Immigration Jail in Rockford?

 

 

Posted Apr 25, 2017 at 10:36 AM Updated Apr 25, 2017 at 11:38 PM

By Cristina Gloria

I would like to express disappointment about how the immigration detention forum was handled April 17 at the YWCA. After attending, I question whether this public forum was intended to be an opportunity to hear from the sheriff about renting space for civil immigration detention in our jail and to answer questions from the public. If so, it did not meet that goal and it did not reflect the mission of the YWCA as it did not “promote peace, justice, freedom and dignity” to the attendees or the citizens of this community.

The members of the AAA & Latino American Voices feel that the presence of so many sheriff’s deputies dressed in bulletproof vests and carrying weapons was unnecessary, as well as the way they treated the forum attendees.

I have worked with law enforcement and have great respect for the work they do. However, the way that the deputies talked to us was as if we were criminal suspects or prisoners who were being lined up for a count. I was waiting to be asked to put my hands against the wall to be searched.

The audience at the meeting was made up of professionals, business owners and a few publicly elected officials. There appeared to be some deputies dressed as civilians in the audience taking up the already limited seating.

I perceived all of this as a technique to intimidate the people who were attending the forum. Why was this allowed in a facility of an organization that is promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity? Personally, I did not feel dignified by the presence of so many deputies, the ineptitude of the ICE officer and the final comments from state Rep. John Cabello.

Mr. Cabello did not demonstrate empathy at all and clearly demonstrated his “white male privilege” when he said that immigrants “should be afraid” and that they should “get legal.” I hope that the YWCA will invite Mr. Cabello to one of its workshops so that he may understand that his comments were completely inappropriate and reflected his lack of understanding of immigration issues.

As if they have any other option under the law or that only undocumented immigrants are deported. I know the YWCA does not have control over what he said, but the YWCA has the obligation to offer assistance to Mr. Cabello to understand how to speak thoughtfully to all people.

The responses that the sheriff provided insulted the intelligence of the attendees at the meeting. He presented the ICE detention center as something that he would have total control over, telling ICE whom he will take and whom he will not.

The ICE officer was unable to say if the sheriff had this authority or not. The sheriff did not clarify how the functions of law enforcement to fight crime would be affected even as he heard how the immigrant community’s trust of police will be broken if ICE has a presence in our jail. It is unclear if he understands that federal civil detention is different from criminal custody.

In conclusion, at the end of the forum we left with more questions, more distrust of the sheriff’s decision-making process and disappointment toward how we were treated at the YWCA, which is supposed to be a safe place for the community.

Cristina Gloria, MA, LPC. is a community liaison and board member for AAA & Latino American Voices.

Above is from:  http://www.rrstar.com/opinion/20170425/my-view-immigration-forum-displayed-ineptitude-and-insensitivity

Universal Basic Income

 

Canada Is Launching a Major Test of Universal Basic Income

 

 

Finland, The Netherlands, and San Francisco, California have already shown their interest in giving people a regular monthly allowance — a system known as basic income.

Now Ontario, Canada, is planning its own basic income trial as well.

Related: Universal Basic Income: An Idea Whose Time Should Never Come

On April 24, Premier Kathleen Wynne outlined new details of the Ontario Basic Income Pilot (OBIP), which is slated to begin later this spring and last for three years.

A total of 4,000 people in three regions in the province will begin receiving additional income based on each individual's current salary.

A single person in the trial can receive up to $16,989 per year, though the equivalent of 50% of any additional earned income will be subtracted from that total. So a person who makes $10,000 a year at their job, for example, would receive $11,989 in basic income, for a total income of $21,989.

Eligible recipients, who must be considered low-income and be between 18 and 64 years old, will be chosen through a randomized selection process

In her announcement, Premier Wynne said one goal of the pilot is to reassure people that their government supports them.

"It says to them, government is with you. Ontario is with you," she said.

Related: Could a Universal Basic Income Really Work?

The premise of basic income is straightforward: People get monthly checks to cover living expenses such as food, transportation, clothing, and utilities — no questions asked.

Along with Canada, a number of countries are conducting their own basic income trials.

Finland's government launched its pilot on January 1, and is giving 2,000 unemployed Finns $590 a month. In various cities throughout the Netherlands, 250 people will soon receive an extra $1,100 per month for two years. And in Kenya, the charity GiveDirectly has launched a trial version of a 12-year study that seeks to gather the first longitudinal data on basic income.

The concept of basic income has been around since the 1960s. In the decades since the radical idea was proposed, various researchers and government officials have given basic income experiments a try, with mixed results.

In general, however, the data seem to tilt in basic income's favor. One study, published in late 2016, found people who received unconditional cash transfers used vices like drugs and alcoholless frequently than people who didn't receive the money. And though it's easy to assume free money would make people lazy, research suggests the opposite is true. People in one 2013 study actually worked 17% longer hours and received 38% higher earnings when getting a basic income.

Skeptics, meanwhile, argue that because many basic income trials have been conducted in small villages in the developing world, the findings don't necessarily translate to developed countries.

Ontario's trial will begin in the regions of Hamilton, including Brantford and Brant County, and in Thunder Bay and the surrounding area. The third pilot will launch in Lindsay in the fall.

"Everyone should benefit from Ontario's economic growth," Wynne said in a statement. "A basic income will support people in our province who are reaching for a better life."

This article originally appeared on Business Insider[JS1] . Read more from Business Insider

Above is from:  http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2017/04/24/Canada-Launching-Major-Test-Universal-Basic-Income