Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

Palantir sells two tools to ICE. The first, Investigative Case Management (ICM), is “mission critical” to ICE’s efforts, according to government documents, and was used at the border to investigate the families and sponsors of children who crossed the border alone. The operation, designed specifically to dissuade children from joining family in the United States, resulted in the arrests of at least 443 people over 90 days. Its second tool, FALCON, is used by agents leading workplace raids, which increased by 650% during President Trump’s first year in office and arrest thousands of people every year just for being undocumented. During a raid in which ICE agents hit 7-11s nationwide, all agents were told to download Palantir’s FALCON mobile app for use during the raid. FALCON is used by agents who lead raids like those in Mississippi in early August 2019, when almost 700 people were arrested en masse during the first day of school for many, leaving some children without either parent when they came home; at least two children were left alone for eight days because both of their parents were arrested and detained by ICE. Palantir can cancel both of these contracts. It can, at any time, pledge to stop working for ICE going forward. We know Palantir workers, academics, and a wide coalition of ordinary citizens from Latinx and Jewish groups have called for the company to drop its contracts, but executives have ignored these calls, calculating that it’s better business for the company to stay close to the government than to follow ethical considerations. We hope they reconsider. There are dozens of schools represented by the students who have signed this pledge. All of us are committed to pursuing Palantir across our campuses. We will kick recruiters out of career fairs, protest company speakers on campus, and urge university administrators to drop the company’s sponsorship at every turn. We are not alone. In 2019, hundreds of academics pressured U.C. Berkeley to drop Palantir as a sponsor of a privacy scholars conference. In late August, Lesbians Who Tech dropped Palantir as a sponsor of its annual conference, citing its work for immigration enforcement. Just two days later, the Grace Hopper Celebration, the largest conference for female tech workers worldwide, dropped Palantir as a sponsor just hours after learning of its role in human rights abuses. As more of us learn about Palantir’s work and refuse complicity in human rights abuses, the company’s recruitment will decline and its business will suffer. Palantir will become a pariah, shut off from academia and computer science talent unless it decides to change tack. Join us. If you are a student, sign below to tell Palantir you will not work with them while they build tools that enable human rights abuses. Through recruitment, seminars, and other events, we are funneled into tech companies that facilitate the detention and deportation of immigrants in the United States. Many students choose to work at tech companies immediately after graduation, and are thus either directly responsible or complicit in the violence tech companies facilitate on immigrants and refugees. We have the responsibility and the leverage to change this technology. They cannot build it tools if we don’t work on it for them.  Note: This petition has been updated to change dates and reflect Palantir's public offering.

The perpetrators of mass shootings in Gilroy, CA and El Paso, TX made reference to "hordes of mestizos" and "a Hispanic invasion" as "instigators" for their acts of terror.[1] Given the extensiveness of this racist rhetoric and the climate of fear it produces, the next president of the United States must be prepared to implement bold policies that both address the underlying causes of Central America's crises and that rehumanize migrants and asylum seekers at the US Southern border. Voters deserve to know: Which presidential candidate will, within the first week in office, reinstate both US and international asylum laws.[2] How candidates will coordinate with existing Central American governments and/or civil society organizations to produce equitable, just, and less violent societies in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.[3] Which candidate is prepared to reverse course on the failures and abuses of the Central American Regional Security Initiative, and demilitarize US aid to the region.[4] How candidates will guarantee the reunification of families separated by CBP and ICE under the current administration's mandate.[5] What measures will each candidate implement to bring restitution to abuses suffered by asylees and migrants under US government supervision.[6] Which presidential candidate will end the criminalization of migrants.[7] Candidates' plans to reduce the effects of climate change and to aid "climate refugees."[8] How candidates plan to protect migrants and communities of color from growing tide of anti-immigrant and white supremacist violence.[9] Houston, the site of the third Democratic Debate this September, is America's most diverse city. In 2013, 1.4 million of the city's 6.3 million residents were foreign born. Moreover, Houston hosts the third largest urban populations of Mexican, Vietnamese, and Honduran immigrants.[10] In a state at the center of the immigration debate, it is crucial that candidates address these issues in their third debate.

In the United States, we provide interpreters in immigration courts because we believe in the fundamental principle that the voice of any person appearing before a court, be it criminal or immigration court, is the one voice all parties need to. Due Process rights in the United States are premised on a person’s ability to speak the truth, to present their evidence and appeal to the Court—and this includes their right to be linguistically and meaningfully present in proceedings against them. Interpreters play an important role in ensuring that people who are not able to speak in English with proficiency can be heard in their own words. There can be no justice without Due Process, and there can be no Due Process without meaningful language access. You can learn more about this issue here: https://mijente.net/2019/08/22/mijentes-language-justice-league-responds-to-the-administrations-move-to-silence-immigrant-voices-and-remove-court-interpreters En los Estados Unidos, se proporcionan intérpretes en los tribunales de inmigración porque creemos en el principio fundamental de que la voz de la persona que comparece ante un juzgado, ya sea penal o de inmigración, es la voz más importante que todas las partes necesitan escuchar. Los derechos del debido proceso legal en los Estados Unidos se basan en la capacidad que cada persona tiene para decir la verdad, presentar sus pruebas y apelar a la corte, y esto incluye su derecho a estar presente lingüística y significativamente en todos los procesos en su contra. No puede haber justicia sin debido proceso legal, y no puede haber debido proceso legal sin acceso significativo y libre de barreras del lenguaje. Creemos que los intérpretes juegan un papel importante en asegurar que las personas que no dominan el inglés puedan ser escuchadas en sus propias palabras. Puedes aprender más sobre este tema aquí: https://mijente.net/es/2019/08/22/la-liga-de-justicia-en-el-uso-del-lenguaje-de-mijente-responde-al-esfuerzo-de-la-administracion-para-silenciar-la-voz-del-inmigrante-y-remover-a-interpretes-de-los-tribunales/

