I am a PhD candidate in Latin American History at the University of Texas-Austin. I study Modern Brazil and the African Diaspora. My dissertation explores the historical emergence of the Quilombo Movement in Brazil. I am also Public History Editor at Not Even Past (notevenpast.org). I write about history, current events, and popular culture in the Américas.
I started interviewing undocumented students and allies to better understand the immigrant rights movement in 2011. At the time, I was pursuing both a law degree and a masters degree in Latin American Studies. I soon recognized that in order to advocate for immigrants, I also had to learn more about their individual stories. Specifically, I wanted to understand how immigration law directly shaped their lives. I learned a valuable lesson: that narrative had the potential to humanize immigration–an issue that is too often reduced to statistics, generalizations, and stereotypes– and advance social change.
Photo courtesy of the author, 2013.
The young people I interviewed used their own stories to press for rights. With extraordinary courage, they demonstrated that, even without papers, they would pursue their goals and raise their voices. They held elected officials accountable and urged them to support immigrants, even though they themselves could not vote. Many shared their stories with the public and through the media. In so doing, they raised awareness of the everyday struggles of undocumented young people and their families across the United States. They demonstrated to the world that they existed, that they, too, were visible and belonged.
On June 15, 2012, immigrants proved they could be agents of change. On this date, the Obama administration announced the creation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a program that would providework authorization and protection against deportation to young people who arrived to the United States before the age of 16 and met certain continuous presence and educational requirements. The Obama administration’s decision to implement DACA was not a spontaneous one. Rather,DACA was the product of years of activism on the part of undocumented young people and allies.
I provided legal representation to DACA applicants during my first year as a lawyer. I witnessed how DACA changed the lives of immigrants who grew up in the United States. DACA recipients could obtain social security numbers and drivers licenses. They could apply for paid internships that matched their career aspirations. They could work to help their families and to pay their college tuition. They no longer had to fear driving through checkpoints, and could now travel throughout the United States. Many could visit family that lived along the southern border. The anguish over whether they could work in a career of choice after graduation dissipated. A work permit made the possibility of a professional career a reality.
As an immigration attorney and advocate, I am dismayed and angered by the possibility that the DACA program could be terminated under the Trump administration. DACA is a reminder of the talent and contributions of immigrants. Yet President-Elect Trump promised to eliminate DACA, build a wall, carry out deportation raids, and prevent Muslims from emigrating to the U.S. These proposals are an attack on the dignity of the immigrant community and their aspirations for engaged citizenship. They are also a rejection of their immeasurable contributions to this great nation.
Photo courtesy of the author, 2013.
In the weeks following the election, I have discovered hope and a call to action through acts of solidarity. Advocates and activists have united to form coalitions and task forces to help immigrant communities. In my own hometown Austin, Texas, I have found a renewed energy byparticipating in #Texas Here to Stay, a coalition dedicated to providing access to legal information and services. I have also tapped into this energy by attending meetings with students. Across the nation, universities and colleges, including the University of Texas, have united and declared support for DACA and their undocumented students. University leaders such as Janet Napolitano, former Secretary of Homeland Security and current president of the University of California, have written letters to Trump urging him to preserve the DACA program.
Now more than ever, we need to use our stories to advocate for change. Testimonials, as DACA activists have shown us, are an effective tool to educate our communities and leaders about immigration. With this lesson in mind, I along with my husband, Eddie Shore, present our blog “Jorge Washington” as an invitationto share personal narratives of activism and advocacy. If you are interested in sharing your story, pleasecontact us at presidentjorgewashington@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you.
On January 14, 2016, the South African Department of Home Affairs arrested popular recording artist Yasiin Bey, aka “Mos Def,” after he attempted to board a flight with his family from Cape Town to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with a “World Government of World Citizens” passport. Bey returns to court on May 31 to contest allegations that he used a false identity, presented an unlawful document, and aided and abetted his family to stay in South Africa illegally.
“I lived in Brooklyn for 33 years of my life. I thought I’d be buried in that place,” Bey told Rolling Stone in 2013. “For a guy like me, who had five or six generations not just in America but in one town in America, to leave America, things gotta be not so good with America.” Three years following his relocation to South Africa, Bey finds himself in the midst of a contentious legal battle that could result in indefinite immigration limbo for the hip-hop artist and his family.
