Media Advisory: Wed., Feb. 10 @ 12 pm
Deportations on First Day of Black History Month and Beyond
WASHINGTON, DC – More than 50 Black immigrants and allies will gather to remember the Black immigrants who have been deported, especially during Black History Month. On the first day of Black History Month, ICE chose to deport Black immigrants. This is not surprising and is inline with ICE’s history and track record of anti-Blackness and racism.
WHAT: Press conference and visual representation of Black immigrants’ deportations
WHEN: Wednesday, February 10, 2021 @ 12 pm
WHERE: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, 1964 Independence Ave SW, Washington, DC 20003
WHO: Black immigrants from Sudan, Cameroon, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, and other countries as well as African Communities Together (ACT), CASA, Haitian Bridge Alliance, NAKASEC, UndocuBlack Network, UNITE HERE
VISUALS: Cameras can capture soundbites from the speaking program of affected Black immigrants. Attendees will march, chant, and hold signs. A tall pole will have different colored ribbons with at the end a cardboard cutout of an airplane. Each airplane will name different Black immigrants who have been deported. After each speaker, the group will acknowledge each group of deported individuals.
MORE: ICE always has the discretion to stop ALL deportations and release people into the back with loved ones. The groups have five demands throughout this Black Immigrant Week of Action, which includes a congressional briefing and social media takeovers.
List of demands are below.
- End deportation flights and all deportations until a humane immigration system can be constructed
- Empty all detention centers, by releasing individuals into the community.
- Allow all pending claims before federal courts to be fully adjudicated and ensure that the members of our communities are afforded their due process rights, instead of forcing them to sign deportation papers.
- Announce extension of Temporary Protected Status for all relevant countries including Mauritania and Cameroon, in the interim Deferred Enforced Departure for
- Mauritania and Cameroon.
- Ensure that all those who’ve been unjustly deported have a right to return to the U.S. without and loopholes or roadblocks.
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