Late one night during one of our summer storms, we received a call from two workers asking for help. They said they had been hired for day work, and had worked two ten-hour days. When the employer said they had to keep working on the second day they refused–so he just put them out into the storm!
Recent arrivals from Central America they had no idea what to do. Fortunately the CoFiA phone is answered twenty-four hours a day, and Angelica was able to help them figure out how to get a bus that took them fairly near where they were staying; and they were able to track down an acquaintance who picked them up.
So they did get back–soaked, but wiser. We are still gathering information to try to call the employer to account. From violence and poverty at home, to abuse and theft here–what a trade-off.
A conference call on July 7, 2014, sponsored by the Washington Office on Latin America, the national office of the ACLU, and other organizations provided information on the current crisis. As reported in the media, there has been a dramatic increase in the numbers of unaccompanied children who are arriving at the U.S. border in Texas seeking safety in the United States. Far from trying to hide from the Border Patrol, they often just walk up to the officers and turn themselves in. A system designed to process some 8000 kids a year has had to cope with 52,000 just since October of 2013. The speakers anticipate there may be as many as 90,000 by the end of 2014.
This is a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis. The conference speakers pointed out that in the three countries from which most of the children are coming, the homicide rate is the highest in the world–up to 20 to 25% higher than in the United States. Drug trafficking is a major factor–but drug consumption is much smaller than in the U.S.
The Obama administration is asking for $2 – $3 billion to address the crisis. The speakers felt that a miniscule 10% of that will go to address the root causes. The focus is on closing not only the U.S. border, but also the Guatemala/Mexico border, and on returning the children and reintegrating them into societies that are already so dangerous and so poverty-stricken that they and their families were forced to flee.
Although U.S. citizens are justifiably alarmed at the prospect of children being placed in warehouse-type buildings on U.S. military bases, the speakers testified that these are doing a good job of keeping the children safe, well-fed, housed, and cared for–much better than the Border Patrol stations where they are first placed which are not prepared for these demands. There is already an emphasis on uniting them with families as quickly as possible–although the rumor that they will be allowed to stay is spreading false hope. Most–about 90%–have some family here to whom they are being released.
The speakers emphasized that we must deal with the immediate situation as well as work towards long-term solutions. The discussion is presently being dominated by right-wing anti-immigrant and anti-Obama groups. Those who understand both the complexity and the long-term causes of the problem must communicate this knowledge as widely as possible.
for more information go to http://app.mx3.americanprogressaction.org/e/es.aspx?s=785&e=688382&elq=2da9e4903adc4acea6099ace965e51ca
A large class of students who successfully completed an OSHA training session received their certificates at a party sponsored by CoFiA on July 7, 2014. The class of twenty-seven included three women. Some people came from as far away as Queens, New York.
These OSHA programs are a great help to workers who often face dangerous situations at the job site. The enthusiastic students are now requesting further training, especially in electrical work, and scaffolding. Many people have been injured when required by employers to work from unsafe scaffolding, or on electrical projects that are not properly secured. The OSHA certificates can be shown to an employer when a worker is objecting to being asked to do a dangerous job.
Our thanks to Elias Garcia, who organized the program and made sure the graduates knew the details of where and when the graduation was to be held; Diana Mejia, trainer; and Carmita and Ernesto Fong, who graciously made their beautiful home and yard available. CoFiA members agreed it was our best graduation party ever!
CoFiA members discussed pending NJ legislation on Driving Permits and Wage Theft
Since nothing seems to be happening on reforming immigration policy at the national level, several New Jersey lawmakers are working on legislation that would resolve some major flaws on a statewide basis.
On June 30 members of the CoFiA board reviewed the wording of two laws that are under consideration.
One would propose that people who are presently ineligible to receive regular drivers licenses be allowed to apply for a “Driving Privilege Card” (Assembly bill 2135, proposed by Assemblywoman Quijano and Assemblyman Cryan). While we would like to see the bill strengthened, the Board felt that it would be very helpful because people who already have to drive would be able to do so legally. They also pointed out that it would improve safety for everyone, and be an additional source of income for New Jersey.
