Brock Meeks has started looking into the claim by a Brazilian guy that he was badly mistreated at LAX. (Click on link below for the alleged victim's account). I'll post more from Brock in the "Discuss" area when he finds out more.
Subject: FYI re: Atrocities in American Airports
I just got off the phone with an INS spokesperson in the L.A. field office.
The most basic facts appear to be true. The man is who he claims to be. Yes, he did arrive at LAX as he says and yes, the INS did have problems with his documentation.
The matter was investigated by the INS and with the Brazilian consulate back in March. The INS put out a statement then and they are faxing it to me in a short while; I'll transcribe that fax and send it on to you here.
The INS spokesman said he was aware that the message was now flying around the net. "That's not exactly an accurate story," the spokesman said.
Apparently when the episode first happened the man went to the press, didn't get the reaction he wanted so now he's taking it to the Internet, according to the INS spokesman.
When I asked "does the INS have little cells like the message states?" I was told "Yes we do have, of course we have detention areas. We feel that our offices acted appropriately," the spokesman said.
More when I get it.
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Dave,
As you'll see from the official statement below, the INS doesn't deny any of the basic facts in the case, indeed, as an earlier message from me indicted, I checked with the INS and they confirmed that "yes, of course we have detention areas."
The INS says below that their officers "acted appropriately" which tells me they did indeed take some kind of action.
The true picture remains murky at best. Here is the official statement from the INS L.A. field office regarding this incident:
Statement by Thomas J Schiltgen, district director, INS Los Angeles Office, dated March 22, 2002:
"The Immigration and Naturalization Service is committed to treating all those who arrive at our ports of entry with dignity and respect, regardless of their nationality or immigration status. We understand that a Brazilian citizen who was denied admission at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in February because he did not have the proper visa has expressed concern about his treatment.
"I met with the Brazilian Consul General in Los Angeles and assured him that we take matters of this kind seriously. As soon as I learned about this case, I asked for a thorough inquiry. Based on the information I received, I am satisfied that our officers acted appropriately in this instance.
"Immigration Inspectors are tasked with ensuring that only those who are legally eligible to enter the United States are allowed to do so. As the first person travelers meet when they arrive in the United State, our Inspectors are not only officers, they are also ambassadors. We take that responsibility very seriously and want to reassure visitors from Brazil and around the world that they can expect to be treated professionally and courteously by all of our personnel. If we fall short of that standard, we will hold those responsible accountable."
Today, except for immigrant workers eager to stay invisible, few ride the rails just to get from place to place. With all the risk and potential for mishaps, comic and tragic both, walking is almost more efficient. But since the early '90s, train-hopping has been gaining ground among a new generation of tramps. The grizzled old hobos may be dying off, but they're being replaced in boxcars and on the porches of grain cars by street kids, gutter punks, dreamy anarchists and eco-warriors, train-obsessed professionals, all held loosely together by a vision of freedom as old as the nation itself, an America of movement and self-reliance, of mythic vastness and silence, of discovery, escape, rebellion. It's an America that was offered long ago and never delivered, that we're all supposed to love but not allowed to look for, that's just around the corner and always out of reach.
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