thenation--2020-05-18--‘An Experience I Wouldn’t Wish My Worst Enemy to Undergo’

The borders of our world not only cut across international boundaries ; they also increasingly stretch deeply into the interior of nations—into our homes , cities , communities , courts , and everyday interactions .
Citizenship status , visa status , vulnerability to deportation—these are just a few of the dividing lines increasingly separating our country into different communities with starkly different options for how or if its members become full participants in our national experiment.1 As immigrants in the United States , both documented and not , are increasingly under attack—stripped of their status , arrested , and deported—it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heard across these borders .
Migrant Voices is an oral testimony project from The Nation exploring , and listening to , a variety of immigrant voices : from recent arrivals to asylum seekers making their case in the courts , from the undocumented keeping under the radar to the DACAmented on the front lines—people from all over the world who have fled or left their homes and are looking to find , or keep , their place in America.2 This is the ninth installment of this series—follow the series here.3 There are more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus inside immigration detention centers .
The actual number is certainly much higher , as Immigration and Customs Enforcement has tested only a little more than 2,000 detainees .
The 200-plus immigration detention centers spread throughout the country—isolated , overcrowded , without sufficient medical staff—are effectively petri dishes for contagion , primed for the people locked up in them to contract and spread the virus .
Given the fact that the government doesn ’ t even have to keep people locked up in immigration detention—by law , they could be paroled out—it is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people remain inside .
To keep all its residents safe , Portugal , for example , took the unprecedented step of temporarily bestowing citizenship rights on all migrants and asylum seekers , so that they could access the necessary health care .
The United States is taking the opposite approach : Using the virus as an excuse to further implement the anti-immigrant agenda the Trump administration has been pushing since the 2016 campaign , it is not only keeping migrants and asylum seekers locked up but also continuing to deport them , even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ capacity to handle the disease , effectively deporting the virus.5 Giscard , an asylum-seeker from Cameroon , has been detained in the United States for more than two years .
Having been shuffled through a series of detention centers , he is currently locked up in Louisiana in the LaSalle Correctional Facility .
Through a series of letters and phone calls , Giscard explained to me the deeply unsettling conditions he is currently suffering ; the torture , imprisonment , and persecution he fled in southern Cameroon ; and his long and trying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Because we couldn ’ t meet in person , Giscard and I communicated by mail , and I was able to follow up by phone .
Giscard explained to me that “ social distancing is practically impossible ” in LaSalle .
And that while guards come and occasionally sanitize the barrack where he and about 100 other detainees are stuffed , “ some of them wear masks , others don ’ t. ” At least one of the dorms in LaSalle had already seen an infection , and all of its detainees have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threat , Giscard told me : “ I ’ m scared of nothing right now .
I ’ ve seen my life turned upside down .
Anything that comes my way , I can handle it.
” 7 I must say it is a great pleasure for me to write to you !
I ’ m doing well , thanks for asking .
Hope you too are doing well .
As you already know , these are challenging moments for us in detention .
As a result , it is normal to hear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , at times thinking negatively , and losing hope of survival.9 I know my story will need some editing because my English is not that good .
I hope the messages in my story will be understood.10 I am a refugee in prison , but some people call it detention .
Prison or detention doesn ’ t really matter because I am confined to one environment and my freedom seized as well as my every movement and action monitored .
The only difference of where I am from the prisons where I come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here is trying too hard for us to catch pneumonia , as , irrespective of the climate , the cells are always frozen.11 Before I start with my life and time in my country Cameroon , permit me to tell you a little bit of the history of the English part of Cameroon known as Southern Cameroons .
Cameroon is a bilingual country speaking French and English .
Cameroon is divided into 10 regions with the Southern Cameroons occupying just two regions and making up 20 percent of the total population .
Since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we have had no control over airports , seaports , or our roads.12 When the two Cameroons joined to become one , there was a constitution that was not to be tampered or messed with .
For example , it was agreed that at no point should the majority use their numbers to impose laws and authority on the minority .
It was also agreed that if at some point in the future one part feels as the union is not moving as said and that if they feel that the terms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have the right to quit the union .
We feel that we are being assimilated .
They are trying to turn the country into a French country and want to assimilate the Southern Cameroons , which we refuse to be assimilated.13 I come from a small agricultural town , Muyuka .