The second is a bill concerning penalties for wage theft, which is a big issue for working people in our area. Sponsored in the Assembly by Assemblywoman Quijano and in the Senate by Senator Weinberg, the bill would double the penalties for an employer found guilty of cheating workers out of their pay. The CoFiA Board recommended that the bill be amended slightly to emphasize civil rather than criminal penalties; the latter are seldom used. In our experience, the most effective approach to collecting unpaid wages is an appeal to the employer’s conscience. However, the prospect of facing an investigation by the Department of Labor can also be a strong incentive. A very important part of this bill is the section that would allow qualified community organizations to represent workers in court. They are often at a great disadvantage unless they have a lawyer.
CoFiA is in conversation with the New Labor organization and other groups about these bills, and hopes the legislators will schedule hearings in early fall.
The news from Central America is so shocking and depressing, we thought it would be helpful to recommend four organizations that are working in Guatemala to try to combat the crushing effects of poverty and violence that are the result of U.S. foreign policy and Guatemalan complicity in the crushing effects of that policy on Guatemalan people. These effects are most painfully felt among the indigenous Mayan people. Quotations are from the web sites of the organizations.
!. Grupo Cajola (www.grupocajola.org)Grupo Cajola has brought beautiful hand-woven goods to CoFiA events
“We are a group of Guatemalans and friends of Guatemalans, mostly from the town of Cajolá in the department of Quetzaltenango in Guatemala, and most of us are Maya Mam. (The Mam people are one of the four largest groups of Maya people now living in Guatemala.) Many of us have had to migrate to the United States out of necessity — to earn money for food, medical care, school, or housing for our families. Nearly 94% of Cajolá is poor, and nearly 40% of us live in the United States. We have organized ourselves to watch out for each other, especially during hard times, such as when someone dies, or gets sick. Some of us have returned to Guatemala, to Cajolá, and we are working there to organize the community to develop opportunities for a better life so that no one has to leave his family and community behind in order to survive.”
2. Mayan Families (www.mayanfamilies.org)
Mayan Families works with Maya indigenous communities of the Lake Atitlan region of Guatemala. The information below is taken from the web site, and is very helpful in understanding some of the reasons Guatemalans are forced to make the dangerous journey to the U.S. to survive.
“EDUCATION:
Approximately 30% of all Guatemalan adults over 15 cannot read or write.
Only 22% of children who complete the sixth grade move on to the Junior High level. The reasons are largely economic. Most families can’t afford the tuition for an education, and young people are expected to support the family after the sixth grade.
This situation is even more extreme among the indigenous population with 53.5% of young Mayan people aged 15-19 not completing primary education.
Only 54% of indigenous girls are in school, compared with 71% of indigenous boys. By the age of 16, only 25% of indigenous girls are enrolled, compared with 45% of boys.
HEALTH:
Approx 49% of children in Guatemala are chronically malnourished. This is the fourth highest rate in the world. In indigenous communities the rate is closer to 70%.
Although infant and child mortality has been steadily decreasing throughout Latin America over the last four decades, child mortality is still 70% higher among indigenous children.
Malnutrition is twice as frequent among indigenous children.
The rate of stunting [height/age] for Guatemala overall is 44%, but for indigenous children the rate is 58%, higher than either Yemen or Bangladesh.
Guatemala is cited as having the highest annual incidence of malaria in Central America. (In 2005 almost half of the registered malaria cases in Central America where in Guatemala)
There is a 13 year gap in years of life expectancy between indigenous and non-indigenous people
40% of the country lacks access to water and sanitation systems and have limited access to an adequate diet due to income restrictions.
Only 34% of women of reproductive age use a modern method of birth control, while almost a third report an unmet need for family planning.
The fertility rate (4.4) is the highest in Latin America. At the current annual growth rate of 2.5%, the population is expected to double within the next 30 years.
In the past 50 years, the country’s population has quadrupled.
VIOLENCE:
El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala now constitute the most violent area in the world outside actual war zones.
Guatemala has more than 40 murders/week in the capital alone and 17 murders/day across the country.
