Latest news with #Venezuelan-born
Gulf Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- Gulf Today
These immigrants fled violence, now harsh reality calls
Carolyn Komatsoulis, Kevin Fixler, Tribune News Service Gregory Bastos remembers being kidnapped along with a friend and beaten by Venezuelan forces for his political activism, not knowing whether he would die. The experience was traumatising, he said, sitting at a cafe in downtown Boise with his wife, Oriana Bastos. The Venezuelan-born couple, both 27, didn't wait long before they crossed the border to Colombia, took a bus to the capital, Bogotá, and flew to Mexico. The two turned themselves in at the US border to request asylum and were detained briefly. Since then, they've been waiting four years for an asylum court date. When a hearing was set for April 10, the two Idaho residents felt like there was an end in sight, finally. But their slot was cancelled a week beforehand because of a judge reassignment, they said, plunging them back into uncertainty. It's been a long road, starting from nothing. Away in the US, Oriana missed the death of her grandmother back home, she said, choking up. Oriana and her husband were both attorneys in South America, but have worked in restaurants and at a hospital locally. She said they've struggled in a different culture, with a different language and with people who aren't always welcoming. And since President Donald Trump retook office, the couple has been dealing with his rhetoric and the ever-changing news cycle. 'He doesn't have any idea what it means to be an immigrant,' Oriana said, in Spanish. 'It's life or death.' Asylum is an internationally recognised protection for people who face persecution in their home countries. The process has long been time consuming. But with the Trump administration's hardening attitude toward immigrants, local lawyers said asylum-seekers are struggling with a more hostile bureaucracy and a chaotic environment. Trump and other members of his administration have said they are trying to make America safer by deporting people and improving security at the US-Mexico border. Gregory and Oriana aren't alone in dealing with the judge's reassignment. Idaho cases are heard in Portland, according to local immigration lawyers, but a Washington state immigration judge used to hear Idaho cases remotely. Then scheduled hearings for Idaho cases started getting cancelled this spring, said Neal Dougherty, a Nampa-based immigration attorney with Ramirez-Smith Law. No official explanation was given. Department of Justice spokesperson Kathryn Mattingly did not answer questions about why those cases were cancelled. Dougherty said, after the reassignment, court dates are now scheduled as far out as 2030. In the past, his clients would wait just two or three years, he said. Some people, like Gregory and Oriana, are still waiting to be rescheduled, he said. Such legal challenges to local asylum-seekers affect more than just Latino communities. People from many other nationalities who are trying to establish legal residency or US citizenship are in the same dilemma. Eddie Hamdard, 30, a native of Afghanistan, received a path to US citizenship through a special immigration visa programme after he assisted the American military during its 20-year war in his home country. He arrived to the US in 2015 and became naturalised in 2020. But he has witnessed past US pledges to grant legal status to his immediate family members stall, and grown more and more frustrated by evolving policies, including sudden changes once Trump re-entered the White House in January. Hamdard, who lives in Boise, has been able to navigate a patchwork of US immigration systems to find routes for his mother, sister and older brother to join him in Idaho. But the status of those applications long remained in flux. And Hamdard has remained unable to find a successful path for his sister's husband. The lack of stability and reliable help and information over the years has severely impacted his and his family's mental health, he told the Statesman. 'My brother feels abandoned by the system he once trusted, while my brother-in-law faces life-threatening risks daily in Afghanistan,' Hamdard said last month. 'Many Afghans perceive US immigration policies as humiliating and dismissive of their sacrifices during US military operations, amplifying feelings of betrayal within our community.' Gregory and Oriana's home state of Táchira, in western Venezuela on the Colombian border, is well-known for its longtime opposition to the country's regime. Both of them protested against the government as part of the political party Acción Democrática. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro took office in 2013 and has presided over the largest economic decline outside of wartime in decades. His critics say he stole an election last year and has imprisoned, tortured and kidnapped people. Millions of Venezuelans have already left in the years since his ascension. Recently, several members of his opposition fled to the US, and the top opposition leader remains in hiding. Inside Venezuela, Gregory and Oriana said they met as law students at a local university. They got married in the US in 2022. 'I believe that us Venezuelans, we don't lose faith,' Oriana said, tearing up. 