Anti-immigrant roundup: 6/13/18
The following is a list of activities and events of anti-immigrant organizations and individuals. Organizations listed as anti-immigrant hate groups are designated with an asterisk.
National groups
The anti-immigrant hate group the Federation for American Immigration Reform* (FAIR) lauded the passage of HB 2315, Tennessee鈥檚 new anti-sanctuary bill, and claimed it will defend any legal challenge to the legislation. In a Facebook video published May 23, FAIR鈥檚 state and local director Shari Rendall, joined the group鈥檚 president, Dan Stein, to discuss the bill, which passed without Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam鈥檚 signature. Stein said that FAIR鈥檚 legal arm, the Immigration Reform Law Institute* (IRLI), will help litigate any legal challenges, "to make sure that any kind of sanctuary city bill attack is successfully defended." FAIR has been involved in drumming up support for anti-sanctuary initiatives in Tennessee. According to , Rendall spoke to the Senate State and Local Government Committee, which supported SB 2332, the Senate companion bill to HB 2315. She reportedly told the committee, 鈥渟anctuary policies come in all shapes and sizes,鈥 and to be wary of some that 鈥渕asquerade as 鈥榳elcoming resolutions.鈥欌
In a series of briefs filed to U.S. Attorney General Sessions in the Matter of Castro-Tum, IRLI, which serves as the legal arm of the anti-immigrant movement, with orders to halt administrative closure, a temporary procedure where a judge removes a case from their docket without issuing a decision. IRLI called administrative closure 鈥渁 vast amnesty-by-stealth for deportable aliens.鈥 Reynaldo Castro-Tum entered the U.S. in 2014 as a 17-year-old unaccompanied minor and was apprehended by Border Patrol. He failed to appear at any subsequent removal proceedings and in 2016 an immigration judge concluded his case through administrative closure. The Board of Immigration Appeals took up the case but Sessions, using his position as Attorney General stayed a decision by the Board and reviewed the case himself. Sessions鈥 decision to end administrative closure means that 350,000 low priority immigration cases that were closed by judges now have the possibility of being recalendared, meaning that a different outcome, including deportation, could follow for the immigrants involved.
On May 21, the White House doubled down on President Trump鈥檚 dangerous rhetoric referring to MS-13 gang members as animals. In a May 17 blog, FAIR鈥檚 director of research, Matt O鈥橞rien , 鈥淧redictably, the mainstream media suffered a crippling attack of the politically correct vapors.鈥 Another FAIR staffer, Jennifer Hickey, went one further and , 鈥淭he media鈥檚 response showcases a bias against the president鈥檚 immigration agenda that prevents them from recognizing some MS-13 members are worse than animals.鈥 Dave Ray, also of FAIR, compiled a list of crimes committed by MS-13 gang members and it 鈥淢S-13 Gang Members 鈥楢nimals?鈥 You Decide?鈥
On May 24, President Trump nominated Ronald W. Mortensen, a听听with the anti-immigrant hate group听Center for Immigration Studies*听(CIS), as assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration.听The Bureau鈥檚听听is 鈥渢o provide protection, ease suffering, and resolve the plight of persecuted and uprooted people around the world on behalf of the American people鈥︹ If approved by the Senate, Mortensen would be the听fifth听individual from an anti-immigrant hate group to join the Trump administration. Mortensen鈥檚 former colleague, longtime CIS staffer听Jon Feere, left CIS in 2017 to take a position as a senior advisor to ICE deputy director Thomas Homan. Mortensen has written for CIS听听2009 and co-founded the anti-immigrant Utah Coalition on Illegal Immigration. , he repeatedly paints immigrants as criminals听who have no allegiance to the United States.听Just last year, Mortensen听听a piece in听The Hill听titled, 鈥淢ost illegal aliens routinely commit felonies.鈥 In it he states bluntly, 鈥淭he myth of the law abiding illegal alien is just that: a myth.鈥澨