The circumstances surrounding Bey’s use of the so-called “World Passport,” rather than his U.S. passport, remain unclear. The Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America guarantees that all individuals born within the United States are considered U.S. citizens. With limited exceptions, a U.S. citizen’s protected interest in his or her passport affords unrestricted access to the most prized identity and travel document in the world.
World Government of World Citizens Passport. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
What many do not realize is that there are a variety of ways, both voluntary and involuntary, in which a U.S. born citizen’s right to obtain a U.S. passport may be abrogated. 8 U.S.C. § 1481 outlines seven acts that, if committed “with the intention of relinquishing United States nationality,” could result in the loss of citizenship. Causes for revocation include obtaining naturalization in a foreign state, taking an oath of allegiance in another country, committing an act of treason, or engaging in a conspiracy “to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States.” For example, on October 24, 2013, soul legend Tina Turner formally signed a “Statement of Voluntary Relinquishment of U.S. Citizenship under Section 349(a)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act,” in order to quit paying taxes in the United States after almost two decades of residence in Switzerland. Edward J. Snowden, the Hawaii-based computer specialist and NSA contractor-turned-whistleblower, also had his passport revoked by the U.S. Department of State on June 22, 2013, after he leaked classified documents detailing NSA’s surveillance operations.
So, what the what is going on with Bey, exactly? There are two possible explanations. The first is that Bey has refused to use his U.S. passport for political reasons. The performer has spoken out against the mass incarceration of black youth and police brutality in black neighborhoods in the United States. His attorney, Bernard H. Jackson, suggested that Bey “is uncomfortable that the majority of the population is willing to justify the murder of unarmed black youths by law enforcement agencies.” Bey also protested the force-feeding of detainees partaking in hunger strikes at the U.S. military detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He even appeared in a widely circulated video that graphically depicted the gruesome struggle of a detainee being force-fed. The second possibility is that the U.S. government suspended his passport in retaliation for the performer’s outspokenness despite his First Amendment right to free speech.
Bey’s immigration troubles began in May 2014, when various media outlets reported that his North American summer tour had been cancelled due to ongoing “immigration and legal issues.” It appeared that U.S. authorities had prevented the singer from entering the country. However, Bey managed to perform for Dave Chapelle’s comedy tour at Radio City Music Hall on June 27, 2014, stirring rumors that the comedian, allegedly a member of the Illuminati (yes you read that correctly), had secured a one-time special exception for the performer to return to U.S. soil. Reports of Yasiin Bey’s immigration case fell silent for the next year-and-a-half, leading many to conclude that whatever issues had forced the cancellation of his 2014 summer tour had been resolved. Then came his arrest in South Africa last January.
Yasiin Bey performs in New York City, 2014. Courtesy of The Guardian.
Mkuseli Apleni, the Director-General for the South African Department of Home Affairs, reported that Bey attempted to leave South Africa by using the World Passport as opposed to his U.S. passport, “with which he had initially entered the Republic.” Apleni added, “Immigration officers had also detected that his spouse and minor child had overstayed their visit to the Republic [given that] their visitor’s visas had expired in April 2014, and were therefore in the country illegally.” Bey and his family were detained and subsequently released on $300 bail with reporting requirements pending resolution of “charges for contravening the Immigration Act, 13 of 2002.”
South African officials claim that the World Passport is not a recognized travel document because its issuing body, the “World Government of World Citizens” or “World Service Authority,” is not part of the United Nations, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the African Union, the South African Development Community, or the African Development Bank. However, since the World Government of World Citizens‘ founding in 1953, 186 countries, including South Africa, have accepted the organization’s “World Passport.” The World Government of World Citizens maintains that its mission is consistent with the “global rights and duties of world citizens” as outlined by the 1948 UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Stockholm Declaration of 1972.