'That one day it will change and we can go back once again.' Now to be lawyers again, they'd have to save up to attend law school in the US. It's very expensive, they said, especially amid all of their other expenses, including taxes, vehicle costs and sending money home. A dangerous country alone isn't enough for people to qualify for asylum, said J.J. Despain, managing attorney for the Wilner & O'Reilly Boise office. People have to show specific and credible fears to receive protection in the US. Immigrants can either apply on their own or raise asylum as a defense to deportation. For many hoping to stay in the country, asylum is their only legal option, driving up the number of applications, Despain said. The US has just under 2 million open asylum cases, according to the Transaction Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University. Asylum is under the purview of Congress, not the executive branch. But that didn't stop Trump from issuing orders with immediate impacts on asylum-seekers. In his first days, Trump signed an executive order prohibiting people from seeking asylum through the border with Mexico. His administration also shut down a mobile app called CBP One, which had allowed asylum-seekers to schedule appointments. The administration then cancelled the legal status of around 1 million people who had previously entered the country using the app, including some who had pending asylum applications. A recent memo laid out a plan for judges to dismiss asylum cases without a hearing. 'All that matters is if you're an immigrant, you're an enemy,' Oriana said. Trump campaigned on mass deportations and stopping the flow of immigrants into the country. In recent years, public opinion in the US has shifted to a more anti-immigration stance, according to recent Gallup national polling. That changing public opinion is part of what Gregory, Oriana and Hamdard said they find so discouraging about the current political climate. 'The systemic delays and anti-immigration policies have left my family in chaos — struggling to navigate complex legal processes while facing employment barriers and emotional distress,' Hamdard said.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
The Alien Enemies Act Doesn't Say What Trump Claims It Says
President Donald Trump claims that the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 grants him the power to deport certain Venezuelan-born aliens without due process, based on the mere allegation of membership in a criminal street gang. But the text of the Alien Enemies Act does not allow the president to do anything of the sort. "Whenever there shall be a declared war between the United States and any foreign nation or government, or any invasion or predatory incursion shall be perpetrated, attempted, or threatened against the territory of the United States, by any foreign nation or government," the act states, the president may direct the "removal" of "all natives, citizens, denizens, or subjects of the hostile nation or government, being males of the age of fourteen years and upwards, who shall be within the United States, and not actually naturalized." The crimes of the alleged members of the street gang Tren de Aragua do not meet this legal standard. There is no "declared war" between the United States and Venezuela, and there is no "invasion or predatory incursion" of the U.S. by "any foreign nation or government." The gang is not a foreign state, and the gang's alleged crimes, heinous as they may be, do not qualify as acts of war by a foreign state. Trump's frequent talk about a rhetorical "invasion" of the U.S. by undocumented immigrants utterly fails to satisfy the law's requirements. The fatal defects of Trump's position are further illuminated when you compare his stance with James Madison's "Report of 1800," which critiqued the Alien and Sedition Acts. (The Alien Enemies Act was one of the three laws that comprised the Alien and Sedition Acts.) As Madison explained, there are two categories of "offences for which aliens within the jurisdiction" of the United States "are punishable." The first category involves "offences committed by the nation of which they make a part, and in whose offences they are involved." In this case, "the offending nation can no otherwise be punished than by war." In other words, the aliens are citizens of an offending nation that has committed an act of war against the United States. The aliens who fall within this category are "alien enemies." The second category involves offenses committed by aliens "themselves alone, without any charge against the nation to which they belong." In this case, "the offence being committed by the individual, not by his nation, and against the municipal law, not against the law of nations; the individual only, and not the nation is punishable; and the punishment must be conducted according to the municipal law, not according to the law of nations." The aliens who fall within this second category are "alien friends." Notice that "alien friends" may certainly be punished by the normal U.S. legal system for whatever crimes they commit while on U.S. soil. They may be deprived of their life, their liberty, and their property. But—and this is a big but—they may only be deprived of life, liberty, or property after they have received due process of law, which is what the Constitution guarantees to all persons, not just to all citizens. Madison's definition of "alien friends" plainly applies to any noncitizen alleged to be a member of Tren de Aragua. That person's alleged criminal activity was "committed by the individual, not by his nation, and against the municipal law, not against the law of nations." Any such alleged gang member is therefore entitled to receive due process of law before he is punished, including when the proper punishment for him is deportation. It should perhaps go without saying, but I will say it anyway for the sake of clarity: In any contest between Madison's view of presidential power and Trump's view of presidential power, the Madisonian view undoubtedly deserves to prevail. The post The Alien Enemies Act Doesn't Say What Trump Claims It Says appeared first on
