Thread: Arizona Residents Protest Arrival of Undocumented Immigrant Children

Arizona Residents Protest Arrival of Undocumented Immigrant Children

BY M. ALEX JOHNSON

With dozens of undocumented immigrant children expected to arrive Tuesday morning at a secluded boys camp in the Arizona mountains, protesters will gather to greet the federal buses in a potential replay of this month's demonstrations in Murrieta, California — with the support of the local sheriff.

Citing "whistleblowers" at the Department of Homeland Security, Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said in a statement and at a public forum that 40 to 60 youths were expected at Sycamore Canyon Academy in Oracle, near Tucson.

DHS didn't respond to requests for comment, but Ike Shipman, executive director of the academy — a state-licensed private facility that houses and treats youths at risk of delinquency or substance abuse — confirmed that "a small number of unaccompanied youth from Central and South America" would be arriving Tuesday.

Shipman told NBC News by email that the academy wasn't taking a position on the immigration debate. The youths are being accepted for temporary housing pending placements with sponsoring families or deportation because "our mission is to improve the lives of youth, and we will continue to fulfill our mission by focusing on our work with children," he said.

As many as 500 demonstrators were expected to be there Tuesday morning to protest the children's arrival, said Robert Skiba, a 50+-year resident of Oracle who's organizing the protest.

Tuesday's demonstration is "going to draw a lot of people," Skiba told NBC News, saying he strongly objected to the "secrecy" of the arrangement.

Residents didn't learn of the undocumented immigrants' placement from the federal government. They learned about it through the statement from Babeu, the local sheriff, who objected that "we don't need unaccompanied juveniles from Central America being flown into Arizona compliments of President Obama."

Skiba told NBC News on Monday: "We're supposed to be having a transparent government, but this deal was cut in the cover of darkness. They never offered to have a public meeting and answer questions.

But even if federal authorities had reached out to him and kept him apprised every step of the way, Skiba said, "I don't think there's anything that would allow us to say this is a good idea."

Oracle is a town of about 3,700 people adjacent to Oracle State Park, with Mount Lemmon towering majestically almost 2 miles high in the background. It's a "pristine, beautiful scenic area" where the government plans to "jam these 40 kids into a very small, confined space," Skiba said.

"Who knows who these boys are, whether they're choirboys or MS-13 gang members?" Skiba said, referring to the infamous Central American Mara Salvatrucha gangs that traffic in drugs, arms and human beings.

"We've got to close that border and keep this kind of thing from happening," he said. "If I was a jihadi terrorist and I wanted to get into America, this is the way to do it, because there's no one watching the store."

The planned demonstration is reminiscent of this month's angry protests in Murrieta, California, where protesters waited for hours in the blistering sun for buses after Customs and Border Protection said it might transfer some undocumented immigrants from facilities in Texas to Murrieta. The buses were blocked by the protesters and rerouted to a U.S.-Mexican border station.
Federal facilities, many of them in Texas, have been swamped by more than 50,000 unaccompanied children who have poured across the border since October — a human tide that Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said means the government needs even more temporary detention space to bring about "faster, more efficient removals" of undocumented immigrant children.

"We're sending the message that most unaccompanied kids who come to this country will not qualify for any form of humanitarian relief," Johnson told reporters Monday in Washington.

"The message that I and others have been sending is that our borders are not open to illegal migration," he said. "We will send you back."

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/imm...ildren-n155941

Moving to the homepage quickly! with a note.

W

added to homepage with better title and a note!

Arizona Residents Protest Arrival of Obama's illegal immigrants

All American defenders, please converge on Oracle, AZ to stop Obama's illegals today!

http://www.alipac.us/arizona-residen...migrants-3200/

http://www.alipac.us/f12/immigrants-...z-town-307284/

Oracle+Protestors.jpg

Demonstrators ready to block bus of unaccompanied minors


By Ina Ronquillo. CREATED 11:50 AMORACLE, Ariz. (KGUN9-TV) - About 50 demonstrators line an Oracle road ready to block a bus load of unaccompanied minors.
Some tell KGUN9 they are prepared to be arrested if that's what it takes to stop the buss from reaching a camp for troubled youth.
Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu told KGUN9 his deputies are on hand to clear the path and make arrests if necessary.
Protesters say they want to send a message about the immigration debate, bit local residents say they are also concerned about the health and safety of the community.
One resident, who lives a half mile from Sycamore Canyon Academy, said kids often escape from the ranch and they don't know the backgrounds of the unaccompanied minors.
Other residents told KGUN9 that they are concerned the minors many have.
The protestors say they are inspired by the protest outside a US Customs and Border Protection facility in Murrieta California, where the mayor and residents forced busses filled with immigrant children and adults to turn around.
KGUN9's Valerie Cavazos will have the full story coming up on KGUN9 On Your Side at 5 p.m.

http://www.jrn.com/kgun9/news/About-...267213251.html