United We Stand
  • Home
  • Portfolio
  • Issues
  • Take Action
  • FAQ's
  • Contact Us
  • Share Your Story
    •

    How do we know there are abuses occuring in immigration detention. Can't people just lie to take advantage of the system?

    The organization Freedom for Immigrants has documented abuses in immigration detention that have been verified not only by the person but by other witnesses as well. It is important to understand that a person in immigration detention can't just pick up and leave after reporting an abuse. Often, they are forced to interact with the individuals who perpetrated the abuse, including sexual and physical abuse. Many people are scared to report incidents like these because if they do then they are often retaliated against and then re-victimized by an ineffective or non-existant investigative process. According to Freedom for Immigrants, for every reported abuse, there are countless other abuses that go unreported because of fear of retaliation or lack of language accessibility.

    Shouldn't we focus on helping people born in our country first?

    Imagine being in the shoes of an immigrant mom, dad, or even child. Your life consisted of fighting everyday for food, barely having money to buy clothes or other neccessities. Now, you are trying to go to America, the land of opportunity, to work and help your family out. To the United States that benefits us in many ways. Fighting for freedom of immigrants is part of the struggle for better jobs, better homes, and better education for all. We care/ should care about immigrants because we care for all people already in this country. Many United States citizens are from mixed status families, with at least on member of the family being undocumented. When a parent, sibling, or loved one is ripped away from the family, the while family unit suffers. Just to name a few, school grades can plummet and paying rent and food becomes more of a struggle,if not impossible. Also, when you think about it, fighting for freedom of immigrants is also part of the srtuggle for freedom to create a better world outside of the structures of national boundaries, racial divisions, and a capitalist division of labor. If you don't get anything from this whole thing just remember, we care for the peoples of every nation because we care for humanity and the planet.

    Aren't undocumented immigrants already taking a lot of our public benefits?

    This is a myth! Undocumented immigrants in the United States contribute more in payroll taxes that they will ever consume in public benefits. Undocumented immigrants are barred from receiving most public benefits. In fact, poor immigrants use public benefits at a lower rate than poor native-born citizens.