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'The Password': Red Sox prospect Jhostynxon Garcia dazzles in Triple-A Worcester debut
WORCESTER — His first name is hard to spell. But his nickname is easy to remember. Jhostynxon Garcia — aka 'The Password' — was promoted from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday. And Garcia didn't disappoint in his Triple-A debut. Advertisement The 22-year-old outfielder, who is the fifth-ranked prospect in the Red Sox farm system according to smashed a 396-foot home run (with a 106.3 exit velocity) in the WooSox' 8-2 win over the Durham Bulls at Polar Park. 'We're happy to have him,' WooSox manager Chad Tracy said. 'I'm happy to be on a team with this much talent,' said Garcia through translator Iggy Suarez, who is also the WooSox' third base coach. 'I'm in a situation where I can learn a lot from them and just learn from each other.' Just three days prior, Portland Sea Dogs hitting coach Chris Hess and defensive coach Kyle Sasala took Garcia aside for a personal conversation. What originally started as a slightly somber talk turned into a happy moment for the Venezuelan-born Garcia. Advertisement You're going to Worcester, kid. 'I kind of had an idea,' Garcia said. 'I kind of knew what was going on.' Red Sox prospect Jhostynxon Garcia watches his first Triple-A home run during the Worcester Red Sox game on May 20, 2025 at Polar Park. As Garcia called his parents in Venezuela shortly after to share the news, his father picked up the phone. His mom was actually asleep. Garcia told his dad to wake her up for the announcement. 'She started crying,' Garcia said. 'Happy for me. So, it was a good (moment).' Roughly 1,500 miles from Garcia making his Triple-A debut at Polar Park, his younger brother, Johanfran Garcia, played in a game for the Florida Complex League (FCL) Red Sox at Twin Lakes Park in Sarasota, Florida. Jhostynxon Garcia catches a ball during his first Triple-A game with the Worcester Red Sox on May 20, 2025 at Polar Park. Last year, Johanfran, 20, batted .385/.467/.596 with two home runs and a 1.063 OPS in 14 games (60 plate appearances) for the Salem Red Sox before suffering torn ligaments in his knee during a game May 1. Advertisement Johanfran, a catcher who signed with the Red Sox as an international free agent in 2022, returned to action for the first time since the injury on Tuesday and went 1 for 3 with two RBI. Meanwhile in Worcester, Jhostynxon went 1 for 4 with three RBI and two runs. '(We've been) waiting for that moment for a long time,' Garica said. 'It's been over a year. Our family, in this moment right now, we're very happy.' Before his promotion to Triple-A Worcester, Jhostynxon Garcia was hitting .263 with 3 HR and 17 RBI for Portland. Working on his swing decisions and plate discipline this year, Garcia garnered game-winning hits in back-to-back walk-off wins for the Sea Dogs on May 10 and 11. Portland Sea Dogs slugger Jhostynxon Garcia (second from right) celebrates a walk-off hit with teammates following a Double-A game at Hadlock Field on May 10, 2025. A week later, he received the call up to Worcester. Advertisement 'He's developed a lot the past year plus,' Red Sox senior director of player development Brian Abraham said. 'He's really just become a complete player. He's a good example to show what hard work and dedication and trust in the program does for you. ... 'All of the sudden you're looking at a five-tool player who can eventually make an impact in Boston in a few years for a long time.' WooSox player Jhostynxon Garcia celebrates his first Triple-A home run during a game on May 20, 2025 at Polar Park. And if Garcia continues to hit homers like he did on Tuesday at Polar Park, the Red Sox prospect — with a first name that is hard to spell — will make it easy for fans to root for him. Introducing: The Password. 'It's a cool nickname,' Tracy said. ' It's a funny nickname because when I first saw it or heard it, I was like, 'The Password? Like, what?' And then it hit me, like, oh, he's got 19 different letters in his first name. So, it's cool. I think he's embraced it, and most of the guys in our organization, they've embraced it, and it makes a lot of sense. Advertisement 'So happy to have him.' —Contact Tommy Cassell at tcassell@ Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Red Sox prospect Jhostynxon Garcia hits homer in WooSox debut
Int'l Business Times
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
Former New Mexico Judge Admits To Destroying Evidence Related To Tren de Aragua Member Living In His House
