Let’s turn back the clock. The year is 2006. The month is May. Mexico State Security Forces evict a group of flower sellers from a local market in Texcoco, Mexico, whom authorities claim set up stalls without permission outside of the market. This eviction produced an outpouring of community support for the vendors in Texcoco and in San Salvador Atenco. The protest, which lasted two days, resulted in arrests of more than 200 people, 47 of which were women. These women were forced to endure unimaginable forms of violence at the hands of the police. Thus far, state authorities have pursued criminal action in only two of the 11 cases, citing “abuse of authority or “lewd acts” and not, torture.
The Latin America Working Group Education Fund, the Washington Office on Latin America and the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights invite you to a discussion on
Human Rights Challenges in Mexico
Featuring
Stephanie Brewer Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez Human Rights Center (Centro Prodh)
Cristina Hardaga Fernández Tlachinollan Human Rights Center, Guerrero
Daniel Joloy Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (CMDPDH)
Ana Luna Serrano Citizens in Support of Human Rights, Nuevo León
Other speakers to be confirmed.
Friday, March 15, 2013 9:00 a.m.-10:30am Washington Office on Latin America 1666 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 400
by Emma Buckhout, LAWG Intern, with contributions by Ruth Isabel Robleson February 26, 2013
President Obama, Congress, and a growing majority of American voters agree that the U.S. immigration system is broken and must be fixed. However, more than a month into the president’s second term and an unending national debate, the question remains: will anything actually happen on immigration reform? Recent events, including a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on “Comprehensive Immigration Reform” held February 13th provided us with an inkling of what we might have in store. Committee Chair Senator Leahy (D-Vt.) echoed President Obama saying “Now is the time” for immigration reform. Meanwhile, Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) saw “overconfidence on this (immigration reform) bill” and asserted that he and others will continue to fight it over issues of earned legalization, enforcement, and border security. While Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), one of the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” senators working on their own comprehensive immigration framework, indicated support for making reform happen, he also noted that any discussions thus far include “triggers that need to be trippled in terms of border security...”
To read the MPJD's next steps, outlined at the press conference on Monday, January 28, 2013, click here. Para leer la declaracion del MPJD, haga clic aqui.
To read The Pain Caused by Guns Has No Borders, click here. (In Spanish and English)
To read the salute to the Congreso Nacional Indigena, click here. (In Spanish only)
To read the Platform for Memory and Documentation, click here. (In Spanish only)
To read the Drug Regulation Platform, click here. (In Spanish only)
To read the Solidarity Statement by Asamblea Popular de Familias Migrantes, click here. (In Spanish only)
“We embrace the pain of the mothers and fathers in the United States who have lost children to gun violence, because my own son was disappeared in Michoacán with a firearm,” said Araceli Rodríguez, mother of Luis Ángel León Rodríguez in a statement from Mexico’s Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity (MPJD). Just like parents who lost children in the horrific Newtown shooting, victims across Mexico who have lost their sons and daughters to gun violence are calling for action to prevent future tragedies.
On Monday, February 4th people of faith and people of conscience from all over the country are participating in an Interfaith Call-in to Prevent Gun Violence. Follow the easy steps below or go to www.faithscalling.org. Lend your voice to the many grieving in Mexico and the U.S. due to gun violence by calling your Senator and insist that they act to prevent gun violence on both sides of the border!
Wow. What an incredible year of activism we’ve seen from you.
As we all prepare to give thanks with family and friends later this week we wanted to ensure you knew how thankful we are for the tremendous difference you’ve made this year as a committed LAWGista. No matter the type of activism; from sending scolding emails to the Cuba desk at the State Department and the Office of Foreign Assets Control and to your Representative demanding that the U.S. enforce human rights requirements in Mexico to taking over social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter so that GM would hear out the members of ASOTRECOL, or the overwhelming amount of financial support we received for our Cuba program last week. Simply put, thank you.
You’ve made a world of difference and we’ll continue to fight for justice in Latin America, together.
To show you just how much we mean thanks, our staff put together this short and sweet video to drive the message home.
Save the Date & Kick off your Holiday Season in a Spirited Fashion!
Join the Latin America Working Group Education Fund staff, friends, and fellow Latin Americanists for our holiday happy hour at The Passenger in Washington, D.C.
Why: To support the Latin America Working Group Education Fund, mix and mingle with LAWGEF staff and fellow Latin Americanists, and kick off your holiday season in a spirited fashion!
The Latin America Working Group Education Fund will receive 10 percent of the total sales from our group during this special time. We hope that you will join us and bring along a few friends!
For more information, please check out our Facebook invite or contact Ruth I. Robles at
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or 202-546-7010 ext. 103.
See you there!
