Katrina: Six Months Later
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CHANGES SINCE KATRINA HAVE RENEWED IMPORTANCE FOR IMMIGRANTS
In the six months since Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, a lot has changed for many people. I have changed with them.
Seeing coffins unearthed from cemeteries, whole cities and homes ripped apart, lives and memories completely destroyed was absolutely overwhelming. While these images were sobering they have made me stronger. The horrible images of abuse, destruction, and death will never leave me. Today, my belief in Oxfam’s mission, purpose, and impact have not only strengthened but also reinforced my own personal commitment to social justice and equality. I think Oxfam has changed, too.
In early November the agency sent me on a three-month assignment to work with one of our newest partner organizations in the region: the Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance, or MIRA. In the space of just half a year, this once tiny organization with a budget of less than $3,000 has grown to be a powerful voice for tens of thousands of immigrant workers and their families. Its operating budget has increased to nearly $400,000 and its influence is now reaching high levels of government.
MIRA’s transformation, and its invaluable work in protecting the rights of immigrant laborers in Mississippi, is the story of determination and conviction—values I saw in action right from my earliest visits to the coast. In the first few weeks after the storm, the blatant abuses of human rights we witnessed in Mississippi and Louisiana were awful. Nonpayment of wages, harassment, and threats of deportation were and continue to be common in the Gulf Coast.
As an immigrant, working with MIRA was rewarding on many levels. Helping defend the rights of fellow immigrants against widespread abuses and overt racism was not only a challenge but also a motivation. MIRA’s commitment and work became encouragement for me to carry on. I think Katrina also changed the way we look at ourselves. For the first time in Oxfam America’s history we responded to a natural disaster in the United States. Katrina not only brought global attention to poverty in the US but also reinforced our own values--our commitment to universal human rights and our dedication to the elimination of poverty, racism, and social injustice.
As a rights-based organization, Oxfam strived to make sure that the most vulnerable people, including low-income immigrant workers in the region, would not be overlooked.
Initially, Oxfam focused on advocacy to ensure that, as provided by international humanitarian law, immigrant workers had access to humanitarian assistance. From the very beginning, many cases surfaced of nonprofit organizations and government agencies denying documented and undocumented immigrants humanitarian assistance.
In the first few days after Katrina, I worked closely with MIRA’s organizing coordinator, Vicky Cintra. It was incredible.It seemed like every day there was another battle, another abuse of basic human rights, another insult to humanity itself.
We reported two cases of unlawful evictions from residences and shelters, had confrontations with US marshals and Indiana State Police, got expelled from a shelter, provided direct assistance to people who hadn’t eaten in days, and followed up on other rights abuses.
For Vietnamese and Latino workers, who made up the majority of the immigrant population, getting reliable information about the post-storm help they were entitled to was difficult at best. Very little, if any, of the information appeared in any language but English. And many immigrants were unwilling to ask government agencies for help out of fear they could expose themselves to deportation.
When the relief phase of the work was complete, Oxfam redirected its priorities to focus on supporting its partners, MIRA among them. And that’s when I joined the alliance in Jackson.
During my three-month tenure with MIRA, Oxfam has not only helped to attract funding for MIRA, but also assisted it in developing relationships with local and national foundations and organizations.
Oxfam and MIRA have been working closely together to strengthen the alliance so that it can stand tall and firm on its own in the years ahead. MIRA now has 3 full-time paid staff members, a five-year strategic plan, and its first-ever Web site: www.yourmira.org From this strong, new foundation, MIRA has become an well-recognized leader at state and national levels on immigrants’ rights in the post-hurricane Katrina Gulf Coast. With Oxfam’s help, MIRA has successfully lobbied and influenced key decision-makers to support immigrant causes through pro-immigrant legislation.
Looking back, there were many gratifying moments in participating in the Katrina response, from directly delivering food to hurricane victims, to meeting with new partner organizations, and networking with government officials and others.
By far the most gratifying experience I have had in the last few months is seeing Oxfam’s impact take place in front of my own eyes. Working closely with colleagues and partners, Oxfam was not only able to have an immediate effect but has also contributed positively to reconstruction of the Gulf Coast. Oxfam has worked closely with MIRA to support the defense of immigrant workers rights. The impact is obvious: since October, MIRA has retrieved more than $210,000 in back wages owed to immigrant workers on the Gulf Coast. Today I leave MIRA with a sense of accomplishment and pride knowing that Oxfam and MIRA will continue to work together to defend immigrants’ basic human rights.