Joel Cano, the now former New Mexico judge arrested for allegedly assisting a member of Venezuelan-born gang Tren de Aragua, admitted to destroying evidence related to the case. Cano, now in federal custody along with his wife Nancy, was arrested by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents last Thursday following an investigation related to an alleged Venezuelan gang member living with them. The man in question is Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, who was arrested in February on suspicion of having entered the country unlawfully and having ties with the gang. As days progress, new evidence related to their actions is emerging. Cano, now disbarred, admitted that he destroyed a phone belonging to Ortega-Lopez that was still in his home and may have contained more damning evidence. A search warrant had been issued for the phone in March, a month after Ortega-Lopez's arrest. Cano is now also facing charges of tampering with evidence, asides from assisting the alleged gang member. Nancy Cano, on her end, is accused of conspiracy to tamper with evidence after news surfaced that she sought to help the Venezuelan man delete his Facebook attempt, which also had evidence relevant to a case against Ortega-Lopez. The Venezuelan man has been charged for unlawful possession of a firearm or ammunition. He made it into law enforcement's radar after posting photos and videos at what looked like a shooting range holding guns. Officials said tattoos, clothing and hand gestures of his are "commonly associated" with Tren de Aragua. The gang, however, has no known tattoo identifiers. Cano has denied any wrongdoing and claimed he had no knowledge of Ortega-Lopez's alleged gang ties. "The very first time I ever heard that (the men) could possibly have any association with Tren de Aragua was when I was informed of that by (the) agents on the day of the raid," he said in a statement. "This is the last person we want in our country, nor will we ever tolerate a judge or anyone else harboring them," said Attorney General Pam Bondi when discussing the case. The Trump administration has designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organizatoin and invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to transfer the migrants to an infamous high-security prison in El Salvador. The decision, however, has been met with numerous legal challenges over a lack of due process. Critics have questioned the administration's insistence that all deported individuals were gang members. Several deportees and their families have denied any involvement, saying that they were taken under feeble pretenses, including tattoos, clothing and hand gestures. Originally published on Latin Times
Int'l Business Times
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
An Immigration Attorney And Naturalized U.S. Citizen Was Ordered to Self-Deport: DHS Says It Was a 'Glitch'
For more than a decade, Carlos Trujillo, a Venezuelan-born attorney, has practiced immigration law in Salt Lake City, Utah, serving the local community. Trujillo moved to the United States at age 18 and later became a naturalized U.S. citizen. Despite that, he recently received an email from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ordering him to self-deport within seven days. "It's time for you to leave," read the opening line of the email, sent to Trujillo on April 11. Trujillo moved to the U.S. about 24 years ago and has been a naturalized citizen for almost a decade. Despite this, he was one of hundreds of thousands of people across the country that received a letter from DHS ordering them to self-deport. "I know the laws of this country," Trujillo told KTVX . "I am not leaving. I am not deportable. But I do want everybody to know that these kinds of things are happening." He added that the "threatening language" in the email bothered him, and encouraged the immigrant community to be aware of any changes in immigration laws. Trujillo also told the outlet that many people who received the email are in the country under legal circumstances and recommended them to know their rights. According to the Associated Press , the emails sent by DHS were "an apparent glitch" in the Trump administration's move to end a Biden-era policies allowing people to live and work in the country temporarily. Similarly to Trujillo's case, Nicole Micheroni, a Massachusetts-born immigration attorney, received an identical email earlier this month, despite being a lifelong U.S. citizen. Micheroni posted the message to Bluesky, showing it threatened federal pursuit if she remained in the country past a seven-day deadline. A senior DHS official later admitted to HuffPost that some citizens may have received the notices due to clerical mistakes—specifically when non-citizens list an incorrect or shared email address on their immigration applications. DHS says it is reviewing such incidents on a case-by-case basis, but no formal apology or correction has been issued to the affected individuals as of yet. "I don't want to believe or draw conclusions that this is something personal against me or because of the work that I do with the community," Trujillo said. "It's just simply a mistake." The immigration attorney said the state of Utah counts with "very respectful" judges and officers involved in immigration cases, but just as other similar experiences throughout the country, decisions over immigration are coming from a federal level. "We're seeing all these uniform characterizations that make no sense because our communities are diverse," Trujillo said. "Our communities are ... respectful of the law. Our communities are hardworking people." For Jim McConkie, another immigration attorney in Utah, the letter send out by the government can be seen as a scare tactic to get people out of the country. "It's a letter which misrepresents what's actually going on," he said. "Using threats of fines and incarceration. It's wrong morally, it's wrong legally, and it needs to be challenged." Originally published on Latin Times