P.S. In the spirit of the holidays and OUR way to show appreciation of you all, the first 10 people to purchase a drink will receive a LAWG tote bag!
We were proud to join with YOU and so many partners and allies in hosting Mexico’s Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity here in our nation’s capitol last month. Highlights of their 3-day stop in Washington, D.C. included a TV-camera crowded press conference on the steps of a Capitol Hill church and a ‘lobby day’ where teams of victims and advocates deployed all over Capitol Hill to tell their stories to individual members and congressional aides. The historic visit ended with a moving vigil and march through Columbia Heights to a final event in Malcolm X Park, a dramatic poetry reading by the Mexican poet Javier Sicilia, whose reaction to his son’s murder sparked the movement, and a stirring speech by the legendary farmworker union leader, Dolores Huerta.
In September, LAWG and other partners hosted Mexico's Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity for their 3-day stop in Washington, D.C. In D.C. the Caravan was a success thanks to your support and that of the greater D.C. community. Watch this slideshow to learn more about how they spent their time in D.C.
Since August 12, 2012, Mexico's Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity has traveled 6,000 miles across the United States calling for the U.S. to do its part to stop violence in Mexico. The caravaneros are calling for an end to the failed drug war that has left over 60,000 dead and 10,000 disappeared in Mexico over the last five years.
Join us on Wednesday, September 12th in the House of Representatives, Rayburn 2226 from 12-1:30 p.m. as U.S. Caravan Riders Tell their Stories. Join LAWG's Executive Director, Lisa Haugaard, and the caravaneros as they brief Congress demanding new policies that will Foster peace, justice and human dignity on both sides of the border.
For the past couple of months, LAWG and other organizations have been organizing a series of events for the Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity's final stop in Washington, D.C. from Monday, September 10th - Wednesday, September 12t. If you are in the D.C. area please join us for these unique series of events.
On Monday, September 10th, the Caravan will arrive to Washington, DC, the final stop of the Caravan. Poet and movement leader Javier Sicilia and victims who have lost loved ones to violence in Mexico will be here to make their voices heard in our nation’s capital – and we ask you to JOIN US and add your voice in calling for an end to the failed policies, an end to bloodshed.
If you live in or near D.C. we hope you can join us for this and other Caravan events. Don’t live in DC, but know someone who does? Do your part by spreading the word.
Here’s the full list of events. Please join us – and spread the word!
6:00-7:30pm U.S. Guns and Violence in Mexico: A Bi-national Call for Solutions Sponsored by LAWG, the Washington Office on Latin America, and the Elliot School of International Affairs at George Washington University 1957 E Street Northwest Lindner Family Commons To RSVP, please click here.
Wednesday, September 12th 5:30- 9pm Vigil and Procession for Peace 5:30- Welcome at St. Stephen & the Incarnation Episcopal Church (1525 Newton St. NW) 6:30-Procession begins from St. Stephen’s down 16th St. towards Meridian Hill Park/Malcolm X Park 7:30-9-Music & Caravan Closing (16th St. & Euclid St.)
We still need help setting and cleaning up for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, not to mention marshalls to help direct people for the rally on Monday and Vigil on Wednesday night. Email Ruth Robles at
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if you’d like to help!
Can’t make it to anything, but wish you could? We’ve got you covered. We understand life gets in the way sometimes so stay tuned for pictures from the Caravan’s stop in DC. Click here to check out the Caravan’s photo stream!
Sergio Aguayo Professor, Center for International Studies, El Colegio de Mexico (Mexico City)
Tom Diaz Senior Policy Analyst, Violence Policy Center
(Speaker from the Caravan for Peace, TBD)
Lindner Family Commons Elliott School of International Affairs George Washington University 1957 E Street Northwest Tuesday, September 11, 2012 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
For more information, please contact Clay Boggs at
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Countless families across Mexico have been devastated by drug-related violence, with an estimated 60,000 drug-related deaths since Mexican President Felipe Calderón took office in 2006. In 2011, the son of Mexican poet Javier Sicilia was found murdered, presumably by organized crime gunmen. Out of this grief, a peace movement in Mexico has emerged. This influential movement has mobilized and united thousands across Mexico to call for an end to the violence, joining in cross-country marches, holding vigils and processions, and engaging in dialogue with Mexico’s highest political leaders.
On August 12, 2012, over 100 members of the Peace Movement crossed the border from Tijuana to San Diego to start a month-long caravan across the United States to raise awareness about violence in Mexico and to engage in dialogue with victims of violence in the United States.
