Legal Commentary

Left Behind in Postville

By TChris

Let's hear it for those who stepped up to help the women and children left behind in Postville, Iowa after a raid resulted in the arrests of about 400 undocumented workers, many of whom were imprisoned after cursory proceedings.

The raid left 43 women, wives of the men who were taken away, and their 150 children without status or a means of support. The women cannot leave the town, and to make sure they do not they have been outfitted with leg monitoring bracelets.

Postville has turned into an open air prison for the women and children who, for "humanitarian" reasons, haven't been detained behind bars. The women have been left to fend for themselves, but are prohibited from working to earn money. [more ...]

"The women are effectively prisoners," said Father Paul Ouderkirk at St. Bridget's Roman Catholic Church. "The difference between them and anybody who is in jail is that in jail the government pays for them, but if they're on the streets we pay for them. What kind of a government makes prisoners of 43 mothers who all have children and then says, ‘You can't work, you can't leave and can't stay?' That boggles the imagination."

A local church and concerned supporters are supplying the women and children with the means for survival.

Since the raid, St. Bridget's, with a staff of four, has raised $500,000 to pay for rent, clothing, food and other necessities of life. Donations have come from other faith groups and individuals who have read about the raid.

Agriprocessors, the company that employed the arrested workers, has been accused of egregious violations of safety violations, including prohibitions against employment of child labor. In that light, there's no reason to believe that Agriprocessors acted as a responsible corporate citizen when it "said it was waiving rent for women living in company-owned apartments and making regular food contributions." After exploiting entire families, Agriprocessors doesn't need the bad publicity of mass evictions ... at least not now, with the media watching. Besides, Agriprocessors might view the left-behinds as potential additions to its labor force.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on August 16, 2008 (boomark / email).