Teachers Facing Deportation

After enduring some 6 days in central cell block jail in this country’s capital, on hunger strike and risking deportation, it’s difficult to express how relieved I am to be out. I can’t fully explain how scary it was to be in there. But during my time spent in jail, I remained resolved in the fight to win permanent protection for other young undocumented immigrants.

You’ll find more of my story below. What you need to know is that my mother didn’t teach me to be a coward. She didn’t teach me to wait until someone does something for me. She taught me to never give up without a fight.

Can you join me by giving $3 to the movement that I know will help immigrants finally win permanent protection?

Become a monthly donor

I remember being in my apartment with my mom and hearing the announcement for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA). I figured out how to apply, then got approved for DACA and I was so happy because finally I was able to be a teacher and work legally. I felt empowerment — like I belonged in this country. But that was fleeting.

Obstruction

: Who Is Congress Serving- The Tax Bill

Who Is Congress Serving- The Tax Bill: By Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders Dec. 17, 2017 WASHINGTON — Over the past year, Republicans have made their priorities clear. Their ...

International Day of Migrants - Dec 18.

On December 18, the international community recognizes and celebrates the rights of migrants around the world. This year, 2017, marks the 27th anniversary of the UN's International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (commonly referred to as the Migrant Worker’s Convention or Migrant Rights Convention). It was approved by the UN General Assembly on Dec. 18, 1990.

Read NNIRR's 2015 International Migrants Day Statement, "A Call to Affirm the Human Rights of All Migrants".

Let's honor International Migrants Day with a call to action to lift up and respect human rights of all migrants, and to commit to challenge and end all forms of racism and xenophobia. 2016 was a horrific year in terms of the increased flow of migrants "in vulnerable situations" and the rise of hateful, anti-immigrant rhetoric and actions. We continue to call for the recognition and respect and human rights at international borders, and urge an immediate end to the detention of migrant children and families. 

You can see more information on the issue of border justice here. Go here to learn more about the international initiative to recognize human rights at international borders.

The Convention affirms the human rights of all migrants, regardless of citizenship or immigration status, and recognizes that migrants are men, women, children, and families – not just economic commodities. In 2003, the Convention "entered into force"; today, 51 countries have ratified or acceded to the Convention.

Trump Benefited From The ‘Chain Migration’ He Blamed For Attempted New York Terror Attack | HuffPost

Trump Benefited From The ‘Chain Migration’ He Blamed For Attempted New York Terror Attack | HuffPost

Appalachian Grandma on the Tax Plan

The Democratic Socialist Alternative—What Is It? - LA Progressive

The Democratic Socialist Alternative—What Is It? - LA Progressive

16 Women and Donald Trump

Tax the Oligarchs

 The oligarchs in charge of the Republican Party have won the tax battle nationally. Now, the next step is our response.  California has long been cited as the 6^th. or 7 th largest economy in the world. We should act upon this reality.

The oligarchs will cut the corporate tax from about 35% to near 20%.   California should raise its corporate tax ( franchise tax)  from 1.5% to 10%.

The oligarchs will eliminate the Estate Tax.

California should establish an estate tax of about 10% on estates larger than $5 million.  They will still get more of a tax cut than you or I get.  California  should recapture the money that the oligarchs are giving themselves in this looting of the economy.

 But, won’t these taxes place the state at a competitive disadvantage ?  Yes, the Republican tax victory forces states into a race to the bottom. We should try to avoid joining this race.

States already have significant differences in tax structures.  For example, Texas has a very high property tax and no state income tax.  And, it has a petroleum extraction tax that taxes all oil taken from the ground on the radical theory that natural resources belong to us all.

So, if California raised taxes on corporations and estates, we too would have differences in tax structures.

Tax Bill is a Major Step Toward Authoritarian Future

Democratic Socialist elected in Iowa

A Newly Elected Democratic Socialist on How to Win in Trump Country

“If we talk to people on issues in a universal way, we are going to get their vote.” That's how Pleasant Hill, Iowa's newest city councilperson, socialist Ross Grooters, says he won his seat, and how he thinks others can run and win, too. Grooters, whose day job is a locomotive engineer for Union Pacific Railroad, is active in Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, a People's Action member organization. His city council campaign reflected many of the issues that he says animate him personally: the struggles working-class families like his own face with stagnant wages and rising health care costs, the anti-immigrant fervor dividing his community and a clean water battle that is pitting Iowa families against powerful corporate agricultural interests.