There is no soap in sinks, no access to gloves, and detained women and men just receive two face masks each – only after signing waivers of liability for the masks. Under these conditions, it is no surprise that more people are becoming infected with COVID-19. As of this writing, ICE acknowledges 69 known “positive” cases of COVID-19 at the La Palma facility alone.

Recently, at an La Palma detention center in Eloy, detainees blocked the doors to their “pod” with tables and chairs, demanding masks, gloves, hand soap and testing. In response, the officers from CoreCivic – the for-profit company that operates many detention centers – broke through and shot them with rubber bullets and sprayed them with tear gas. As this violence demonstrates, detained men and women are not safe in ICE custody. No More Deaths, along with Amnesty International and others, have called for the release of all ICE detainees during this pandemic, and we have been working hard to secure the release of these individuals.

On May 1st, our legal team was able to secure four bond hearings; three of our brothers were granted bonds and one was continued. One of those released is an 18-year old high school senior, who has never been in detention before, and had his bond set at $9,000. Detention was horrific for this young man. Another of the three released tested positive for COVID and has been quarantining since release. As of this writing, we have been able to get nine detainees out since February and back to their families, and hope to get more out soon.

What is clear is that the government’s policy of denying all petitions for humanitarian paroles and continuing bond hearings, not providing masks, gloves, soap and testing are all purposeful and orchestrated forms of mass negligence, not just coincidental incidents of chaos. There can be no doubt that the United States is executing a policy of detention = death. The No More Deaths/ Keep Tucson Together Clinic will continue to shine the light on these deadly practices and to do everything in our power to secure freedom and life for our sisters and brothers in detention. If you are able, please consider making a generous donation to the No More Deaths Keep Tucson Together Bond Fund at bit.ly/nmdbond. We are committed to doing everything we can to leave no one behind to die alone in detention.

Article by Margo Cowan, volunteer, Keep Tucson Together

Click here for Webinar Links and More info!

From SOA Watch:

Dear SOA Watch,

We recently shared SOA Watch’s difficult decision to indefinitely postpone the 2020 Training Day and Action Convergence in Tucson to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus and protect our communities. Given the magnitude of the current health and humanitarian crises, it is our responsibility to find alternative forms of solidarity with those most disproportionately affected. We must remain vigilant to state violence and authoritarianism as governments protect corporate interests at the expense of peoples’ wellbeing and health.

With this in mind, we invite you to join us for the Confronting Forced Migration and Violence in the Americas Webinar Series on Saturday and Sunday, April 4^th and 5^th, 2020. Together with Stop US Arms to Mexico, Alliance for Global Justice, No More Deaths, Veterans for Peace, and other compas, we are facilitating a series of five, one-hour webinar workshops. The series will examine the impacts of US-backed state violence in the Hemisphere, the root causes of forced migration, militarization, and using effective narratives, mutual aid, research, and lobbying to nourish our collective work as we face the current humanitarian crisis.

Please note that interpretation from English to Spanish or Spanish to English will be provided throughout the entire Webinar Series. The webinar schedule, panel descriptions, and SEPARATE registration links for each webinar are found below.

Saturday, April 4, 2020

9:00 am – 10:00 am Pacific Time / 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Eastern Time
Voices from Abya Yala (the Americas): Realities and Resistance
Panel held in Spanish with English interpretation.Panelists:
Lucia Ixchiu, Somos Abya Yala – Somos una América, GuatemalaJorge Andrés Forero-González, Somos Abya Yala – Somos una América, Colombia
Abilio Peña, Servicio Internacional Cristiano de Solidaridad con los Pueblos de América Latina «Óscar Romero» (SICSAL)
Description:
In the Kuna people’s language, Abya Yala means “mature land,” “living land,” or “blossoming land” and refers to America. In the first panel, organizers from Guatemala and Colombia reflect on the impacts of neoliberalisms, extractivism, state violence, forced migration, and the pandemic within their communities and throughout the Americas. We will also discuss how communities and social movements are resisting and organizing to safeguard their rights, dignity, and territories in this context.
Registration Link: bit.ly/SOAWatchWebinarSeries1

10:30 am – 11:30 am Pacific Time / 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm Eastern Time
Countering Anti-Migrant Narratives and Media Work
Panel held in English with Spanish interpretation.Panelists:
Maha Hilal, Justice for Muslims Collective
Laura Carlsen, Americas Program
Description: 
Panelists will discuss how narratives are used to both highlight and conceal the nuances of forced migration and US interventionism. We will also discuss the role of the media in creating narratives that criminalize and dehumanize communities of color and the emergence of new narratives developed by migrants and asylum seekers.
Registration Link: bit.ly/SOAWatchWebinarSeries2

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm PT / 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm ET
Impact of COVID-19 Crisis on Migrants at US-Mexico Border
Panel held in English with Spanish interpretation.Panelists:
Jennifer Harbury, Angry Tías y Abuelas, Rio Grande Valley
Nicol Bowles, Community organizer in Texas Borderlands
Casa Carmelita, Asylum Seeker and Migrant Community Support Center
Description:
The coronavirus has grabbed headlines in local and international media. However, we have heard little about the disproportionate impact of this pandemic on the most vulnerable communities. In this webinar, we will discuss the situation facing asylum seekers on the US-Mexico border and how local communities are responding to these challenges.
Registration Link: bit.ly/SOAWatchWebinarSeries3

Sunday, April 5, 2020

9:00 am – 10:00 am PT / 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET
Researching U.S. Militarization of  Borderlands and Mesoamérica
Panel held in English with Spanish interpretation.Panelists:
Natalia Báez, Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights
John Lindsay-Poland, Stop US Arms to Mexico Project of Global Exchange
Description:
How do we access information on the US gun trade, Mexican military forces, and how they impact human rights violations? How can we translate hard data on militarism for social media use and to change policy? In this webinar, veteran researchers guide us through how to access information on US-sourced weapons in Mexico and Central America.
Registration Link: bit.ly/SOAWatchWebinarSeries4

10:30 am – 11:30 am PT / 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm ET
Policy advocacy on U.S. militarism and guns in Mexico and Central America
Panel held in English with Spanish interpretation.Panelists:
Dana Frank, Professor of History emerita at the University of California at Santa Cruz
Eugenio Weigend, Center for American Progress 
Description:
This webinar draws on the extensive experience of two effective policy advocates regarding gun policy and US policy in Honduras to respond to the following questions:  What  policies impact violence and arms trafficking in Mexico and Central America? Are the gun industry and militarists using the current crisis to promote harmful policies? How can we engage legislators in Washington to change those policies?
Registration Link: bit.ly/SOAWatchWebinarSeries5

SOA Watch is committed to challenging US-backed state violence that protects capitalism and profits at the expense of the wellbeing and dignity of our communities and territories. We stand strong with, and in, our communities and build our capacity to organize, resist, and engage in mutual aid. We hope you will join us for this webinar series and continue supporting our collective work for justice and structural change!

In continued solidarity,
Brigitte, Candice, Dévora, Pablo, and Roy
SOA Watch

FACEBOOK LIVE AVAILABLE: @SCHOOLOFTHEAMERICASWATCH