06.19.07

T. Don Hutto, Vigil X, This Saturday

Posted in Criminal Justice, T. Don Hutto, Around The Nation, Around The State, Williamson County at 10:24 am by wcnews

What: Hutto Vigil X, sponsored by Amnesty International, Free the Children Coalition
When: Saturday, June 23 all day, with the official speakers from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Hutto “Residential” Facility, 1001 Welch Rd, Taylor, TX, 76574
How to get involved: Visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CAFHTA/

*Be sure to bring a hat, sunscreen and plenty of water*

The continued shameful act of detaining mother’s and children, that the Williamson County Commissioner’s Court has ratified for the low, low price of $1/inmate/day, is drawing international scorn and ridicule. This Saturday Vigil X will be held at the T. Don Hutto family lock up in conjunction with International Refugee Day. Amnesty International, Children and Families for Humane Treatment Alliance (CATHTA) along with many other cosponsors are involved:

Amnesty International and League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), with the coalitions Texans United for Families, Free the Children, and Children and Families for Humane Treatment Alliance. Individual organizations include American Civil Liberties Union of Texas (ACLU), American Friends Service Committee, Brown Berets of San Antonio, Cesar E. Chavez March for Justice, Council of American Islamic Relations, Free the Children, Freedom and Justice Foundation, Fuerza Unida, Grassroots Leadership Texas, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, MADRES, Muslim Legal Fund of America, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), People Organizing in Defense of the Earth and Her Resources (PODER), Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Southwest Workers Union, Texas Civil Rights Project, Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, Texas Indigenous Council,Workers Defense Project/Proyecto Defensa Laboral

This is a vigil to get the T. Don Hutto family lock-up closed, and for a more humane, sane less expensive and less repressive treatment of those seeking asylum in our country. Where threats to children are common place and now the sexual misconduct of guards has become an issue. Come out and help show your support for more humane treatment of these people. Full press release below the fold.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Beth Freed, Children and Families for Humane Treatment Alliance,
214.684.3773, media@mlfausa.org
Sarah Boone, Free the Children Coalition, sboone@stx.rr.com

Hutto Residential Facility imprisons children, denies U.N. Independent Expert; Local activists form coalition to find alternative methods

The Hutto Residential Facility is a privately-run, for-profit prison that houses mostly women and children, which is a violation of international law. Under Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) jurisdiction, the former medium-security prison was contracted to the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) in May 2006. While the CCA pockets the profits of children’s imprisonment, they make campaign contributions to both political parties that enable this whole process to exist.

Almost 500 people are detained at the prison, with fathers usually being separated and sent to West Texas. Many of the inmates are refugees who have applied for political asylum, but usually whose lawyers have fumbled the ball and missed deadlines. The inmates are non-criminal, hard-working families, the type that America wants to attract. The ACLU has filed several lawsuits against Michael Chertoff, Secretary of the Dept. of Homeland Security and six officials from I.C.E. on behalf of 17 detained children.

Already, a report of sexual abuse has been filed, resulting in one employee’s termination. The guard was having sexual relations with an inmate in her cell, in front of the children. Children are expected to adhere to the rules that inmates must follow, waking for a prison food breakfast at 5:30 a.m. They are threatened with separation from their mothers if they misbehave or play too loudly.

Amnesty International has partnered with the Free the Children Coalition, a network of Texas and national activists, to plan Hutto Vigil X (ten). It has been planned in conjunction with International Refugee Day, June 20. See below for event details. Activists are calling for the closure of Hutto, to be replaced with ankle-monitors or halfway-house residential alternatives, which are currently in use in the Northeast U.S.

Children and Families for Humane Treatment Alliance (CAFHTA) is a DFW-based coalition including LULAC, CAIR-DFW, Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA), the Dallas Peace Center and others. We will be meeting on Saturday, June 23 in Richardson at 7 a.m. and Irving at 7:30 a.m. to leave on a bus for Taylor.

We would appreciate any media attention on this important national issue and the local efforts that are organizing to reform it. See below for more details.

Text Box Information:
What: Hutto Vigil X, sponsored by Amnesty International, Free the Children Coalition
When: Saturday, June 23 all day, with the official speakers from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Hutto “Residential” Facility, 1001 Welch Rd, Taylor, TX, 76574
How to get involved: Visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CAFHTA/

Bus Info (For the media, not for publication): The bus pick-up locations are: Islamic Association of North Texas, 840 Abrams Road in Richardson at 7 a.m. and the Islamic Center of Irving, 2555 N. Esters Rd in Irving at 7:30 a.m.

For more information, visit these links:

UN denied access:
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30F1FFE38550C768DDDAC0894DF404482

ACLU brings lawsuit:
http://www.aclu.org/immigrants/detention/hutto.html

Corrections Corporation of America: A Critical Look At Its First Twenty Years
http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/articles_publications/publications/cca_20_years_20031201

WFAA (Dallas) reports on Hutto:
http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/localnews/investigates/stories/wfaa070309_lj_shipp2.3547b649.html

KXAN (Austin) reports on sexual misconduct:
http://www.kxan.com/Global/story.asp?s=6561524

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