There are no farm-to-market roads .
We have a cocoa plantation .
You need to see the level of suffering farmers from this part undergo just to take their product to the market .
Some even end up dying just in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the market that is controlled by the government .
They dictate the price of the goods and the prices keep fluctuating all the time .
A kilogram of cocoa is sold in Ivory Coast at $ 5 but in Southern Cameroons it is sold at less than $ 2 .
Timber is being exploited and exported every day from Anglophone Cameroon to France , but we have classrooms in some parts where children sit on the floor to learn.14 ‘ It ’ s Like Living in Solitary Confinement , but Out in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ uncle were members of a pressure group in Cameroon known as Southern Cameroons National Council ( SCNC ) fighting for the restoration of former British Cameroon .
This group has been studying the problems of the southern Cameroonians and writing petitions to the government , who were slow and reluctant to react .
Through my dad and my uncle I also became a member of the SCNC and began participating in protest marches and in organizing meetings .
In 2016 when lawyers in Anglophone Cameroon were protesting , the government sent military to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
We all saw the inhuman treatment and said enough is enough .
From this point on the fight took a different dimension .
Being an Anglophone Cameroonian and seeing all these , I was left with no choice than to join the struggle for the betterment of the future of Southern Cameroons.15 As an SCNC member , I always participated in protest marches and organized SCNC meetings , which the government considers unauthorized gatherings .
In one of our meetings at my uncle ’ s place , we were raided by a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police , gendarmerie , and army .
The meeting ground now became a survival of the fittest with everyone trying to escape .
Little did we know that some soldiers were stationed at the roads we were to use for our escape .
As I was running some were behind me , and I ran to the stationed ones , who caught me , and some few seconds later the ones that were chasing me came to the scene .
None of them asked me any questions , they just immediately started @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in number , some were kicking , some boxing , some hitting me with their baton .
I stretched out my hands trying to cover my face , but one of them grabbed my right hand and used a military technique and dislocated my right shoulder .
Then one held my leg and was dragging me on the ground , over sharp stones , broken bottles , and various sharp objects .
All this while none of them said a word in English or pidgin , which is the common language spoken all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then moved to where their car was parked .
There I meet several other members who also did not succeed in escaping , plus my uncle Deni .
I tried escaping again .
But I ’ d lost my energy , I was weak so I didn ’ t get very far .
The last thing I was aware of was something hitting me on the head.16 The only good thing about the police in my country is the fact that you really have to be a hardened criminal for them to handcuff @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the station without being shackled .
At the station I was interrogated.… My answer to all these questions was negative , no no no .
So they considered me to be a hardened criminal , said I didn ’ t want to cooperate .
So the beating started .
I was tied up like an animal pending slaughter , and they used their batons to beat me under my feet , on my back , and even on my head .
No result was gotten , so they threatened my life , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chair where they attempted to suffocate me with a bucket of water.17 In the cell that I was assigned , I met some criminals who also contributed to beating me… .
I had a swollen face , I spat blood .
My whole body was hurting .
I was scared that I might die , if not in the hands of the police then maybe in the hands of my fellow inmates.… The cell had no toilet .
We slept on the floor with no cover , no window for ventilation .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ writing on the walls .
The writing was mostly done with pear seeds or avocado seeds , kola nuts , chalk , or the end product of a burned wood commonly known as “ chacol ” in pidgin language .
Printed on the wall , some with beautiful handcraft , one could see the names of some notorious criminals like “ Don for Quart , ” “ Grand Bokilo , ” “ Serpent Noir , ” and many lines like “ Fuck the Police.
” The room had a pungent odor one that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
I remember throwing up when I just got in the room .
No place to sit on , but each had a spot on the floor .
Mine was just close , I mean the closest , to the bucket used for bowel movement .
I basically inhaled all the pungent odor from the bowels of my fellow inmates .
In the morning I was called again for another interrogation , another nightmare with a series of threat and beatings , the guards laughing at me .
I had the feeling I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I felt like the weight of the whole world was on my head .
I lost appetite and I was very weak.18 My life as a refugee started when I fled my country to our neighboring country , Nigeria .
The pressure was hot in Cameroon , and is currently still hot after several escapes from being caught by the soldiers who burned down houses , killed , and raped women .
