Slaughterhouse Sweatshop: Filmmaker exposes US dirty secrets

Slaughterhouse Sweatshop: Filmmaker exposes US dirty secrets

Guatemala filmmaker tells story of stories of the ICE raid in Postville, Iowa

By Brenda Norrell
UN OBSERVER & International Report

http://www.unobserver.com

TUCSON -- Americans want to go to the supermarket and find their meat neatly packaged. They don't want to hear about the 14-year-old girl from Guatemala who worked 12 hours a day, or the woman who was raped by her supervisor at the meat packing plant. They don't want to hear about the mothers who have "kill" water thrown on them or hear a young girl crying from the pain in her hands from operating power meat cutting shears.

Americans don't want to hear about Postville, Iowa, or how the US spent $5.2 million on a raid that revealed the underbelly of not just the meat packing industry, but of the abuse of migrant workers by US companies and the sinister justice delivered by the US Justice Department.

Guatemalan filmmaker Luis Argueta is telling this story. On Monday night at the University of Arizona, Argueta previewed thirty minutes of his work in progress of the feature documentary film, "abUSed: The Postville Raid." It is just a portion of the 350 hours of testimonies and interviews he has conducted in Postville and Guatemala over the past 20 months.

Argueta's film is a story of stories, revealing aspects ranging from the violation of US child labor laws, to malnutrition in Guatemala and the fear that followed 9/11. That fear offers US authorities an excuse to carry out widespread violations of human rights.

"I grew up being fed fear," said Argueta, who grew up in Guatemala. But, he adds, the fear that is being fed Americans did not stop the townspeople of Postville from coming to the aid of the 389 migrants seized in the ICE raid by the 900 heavily-armed US agents at the Agriprocessors, Inc., meat packing plant on May 12, 2008.

The migrant workers were shackled and detained at the National Cattle Congress, which was transformed into a jail and courthouse. Even one of the sentencing judges said it was a travesty of justice. Most workers served five months in jail and were then deported with 10 years probation in their home country.

The film speaks of malnutrition and the poverty, hunger and desperation that pushes people to leave their homes and families in search of survival.

After Postville, Argueta went to Guatemala to tell the stories of the deported families from Postville. One young girl, now a toddler who was born in the US, has only coffee to drink because there is no milk. Guatemala has one of the highest rates of malnutrition in the world.

Argueta said US corporations view the poor and desperate as "disposables." With excellent storytelling and cinematography, Argueta reveals the struggle for survival and dignity of migrants, many of whom are Mayans and other Indigenous Peoples.

Argueta said that US authorities care whether a cow is killed with a sharp knife, but nothing about the migrant worker.

More about the film:

http://www.abusedthepostvilleraid.com/

More about the film series:

Voices of Opposition to War, Racism and Oppression

http://www.voicesofopposition.com/

Democracy Now! Indigenous Olympic Resistance

Watch video:
http://www.democracynow.org/



Olympic Resistance: Indigenous Groups, Anti-Poverty Activists, and Civil Liberties Advocates Protest 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver (Fast forward, by clicking on bar. Indigenous at Olympics section begins around minute 12.)

Native Movement Slideshow Southwest

Relief workers ate steak, Navajos scraped by

Relief workers ate steak, Navajos scraped by Posted at: 02/15/2010 7:44 AM By: The Associated Press
http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s1417380.shtml?cat=504
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) - Some emergency workers charged with helping Navajos stranded by a snowstorm last month were dining on $22 steaks and $40 meals at taxpayer expense.
The Arizona Daily Sun in Flagstaff reports that a group of 12 people listed as hay deliverers rang up a bill of $519.86 at one meal, ordering 10 steaks at a Tuba City restaurant. That's the most expensive item on the menu.
Meanwhile, stranded Navajos were eating air-dropped freeze-dried food.
Coconino County Supervisor Lena Fowler also allowed her county expense credit card to be used by the Navajo chapter president and dozens of tribal police officers for free meals.
Nearly $3,000 was charged to her account. Fowler says in emergencies, government needs to step up and take care of business.The spending in many cases exceeded the maximum allowed for a day's meals.