The Peace Movement has identified U.S. arms trafficking to Mexico as a critical bi-national issue. According to the ATF, 70 percent of guns recovered by Mexican authorities and submitted for tracing in the past three years are of U.S. origin. The United States must do its part to stop the massive flow of weapons across its borders. If powerful assault weapons are readily available close to the border, they will continue to make their way into the hands of criminal groups.
Please join us for this timely and important discussion about the violence in Mexico, arms trafficking from the United States, and the role of the Peace Movement in a bi-national campaign to stem the flow of arms across the border.
Estamos hasta la madre -- it means, “we’ve had enough.”
Last year, Javier Sicilia experienced a parent’s worst nightmare: his 24-year-old son, Juan Francisco, was murdered in Mexico’s deadly “drug war,” one of 60,000 men, women and children to fall victim to brutal violence in the past six years.
Mexico’s Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity (MPJD), led by Mexican poet Javier Sicilia, will tour the United States this summer in a Caravan for Peace (#CaravanaUSA). The Caravan will travel more than 6,000 miles to more than 25 cities, starting on Sunday, August 12th in San Diego and ending in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, September 12th.
The MPJD was born out of a father’s grief over his son’s death and a country’s pain for the 50,000 to 71,000 dead, 10,000 disappeared, and the thousands more displaced by President Calderon’s “war on drugs” which began in December 2006. In Mexico, the MPJD serves as a platform for victims of violence to share their stories and demand an end to this failed offensive against organized crime that has left a "trail of death, pain, and corruption in its path." Last year, the MPJD launched two similar caravans to the North and South of Mexico, where victims we able to express the consequences of the "drug war" in their own voices.
Javier Sicilia and the MPJD hope the Caravan will spark a bi-national dialogue, in which victims on both sides of the border can share their collective pain and search for common solutions towards a much-needed peace. Through this dialogue, the Caravan hopes to “inspire U.S. civil society to stem the flow of illegal weapons into Mexico, to support humane and health-oriented alternatives to drug prohibition, and to demand more effective, non-violent security strategies.”
Want to get involved? Fill out this volunteer form or send an email to
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U.S. Peace Caravan Route-- San Diego to Washington, D.C.: August 12 - September 12
San Diego, CA – Sunday, Aug 12
Los Angeles, CA - Monday – Tuesday, Aug 13 - Aug 14
Phoenix, AZ – Wednesday, Aug 15
Tucson, AZ – Thursday, Aug 16
Las Cruces, NM – Friday, Aug 17
Albuquerque/Santa Fe, NM – Saturday, Aug 18
Santa Fe, NM – Sunday, Aug 19
Rest Day, Santa Fe, NM – Monday, Aug 20
El Paso, TX – Tuesday, Aug 21
Laredo, TX – Wednesday, Aug 22
Harlingen/Brownsville, TX – Thursday, Aug 23
McAllen/San Antonio, TX – Friday, Aug 24
Austin, TX – Saturday, Aug 25
Houston, TX – Sunday, Aug 26
New Orleans, LA – Monday, Aug 27
Jackson, MS Rest Day – Tuesday, Aug 28
Montgomery, AL – Wednesday,Aug 29
Atlanta/Ft Benning, GA – Thursday - Friday, Aug 30 - 31
Louisville, KY– Saturday, Sept 1
Travel Night to Chicago, IL & Rest Day – Sunday, Sept 2
Chicago, IL – Monday - Tuesday, Sep 3-4
Cleveland, OH – Wednesday, Sept 5
New York, NY – Thursday - Friday, Sept 6-7
Baltimore, MD – Saturday - Sunday, Sept 8-9
Washington, D.C. – Monday - Wednesday, Sept 10-12
Feel like getting involved?Fill out this volunteer form or send an email to
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Have you ever been inside a U.S. Border Patrol detention facility? I haven’t. But every year, thousands of migrants, many from Mexico and Central America, are held in these centers. Many have reported that their basic human rights were violated while in U.S. Border Patrol custody. Sadly, U.S. tax dollars are funding this humanitarian rights crisis at our Southwest border, and we need your help to stop it. First, let me tell you a few stories:
The National Immigration Law Center, the Latin America Working Group Education Fund, and the Women’s Refugee Commission cordially invite you to:
MIGRANTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS AT THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER: A NORTHERN MEXICO PERSPECTIVE
Thursday, March 29th, 2012 10:00am-12:00pm
AFL-CIO - President’s Room 815 16th Street Northwest Washington, District of Columbia 20005
Panelists representing migrant shelters and migrant rights organizations from cities along Mexico’s northern border will discuss their new report on human rights abuses in U.S. detention and deportation processes, as reported by recently deported Mexican migrants. The report is a result of a border-wide initiative to document such abuses and points to how U.S. immigration practices put migrants at greater risk of abuse and violence upon deportation.
