lou dobbs getting deported... and this is why i love the onion.

ANDI HAS A JOB!!!!!!

We knew it had to happen!!! YAYYYYY!!! Andi will continue saving the world, one legal aid case at a time.

So so great

Gotta love Jon Stewart. His take on repealing the 14th Amendment and "anchor babies."

Everyone's out of the office... SALSA BREAK!!!

Another great move by Cuccinelli...

What a guy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/02/AR2010080205229.html?hpid=topnews

SC Senator suggests that maybe we should amend the 14th Amendment....

Read the article here, but basically SC Senator Lindsey Graham, normally considered a moderate Repub. on immigration, is joining the right-wingers in calling for an end to automatic citizenship to children of immigrants born in the U.S. (following in the footsteps of anti-immigrants who argue that these children are "anchor babies" sucking resources from the government).

The reason I posted the story? Sen. Luis Gutierrez' witty and biting rebuttal:

“It seems inconsistent to me that politicians who are pro-life and pro-family are also pro-deportation for newborns…We should continue what America has done for hundreds of years, integrating waves of immigrants from Ireland, Italy, and wherever the Grahams came from.”

:-)

Status update: Some new terms I've learned this morning

"Ambient intimacy," "Digital immigrants," "a friend diet of bread crumbs," all some of the verbal gems in this discussion about Facebook. It's pretty amusing and, sadly, very accurate.

On a serious note, legal wranglings commence over SB1070.

Dream Act activism

These activists are certainly getting attention; hopefully it pays off. Pretty gutsy on their part.

Dateline's "Children of the Harvest" (aired 7/18/10)

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032600/

This afternoon's entertainment

So much soul.



Average looking guys + singing ability= HOTTNESS



For Andi:



Shout out to Keyla's hometown!

More hatin' on SB1070!

From a lot of Latin America, no less!

Ohhh politics...

So essentially the Hispanic voting population is choosing between relative inaction on the Democratic side and Tea Party craziness on the Republican side...Obama seems to think his party will win out with a longer-term approach.

Can we also talk about how crazy it is to constantly be thinking about the next presidential election? It's more than two years away! But such is the world of politics, I guess.

Lots of immigration-related news this weekend...

In addition to the Times article Andi found, there was a ton of immigrant-related news coverage, especially in the Washington Post, the past few days. This article talks about the impact Secure Communities is having on detention rates, resulting in a new center being built nearby.


Looks comfy, doesn't it?

I then caught a bit of this documentary on Dateline last night, about migrant farm workers and the effects on their children.



There was also an article about a conservative Hispanic radio host and his role in the immigration debate. Obviously a hot topic right now.

Unfortunately, I didn't see any coverage of our lobbying efforts Thursday...maybe the screaming children scared off reporters?

even in the church, immigration is a largely political issue

The NY Times ran this article last week, explaining that many evangelicals are getting on board with immigration reform because of the potential new demographic of members for their congregations. i think it's a bit of a controversial article, but well-written and worth reading nonetheless.

Near the end of the article, one religious leader argued for immigration reform in more Christian, and less pragmatic, logic:

"He said that deporting illegal immigrants violated the biblical imperative to welcome the stranger. 'We’re going to break up families,' Mr. Staver said, 'and I don’t see how you could claim to be pro-family and condone the separation of families.'"

SB 1070 will fail, and here is why...

...Check out this great article detailing a UVA study into the effects of the 2007 Prince William County ordinance.

Happy Bastille Day!

For the franco-philes in all of us... (maybe this stems from going to Mr. Jefferson's university, as "Teej" loved France), but anyway...

Today we celebrate "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité" with the French, as well as some good old-fashioned fireworks exploding from the Eiffel tower (see below).

Speaking of Liberty, Equality, and Brotherhood, Keyla has been reading up on the DREAM Act, and the 4 kids who walked a modern-day freedom tour, known as the "Trail of Dreams" (I was comparing it to the past generation's Freedom Riders, who toured the country, facing opposition, for their deserved civil rights.)

If you want to urge your Congressman to help push forward this important initiative, the government has this cool website to help you find the way to contact your representative!

https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

SUCCESS!

Give me the chicken and no one gets hurt.

other important happenings at lajc....

How now brown cow? The legal-eagle interns and honorary Choi Chamber member/salsa dance partner Nicole headed out to Chick-Fil-A's "Cow Appreciation Day" and scored, según Joy's expert calculations, about $27.00 of free chickeny goodness.

There was much discussion on proper cow outfits, and after a spirited debate, it was decided that Joy would not wear her black and white striped pants, which - though following the proper color scheme - were deemed "too zebra-y".