I was advised to flee .
I therefore respected Matthew 10:23 , “ When they persecute you in one place , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and how I found myself in Nigeria .
Most of the SCNC members that fled to Nigeria were being arrested and extradited back to Cameroon .
Hence the place was no longer safe for us and I again moved to where I knew it would be safer for me .
Ecuador was my next stop because of its easy visa requirements for us African nationals.19 My journey from Ecuador to the United States is an experience I wouldn ’ t wish my worst enemy to undergo .
This journey through the Darién Gap @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dangerous and deadliest journeys on Earth .
It comprises all means of transportation but flight—aboard vehicles , on boats , trekking , and piggyback if necessary.20 From Ecuador we traveled north through Colombia .
At Turbo , the most difficult part of the journey began .
The only way to get to Colombia was to arrange with some fishermen who were introduced to us , who from my point of view were very much involved with the trafficking business .
We each paid $ 250 .
The journey we were told was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to finish .
There were no life jackets for us and we had to go through the high sea without them .
After just two hours on board , the engine of the boat was broken and the strong , high waves of the sea became our only guide , swinging us from left to right , up and down .
You should have been there to hear all the kinds of prayers and various ways to call God .
Before we went on board , I gathered many of the light white @ @ @ @ @ @ @ restaurants , shaped them , and put some on my back and some on my stomach before putting on my T-shirt .
Just when we thought everything had died down , another strong and high wave started moving towards our direction .
From the look of it , we could see the danger that was coming our way .
This time around the prayers were very loud .
The wave then hit our boat with great intensity and the boat went up flying like a plane .
No matter how high a boat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ never be turned into a plane .
I can ’ t really explain what happened , because the boat capsized .
We were left in a “ swim or sink ” situation .
I really thank my stars for what I wore inside my T-shirt , as it actually helped me to hang on .
At the end of this fiasco , the boat population had been reduced by four persons .
Three adults and one child.21 ‘ We Are So Much More Than Victims ’ God was kind , we floated to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I have had—everyone on board , even the hypocrites and pagans , were singing “ Hallelujah ” songs and praying all kinds of prayers .
The first phase of the journey was completed.22 The day in my life I will never forget .
I was in the middle of nowhere in the Darién gap surrounded by beautiful trees with green leaves of various sizes and heights .
This is a world where dead people talk .
In the middle of the Darién Gap , it is impossible for you to see more than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made up of trees that have been juxtaposed and arranged in a zigzag manner .
It ’ s so easy for the slow ones to get lost.23 After trekking for four days plus climbing and descending hills and valleys , my legs were weak , I had muscle cramps , and blisters .
The soil was slippery , I had fallen several times .
My ash-color joggings [ pants ] were now turned to brown .
I had spots of brown mud on some parts of my body including my face .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bugs , they came also from mosquitoes , from ants , from centipedes.24 The group I was walking with was made up of people from several countries .
We had Indians , Nepalese , Ghanaians , Nigerians , Cubans , and Cameroonians .
There was no way to communicate with guides because of the language barrier .
They spoke in Spanish and we in English , some in French .
We didn ’ t know if they had names , so we called them “ amigo ” and they called us “ amigo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there was no Internet we could use to Google translate what they were saying .
What I remember hearing them say was “ vamanos , ” “ silencio , ” “ tranquilo , ” and “ rápido.
” 25 The group that went before us were attacked by bandits who stripped them and went away with their money and phones .
Remember , the Darién Gap is a lawless , roadless wilderness where Colombian rebels roam freely , and it ’ s also used as a pathway to transport drugs .
The worst @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around the fourth day .
We had climbed a very steep hill , and in our descent we rejoined the river that runs throughout the journey .
I was so anxious to quench my thirst that I immediately started drinking , when someone shouted , “ Giscard , watch out !
” Oh my God , lying just about 10 feet from where I was drinking was the corpse of a black man in his 30s , already half-decayed .
When I saw that I spat.26 Every time we heard the sound of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down flat and try to camouflage from the search team .
The hide and seek finally paid off and we succeeded in going through the forest.27 Another such journey for our group was to go across Nicaragua , because it was the same scenario as in the Panama forest .
This is how we moved , and now here I am in the United States.28 It is ironic , the world knows the United States to be the defender of liberty and human rights .
