Arellano, who was snuck into the United States by her husband, a permanent resident, was beaten and humiliated for more than nine years. Like Emelina Ramirez, Arellano never had her immigration status adjusted for permanent residency. In the beginning of her marriage, her husband would tell her he was going to get the process going so she could attain legal residence. However, this turned out to be a lie because he used her undocumented status to prevent her from complaining about his subsequent beatings and verbal taunts.

After years of being beaten and humiliated, she muster up enough courage to leave her abusive husband and sought help from the Mexican Consulate. There, officials recommended she apply for a temporary visa under Violence Against Women Act, the law that protects undocumented immigrants from abusive spouses who use their position as citizens to intimidate their spouses who did not have legal immigrant status in the United States. The law allows the abused spouse to file a self-petition for legal residency based on marriage to an abusive citizen or LPR, who will not file a petition for them.

Arellano hired a lawyer and petitioned for legal residency under that program. She was granted a visa under VAWA and a work permit so she could support herself and her children by working legally. To support herself and her children, she has opened her own restaurant in Sacramento and is receiving health insurance by working as a janitor, which she cleans offices all night. However, this might come to a crashing halt. Once again, the Department of Homeland Security has decided to abuse their prosecutorial discretion. Homeland Security has now set its sight on victims of domestic abuse as they are now considering eliminating the domestic violence program that was meant to protect people like Emelina Ramirez Bojorquez and Ana Bertha Arellano.

“I have my own health insurance. I don’t take any aid for anything. I don’t want anything else but a chance to have some stability for my family,” said Arellano, 37, one of the thousands of immigrants, many mothers of U.S.-born children, who could be affected if the policy shifts.

After applying for her green card six months ago, she is now being told by the Sacramento office of Citizenship and Immigration Services that her application for a green card has been put on hold. According to the Sacramento Bee, Homeland Security is considering whether to reject green-card petitions for immigrant abuse survivors if they entered the United States in the past illegally. The Bee also reported that more than 30,670 immigrants married to US spouses have been granted Violence Against Women Act visas, however, now they will soon be in limbo. Arellano fears that her green-card application will soon be rejected and being deported is the ultimate punishment for her.

Spousal abuse has long been one of the most critical and widespread problems endured by women who do not have legal residency in the United States but are married to someone who does. The argument anti-immigrant nativist use to justify Arellano’s deportation and people like her is simple, battered undocumented women should not be treated any differently as any other undocumented immigrant, therefore, they should be sent back to their homelands. Another argument that is often made is that the fact that they have suffered abuse is a tragedy, but by allowing battered spouses to stay in this country; other immigrant groups will also try to use the same excuse. It is interesting how simplistic they make their arguments and sadly, it unfairly blames the victim and not the truly guilty party, the perpetrator of the violence.

While it is true that there are millions of reported/unreported incidents of domestic violence occurring across the country, the fact is domestic abuse remains to be a social crisis people rather not talk about. Immigrant women, like other abused women, may depend on their abusers for financial support, and breaking free of dependency is never easy. If they do escape, many of them face barriers, which often include language difficulties and cultural communities that discourage victims from talking about the abuse.

By eliminating the Violence Against Women Act’s domestic violence program, Homeland Security will only force more battered immigrants into the shadows and some into an early grave at the hands of their abuser. Domestic violence is a social problem of epidemic proportions that must be eradicated. By not responding to Arellano’s plight now, we send out the message that there really is no justice for immigrants who are victims of domestic violence.

Elvira Arellano spoke out in behalf of thousands of immigrant women here in the United States. She demanded that Mexican families living in the United States receive decent treatment and being treated as terrorist. Unfortunately, here in the US, immigrant women are violently separated from their children. Arellano’s message should be a reminder that an immigrants journey North is to seek work, in order to provide a better future for their family.

When it comes to violence against women, it is a direct consequence of the inequalities between women and men. Poverty, marginalization and certain aspects of women’s identity, such as their race or ethnicity, can also leave some women more vulnerable to violence. According to Arellano, there are four million undocumented Mexican immigrants in the US and in Mexico, immigrant women who come from other countries are also repressed by violence and poverty. In this country alone, we continue to deny migrant women their most basic human rights, such as the right to health care.

The acceptance of violence against women and girls – either explicitly or tacitly – creates a culture of impunity, which perpetuates that violence. When States fails to hold perpetrators accountable, it contributes to a culture of impunity in which justice is denied and the roots of gender inequality grow deeper.

Earlier in November, Arellano spoke to a group of Mexican migrant activists to decry US policies to jail undocumented migrants, the construction of the border wall, and the increase in deportations.

“Is Mexico prepared to receive all of these deported people and their families?” Arellano said on the opening day of the “First Parliament of Mexican Migrant Leaders Who Live in the U.S.”

“Is it prepared to guarantee an education to their children, who are U.S. citizens? Or is it prepared to defend them against all these attacks?” she said.

The mass deportation of legal and undocumented immigrants has separated an estimated 1.6 million children and adults from their non-citizen family members. According to Mesoamerican Migrant Movement, founded by Arellano and other activists, about 22,000 people are deported from the United States to Mexico every month.

Violence against women and girls will not be eliminated in this country until we are willing to be aware of the magnitude of this problem. The elimination of violence must be a priority at all levels – local, national, and international. We must be willing to speak out in order to support and sustain an environment that will not tolerate violence against women and girls. An environment in which men and women together, will intervene to ensure that no perpetrators go unpunished.

Little know immigrant right’s activist Flor Crisostomo is also waging a hunger strike for the same reason. She is currently staging her strike in front of the Chicago offices of Rahm Emmanuel. She has singled out Emanuel for his unwillingness to use his influence within the Democratic Party to effect change.

This blog stands behind Elvira Arellano and Flor Crisostomo.

Recent events just how widespread and multifaceted the situation is:

• The brutal and inhumane rape, torture, and kidnapping of Megan Williams in Logan, West Virginia who was held by six assailants for a month.
• Rape survivors in the Dunbar Housing Projects in West Palm Beach, Florida one of whom was forced to perform sexual acts on her own child.
• A 13 year old native American girl was beaten by two white women and has since been harassed by several men yelling “white power” outside of her home
• Seven black lesbian girls attempted to stop an attacker and were latter charged with aggravated assault and are facing up to 11 year prison sentences

Stand up to violence against women! Today wear red to show your support. If you have a chance take a picture or video of yourself and friends wearing red. Send it to: beboldbered@gmail.com. They will post it!

Stop the violence, End the silence!!!!

For more info, or ways to participate see the site.