Olympic Tent Village: Rally for Homeless

VANCOUVER POET LAUREATE JOINS OLYMPIC TENT VILLAGE

RALLY FOR HOUSING AND OLYMPIC TENT VILLAGE BRINGS ATTENTION TO DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE HOMELESSNESS AND EMPTY HOUSING PROMISES

Monday Feb 15th at Noon at Pigeon Park (Carrall and Hastings)

Monday Feb 15th - The upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics has escalated the homelessness crisis in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside and the Greater Vancouver area. Since the Olympic bid, homelessness has nearly tripled in the Greater Vancouver Regional District, while real estate and condominium development in the Downtown Eastside is outpacing social housing by a rate of 3:1. Meanwhile, a heightened police presence has further criminalized those living in extreme material poverty in the poorest postal code in Canada.

With the eyes of the world on Vancouver, residents of the Downtown Eastside Women Centre Power of Women Group and supporters are organizing a rally for housing on Monday Feb 15 at noon at Pigeon Park (Carrall and Hastings). An Olympic Tent Village will also be going up to affirm the call for justice and dignity.

Instead of empty lots and empty promises, the Rally for Housing and the Olympic Tent Village calls for:
1. Real action to end homelessness now
2. End condo development and displacement in the Downtown Eastside
3. End discriminatory ticketing, police harassment, and all forms of criminalization of poverty.

On the inaugural evening of the Olympic Tent Village, Vancouver's 2009-2011 Poet Laureate Brad Cran, who has previously declined participation in the Cultural Olympiad, will be reading poetry as part of "Reading Resistance". He will be joined by poets from the Downtown Eastside and across Vancouver, including Mercedes Eng, Cynthia Oka, and Dorothy Trujillo Lusk.

The Rally for Homes has been endorsed by: Endorsed by: Carnegie Community Action Project, DTES Elders Council, Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users, Impact on Communities Coalition, Streams of Justice, Vancouver Action, Walk 4 Justice, Community Advocates for Little Mountain, Anti Poverty Committee, DTES Community Arts Network, Indigenous Action Movement, Association of Chinese Canadians for Equality and Solidarity Society, Solidarity Notes Labour Choir, No One Is Illegal – Vancouver, Food Not Bombs, Vancouver Status of Women, Downtown Eastside Residents Association, Indigenous Environmental Network, Organizing Centre for Social and Economic Justice, Bus Riders Union, Alliance for People’s Health, Women Elders in Action, Canadian Union of Postal Workers – National Representative, UBC Students for a Democratic Society, East Van Abolitionists, http://www.facebook.com/l/a7e64;Gatewaysucks.org, Justice for Girls, W2 Community Media Arts Society, Submedia, Vancouver Catholic Worker, Pivot Legal Society, UBC Centre for Race, Autobiography, Gender, Siraat Collective, The Rational Coop-Radio, Bulland Awaaz- Coop-Radio, Pink Resistance, CIPO –Vancouver (Popular Council of Indigenous Nations of Oaxaca in Vancouver), Rhizome Cafe, Native Youth Movement, Network of Sri Lankan Law Students, Oxfam Canada, Whistler Watch, http://www.facebook.com/l/a7e64;no2010.com, Warrior Publications, Workless Party, Teaching Support Staff Union, 2010 Welcoming Committee, Latin America Connexions Collective, Servants Vancouver, Building Bridges Human Rights-Vancouver, Check Your Head, SFU Interfaith Institute for Justice, Peace and Social Movements, http://www.facebook.com/l/a7e64;Stopwar.ca, Headlines Theatre, Student Christian Movement-UBC, Community Olympics Watch, Rain Zine, Industrial Workers of the World, The Press Release Collective, Simon Fraser University Public Interest Research Group, 2010 Homelessness Hunger Strike Relay, Friends of Women in the Middle East Society, Iran Solidarity-Vancouver, Federation of Iranian Refugees, Wake Up With Co-Op! at CFRO, UBC Colour Connected Against Racism, BC Persons with AIDS Society, Progressive Forum of Nepalis in America, Grassroots Women, Grandview Woodland Food Connection, Ethical Environmental Consulting, Purple Thistle, Bridgeview Community Action Group, Ahavat Olam Synagogue, The Under One Umbrella Society, Bridgeview Community Action Group, Neworld Theatre, St. James’ Social Justice Group, West End Residents Association, Fraser Valley Peace Council, Homes not Highways, Jacob’s Well, Faithful Public Witness Committee of Van-Burrard Presbytery of the United Church, Longhouse Council of Native Ministry.