Most people know that is not true.29 When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was given a hamburger with particles of rocks placed in the middle .
From the first bite , I realized where I was and what awaited me .
I was stripped for a search and that was the last day I saw my property .
Then the first time in my life to have been handcuffed , an experience that I will for ever remain in my mind .
I was then taken to a room to be interviewed , where this question was asked : “ Are you afraid to go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was then moved to another facility in Louisiana where another interview called the Credible Fear Interview was conducted .
This question still appears : “ Are you scared to go back to your country ?
” Talking about credible fear , just the journey I made through the Panama/Colombia jungle is a credible enough demonstration of fear , without even talking about what happened to me in my home country .
The interviewer found me credible.30 ‘ I Used to Wonder What My Karma Was That I Had to End Up in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I had to go to court to see a judge .
As usual , there was no level playing field .
The court I was taken to is inhuman .
We were chained and handcuffed like slaves .
No different from what our ancestors endured during the slave trade .
Even in front of the judge , I did my entire court session in chains .
We all know that at that moment one is psychologically defeated .
As if that was not enough , the question “ Are you scared to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still popped up .
To tell the truth , yes I am scared to go back to my country , and from what I have witnessed here , I am scared to live here as well.31 Justice delayed is justice denied .
My judge , who was suppose to act like a referee between me and the ICE prosecutor , turned out to do the work of the ICE prosecutor .
She took center stage and did three fourths of the questioning .
She asked me more than 200 questions , only trying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ At the end of the hearing she told us that she will not make a decision right away .
On my individual hearing , I was handcuffed and chained for more than 12 hours , an experience that will forever remain in my memory .
The time the immigration judge took to finally make a decision on my case was five weeks , which were like five years for me because they were very painful moments .
I was visiting the phones at least five times a day to know my status .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ me , “ Your case is currently pending.
” There is no day I will not hear the recorded messages in our detention phone system .
“ Press one for English .
Para Español marque dos.
” I kept checking all the time , and on November 28 , 2018 , it changed from “ Your case is currently pending ” to “ The immigration judge ordered your removal in your case.
” I asked some older inmates what it meant , and they told me it means you are being deported .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ my mind .
I thought of committing suicide .
In an attempt to drive those negative thoughts away , I decided to go play soccer .
That was another big mistake , because it was the first time I got into a fight while playing soccer in detention .
I got mad over a tackle from my opponent .
I ended the game , went back to the dorm , and tried to sleep .
No way could I sleep and I lost appetite .
All these feelings just as a result of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to me if I got to go back….32 The moment I applied at the Board of Immigration Appeals , I was moved to another facility in Alabama : Etowah .
There I meet people who had lost their cases and were appealing as well .
Most of them were handling their cases pro se and were transformed into inmate lawyers .
Those who did not have lawyers , we put our heads together to find a solution on their behalf .
We gathered ideas from the paperwork of those who had lawyers and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thing , I always like to compare what we are facing here as refugees to what happened during slavery and the slave trade .
I will begin with the separation of families .
During the slave trade , there was separation of families .
Life as a refugee , families are separated .
Life as a refugee , like during slavery , there is a high level of uncertainty .
No hope of freedom in the near future , for there is no defined detention period .
During slavery the masters were making @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and selling of slaves .
Now the supposed masters and owners of private detentions are making colossal amounts of money from the keeping of us detainees .
The way we are being transported , too , is no different .
We are chained and handcuffed every time we need to be transferred.34 So far I have been to five detentions : Rio Grande in Texas ; Pine Prairie , Louisiana ; Etowah County Jail , Alabama ; Jena , Louisiana ; and LaSalle Correctional Center still in Louisiana .
The reason they keep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can not be accounted for .
Sometimes they move you to a facility where you spend just a day and the next day move you to another .
The reason I can give for this is that they want to boost the affairs of the detentions they move us to .
Remember , these private prisons are paid handsomely for housing and keeping us .
Some say $ 130 per day per detainee .
Some of these facilities that I have been to , if I estimate how much is being spent per @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spend on us , you will be shocked to realize the kind of profit they make .
Some jails are now used for immigration purposes because of the kind of money involved .
Some facilities have no yards , we don ’ t get to go out to feel the sun just because they were not meant for housing immigrants .