Instead, the lovely ladies cut out cow noses, cow ears/hooves, and tails and prepared to face the treacherous outside world on their arduous pilgrimage to Ballston's free chicken mecca.

For all those attempting this feat, there is a ranking system of how cow-like you are, which affects how much free food you get. Apparently Nicole beat the system by progressively becoming less cow-like to go up to get napkins or Dan Choi's milkshake, etc. and confused the servers into thinking she was a new customer, thus scoring more free chicken for the office/Dan.

An all-around success!

from SLATE.com

Legal Experts Expect Courts To Overturn Arizona Immigration Law

Even though nearly $500,000 has been donated by people all over the country to help defend the recent immigration law passed by Arizona lawmakers, most legal experts agree that the Obama administration will be able to overturn it. "They cite the longstanding principle that the federal government has exclusive control over immigration and that 'no state can a

dd or take away' from the policy set in Washington," the Los Angeles Times reported. The only thing, they say, working in favor of Arizona's law, which allows enforcement to stop and question anyone they suspect of being in the country illegally, is that the current Supreme Court has not yet ruled directly on a state-federal immigration battle. While Arizona lawmakers have argued that the immigration law does not conflict with federal policy, the Justice Department, in announcing it would go to court in an attempt to reverse the law, argued that the state exceeded its authority. "It's one thing for MALDEF [Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund] or the ACLU to say this [Arizona law] interferes with federal policy. It is quite a different thing when the federal government goes to court and says it," Jack Chin, a University of Arizona law professor, told the Times. "The clear rule has been that states do not have the power to regulate immigration." The few legal experts who believe the law still has a chance think the Supreme Court may be ready to reconsider an "unsettled area of constitutional jurisprudence," even though a number of state efforts to enforce restrictions on illegal immigrants were blocked by federal judges in the past. "

The last major pronouncement on the question was against a completely different landscape," said Temple University law professor Peter Spiro. The justices "may be willing to cut [states] some slack in the face of Washington's now persistent failure to deal with immigration reform."

yayyyyyyyyyyy get that racist, ILLEGAL nonsense out of here!

ebert loved 9500 liberty

here is the article with ebert's review about the thoughtful and insightful documentary that we watched on our inaugural day at lajc, just 5 short weeks ago!

he gave it 3.5 of 4 stars, hollaaaaa

also, a shoutout to my girl b - this is why i love her!

I AM SO EXCITED...

...for this afternoon: the incredible Espana y Villa vs. the mildly terrifying Germans. The anticipation is killing me.

Podolski may be really attractive:


But I have faith in Villa to bring it home



Vamos Espana!!

Joy to the World!!

Although Keyla and Andi have abandoned the chambers for today, thankfully Joy has returned from her adventures in Nebraska!! Yay!! My little corner is far less lonely now.

An accurate prediction? Only time can tell.

I mostly just get major kicks and giggles out of the phrase "psychic octopus" and the fact that the Washington Post actually wrote about one.

i stumbled upon this gem in my travels on the internet

Monty Python's Philosopher's World Cup

it is a gem.

"I DON'T NEED NO STINKIN' INSTRUCTIONS!"

I like putting things together. Particularly, I like putting things together WITHOUT following the instructions. Despite Andi's doubt in my expert "putting things together" skills, we now have a SWEET and much needed area fan in our chambers.

Today, in the battle between Fan vs. Keyla's rebelliousness...Keyla's rebelliousness WON!

leaving the choi chambers

This is what the Choi Chambers felt like this morning!

so upon arrival to the office today, i realized - joy's in nebraska, keyla and katie are in dc, dan is mia (/in dc as well?), it was going to be a lonely day back in our chambers, which are now hermetically sealed behind the glass door to keep in the a/c.

ergo, i've currently stolen mirella's desk.

lajc is also w/o e-mail for the day, so we're checking out the culprit - intense storm damage in c-ville, looks crazy!!!

PS - What is everyone doing tomorrow at 2:30 PM? EASY question - watching the US beat Ghana!!! There are several in our office who root for everyone besides the US, and believe that the Ghanaians are the "underdogs". Well, this is what happened last time we played Ghana, in 2006. They have the same ridiculous keeper, Kingson, who is amazing, so basically - US needs to avenge the loss.

Look how sad Landon was after we lost to Ghana!!!

Remember what it felt like to watch Donovan score in the 91st minute 2 days ago? (We know you were all watching at the office!!) GO USAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!

Suspicious?

