Sign Petition Against Guestworker Abuse

I just received this petition from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) to stop the all-too-common abuse that guest workers endure in the US.

Guest workers are basically individuals who come here from other countries to work for a specified amount of time. Many people come to be live-in nannies for families with children, and while many of these workers are treated well, there have been countless instances of abuse, unpaid wages, etc.

The SPLC has a nearly 40 year history of legally fighting against racial discrimination and white supremacy. There is more information on this petition below, and a link to some more information on the SPLC as well. Please sign!


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PETITION
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Southern Poverty Law Center
Petition to Stop Guestworker Abuse

Sign our petition and help stop the virtual enslavement and abuse of guestworkers.

Sign the petition If you believe in the American ideals of fairness and human dignity, you'll be appalled at the way tens of thousands of foreign "guestworkers" are being systematically exploited in a government-sanctioned program that many describe as modern-day slavery.


"We had no electricity. The first week we were not paid. The second week we were paid $70."
— Mexican H-2B worker

"El patron would put a lock on the gate where our trailers were. After a time, they would not let us communicate with other people."
— Mexican H-2A tomato worker

"I felt like an animal without claws — defenseless. It is the same as slavery."
— Dominican H-2B hotel worker

These are the workers, mostly poor Latinos, who are lured here by U.S. businesses with promises of decent jobs only to be cheated out of their wages; forced to live in squalid conditions; and denied medical benefits for injuries. If the workers complain, they face deportation, blacklisting and other forms of retaliation.

We've documented the abuses in a new report — Close to Slavery: Guestworker Programs in the United States — and are filing lawsuits against the most abusive employers.

As a nation, we must fix our broken immigration system. But we must not condone a program that abuses and enslaves poor workers from other countries who are lured under false pretenses. Not only does this system violate our most deeply held values, it undermines the rights and wages of American workers as well.

Congress has the opportunity to right this terrible wrong. Though lawmakers are unlikely to pass comprehensive immigration legislation this year, Congress can still reform the guestworker system. But lawmakers will act only if the American people speak out strongly against this moral outrage.

Sign the petition. You can make a difference. Please sign our petition to stop guestworker abuse. We'll make sure the president and the appropriate Members of Congress receive it.

Your commitment to justice and acceptance is so important to us. Thank you for your support.

Southern Poverty Law Center
400 Washington Ave.
Montgomery, AL 36104

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THE SPLC
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More info on the SPLC via Wikipedia.

The SPLC web site.

One of the SPLC's web-based initiatives, Tolerance.org.