(FYI, Tohono O'odham are kin to the Navajo, live in the Sonoran desert,
and some have been known to put out water stations for "Illegals"
wandering in the desert. The stations are known to have been destroyed,
contaminated, and tampered with by various 'minuteman' groups,
endangering lives and federally criminal... although ignored by the US
government in it's persecution of economic immigrants.)
.
Rivas said a family of eight was awakened at 4:45 a.m. by armed Border
Patrol agents who stated that footprints from the border led to their
home. The family consists of a grandmother, two daughters and five
grandchildren. The O'odham children were questioned if they were from
Mexico.
''The young mother was spotlighted in her bed while she was nursing
her infant. This is the third invasion of their home in the past two
months. In this home invasion, the invaders did not identify
themselves. The family is constantly under watch; the Border Patrol
constantly drives by their yard, spotlighting and watch from the
roadside.''
Rivas said another young family with two small children was awaked by
four heavily armed Border Patrol agents at their door. The family was
accused of harboring undocumented Mexicans and possibly hiding drugs.
Two agents went through out the house while two other agents guarded
the entrance to the home.
.
O'odham protest military home invasions
Indian Country Today
August 18, 2006
by: Brenda Norrell / Indian Country Today
http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096413502&na=2916
GU-VO DISTRICT, Tohono O'odham Nation, Ariz. - As the National Guard
sets up observation posts on Tohono O'odham tribal land on the border,
O'odham say homes are being invaded by U.S. Border Patrol agents and
their peace of life has been destroyed.
''There is an invasion of our communities. You would not think this is
America: it is a whole different world,'' said Ofelia Rivas, founder of
the O'odham Voice against the Wall, an O'odham human rights advocacy
organization.
Rivas said O'odham living on the border live in fear of the ongoing home
invasions and the resulting retaliation if they speak out against the
Border Patrol or National Guard troops now preparing camps in their
backyards.
''The armed guards invaded the small village of Ali Jegk on the Tohono
O'odham reservation. The community is under siege day and night by
unmonitored heavily armed border patrols and other agents,'' Rivas told
Indian Country Today.
Ali Jegk, adjacent to the international border on tribal land, is 136
miles southwest of Tucson and borders the Organ Pipe National Monument.
Rivas described a recent incident in which a young O'odham man and his
family were threatened with pepper spray if they did not get out of
their vehicle. The family, including an infant, was traveling to the
funeral of their father and uncle.
''They were told to abandon their vehicle and walk more than 25 miles to
their community. The young man was taken into custody under bogus
charges. An encounter with the tribal police and the Border Patrol
forced the release of the young man,'' Rivas said.
Currently, O'odham elderly, who normally sleep outside their adobe homes
in summer because of the heat, now have to sleep indoors.
''They are forced to sleep in their homes at night because the Border
Patrol is out there walking around and shining their spotlights on them.
There is no peace at all,'' Rivas said.
Rivas said that recently, Border Patrol agents climbed on top of their
patrol units and watched O'odham elderly gathering saguaro fruits during
the traditional cactus fruit harvest.
''They feel like they are under a microscope.''
Gustavo Soto, spokesman for the Tucson Sector of the Border Patrol, told
ICT that the agency takes these allegations seriously.
''There are a lot of allegations against our agency doing inappropriate
activities,'' Soto said. However, he said the Border Patrol is monitored
by the Office of the Inspector General and Office of Personnel
Responsibility. There are also internal special investigation teams, he
said.
Soto said he was not familiar with specific allegations coming from the
Ali Jegk community, but that the Border Patrol encourages O'odham to
make formal complaints to the agency. He said each formal complaint is
investigated and a Border Patrol community representative is assigned to
follow up.
Tohono O'odham Chairman Vivian Juan-Saunders said she was not aware of
complaints of Border Patrol agents in the Ali Jegk community.
Juan-Saunders said she asked Gu-Vo District leaders if they had received
reports of allegations from the community and none had been received.
''Until community members bring these issues to the attention of either
the community, district council, Legislative Council Domestic Affairs
Committee, the Legislative Council or to my attention, we can't address
these issues,'' Juan-Saunders said.
Juan-Saunders said, however, the Tohono O'odham Nation receives
complaints from both sides concerning the Border Patrol, including
O'odham who question where border agents are when illegal entrants
invade O'odham homes.
Juan-Saunders said the nation encourages O'odham to file complaints when
their rights are violated. She also said the nation has informed the
Border Patrol of the tribe's sovereign status.
''They need to respect the rights of the nation as well,'' Juan-Saunders
told ICT.
However, Rivas said O'odham families are harassed and spotlighted in
their homes at night.
Rivas said a family of eight was awakened at 4:45 a.m. by armed Border
Patrol agents who stated that footprints from the border led to their
home. The family consists of a grandmother, two daughters and five
grandchildren. The O'odham children were questioned if they were from
Mexico.
''The young mother was spotlighted in her bed while she was nursing her
infant. This is the third invasion of their home in the past two months.
In this home invasion, the invaders did not identify themselves. The
family is constantly under watch; the Border Patrol constantly drives by
their yard, spotlighting and watch from the roadside.''
Rivas said another young family with two small children was awaked by
four heavily armed Border Patrol agents at their door. The family was
accused of harboring undocumented Mexicans and possibly hiding drugs.
Two agents went through out the house while two other agents guarded the
entrance to the home.
In another incident, an O'odham man in his 50s and his brother were
stopped while traveling from his community along the border.
''He was threatened; they said they would smash his windshield if he
didn't open his window completely. He was accused of being a drug
trafficker.
''After they were released, the U.S. Border Patrol agents were yelling
the stereotypical 'Indian war yells,''' Rivas said.
Rivas said one Ajo Sector Border Patrol agent stated to an O'odham man,
''You Indians think you have sovereign powers; we are the authority
here. We have more authority then the tribal police.''
Soto, given a copy of the allegations in the Ali Jegk community, said it
would be necessary for the Border Patrol to have the names and
information on each incident in order to investigate. He said it is
important for O'odham to write down the license plate numbers of the
Border Patrol agents allegedly carrying out inappropriate activities so
specific agents could be investigated.
The number to report abuses is (877) USBPHELP, and the help line is
available around the clock, he said.
''We immediately take these matters very seriously,'' Soto said,
pointing out that spotlighting into homes is one offense that is
investigated when reported.
Rivas, however, pointed out that O'odham who do complain and make their
names public become targeted and victimized by agents, especially in the
isolated area of Ali Jegk.
''There is absolutely nothing out there to protect them, there is no one
advocating for them,'' Rivas said.
Responding to ongoing criticisms of the Border Patrol by indigenous at
the border, Soto said Border Patrol agents receive cultural sensitivity
training during their initial training at the Border Patrol Academy.
Then, agents receive annual cultural sensitivity trainings in individual
sectors, including the Tucson, Ajo and Casa Grande Border Patrol sectors
in southern Arizona.
Rivas and other indigenous border rights activists said the cultural
sensitivity training that Border Patrol agents receive is obviously not
enough.
Jose Matus, Yaqui and director of the Indigenous Alliance Without
Borders, said that when he recently crossed the border in Arizona, a
Border Patrol agent told him that he had never heard of the Yaqui people.
Soto said the cultural sensitivity training focuses on ''American
Indians'' and is not specific for individual tribes. He said the
cultural sensitivity training is multi-faceted and includes
Irish-Americans and various ethnic groups.
