Nearly 300 supporters of the statewide New Mexican immigrant rights group Somos Un Pueblo Unido marched on Sunday in support of the undocumented immigrants detained at Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Artesia (FLETC) and advocated for the immediate release and granting of asylum for the more than 600 Central American women and children who are housed in military-style barracks. Somos Un Pueblo Unido gathered near the reinforced barbed-wire fence outside of FLETC that separated the crowd outside from the undocumented immigrants inside the facility. Supporters stood on top of trucks and held signs over the fence so the Central Americans could read and hear their messages. Chants of No estan solos, or Youre not alone elicited cheers and roars for about a minute from the detainees who gathered outside of their barracks to listen to the message from Somos Un Pueblo Unido according to those who were standing in the truck beds. It was very important for the Southeastern New Mexico immigrant and Chicano community, and for these women and children who are detained in prison conditions, to hear that in Southeastern New Mexico its not all about anti-immigrant rhetoric, said Marina Pina, a community organizer with the Roswell office of Somos Un Pueblo Unido. We are united and we are an organized community, and I think we were able to prove that today. The organization that fights against racism read a letter from one of the detainees over the loudspeaker alleging mistreatment by ICE officials and claimed that her child had lost 15 pounds because of inadequate nourishment. ICE officials could not immediately be reached because the march occurred on Sunday.
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 08:37:56 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015