Friday, November 11, 2016
"Do not leave your country out of fear of someone so insignificant," he told his multiethnic congregation days after Donald Trump won the presidential election. Instead, he said, turn to Allah and continue to be productive and contributing citizens.
"Brothers and sisters, this is the time we get together and excel in everything you are doing," the community leader said.
Tags: Faiza Haider , Salwa Hayyat , Islam Hassan , Farhad Khan , Islamic Society of Vermont , ISVT , Muslims , Image , Web Only
Thursday, November 10, 2016
Insecurity and unease on the part of migrant workers and their families isn't a new phenomenon, emphasized Enrique Balcazar, a former farm worker and an organizer for the human rights group.
But if Trump's win left liberal Vermont in bewildered apprehension, the sentiment was all the more acute for Vermont's migrant worker community. Balcazar and Lambek spent a harried day fielding calls from undocumented laborers and citizens alike, all digesting the election results.
Tags: Migrant Justice , Enrique Balcazar , Will Lambek , Cheryl Connor , Donald Trump , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Her colleagues looked despondent and spoke in resigned and hushed tones. No one wanted to be interviewed. Rita Neopaney, a Bhutanese woman who on Tuesday was jubilant when describing her first voting experience to Seven Days, stopped to say only that AALV clients had showed up at the office to voice their confusion and fear after Donald Trump was elected president. The nonprofit provides social services, such as case management and workforce development, to refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers.
"I would say that everyone is sad and worried about the future," said Jacob Bogre, AALV's executive director, adding, "We tried to reassure the staff and some of the clients."
"Racism, [that's] what it is," said Thato Ratsebe, the nonprofit's health educator, public relations and direct staff manager. "I'm worried about how my clients feel. These people have lived the refugee experience."
Tags: Farhad Khan , Jacob Bogre , Association of Africans Living in Vermont , AALV , Islamic Society of Vermont , Muslims , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
The DMV allegedly violated Vermont’s Driver’s Privilege Card law, which allows undocumented immigrants living in Vermont to drive legally.
The DMV agreed to pay Abdel Razaq Rababah $40,000, change its driver’s license application, and provide training to prevent employees from engaging in discrimination. The DMV made other concessions as part of a deal with the Vermont Human Rights Commission and the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont.
“Actions like those taken against Mr. Rababah, based on his national origin, have a chilling effect on others who may wish to take advantage of this important program,” Human Rights Commissioner Karen Richards said in a prepared statement. “The public-interest relief obtained through this settlement will help to ensure that this vital benefit is available to those it is intended to serve without risk of immigration consequences.”
Tags: Abdel Razaq Rababah , Vermont DMV , ACLU , Human Rights Commission , driver's license , immigration , migrant workers , driver's privilege card , Image , Web Only
Monday, June 20, 2016
James Duff Lyall, of Tuscon, Ariz., will replace Allen Gilbert as executive director of the ACLU of Vermont on July 25. The state chapter is based in Montpelier.
Tags: James Lyall , Allen Gilbert , ACLU , police , immigration , Vermont ACLU , Arizona ACLU , Image , Web Only
Monday, May 23, 2016
Officials from the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program, which selected Rutland as a relocation site after an aggressive push from Mayor Chris Louras, will brief the board at the Godnick Adult Center meeting.
Many of the aldermen have questioned the plan. They've also criticized Louras. He volunteered Rutland as a host city and spent months planning for the refugees' arrival with no public notice and little input from the aldermen or local legislators. Rival citizen groups supporting and opposing the refugees' arrival have formed.
"I am extremely concerned about the process, or lack of process," Alderman David Allaire said in an interview. "I've got constituents all over this city who are surprised and hurt and have lots of questions that are still not being answered."
Tags: Rutland , refugees , Syria , Chris Louras , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers took Diaz into custody on April 21 and placed him in a prison in Dover, N.H. ICE subsequently released a statement that described Diaz as a citizen of Mexico and said he became an “enforcement priority” after he was convicted of DUI last November.
Diaz is still facing deportation, but he can return to Vermont while the legal process plays out. He is 24, and has worked on Vermont dairy farms for about six years.
At a hearing this Wednesday at the Boston Immigration Court, a judge set bond for Diaz at $1,500 — the lowest amount allowed under law.
Tags: Migrant Justice , Victor Diaz , Immigration and Customs Enforcement , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Brian Searles, former secretary of transportation, noted two promising developments in recent weeks — the introduction of a bill in Congress that would enable negotiations to begin, and a promise from new Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during his U.S. visit that Parliament would pass similar authorization this spring.
Amtrak’s Vermonter, which now runs between St. Albans and Washington, D.C., used to go to Montréal, until 1995, Searles said. But requirements for crew changes and a border stop created lengthy delays “that basically rendered it noncompetitive with the auto,” he said.
Tags: Brian Searles , Vermonter , Amtrak , Sen. Dick Mazza , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Edin Sakoc's conviction for lying to immigration officials was overturned by a judge in July. In documents filed in U.S. District Court, the former Burlington resident agreed to leave America and never return in exchange for having charges against him dropped.
The "denaturalization" process is expected to take several months. Sakoc has a wife and young daughter who could remain in the U.S.
Sakoc was accused of kidnapping and raping one woman and assisting a soldier who murdered two other women during the Bosnian War in 1992. Sakoc, a Muslim, was in a military unit that battled ethnic Serbs. The women he is accused of targeting were Serbs. He denied the rape, and said he participated in legitimate wartime actions.
Tags: Edin Sakoc , Bosnia , U.S. District Court , Burlington , Essex , Image , Web Only
Thursday, July 30, 2015
Burlington school officials say they will appeal the denial earlier this month of an O-1 visa that would have allowed Yaw Obeng to start his $153,000-a-year job as superintendent of city schools.
The denial keeps Obeng in limbo. But he still wants the job. And he says he's confident he'll get a visa.
"My intention is to be in Burlington for the long haul," Obeng said by telephone Thursday. "If it takes a couple extra months to make that happen, in the long term I think it's going to be worth that effort.”
Obeng is a senior administrator at the Halton school district in suburban Toronto. He says he doesn't plan to officially resign from that job until his work papers come through.
It's unclear when and whether that will happen. U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services in St. Albans processed the O-1 application. Director Laura B. Zuchowski wrote the denial. She found the application failed to demonstrate that Obeng has the extraordinary ability and sustained national or international acclaim in his field — education — required to qualify for an O-1 visa.
Tags: Burlington , education , immigration , Yaw Obeng , Image , Web Only