Press Release
FREE the CHILDREN
People’s Hearing on H.C.R. 64 to end illegal imprisonment of children in Taylor, Texas
CONTACT:
Jay J. Johnson Castro Sr.: 830 734 8636 (cell)
Jane Chamberlain (media): 512 453 5669
AUSTIN: Save the Children, a coalition of individuals and groups opposing the illegal and immoral detention of immigrant families with children (approximately 400 people from 30 countries) at the T. Don Hutto detention center in Taylor, Texas, will gather at the Texas Capitol in committee room E2.028 on Saturday, April 28th, 11:00 a.m-4:00pm., for a People’s Hearing on HCR 64. This bill, filed by Reps. Eddie Rodriguez and Rafael Anchia, which condemns as immoral the incarceration of children at Hutto, has been stuck in Chairman David Swinford’s House State Affairs Committee since it was filed in February.
The people of Texas will hear testimony from citizens across many sectors of society about the abuses of the system of immigrant detention and the improper aggrandizement of private corporations such as Corrections Corporation of America which runs the immigrant prison at Hutto.
We invite all Texans with an interest in human rights to grab this rare opportunity to think globally and act locally all in one.
Audiencia popular sobre el proyecto de ley H.C.R 64 para acabar con el encarcelamiento ilegal de menores en Taylor, Texas
Save the Children, una coalición de interesados opuestos a la detención ilegal e inmoral de familias inmigrantes con hijos (aproximadamente 400 personas procedentes de más de 20 países) en la cárcel T. Don Hutto en Taylor, Tejas, se juntarán en el capitolio de Texas, en el salón de comité E2.028, 11:00am-4:00pm del sábado 28 de abril, para asistir a una Audiencia Popular sobre el proyecto de ley HCR 64. Este proyecto de ley, presentado por los Reps. Eddie Rodríguez y Rafael Anchia, que condena como inmoral la encarcelación de niños en Hutto, ha estado inmovilizado en el Comité de Asuntos Estatales del Presidente David Swinford desde que se presentó en Febrero.
El pueblo de Texas escuchará el testimonio de representantes de varios sectores de la comunidad en cuanto a los abusos del sistema de detención de inmigrantes, y el engrandecimiento indebido de las corporaciones privadas, así como la Corrections Corporation of America, que tiene a su cargo la administración de la cárcel en Hutto.
A todos los residentes de Texas interesados en los derechos humanos, les invitamos a aprovechar esta singular oportunidad para pensar a nivel global y expresarse a nivel local.
Relevant links
Detention and Removal Operations: Alternatives To Detention. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Fact Sheet of March 2007.
Locking up Family Values: The Detention of Immigrant Families. Monograph by the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children and the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, February 2007
Corrections Corporation of America: A Critical Look at the First Twenty Years, by Philip Mattera, Mafruza Khan, and Stephen Nathan (May 2003).
Texas: Tougher than Ever, But Are We Safer? Comparison with New York. Recent legislation contributed to a reduction in NY prison population while allowing the state to spend tax dollars more effectively.
Neal and Angela Kopit have written a well rounded and persuasive piece on the Taylor Hutto Prison.
Texas Civil Rights Review 