Keyla and Katie were sitting in the chambers, expressing our sympathy for Andi's illness and consequent absence from work, when we realized...a certain soccer team is playing a very important game this morning. This leads us to the question: is Andi really ill or just really crafty? If she is currently knocking a few back at the local bar waiting for kickoff, we congratulate her on her devious plan. Some Landon Donovan action beats chicken noodle soup any day.

(In all seriousness, we're very sorry Andi is sick and hope she feels better very soon. Without Joy and Andi, it's going to be a lonely day.)

More new anti-immigration laws

Unfortunately our resident Nebraskan isn't here to offer her opinion...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_nebraska_immigration

Keyla's train of thought...

Joran van der Sloot =





James Van Der Beek =





=




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4YqKeZT5Do

Interesting...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100618/ap_on_re_us/us_immigration_law_clinton

YEEEESSSSS!!!

Below is a snippet from my childhood growing up in Miami, FL.

SAVE THE MANATEES!!! Enjoy.


http://videos.apnicommunity.com/Video,Item,3437269390.html

Hilarity and legos

For Andi again:

http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world-cup/blog/dirty-tackle/post/The-goals-from-England-vs-the-U-S-recreated-wi?urn=sow,248528

I love when the English goalie falls down in despair.

People Are Crazy

The main lesson we have learned thus far at this internship. People are insane. Certifiable. Loco. Cuckoo bananas. Not as crazy as Miro, but crazy.

The Beep of Death

Yes, phone, we realize someone is on hold. You beeping at us as we frantically search for a way to assist said person on hold is simply not helpful.

Sincerely,
Andi and Katie

Blast from the Past

You know you still love it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5UuAborP0k

heck yessssss

dudes, i hope you were all watching usa v. inglaterra yesterday...

anyway, here's the new york daily news' rundown of the action.

cheers!

Buy a bracelet. Free a slave.

The Dalit women in several regions of Asia are also subjected to entire systems of subjugation and repression that are specific to their plight as Dalit women.

One such system is the system of “Devadasi” – whereby young Dalit women are brought my their families to the temple to be used as “Temple Workers. ” According to their religious system, this is essentially seen as something “required” by Dalit families, as it will bring “blessing” and “prosperity” to the family. At a young age these girls (often as young as 4 or 5 years old!) are brought by their families to the temple, and dropped off for their “life of service.” As soon as the girls hit puberty, they are beaten and forced to become sexual servants for the Brahman priests, as well as any other upper-caste visitors to the temple who might desire to exploit their “services.”

The Dalit women, now called “Devadasis,” are used and abused as sex-slaves for years, until they are eventually sent off to the brothels of the large cities in India. Here, the Devadasi women are subjected to even greater atrocities, often being repeatedly raped, abused, and roughly used by men who see them as less than human due to their “Devadasi” stigma. Often, these women contract HIV AIDS, and are left broken, battered, and abused. I personally sat behind a camera, hearing story after story of the heartbreak, oppression, and violence these poor young girls are subjected to every day of their lives. Many of them recounted in tears their desire to marry and have a family, now dashed to pieces due to the stigma of being a former “Devadasi” – a stigma which they can often never escape.

After hearing of this horrible system and learning of these atrocities, the Dalit Freedom Network (DFN) decided to step in and do something. They began rescuing and rehabilitating these former Devadasi women, providing trauma counseling, emotional support, and hope through a loving and encouraging environment and staff who share with the women about the love that God has for them and the hope He offers to them of a new beginning. In addition to this, the DFN also began to offer outlets for financial support as well. It was here, through this program, that the “Lydia Project” was born.

The Lydia Project is a program dedicated to providing opportunities for healthy and dignified employment to Dalit Women. They are taught to sew and make jewelry, such as these bracelets, which are then sold. ALL profits going directly to the Dalit Women of India.

Here is the link to buy the bracelets via one of my good friend's site. The bracelets are only $7 and you can purchase using Pay Pal. It's a small amount of money and these beautiful bracelets will remind you of the plight of these women as well as the amazing work DFN to help them.

http://jonlash.com/2010/06/buy-a-bracelet-free-a-slave/

Kappa Kappa Choi or Choi Omega?

Dan is feeling left out and jealous of Katie and Joy's sisterhood, so we decided he needs his own fraternal organization. The real question is what the colors should be. Cardinal and straw are obviously taken.

For Andi and general enlightenment

David Guetta: "a French DJ"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9JkGY4kZzs

GOLLLLLLLLLL
http://www.slate.com/id/2256074/

We have arrived

The NOVA interns have now joined the world of blogging. Stay tuned to hear scintillating insights into our lives as interns, including, but not limited to, Andi's love of David Guetta and the World Cup, the suspicious fish smell currently permeating our office, and the surprising complexities of phone duty.