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Parents of Mexican Teen Killed by Border Patrol File Suit

January 18th, 2011

When 15 year old Sergio Adrian Hernandez-Huereca was shot and killed by the U.S. Border Patrol last summer, there was a rush to kill the Mexican youth again, by killing his reputation, by saying he deserved what he got, that is bullets to meet rocks that in all likelihood he didn’t even throw. There was a rush to label him a smuggler, a criminal, as if that justified an extralegal shooting into Mexican territory. The name of the agent that fired the lethal bullet has never been released, just like the name of the Border Patrol agent who shot and killed Ramses Barron Torres has not been released. Well the parents of Sergio Adrian Hernandez-Huereca just filed a lawsuit against the United States and this could be a step towards justice.

Justice is not the $25 million dollars asked for in the civil suit, but rather the process that goes with the civil suit that could force information from the U.S. Government, who has gone out of it’s way to protect Border Patrol Agents who kill unarmed Mexicans, perhaps in Mexican territory.

“Part of this lawsuit seeks to require the government to turn over the border camera video and see it and get a better look at it,” said Bob Hilliard, attorney for Sergio’s family.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in El Paso, names the Department of Homeland Security, The U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and an “unnamed agent” of the U.S. Border Patrol as defendants.
“The parents are hopeful that the main thing they get is an accounting of the Border Patrol’s conduct,” Hilliard said, adding he is hoping that criminal charges will be filed against the agent.

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Mexico is Not the Most Dangerous Latin American Country

January 7th, 2011

The mainstream media, the United States government, and even some commenters here want to paint Mexico as the biggest danger to the United States since hmmm communism/the Russians/ Cubans…ay you get the point. Some stats tell a different story though.

The country currently with the highest murder rate is Honduras, followed closely by El Salvador.

There is no analysis as to why, although many will point to the drug war and gangs which really are crimes based in poverty. Much of the poverty in Latin America can be linked to inequity which can be linked in part to United States intervention ( a la NAFTA and more direct military interventions).

What I have not seen is much analysis about how many of these deaths are that of mujeres and under what circumstances. In El Salvador, 562 women were killed. We do know that in Honduras, for example, post-coup (because we can call it a coup now) there has been an increase in violence against women.

Via / The Mex Files

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The 58 Dreams Deferred Daily : 2010 Mexican Migrant Children Statistics

January 4th, 2011

According to an article in today’s El Diario/La Prensa, everyday an average of 58 Mexican minors are “voluntarily repatriated” , that is deported to Mexico. Of those 58, around 70 percent of them are unaccompanied. Doing that math, that means that around 40 children are sent back to Mexico without adults on a daily basis. And these are incomplete numbers, meaning they do not include children who were deported outside of an agreement signed between Mexico and U.S. Homeland Security in 2004.

These numbers, which came from the Mexican agency, Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM), further state that in between January and November of 2010, there were 439,898 deportation cases of which 19,296 were children, and out of the children, 3,653 were identified as female.

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Monday Morning Movie : Preview of Los Invisibles

November 15th, 2010

Last week Amnesty International, in conjunction with Mexican actor/director/producer Gael Garcia Bernal released Los Invisibles, The Invisible Ones, a series of four short documentaries about the trip thousands of Central Americans make traveling across Mexico in an attempt to reach the U.S.

I really wanted to highlight this series because of how accessible it is to many. I can imagine people in my neighborhood accessing the four films via their cell phones. In light of the anti-immigrant rhetoric in the U.S. combined with the revealed horrors Latinos from Central and South America face when traveling through Mexico al rumbo a los E.U., this film coming in part from a Mexican seems really important. There seems to be a new market for reality tv focusing on the border. Using buzzwords like “war”, outlets like National Geographic Channel and Current TV each have their own series about those who cross the frontera for a better life. But those series feel like exploitation films to me, with an U.S. gaze framing the crisis not so much in terms of the inherent human rights of the migrants, but rather the fear of invasion.

Tomorrow we will feature part I of the film.

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To Mexico City! : Supreme Court Declares Gay Married Couples Can Adopt

August 18th, 2010

On Monday, with a 9 to 2 vote, the Mexican Supreme Court decided that married gay couple have the right to adopt children in el D.F. This follows an earlier court decision in Mexico City upholding the legality of same-sex marriages.

The issue of same-sex marriage and adoption was raised to the Supreme Court by the Attorney General under Mexican President Felipe Calderon. The lawsuit alleged that gay marriages and adoption went against the idea of family and put children at risk.

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Costa Rica’s Supreme Court Blocks Entry of U.S. Military (Temporarily)

August 13th, 2010

Costa Rica hasn’t had an army since the 1940′s after a violent civil war, but the US is trying to change that by bringing it’s own military presence inside the Central American country best known to most people as being a popular adventure tourism destination.

From Narco News:

On July 1, Costa Rica’s unicameral Legislative Assembly, with 31 votes out of 57, approved the US Embassy’s request to open the country to 46 US warships, 7,000 US soldiers, 200 helicopters and two aircraft carriers. This permission was granted through at least Dec. 31 of this year, officially justified by the necessity of fighting drug-traffickers, providing humanitarian services and providing a place for US ships to dock and refuel. While most reports have put a Dec. 31 expiration date on the agreement, the Nicaraguan media last week reported that Costa Rican Foreign Minister Rene Castro, in a meeting with Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Samuel Santos, said that the agreement is for five years.

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US Poets in Mexico writing contest!

March 18th, 2010

Hm. I’m not sure how I feel about this–it is a contest for a US citizen to go to Mexico and write poetry. I’ve participated in writing retreats like this before, and I often find them to be reliant on the “exotic” tropes that often define US traveler’s experiences (i.e. Spend all your time in hotels! Drink lots of alcohol! Ignore the starving people who aren’t allowed to access the beach you’re on! etc). But at the same time, I think that this might be a really great opportunity for somebody of Mexican descent who can’t otherwise afford to “go back home.”

So do with it what you will. ANd if you win, let us know!

U.S. Poets in Mexico has announced its 2nd annual Mérida Fellowship Award. This award is given annually to one American poet (over 18 years of age) to participate in U.S. Poets in Mexico workshops with tuition and registration fees paid, a hotel room for the week, two day trips, and optional Spanish lessons.

To enter the contest, send 4-6 poems, no more than 6 pages in total, 12 pt. Times New Roman type. Do not put your name or address on submitted poems. Previously published poems will be accepted. Contest submissions will not be returned. Enclose your poems, a check for $25 (entry fee) and the Application. If you are only entering the Mérida Fellowship Award contest and not attending workshops, please check the appropriate box on the Application so that you will not receive email asking for registration and tuition fees.

Mail to:
U.S. Poets in Mexico
P.O. Box 4150
Grand Central Station
New York, NY 10163

Deadline: October 15, 2010
Winner annouced: November 1, 2010
Judge: Maureen Owen

E-mail questions to: uspoetsinmexico@verizon.net

More details available at: http://www.uspoetsinmexico.org/33.html

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Amnesty International Video About Femicides in Juarez

October 18th, 2009

Women raped, murdered and disappeared in Juarez continues to be an ongoing situation. With over 400 cases reported and an unknown number not reported, the issue fades in and out of the public eye.

I would like to know of ways to support local organizations and local families in and around Juarez. Organizations without big budgets so that the mujeres of Juarez can live and rest in peace.

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