WORK AND INCOME:
Indigenous people suffer from discrimination in terms of employment and income making on average about half of what non-indigenous workers earn.
In Guatemala, indigenous peoples’ poverty rates are 2.8 times higher than the rest of the population.
Half the population lives on incomes below the poverty line and 17% are considered extremely poor by the United Nations.
Guatemala is the most populous of the Central American countries with a GDP per capita of roughly one-half that of the average for Latin America and the Caribbean.”
3. Hug it Forward www.hugitforward.org
CoFiA members and others with Hug it Forward, 2013
Hug It Forward is a grass-roots organization that facilitates education and awareness by empowering communities in Latin America to build “bottle schools”.
Bottle schools are schools built using “eco-bricks”: plastic bottles stuffed with inorganic trash. Entire communities come together to build a more sustainable educational infrastructure for their future.
Hug It Forward’s goal is to share the bottle school technology so that communities all over the world can build their own bottle school.
4. The Sienna Project (www.siennaproject.org)
The Sienna Project builds schools in small indigenous mountain villages in the Highlands of Guatemala, where there may not be enough classrooms or no classrooms at all. The national government pays teachers’ salaries, but does not provide funds for school buildings. In many villages children never go to school for lack of classrooms.
Board member Suzanne learned how to be safe on the jobTeacher Jenny helps the children learn vowel sounds in the new Spanish Story Hour
We participated in the Palisades Park Health Fair, and Leonia DayGrupo Cajola brought beautiful hand-woven goods to our eventsDr. Sung to spoke about wage theft in our area at the library, in JuneThe lunch volunteers enjoyed a special lunch where they got to sit down!Winter was hard for most of us but good for the workers!
The wage theft committee is happy to report that there was a successful outcome to yet another incident of wage theft from one of the workers. Mr. A. contacted us to report that he had been cheated out of almost a full week’s wages, and threatened with retribution if he complained (“We’ll call the police, we’ll call ICE, if you tell anyone.”) He had excellent records, including a paper signed by the manager acknowledging that she owed him the money and had, in fact, made one small payment on it already.
When we called her to our surprise she readily admitted that she did owe the money, and arranged to meet us in a parking lot. We waited and waited but for nothing. Several more such arrangements were made but in each case the manager failed to show. She began to call the worker persistently, but he Angelica advises workers at a lunch program on wage theft issueswas afraid to go alone to try to collect the money because of the threats they had made.
Finally the manager agreed to bring the money, in cash, to us and did come at the agreed on time and paid in full. And even left her card inviting us to contact her if we needed cleaning services! One very happy worker and satisfied committee members. Patience and persistence paid off this time.
The children and their parents have fun, but as Jenny Rama says, the purpose is serious. “Students who have not been exposed to literacy–regardless of their native language–have a difficult time in school.” If you learn literacy skills in your own language they transfer easily to another language.
Gloria Duarte, one of the parents who participated with her children and two nieces, said her 4-year old son Jose Daniel likes to color more now, and is more attentive when she speaks. It’s been a benefit for her too–she discovered the adult books in Spanish which she plans to use for herself.
While the program is ending for the summer, Mrs. Rama plans to resume in the fall. CoFiA staff person Angelica Martinez and member Margaret White are working closely with her and will be happy to tell anyone who is interested more about the program. Librarian Susan Kumar said she would like to have it year-round!
The Tuesday ESL class recently enjoyed a story from teacher Carmita. She found herself in the subway station in New York City and discovered she had forgotten her wallet. No money, no ticket, no time to get rescued! Desperately looking around the crowded platform her eye fell on Tino, a long-time ESL student. “Help, Tino, I’m stuck!” With great good will he fronted the cash so she could get to work–and then to class that evening to share the story. Thanks, Tino!
A recent client of our Workers Link Program sent the following commendation. We’re glad she likes the web site too! The photos are from satisfied customers who needed masonry help in Bergenfield and Teaneck.
“Many many thanks to Ellie and Hans Spiegel for referring me to CoFia and Angelica. We needed some “heavy lifting” help and I am grateful for the resources. The website communityoffriendsinaction.org is easy to navigate as well.”
