Crossing the border was once a matter for civil immigration courts. Now, every day in federal criminal courts along the Southwest border, hundreds of mostly destitute Latino and indigenous Latin American migrants are shackled, charged, convicted and sentenced en masse under the policy called “Operation Streamline.” The program has proven to be a boon for private prisons by funneling tens of thousands of immigrants into federal prisons every year. Through research and advocacy, Grassroots Leadership is fighting for and end to this program.
Operation Streamline
Related Posts
Second in NPR series rebuts DHS justifications for Operation Streamline
September 16, 2010 by Bob Libal
Napalitano: $600 million border security bill will fund Streamline expansion
September 6, 2010 by Bob Libal
While we’d speculated that additional funds allocated in the $600 million border security bill passed last month may fund an expansion to Operation Streamline, I hadn’t seen it explicitly laid out by the administration. But, buried in an article (“Arizona National Guard soldiers [node:read-more:link]
Op. Streamline overwhelms federal courts in El Paso, doesn’t deter migration
August 31, 2010 by Bob Libal
A new report by the El Paso-based youth development organization Community Scholars shows that federal judges in El Paso are overwhelmed by cases related to Operation Streamline and a glut of vacancies of the federal bench. According to the KFOX report (“West Texas Federal Judges Flooded With Cases,” August 30):
Some new statistics KFOX has obtained said the federal court system in West Texas had more cases per judge than any other part of the Lone Star State.
Investigative piece takes on Operation Streamline; Expanding program could add 50,000 federal prison beds
August 23, 2010 by Bob Libal
Arizona leads the way in federal prosecutions; Numbers driven by immigration prosecutions
August 19, 2010 by Bob Libal
Arizona doesn’t need SB 1070, its state-level controversial immigration enforcement measure, to lead the way in criminal prosecutions for immigration violations. [node:read-more:link]
Republican Senators push Op. Streamline as Border Security bill appears to contain Streamline support funding
August 17, 2010 by Bob Libal
Despite last week’s $600 million border security bill which funds more border patrol agents and federal prisons, several Republican Senators have criticized the measure saying that it doesn’t go far enough to fund Operation Streamline, amongst other hawkish measures.
While the bill doesn’t explicitly fund Operation Streamline, there does appear to be Streamline-related funding tucked into the bill. According to a US News and World Report (Senate Passes $600 Million Border Security Package, August 12) story,
The bill, sponsored by Democratic Sens. Chuck Schumer and Claire McCaskill, will deploy 1,500 enforcement personnel to the U.S.-Mexico border and fund increased intelligence and unmanned surveillance vehicles, or drones, along the border. The measure will give $196 million to the Department of Justice to pay for U.S. attorneys, legal expenses, and a federal prison system for illegal immigrant felons, among other security measures. [node:read-more:link]
Press release: Grassroots Leadership Issues “Green Paper” on Operation Streamline
July 19, 2010 by Bob Libal
Report Stresses Impact of Streamline on Immigrants, Detention System in Texas; Calls for Repeal of Controversial Program
NEWS ADVISORY
For Immediate Release: July 19, 2010
Contact: Bob Libal, Grassroots Leadership, (512) 971-0487, blibal@grassrootsleadership.org [node:read-more:link]
Operation Streamline: Drowning Justice and Draining Dollars along the Rio Grande – Executive Summary
July 19, 2010 by Bob Libal
The following is the executive summary to Grassroots Leadership’s “green paper” Operation Streamline: Drowning Justice and Draining Dollars along the Rio Grande. The full report is available at www.grassrootsleadership.org. This is a green paper, meaning that we invite feedback, criticism, and suggestions. [node:read-more:link]