Decorah Iowa News

News UNI Hosts Immigration Interpreter from Postville Raids March 9 Posted 3 March 2010 Erik Camayd-Freixas, a federally certified interpreter who translated at the federal hearings in Waterloo after the 2008 immigration raid at Agri-Processors, Inc. in Postville, will participate in two events about the "The Postville Story" on Tuesday, March 9, at the University of Northern Iowa. Camayd-Freixas will discuss the largest single-site immigration raid in U.S. history and how it changed the lives of innumerable people at 2 p.m., Tuesday, March 9, at the UNI Center for Multicultural Education in the Mauker Union. He also will speak that evening at 7 p.m. at the St. Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center, located at 1019 West 23rd St. in Cedar Falls. The evening presentation will be filmed for inclusion in "The Postville Project: Documenting a Community in Transition." A preliminary discussion of interested individuals from UNI and the Cedar Valley will be held at 7 p.m., Tuesday March 2, in the meeting room at the Cedar Falls Public Library to discuss Freixas' recent writings in preparation for his March 9 visit. The events are free and open to the public. "The Postville Project: Documenting a Community in Transition" is a collaborative effort between UNI and Luther College to historically document the records concerning the Postville immigrations raid, its antecedents and aftermath. It will serve as an educational tool, providing an in-depth case study for educators and students at the secondary and post-secondary levels. The archives will have a wide range of genres and formats, including articles, artwork, government documents and Web site entries, as well as many other materials. During the Postville raid, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents stormed into the local meat packing plant and arrested 389 immigrants. Fifty-six were released with GPS devices on their ankles allowing them to care for their children. They were not permitted to work or leave the area. Within a few days, the majority of those arrested were charged with identity theft. Camayd-Friexas, recounting his experiences as translator at the Waterloo hearings, said, "'The Postville Story' will open your eyes and shake your deepest patriotic convictions. It is an epic tale of survival, hope and humble aspirations, of triumph, defeat and rebirth. It is also about the momentous history of a nation rising to reclaim its democratic value and its rightful place as a beacon of hope and a champion of liberty." Camayd-Freixas, a Harvard-trained communications analyst and an associate professor of Latin American literature is director of translation studies and founder of the research initiative on immigration reform at Florida International University in Miami, Fla. He is visiting UNI as a part of a five-city tour, where he'll recount his courtroom experiences in Iowa. These cities include Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Dubuque and Iowa City. Camayd-Freixas' Iowa presentations are sponsored by a Peace and Justice Coordination Committee, whose members include leaders from six congregations of Catholic Sisters in the region. Cedar Valley co-sponsors include: First Presbyterian Church of Cedar Falls; Iowa Center for Immigrant Leadership and Integration; Peace & Justice Center for the Cedar Valley; St. Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center; and the UNI American Democracy Project.

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