On June 5, ICE deputy director Thomas Homan participated in an event hosted by the anti-immigrant hate group Center for Immigration Studies (CIS). Last year, former CIS staffer Jon Feere was appointed to serve as Homan鈥檚 special adviser and Homan himself has made a number of hardline, anti-immigrant statements. In June 2017, Homan a warning to undocumented immigrants: 鈥淚f you鈥檙e in this country illegally鈥 you should be uncomfortable. You should look over your shoulder, and you need to be worried.鈥 Homan, like Trump and the broader anti-immigrant movement, has made attacking so-called sanctuary cities a priority. In January 2018, Homan threatened elected officials in these jurisdictions, Fox News, 鈥淲e gotta take [sanctuary cities] to court and we gotta start charging some of these politicians with crimes." In April, Homan announced that he will resign this summer. His resignation comes at a time when ICE is under major scrutiny for militaristic worksite and migrant parents from their children. Homan鈥檚 visit drew the ire of New York Rep. Joe Crowley, who sent a to Homan鈥檚 office that read, 鈥淚t is highly inappropriate for a senior official of a federal agency to engage with a group that spreads such abhorrent viewpoints, including white supremacism and anti-Semitism, and I urge you to immediately retract your plans to speak.鈥
Local groups
A number of anti-immigrant groups based in Southern California continued their efforts to push cities to take a stance against California鈥檚 sanctuary city state law, SB54. The campaign, started by FAIR and IRLI, has resulted in over 25 cities voting to oppose SB54 to date. A small band of local, anti-immigrant activists has traveled throughout Southern California in recent months to testify in opposition to SB54. The activists have espoused antisemitic, anti-LGBT and vile nativist rhetoric at a number of these meetings, as documented by local media and Hatewatch. , one the most active anti-immigrant groups in Southern California, is one of the groups coordinating the local anti-sanctuary effort. We the People Rising head Robin Hvidston sends weekly emails encouraging anti-immigrant activists to attend the city council meetings. 听
On May 27, anti-immigrant activists participated in a rally in support of Travis Allen, a California gubernatorial candidate in Otay Mesa. Jeff Schwilk, a former leader of the San Diego Minutemen and current head of San Diegans for Secure Borders* (SDSB) circulated an email to supporters on May 28, praising the rally. SDSB previously endorsed Allen due to his views on immigration.
Legislation
ProEnglish*, another group founded by white nationalist John Tanton, continues to be busy at the state level pushing English-only legislation. On May 30, ProEnglish sent an email to its supporters praising the passage of a bill through Arizona鈥檚 state legislature that prevents insurance contracts in any other language than English from being valid. ProEnglish鈥檚 executive director Stephen Guschov, wrote in the email, 鈥淚t reinforces English鈥檚 historic role as Arizona鈥檚 and as America鈥檚 common, unifying language, and ProEnglish hopes that other states soon will follow Arizona鈥檚 example and pass similar legislation.鈥
In their own words
CIS head Mark Krikorian continued to target people from the Middle East by calling them 鈥済oatherds.鈥 On 3, he tweeted about the 鈥済ang of toothless goatherds鈥 in Yemen and on 21, he referred to an unspecified country as 鈥淕oatherdistan.鈥
On, 21, 2018, Iowa Rep. Steve King, a longtime ally of anti-immigrant groups, defended President Trump鈥檚 use of the term 鈥渁nimals鈥 to describe the gang MS-13. King tweeted, 鈥淧resident @realdonaldtrump how many rabid, violent MS-13 animals do mayors like @LibbySchaaf allow to prey on our citizens when they obstruct ICE raids? Too many!鈥
Upcoming events
On June 19, the Houston-based Texans for Immigration Reduction and Enforcement* (TFIRE) will host its next meeting. Larry Korkmars, the groups leader is scheduled to speak along with anti-immigrant activist Janet Thomas.
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