Annunciation House

Annunciation House is a network of shelters located in El Paso, Texas. It primarily provides assistance to newly arrived migrants from Central America. Their facilities provide food, sleeping accommodation, and referrals for legal and medical support. The organisation has close links to local faith communities, particularly the Catholic Church. Annunciation House has received international attention and news-coverage as a result of incidents related to the 2014 American immigration crisis, the Trump administration family separation policy, the U.S.-Mexico border crisis, and the National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border of the United States.[1][2][3][4][5]. As of January 2020, Rubén Garcia has been Director of the shelter for more than 40 years.[6]

Activities

The majority of people arriving at Annunciation House come after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), or the US Border Patrol.[7][8] The organisation provides food, water, shelter, family reunification, and referral to legal and medical services.[9] Annunciation House operates on both sides of the Mexico-US border.[10]

History

Foundation

Discussions concerning the founding of Annunciation House began in 1976. The founding principles included that any services and facilities provided through the shelter would be free, that those involved in the operation of the shelter would be unpaid, and the shelter would rely on donations rather than permanent funding sources. Additionally, services were to be offered to people who were not supported by existing programs. In practice, this would include the homeless poor, and undocumented people.[11] The first location was acquired in autumn 1977, through the Diocese of El Paso loaning a vacant building. The first volunteers moved into the building on February 3, 1978.[11] In the early 1990s, Annunciation House developed a program called the 'Border Awareness Experience' which facilitated encounters between participants, people, and groups on both side of the US-Mexican border.[12][13]

The Shooting of Juan Patricio Peraza

On February 22nd, 2003, a 19 year-old undocumented person from Mexico who was staying at Annunciation House, Juan Patricio Peraza, was shot and killed near to the shelter by a Border Patrol agent.[14][15] At 9:00AM, Juan Patricio Peraza was disposing of trash outside of the shelter when he was stopped and questioned by two uniformed Border Patrol agents. Juan Patricio then fled when a volunteer came outside to ask what was happening. A Border Patrol agent caught Juan Patricio and hit his head with a baton. Juan Patricio continued to flee and found a steel pipe which he raised above his head. The agent who was present did not shoot but called for backup. Four other agents then arrived and surrounded Juan Patricio. A sixth agent, Vernon Billings, then arrived and after 45 seconds he fired two shots at Juan Patricio.[16] During the 2008 civil trial which followed the shooting, Harold Brown, a lawyer representing the Border Patrol agents, “argued that every agent at the scene that day would have been justified in shooting Peraza. That they didn't, he told the judge, doesn't make Billings' decision wrong.”[17] By comparison, a lawyer for Juan Patricio Peraza’s family argued that: "The evidence is overwhelming that what happened in this case is Agent Billings turned a foot chase into a shooting,".[18] The incident drew widespread condemnation from civil and religious community leaders, and is frequently cited as an example of the militarization of the US-Mexico border region and the disproportionate use of violence by law enforcement personnel against migrant communities.[19][20][21][22][23][24]

Recent Developments

As a result of its front-line involvement in providing shelter and resources to migrants and homeless people in El Paso, the organisation has received national attention from migrant rights groups who have encouraged donations to the organisation, both financially and in the form of voluntary labour.[25][26][27]

In Academic Writing

Annunciation House is sometimes pointed to as an example of how migrant shelters operate in a so-called 'grey area' by both working in co-operation with law enforcement, and also providing assistance to people who are considered "illegal immigrants" by the state.[28] Annunciation House has been used as a case study by several scholars who are interested in this dynamic.[29][30][31][32]

