Interpreter speaks about largest raid in US history-1/2

Court Interpreter Breaks Confidentiality Code to Speak Out for Workers Rounded Up in Largest Immigration Raid in U.S. History

On May 12th, Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested nearly 400 workers at a meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa in the largest immigration raid in US history. Many were sent to prison. We speak with Erik Camayd-Freixas, a professor and Spanish-language court interpreter who was flown into Iowa for the trial. He broke the code of confidentiality among legal interpreters to describe the workers' predicament in what he calls "the saddest procession I have ever witnessed." He says most of the workers were peasants from Guatemala and did not fully understand the criminal charges they were facing. He also says that court-appointed lawyers had little time to meet with the workers, many of whom ended up waiving their rights. [includes rush transcript]

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• immigration
• hispanic
• mexico
• human
• rights
• democracy
• now

[PEANUTLOVEDADY]

i dont know u get mad at those who do not hire them no u want to punish them who were nice of enough to hire them you fuckers

[isaacsenglish]

I would like to know how many managers or administrators, who hired and knew these workers were illegal, were arrested?

[trevinboy]

@MsAlikarules To be fair to the system, you are partly right, I think he/she should be considered a law violator, after all there are laws and rules in this country just as there are in many if not all countries on earth. I believe, however, the word "criminal" should be set aside for murderers, rapists, etc. you get my drift.

[agentc73]

BULLSHIT!!!

IT IS CRIMINAL to break our laws, ya fucking disrespectful douchebag.

Illegals have repressed the wages of meat cutters by over 10 bucks an hour.

FUCK your self serving MIS-TRUTHS and LIES.

Take some god damn RESPONSIBILITY for YOUR actions YOU ARE BREAKING OUR LAWS, ya damn ignorant trespassing thieves.

[tutravieso10]

If USA WAS UNDER MEXICO, OR ANY COUNTRY. LES SEE. MEXICO IS COMING BIG. YOU SEE

[MsAlikarules]

Being in US illigally doesn't make anyone a criminal. don't confuse immigration and criminal laws. I doubt you would want to work in a meat factory, and these people do it for pennies. If the market economy didn't need them, they wouldn't have had jobs and thus wouldn't be here.

[aycockeric85]

much harsher penalties than 6-7 months in prison, I understand that these peoples families will be without them for that amount of time but is that any different from the children who lose their parents to prison everyday & have to go into the system. I feel that their sentence was extremely fair & thoughtful. I love the compassion people show for this situation but let me ask, where is the compassion for your fellow americans who are in the same struggle? I speak as one who came from it!

[aycockeric85]

alot of other countries, not just from mexico, to run back home after commiting a crime, its that simple. A mexican boy of 19 almost killed my dad & sis by driving drunk with no license or insurance & he ran back to mexico, no real jail time, no payout, yet my family had to deal with rebuilding our lives cause he had no insurance. This told people that deportation is no longer a get out of jail free card. Lets please be realistic, if I had done social security fraud & Identity theft, I would get

[aycockeric85]

obviously have so much free time in our own oh so perfect american dream living lives that we just sit around & plot on the poor illegal citizens who are breaking no laws & did absolutely nothing wrong, oh yes, that is exactly whats going on here. How could I have been so blind? (please note the sarcasm in that comment). Lastly that was a slap on the wrist just to make an example so that others will hesitate to make the same mistake because it has been a common theme for illegal citizens from

[aycockeric85]

Ok, now please explain to me, how can you presume someone innocent when the evidence has already proved them to be guilty without a shadow of a doubt. If a cop pulls me over & I have an ounce or marijuana in my trunk, should I be presumed innocent? Honestly people, use some common sense, the proof is beyond a doubt so stop trying to make this situation sound worst than it is just to cater to your opinion of america being a bad place where everyone is out to get illegal citizens, because we