PANELISTS:
• Gabriela Morales and Lizeth Martinez, Centro de Derechos Humanos del Migrante in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua • Esmeralda Flores, Coalición Pro Defensa del Migrante in Tijuana, Baja California • Pedro Uriel Gonzalez, Casa YMCA de Menores Migrantes in Tijuana, Baja California • Jose Luis Manzo, Casa del Migrante Nazareth in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas • Perla del Angel, Centro de Recursos de Migrantes in Agua Prieta, Sonora
Space is limited. Please RSVP to Ben Leiter at
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Event in Spanish and English – simultaneous interpretation provided
Migrant rights centers and shelters in cities along Mexico’s northern border serve thousands of migrants each year, many of whom have been deported from the United States just hours earlier. These centers provide a refuge for migrants who too often fall victim to violence and exploitation upon repatriation to unfamiliar or unsafe Mexican border cities. They also have a unique vantage point to document abuses that migrants have experienced in the U.S. immigration system. At this event, panelists will discuss their new report that highlights documented patterns of human rights abuses against migrants in apprehension, detention and deportation by U.S. officials; present recommendations to inform the efforts of policymakers and advocates in Washington, DC; and share how growing threats against migrants and migrant rights defenders in Mexico affect their ability to defend and protect the rights of migrants.
If you have any questions regarding this event, please contact Ben Leiter at
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or 202.546.7010.
by Jenny Johnson and Ben Leiteron December 17, 2010
Monday, December 20 – SPECIAL UPDATE: On Saturday morning, the Senate failed to gather the 60 votes needed to break a Republican-led filibuster and move the DREAM Act forward for a final vote. Despite this disappointing outcome, we are encouraged that a majority of Senators supported the DREAM Act on Saturday by a vote of 55-41, including several unexpected “yes” votes from Democrats who voted against the bill just two years ago. Even more inspiring was the dedication and courage of the DREAMers—mostly young undocumented students—who led a nonviolent moment across the country, and took great risks to support this legislation. The LAWG remains committed to standing alongside these young people in their struggle for sensible and humane immigration reform that will allow them to pursue their dreams. Thanks to everyone who joined us in our commitment and made a call, sent a fax, or wrote an e-mail in support of the DREAM Act this year.
This is it. Your Senators will be voting tomorrow morning on the DREAM Act. We need your help to make sure we get the 60 Senate votes to make the DREAM Act a reality.
Please call your Senators now and urge them to support the DREAM Act (S.3992)!
Find your Senator’s contact information here, or click here to be directly connected.
by Jenny Johnson and Ben Leiteron November 22, 2010
As we join with our families to celebrate Thanksgiving, we also remember the many thousands of immigrant families who continue to suffer and struggle in the absence of needed immigration reform. The passage of the DREAM Act can make a huge difference in the lives of undocumented youth who were brought to the U.S. by their parents and now, after working and studying hard to graduate from our neighborhoods’ high schools, confront obstacles to their future because of their legal status. By removing such barriers, the DREAM Act will allow immigrant students to pursue their dreams.
Migrants in our region are experiencing a human rights crisis, particularly those who journey northward through Mexico en route to the United States. Just this past August, 72 migrants from Central and South America were found massacred in northern Mexico. Far from an isolated occurrence, this incident is a terrifying example of the experiences that countless migrants suffer on a daily basis.
Click here to read the letter that LAWG and concerned faith, labor and human rights groups sent to President Obama urging him to demonstrate leadership at home to promote and protect the migrants’ human and civil rights, as well as work with counterparts in Mexico to ensure that migrants receive the basic rights inherently afforded to all humanity.
In response to President Calderón's meeting with President Obama and address to Congress, LAWG, WOLA, and our counterparts in Mexico issued a joint statement urging our respective elected officials to move beyond the empty platitudes that typically characterize such meetings and instead capitalize on this historic visit to make concrete and meaningful commitments to transform the rhetoric of shared responsibility into reality. Given the shared challenges posed by organized crime, arms trafficking and illicit drug use, it is critical that both countries move beyond ineffective and worn-out strategies and propose concrete, comprehensive solutions to address the root causes of these problems.
by Christa Schelter and Jenny Johnsonon April 27, 2009
Last week Representative Raul Grijalva (AZ-7) introduced HR 2076, The Border Security and Responsibility Act of 2009. The purpose of this bill is to restore the rule of law to the borderlands, protect communities, federal lands, and wildlife habitat from the destructive impacts of the border wall.
Anti-immigrant legislation and sentiment have sparked the return of the 1980's Sanctuary Movement. The New Sanctuary Movement continues the tradition of standing up for human and immigrant rights in opposition to unjust policies.
ovember 19, 5 – 8 p.m. 
