General Discussion

bigtree

(85,996 posts) Thu Jul 17, 2014, 01:11 PM Jul 2014

CASA Applauds Gov O’Malley’s Unwaveringly Moral Response to the Humanitarian Crisis on the Border

statement released by CASA (MD. Immigrants Rights Org.) Executive Director, Gustavo Torres:

“I applaud Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley for stressing that children fleeing violence and abandonment in Central America should be treated as children that deserve our support. In stark contrast to other public figures that have called for their quick deportation, Governor O’Malley has urged that arriving migrant children receive fair, humane treatment and, above all, a fair legal review of whether they should be allowed to stay. We have heard from our colleagues across the country that they are relieved to hear the Governor become an indispensable voice for the immigrant community. We have let these colleagues know that this is hardly the first time the Governor has served as a hero for immigrant communities. Across his governorship, he has been a true friend of New Marylanders and addressing the abominable treatment of children at the border is only the most recent example of his leadership.

Like the Governor, CASA believes that as an American society we must ensure the protection and humane treatment of the children arriving at the border. We hope that most children are immediately reunited with family members inside the United States. We also believe that Maryland and Virginia need to do our part to provide opportunities to house children in facilities where they can receive adequate counseling, education, and legal services. Governor O’Malley is working with federal officials to find an appropriate Maryland location as quickly as possible. We agree with him that Westminster would have been a mistake. We have now seen two locations in our region – Lawrenceville, VA and Westminster, MD – respond with virulent racism at the thought of children joining their communities. We don’t believe that humane treatment of children includes their relocation to hostile, anti-immigrant communities. Between our two states there are a plethora of communities that would treat the children with the love they deserve. We urge the federal government to confer with local leaders and organizations to provide insight and historical perspective about these sites before moving forward.”

CASA de Maryland and CASA de Virginia are their state’s largest immigrant rights organizations. Our almost 60,000 members work with CASA to create a more just society by building power and improving the quality of life in low-income immigrant communities.

related:

CASA de Maryland, supported O'Malley's decision to question the Carroll County site (a position distorted and mischaracterized by CNN, Politico, and by WH leaks to selected news orgs.).

"When we heard about the proposed Westminster site, our immediate thought was that the only place in Maryland less hospitable to children fleeing violence in Central America would be inside the Frederick County Sheriff's Department building," said Kimberly Propeack, an attorney with the group.

"We think he is right to question why the administration would propose the most anti-immigrant locations rather than the many other parts of the state where children will be sheltered and loved," she said.

Retweeted by Washington Post
Jenna Johnson @wpjenna · 2h
O’Malley says he had many convos with WH official “but this is the one that she chose to leak.” http://wapo.st/1kz2Dkx

During his two terms as governor, Maryland lawmakers approved a state-level “Dream Act” that provides instate college tuition rates to some undocumented immigrants. The state also extended the ability to obtain driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants — or, as O’Malley calls them, “new Americans.”

And in April, the governor announced that a state-run jail in Baltimore would no longer automatically follow federal government orders to hold immigrants for possible deportation, an act of defiance that did not garner nearly as much attention.

. . . details were leaked to the media about a request from O’Malley during the conversation that children not be sheltered at the former Army Reserve Center in Westminster, a city of about 18,600 that’s about 35 miles northwest of Baltimore in Carroll County.

The request, first reported by CNN, was cast by a “Democratic source” as evidence of O’Malley’s hypocrisy: The governor did not want the children returned to their home countries, but he resisted sheltering them in his own state.

O’Malley aides were incensed, feeling that the governor’s comments were misconstrued. They said that O’Malley has been working closely with the White House for weeks to find safe accommodations in Maryland. On Monday, state officials began to process paperwork to secure more foster-care providers for the children.

“We’ve had many conversations,” O’Malley said of Muñoz on Wednesday, “but this is the one that she chose to leak.”