The World Government of World Citizens is a Washington D.C.-based non-profit organization that originated in response to the disenfranchisement and dislocation of tens of millions of people during the postwar period. The vast majority of refugees lacked the necessary valid and authentic travel documents and thus became “stateless.” According to its website, “[t]he [World Service Authority’s] passport differs from national passports [by identifying] the bearer as a human being rather than as a national subject.” Refugees from Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, and Eastern Africa have benefited from use of the World Passport for the better half of a century. To date, there are “over 1,000,000” registered world citizens.
In an interview with Beats by Dre recorded before his arrest, Bey discussed his departure from the United States and declared, “My country is called earth.” This declaration, as well as his repeated use of the World Passport, places the hip-hop icon in a very precarious position. Bey’s legal team has suggested that U.S. authorities have taken special interest in the South African dispute and are participating in the litigation.
Although Bey has not been convicted of any of the charges related to his January arrest, he will not be permitted to remain in South Africa. Most countries deport offenders to their homeland for presenting false immigration documents. To do so, the deportee’s country of origin must issue a valid travel document. Should the U.S. Department of Justice seek to revoke Bey’s U.S. passport and citizenship, he, like many World Passport holders, could become stateless. Where Bey will go remains anyone’s guess.
Yasiin Bey in 2014. Photo courtesy of the performer’s website.
A review of U.S. passport revocation case law underscores the facile legal standard the DOJ must meet to win its case against Bey. The prevailing “preponderance of the evidence” standard is far lower than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard that the general public is accustomed to hearing. Alarmingly, like most other civil lawsuits, a judge need only find it is ‘more likely than not’ that Bey intended to renounce his U.S. citizenship before it vanishes for good.
If this all smells Orwellian, that’s because it is. The repercussions that accompany the termination of an individual’s citizenship are severe. And while the World Service Authority’s President, David Gallup, backed Bey’s case in a pointed letter to the South African Department of Home Affairs, the reality is that the World Passport is only rarely accepted as a valid document.
“I have made no false claims. I have not misrepresented myself. I’m under unnecessary state supervision,” Bey maintains. “I have reason to believe, or suspect, that there are political motivations behind the way that I am being treated. This is following no reasonable strain of logic, and it’s also…curious. I haven’t broken any law. And I’m being treated like a criminal.”
Whether or not Bey became the target of a conspiracy remains uncertain.Still, the innuendo is clear. Few should be surprised if Bey’s politics have rankled influentials in the Department of Justice. His struggle has likely only begun.
Johnny Sinodis is an immigration attorney in Phoenix, Arizona.
Será que eu estou sonhando? Coconut groves stretched for miles across white sand beaches bathed in turquoise waters. The receding tide exposeda vast colony of coral reefs and sea craters that resembled the moon’s surface. The orange glow of brush fires in the sugarcane fields set the morning sky ablaze. Four centuries ago, Zumbi and his army of fugitive African slaves took up arms against their Portuguese masters and established the maroon kingdom of Palmares not far from here. Today, their descendants scrape together a living as fishermen, farmers, and laborers. A fisherman and his young daughter nodded and smiled as they dragged their nets along the sand. The catch of the day? Needle fish (agulinha), crab, and red snapper (cioba). “The eye ball is the best part,” the girl grinned. I was inclined to agree with her. Fried fish with white rice, pinto beans, farofa, lime, and hot peppers were staples of my sojourn in the Brazilian Northeast. My heart aches with saudade as I remember an afternoon swim with cold beers and dear friends. I am not alone.
Pousada Doze Cabanas, Japaratinga, Alagoas. Courtesy of the author.
Many thousands of tourists flock to the Litoral Norte of Alagoas, Brazil, each year. Rustic beaches, whale watching, and surfing have invigorated a regional economy flagged by falling commodity prices and political turmoil. The transformation of local landscapes is stunning. Take, for instance, the small town of Japaratinga, located 120 kilometers north of the capital city of Maceió. It was once a sleepy fishing hamlet in Brazil’s poorest state. Accessible only by ferry (balsa) and cut off from major highways until the 1960s, Japaratinga was home to afro-descendant fishermen and cane cutters and a smattering of surfers and hippies from Recife. Since 2005, the local population has swelled to more than 9,000 inhabitants. The number of hotels and hostels (pousadas) more than doubled since 2009. Tourism has generated much needed jobs in a burgeoning service sector. Yet the boom has also inflicted considerable strain on fragile ecosystems, including barrier reefs, rivers, and the endangered remnants of the Atlantic Rainforest. Beachfront hostels and luxury resorts have displaced Japaratinga’s traditional inhabitants. The local government has failed to advance infrastructural improvements like roads, sanitation, and trash collection to keep pace with unprecedented growth. Plastic bottles, cigarette butts, and beer cans pollute once pristine beaches. Tourism, like sugarcane centuries ago, appears like a bubble ready to burst.
