Hi Claire! Thank you for the kind words. I just checked, and the next No Kings March is in October. I don't know the specific date yet, but I imagine more information will come out in September.
Undocumented immigrants are disqualified from major federal safety-net programs like SNAP, Social Security, and so on. It's always been this way. I think it's important to point out to your friend that migrants pay billions upon billions upon billions of dollars in taxes. It's actually the other way around: migrants pay in for benefits that they'll never receive.
1. If you had one (1) shot left on your 35mm roll who/what in DC would you want to capture? Your call if it’s B&W or color.
2. If you invited Justice Comey-Barrett and Pete Buttigieg to weekend brunch in South Bend, as host a) what would be your ice-breaker question of them over mimosa #1? b) what question would you like each of them to ask you Pablo?
My questions are about financial burdens being perpetrated on immigrants by the federal govt. I haven't seen these stories and wonder if anyone in Congress is asking DHS to explain...
-We know DHS ignores legal processes and detains immigrants who, in good faith, filed and paid for pending legal applications. Every application costs money, including costs for counsel. Is anyone advocating for these individuals or their families to get refunds for their fees and legal costs?
Also, I assume the govt is still accepting immigration applications and fees from the very ppl they are targeting. How much did individuals pay in 2025 and 2026 ytd? Where's the money going?
-What is happening to the assets and liabilities of the people being detained - their vehicles, furnishings, bank accounts, leases and loans? (What happens to the cash the individual has on hand at detention?)
Are the big lenders and apartment/rental companies seeing an increase in late or non-payments and is anyone tracing that to ICE detention of wage earner/s? Who are the lender and rental industry's lobbyists and what do they say about the impact?
Thanks for considering. I'd also enjoy a story on photography and resilience. : )
With index funds investing in Core Civic and Geo Group, along with state pension funds --including New York State Teachers Retirement System--there's a terrible irony where many people who are out in the street protesting against the detention of asylum seekers and economic migrants are at the same time benefitting financially from their being jailed.
Would you please share any effective efforts that are underway to raise consciousness about the need to divest from for-profit prison companies benefitting from incarcerating and mistreating immigrants?
Prison Industry Divestment Movement which focuses on cutting off Wall Street financing, pushing university endowments to divest, and holding accountable the institutions profiting from immigrant and mass incarceration. https://prisondivest.com/
Divest/Invest toolkit developed for grantmakers, donors, and community groups, this platform provides guides on moving public and philanthropic capital out of criminalization and immigration enforcement systems. https://divest-ffj.org/
Thanks for those resources, Pablo. After writing, I also found the Prison Free Funds screener, which examines every holding in thousands of funds, checking to see if any of the fund’s investments are flagged by their prison industrial complex screen. https://prisonfreefunds.org/
1-I loved the couple videos you did a while back!
2-I love that you are thinking in Old School terms.
3-A question I have is-why are there no NO Kings marches going on? Have we given up? I thought they were important.
Thank you, Pablo!!
Hi Claire! Thank you for the kind words. I just checked, and the next No Kings March is in October. I don't know the specific date yet, but I imagine more information will come out in September.
Hi: I have a friend who believes undocumented people receive substantial government benefits and assistance. Any truth to it?
Undocumented immigrants are disqualified from major federal safety-net programs like SNAP, Social Security, and so on. It's always been this way. I think it's important to point out to your friend that migrants pay billions upon billions upon billions of dollars in taxes. It's actually the other way around: migrants pay in for benefits that they'll never receive.
Mailbag questions:
1. If you had one (1) shot left on your 35mm roll who/what in DC would you want to capture? Your call if it’s B&W or color.
2. If you invited Justice Comey-Barrett and Pete Buttigieg to weekend brunch in South Bend, as host a) what would be your ice-breaker question of them over mimosa #1? b) what question would you like each of them to ask you Pablo?
Appreciate your work and talent!
My questions are about financial burdens being perpetrated on immigrants by the federal govt. I haven't seen these stories and wonder if anyone in Congress is asking DHS to explain...
-We know DHS ignores legal processes and detains immigrants who, in good faith, filed and paid for pending legal applications. Every application costs money, including costs for counsel. Is anyone advocating for these individuals or their families to get refunds for their fees and legal costs?
Also, I assume the govt is still accepting immigration applications and fees from the very ppl they are targeting. How much did individuals pay in 2025 and 2026 ytd? Where's the money going?
-What is happening to the assets and liabilities of the people being detained - their vehicles, furnishings, bank accounts, leases and loans? (What happens to the cash the individual has on hand at detention?)
Are the big lenders and apartment/rental companies seeing an increase in late or non-payments and is anyone tracing that to ICE detention of wage earner/s? Who are the lender and rental industry's lobbyists and what do they say about the impact?
Thanks for considering. I'd also enjoy a story on photography and resilience. : )
Hi Pablo,
With index funds investing in Core Civic and Geo Group, along with state pension funds --including New York State Teachers Retirement System--there's a terrible irony where many people who are out in the street protesting against the detention of asylum seekers and economic migrants are at the same time benefitting financially from their being jailed.
Would you please share any effective efforts that are underway to raise consciousness about the need to divest from for-profit prison companies benefitting from incarcerating and mistreating immigrants?
Thank you!
Hi Christopher! This is a really interesting question. I did some digging, and here's what I found:
- National Prison Divestment Campaign which is coordinated by the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, this initiative targets public and private portfolios holding stock in for-profit detention operators. https://nnirr.org/get-involved/campaigns-and-initiatives/national-prison-divestment-campaign/
Prison Industry Divestment Movement which focuses on cutting off Wall Street financing, pushing university endowments to divest, and holding accountable the institutions profiting from immigrant and mass incarceration. https://prisondivest.com/
Divest/Invest toolkit developed for grantmakers, donors, and community groups, this platform provides guides on moving public and philanthropic capital out of criminalization and immigration enforcement systems. https://divest-ffj.org/
Does this answer your question?
Thanks for those resources, Pablo. After writing, I also found the Prison Free Funds screener, which examines every holding in thousands of funds, checking to see if any of the fund’s investments are flagged by their prison industrial complex screen. https://prisonfreefunds.org/