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References
  1. "Summer job at El Paso migrant shelter proves 'vastly different' experience for Notre Dame students". Borderzine. June 30, 2018.
  2. Koh, Charissa. "Christian compassion at the border". world.wng.org.
  3. "Annunciation House volunteers 'on lockdown' during El Paso massacre". National Catholic Reporter. August 15, 2019.
  4. "Superhero Assumption Sisters use their 'powers' to empower others". Global Sisters Report. January 8, 2020.
  5. Malhi, Sabrina (January 9, 2020). "Our moral obligation to US migrants and asylum seekers". TheHill.
  6. "As Border Crossings Tick Up, Migrants Bring Children, Take More Dangerous Routes". NPR.org.
  7. Sanchez, Sara; Borunda, Daniel. "ICE drops off hundreds of migrants at Downtown El Paso bus station; shelters scramble". El Paso Times.
  8. "Closing Nazareth: On Shelter". The Rumpus.net. May 14, 2019.
  9. "Loretto Nazareth Hospitality | The CUE". utep.galaxydigital.com.
  10. Kim, Jennifer J (2007). Impact of Globalization on the U.S.-Mexico Border: Case of Grassroots Activism for the Migrant and Refugee Community. Doctoral Thesis, University of Maryland. P163. URL: http://hdl.handle.net/1903/6856
  11. "History and Philosophy". Annunciation House. November 25, 2019.
  12. "Annunciation House Archives".
  13. "Border Awareness Experience". Annunciation House. April 22, 2008.
  14. https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Civil-trial-in-teen-s-Border-Patrol-death-winds-1771045.php
  15. https://www.myplainview.com/news/article/Border-Patrol-agent-cleared-in-slaying-of-9091472.php
  16. Woodling, Marie (2009). ‘Marginal life: the production of the Undocumented and (il)legality at the U.S.-Mexican Border’, ‘’International Relations and States of Exception: Margins, Peripheries, and Excluded Bodies’’. Edited by Shampa Biswas and Shelia Nair. London, Routledge. P154
  17. https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Civil-trial-in-teen-s-Border-Patrol-death-winds-1771045.php
  18. https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Civil-trial-in-teen-s-Border-Patrol-death-winds-1771045.php
  19. https://eu.elpasotimes.com/story/news/immigration/2018/01/31/border-network-human-rights-abuses-law-enforcement-immigrantion-agents/1084712001/
  20. https://buzzflash.com/articles/border-patrol-has-killed-at-least-97-people-since-2003-hear-some-of-their-victims-stories
  21. Kim, Jennifer J (2007). ‘’Impact of Globalization on the U.S.-Mexico Border: Case of Grassroots Activism for the Migrant and Refugee Community’’. Doctoral Thesis, University of Maryland. P317.
  22. Sadowski-Smith, Claudia (2018). 'Américo Paredes and the Work of Border Writing', Border Folk Balladeers: Critical Studies on Américo Paredes, ed. Roberto Cantú. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne. P47.
  23. Woodling, Marie (2009). ‘Marginal life: the production of the Undocumented and (il)legality at the U.S.-Mexican Border’, ‘’International Relations and States of Exception: Margins, Peripheries, and Excluded Bodies’’. Edited by Shampa Biswas and Shelia Nair. London, Routledge. P154
  24. https://bnhr.org/about/history/
  25. Dec 10, 2018. "How to Help Immigrant Families in the Southern Border". Southern Border Communities Coalition.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  26. "From Bay Area, volunteers head to El Paso: 'Time for Catholics to be Catholic'". National Catholic Reporter. August 15, 2019.
  27. Pilots, Peace (June 26, 2019). "Ways to Help Refugees: Charities and Other Resources". Medium.
  28. Woodling, Marie (2009). ‘Marginal life: the production of the Undocumented and (il)legality at the U.S.-Mexican Border’, ‘’International Relations and States of Exception: Margins, Peripheries, and Excluded Bodies’’. Edited by Shampa Biswas and Shelia Nair. London, Routledge. P154
  29. Woodling, Marie (2009). ‘Marginal life: the production of the Undocumented and (il)legality at the U.S.-Mexican Border’, ‘’International Relations and States of Exception: Margins, Peripheries, and Excluded Bodies’’. Edited by Shampa Biswas and Shelia Nair. London, Routledge.
  30. Kim, Jennifer J (2007). Impact of Globalization on the U.S.-Mexico Border: Case of Grassroots Activism for the Migrant and Refugee Community. Doctoral Thesis, University of Maryland.
  31. Fern, Simon (2019).The Potential of Sanctuary in the United States of America: Understanding Community Support for Undocumented People in the Context of Sovereignty and Humanitarianism. Master’s Thesis, University of Copenhagen.
  32. Lusk, Mark; Galindo, Feliza (2007). ‘Strength and Adversity: Testimonies of the Migration’, ‘’Social Development’’ vol.39, no.1. pp.11-28
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