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Lawyers continue to fight for access to detainees, and community groups are raising money to support the affected families.
The Des Moines Register has been reporting this week on lawyers' efforts to gain access to the 390 men and women detained on Monday in a raid by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the Agriprocessors, Inc., meat processing plant in Iowa.
Rose Mraz, an attorney for Justice for Our Neighbors in Iowa, wrote an e-mail to advocates yesterday describing her and others' lawyers experiences as they tried to meet with detainees:
I was in Waterloo for 11 hours [Tuesday] and YES, I did get to speak to detainees.
After our failed attempt to enter the facility on Tuesday afternoon, we were contacted about 4 hours later only to be told that we could go in then. Some attorneys from Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence went in and saw 17 detainees from 9:30pm until 3am.
On Wednesday, myself, 4 other attorneys, an accredited rep and two translators saw detainees between 12:30pm and 7:30pm. The biggest challenge was that although detainees did not have to sign G-28s to see us, we needed their NAMES. Through a community effort, we obtained 147 names, but were only able to locate a relatively small percentage of the detainees. They were all in different stages of being processed for fed'l crim and imm proceedings and once processed, they were transferred to random county jails across Iowa. When we left the facility last night, we saw two DHS buses coming and we heard that all of the detainees would be gone by noon today. The challenge now will be to find out where people are being held and attempt to do KYRs since very few detainees actually received an evaluation of their immigration case.
We were pressing for [Know Your Rights presentations] in Waterloo, but they said that the detention standards didn't apply to the makeshift facility.
Community groups in Iowa are organizing to support the families who have been affected by the raids. The Main Street Project in Minnesota has put out a call for donations of money and materials on behalf of community organizations in Iowa:
Dear Friends and Allies-
The Postville Raid--the largest at a single site in history, has left many victims in its wake. Approximately 390 people were arrested on Monday as ICE descended on Agriprocessors-- the nation's largest kosher packing plant. There are many needs! Below please find a variety of options for donating cash or supplies to the various organizations/institutions that are directly working with the detainees and their families.
This list was created based on conversations with staff working with the community in Waterloo and Postville.
***For those of you in MN-- the Main Street Project is more that willing to serve as a 'drop-off' location.
For directions to our office, please contact: Kathy Hiltsley at
612-879-7578 or
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*Supplies Needed:*
reams of white paper for copying/printing
staplers
staples
Xerox toner
pens
paper clips
diapers (for infants-toddlers)
infant formula (Simulac and Enfamil)
gas cards (Recommended for IA: Kum & Go, Hy-Vee, Casey's General Store)
Hygiene products for men and women (shampoo, soap, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrush)
food (non perishable)
phone cards (long distance to Latin America)
*Cash Donations for Immigrant Families:*
For sending checks and cash, the address is:
Veridian Credit Union
P.O. Box 6000
Waterloo, IA 50701
If making a donation via credit card, please call
1-800-235-3228
*** Please include Account Number for the Postville fund when sending either form of payment. The account number-- 5830490
*Cash Donations for El Centro Latinoamericano (general operating):*
El Centro Latinoamericano
500 E. 4th Street Ste. 321
Waterloo, Iowa 50703
Phone: 319-287-6400
*Cash Donations for St. Bridget's Catholic Church: *
Saint Bridget's Hispanic Ministry
Att'n. Paul Real
PO BOX 369
Postville, IA. 52162
Local groups are also organizing a national call to action for next week:
On Sunday, May 18th, the community members of Postville and Waterloo, Iowa will issue a Report to the Nation - so that national news media and decision makers will hear the real story of workers and families devastated by the raid.
We can join them in solidarity that week (May 18-24) with the following actions:
- Write and send a press release/editorial board memo to local media in solidarity with the Iowa families affected by the raids, highlighting how such tactics have affected your local community as well.
- Stage your own event or press conference telling the stories of families affected by raids in your area. Demand that the trend of criminalizing workers and separating families is un-American and unacceptable.
- Work with your local religious institutions to conduct a day of prayer for all families impacted by raids.
If your organization can organize a solidarity action, please email us about it (
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) or call 202 731 9543.
For more up to date information, video footage and images of the raids go to the FIRM blog: www.fairimmigration.wordpress.com.
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NIJC Immigration News Blog 