Glass bottles routinely wash ashore in Japaratinga, Alagoas. Courtesy of the author.
A local pousada owner and conservation crusader has resolved to rescue Japaratinga’s coastline. Frederico “Freddy” (freh-jee) da Cunha Araújo is a surfer and entrepreneur from Recife. He arrived during the 1990s and opened the Pousada Doze Cabanas on October 12, 2001. Doze Cabanas remains a popular destination for Brazilians and international travelers alike who savor simplicity. For Freddy, less has always meant more. The hostel is comprised of twelve huts and a pavilion area overlooking the ocean. He refuses to install television sets in guests’ quarters and has restricted wifi to the lobby during business hours. He urges hóspedes to recycle and has greatly reduced the consumption of plastic materials on the property. Unfortunately, few of Freddy’s competitors share his passion for conservation. Hotel owners have erected buildings that obstruct waterways and endanger natural pools in flagrant violation of Brazilian environmental protection laws. Many others dump trash in the rainforest and empty lots. The contents have contaminated local rivers, streams, and the ocean’s shore.
Frederico “Freddy” da Cunha Araújo (right) and his assistant, Breno (left), at the Triagem in Japaratinga, Alagoas. Courtesy of the author.
Freddy decided to take matters into his own hands. A decade ago, he began collecting glass, cans, and plastic bottles from local hotels and restaurants. He transports them to a recycling plant in Recife, about a three hour’s drive from Japaratinga. The commute has become routine. Japaratinga, like most tourist towns along the northeastern coast of Brazil, lacks even basic recycling services. “It’s outrageous that the city government refuses to protect our beach and local environment,” Freddy said. “So I decided to do something about it.”
Triagem, Japaratinga, Alagoas. Courtesy of the author.
Freddy recently purchased an empty lot above a small canyon on the outskirts of Japaratinga. He transformed the property into a makeshift recycling center, or “Triagem,” the first of its kind in the region. These days, Freddy divides his time between Doze Cabanas and the Triagem. He and several of his employees rinse, separate, and process plastics, glass, and other recyclables on site. Inspiration for the project came after a visit to the Japaratinga dump, a place where few tourists dare to tread. Buzzards circle the skies above a massive pit containing hazardous waste near an abandoned sugar plantation with an oceanside view. The desperate poor, including young children, pick through the garbage to scavenge for food, clothes, shoes, and recyclable goods to sell. The scene paints a stunning contrast to the luxurious beachfront resorts located just miles away and offers another painful reminder of the stark inequalities that divide Brazilian society.
A scavenger (far right) picks through garbage at the Japaratinga dump. Courtesy of the author.
The Triagem offers a ray of hope. In the absence of state support, Freddy’s recycling center provides a model for ethical entrepreneurship and sustainable development. Freddy has educated local business leaders and hotel workers about the importance of recycling and coastal conservation. He has trained and employed young people from Japaratinga’s most vulnerable communities in a range of positions at Doze Cabanas and the Triagem. Most recently, Freddy has plotted an initiative to convert organic waste into methane gas to produce energy. The project, like the Triagem, is funded entirely by Doze Cabanas. As reports of polluted beaches in Rio de Janeiro grab headlines ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games, the imperative to preserve Brazil’s precious northeastern coastline becomes more pressing. Thankfully, Freddy and his staff at Doze Cabanas and the Triagem have answered the call. I am proud to call them friends.
To learn more about Freddy and Pousada Doze Cabanas, check them out on Facebook (Doze Cabanas) and visit their website. Better yet, travel to Japaratinga, Alagoas!
The author with Ligia Nunes and Freddy da Cunha Araújo at Pousada Doze Cabanas, September 2015.
Jorge Washington 