Between May 2018 and June 2019, Armando Arzate and his fellow workers put long hours of skilled labor into Vanderbilt Divinity School’s expansion. Vanderbilt University contracted with Orion Building Corporation, their frequent construction partner, to oversee the project. Orion Building Corporation then subcontracted with Joe Haas Construction Company for cement work, and Joe Haas Construction hired Armando and his team. Even when Joe Haas started withholding wages, the workers continued and completed the work with pride and skill, determined to stay true to their word. At this time, Armando and his team are awaiting $66,000 in claimed wages. Armando and the other workers, with the support of VDS student and alumni volunteers, have repeatedly requested of both Joe Haas and Orion that their wages be paid, only to be met with threats and indifference. This week, over a month after we initially reached out to them, members of the administrations of Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt Divinity School met with us and heard our concerns. They listened as Armando once again described how he and his crew has been mistreated, and they expressed their intention to investigate and seek a resolution. However, they did not commit to a schedule for payment, and meanwhile Armando and his team continue to experience economic hardship. Until they are paid we will not relent in ensuring that the administration faces the urgency and the weight of this situation. It is shameful that Vanderbilt University would allow the buildings and infrastructure that provide opportunities to its students to be built with exploited labor. It is all the more a moral travesty that Vanderbilt Divinity School, which professes to be committed to justice and liberation, will be celebrating the grand opening on August 23 of a new addition built by workers who continue to suffer. Guests will mingle and admire floor tiles declaring “JUSTICE” and “LOVE,” but the declarations will be hollow and ironic. Vanderbilt University has the opportunity to redeem this situation by doing all in their power to influence Orion to make their subcontractor, Joe Haas, pay their workers the $66,000 in claimed wages, or if necessary to take responsibility and correct the deficit themselves. It is also incumbent upon Vanderbilt University to publicly cease business with Orion until Orion commits to using high road contractors that treat their workers fairly, and that quickly address any violations. Armando and his fellow workers are suffering because of the greed of Vanderbilt University and its contractors, and we must join together to correct this injustice immediately. ________________________________________________________________________________________ PETICIÓN: Alto al Robo de Salario en la Renovación de la Escuela de Teología de Vanderbilt! Nosotros quienes firmamos abajo pedimos que la Universidad de Vanderbilt asegurar el pago completo e inmediato de todos los trabajadores quienes han trabajado en el proyecto de expansión y renovación de la Escuela de Teología de Vanderbilt. Entre Mayo de 2018 y Junio de 2019, Armando Arzate y sus compañeros de trabajo pusieron horas largas y trabajo especializado para expandir las instalaciones de la Escuela de Teología de Vanderbilt. La Universidad Vanderbilt contrató con el Orion Building Corporation, su contratista frecuente, para manejar el proyecto. Orion luego subcontrató con Joe Haas Construction Company para trabajo de concreto, y Joe Haas Construction contrató a Armando y su equipo. Aun cuando Joe Haas Construction empezaba a retener sus pagos, los trabajadores siguieron y terminaron el trabajo con orgullo y habilidad, comprometidos a comprobar su palabra. En este momento, Armando y su equipo siguen esperando $66,000 en sueldos no pagados. Armando y los demás trabajadores, con apoyo de estudiantes y graduados voluntarios de Vanderbilt, han pedido varias veces que Joe Haas y Orion paguen la cantidad debida, y respondieron con indiferencia y luego amenazas. Esta semana, más que un mes después de que los contactamos, administradores de Vanderbilt y la Escuela de Teología se reunieron con nosotros y nos escucharon. Escucharon mientras Armando otra vez les contaba cómo el y su equipo habían sido maltratados, y expresaron su intención de investigar y buscar una resolución. Sin embargo, no comprometieron a una fecha de completar el pago, mientras que Armando y su equipo siguen en condiciones de dificultad económica. Mientras no han recibido su pago completo no paramos de asegurar que la administración se enfrenta con la urgencia y peso de esta situación. Es una vergüenza que Vanderbilt permita que sus edificios y infraestructura, que proveen oportunidades a sus estudiantes, sean construidos con labor explotado. Es un escándalo moral que la Escuela de Teología de Vanderbilt, lo cual expone un compromiso a la justicia y la liberación, celebrará la apertura de la adición construida por trabajadores quienes siguen sufriendo. Los visitantes se festejarán y admirarán la loseta declarando “JUSTICIA” y “AMOR,” pero estas declaraciones serán vacías y hipócritas. Vanderbilt tiene la oportunidad de redimir la situación, usando su poder sobre Orion para asegurar que la contratista Joe Haas pague sus trabajadores los $66,000 en pagos reclamados, o si se necesaria tomar la responsabilidad de pagar lo que falta ellos mismos. Vanderbilt debe de dejar de pasar contratos a Orion hasta que Orion se compromete a usar solamente contratistas quienes tratan correctamente a sus trabajadores, y arreglar inmediatamante cualquier irregularidad. Armando y sus compañeros de trabajao están sufriendo por la avaricia de Vanderbilt y sus contratistas, y tenemos que corregir esta injusticia inmediatamente.