No classification of inmates , the hygiene conditions low .
People in prison are better off than us.35 ‘ It ’ s Not Shameful to Work in the Fields .
But It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to one of the worst states when it comes to immigration , where they do not respect federal immigration laws .
An example of this is in the 2009 parole directive [ ICE Directive 11002.1 , Parole to Arriving Aliens found to have a credible fear of persecution or torture ] .
That law does not apply here in Louisiana.…36 I have seen people suffering in detention—most recently , some Indians in my dorm at Jena who went on hunger strike because they had lost hope and were fed up with what is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ without food for 45 days when I was leaving Jena .
One of them had grown crankier and skinnier .
All you could see of him was his eyeballs that seemed to increase in size .
He was on a stretcher .
The moment I saw him , I thought he was dead , but he raised his hands and waved at me .
I said to myself , if I can ’ t help , then nobody will.37 This place , call it detention or prison , whatever you want to call @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be .
Why make me do this time ?
I have done close to two years now in custody… .
We are all the same and I am a human being , for crying out loud .
One made in the image of God .
I still believe that I have not done anything wrong to be put in prison for this length of time….38 ‘ They Had Found Out That I Am Gay , and They Were Going to Kill Me ’ What I think awaits me now is nothing but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get me out of this place in a not too distant future .
I ’ m saying so because the moment that invisible enemy Covid-19 gets to this place , that will be the end of our stories .
I ’ m tired of all this and I need my freedom back.39 What would I like to say to the American people ?
Parents know how to give good gifts to their children .
So a child can not ask for bread from the father and get a stone from him instead .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of all nations , number one in the world , why do you give us stones when all we are asking for is bread ?
40 It has been a pleasure knowing you and working with you .
Thanks again , and I wish you well.41

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The borders of our world not only cut across international boundaries; they also increasingly stretch deeply into the interior of nations—into our homes, cities, communities, courts, and everyday interactions. Citizenship status, visa status, vulnerability to deportation—these are just a few of the dividing lines increasingly separating our country into different communities with starkly different options for how or if its members become full participants in our national experiment.1
As immigrants in the United States, both documented and not, are increasingly under attack—stripped of their status, arrested, and deported—it’s critical that their stories are heard across these borders. Migrant Voices is an oral testimony project from The Nation exploring, and listening to, a variety of immigrant voices: from recent arrivals to asylum seekers making their case in the courts, from the undocumented keeping under the radar to the DACAmented on the front lines—people from all over the world who have fled or left their homes and are looking to find, or keep, their place in America.2
This is the ninth installment of this series—follow the series here.3
* * *4
There are more than 900 known cases of the novel coronavirus inside immigration detention centers. The actual number is certainly much higher, as Immigration and Customs Enforcement has tested only a little more than 2,000 detainees. The 200-plus immigration detention centers spread throughout the country—isolated, overcrowded, without sufficient medical staff—are effectively petri dishes for contagion, primed for the people locked up in them to contract and spread the virus. Given the fact that the government doesn’t even have to keep people locked up in immigration detention—by law, they could be paroled out—it is particularly galling to recall that over 30,000 people remain inside. To keep all its residents safe, Portugal, for example, took the unprecedented step of temporarily bestowing citizenship rights on all migrants and asylum seekers, so that they could access the necessary health care. The United States is taking the opposite approach: Using the virus as an excuse to further implement the anti-immigrant agenda the Trump administration has been pushing since the 2016 campaign, it is not only keeping migrants and asylum seekers locked up but also continuing to deport them, even when infected, to countries without the capacity to handle the disease, effectively deporting the virus.5 Current Issue View our current issue
Giscard, an asylum-seeker from Cameroon, has been detained in the United States for more than two years. Having been shuffled through a series of detention centers, he is currently locked up in Louisiana in the LaSalle Correctional Facility. Through a series of letters and phone calls, Giscard explained to me the deeply unsettling conditions he is currently suffering; the torture, imprisonment, and persecution he fled in southern Cameroon; and his long and trying journey to get to the United States.6 Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
Because we couldn’t meet in person, Giscard and I communicated by mail, and I was able to follow up by phone. Giscard explained to me that “social distancing is practically impossible” in LaSalle. And that while guards come and occasionally sanitize the barrack where he and about 100 other detainees are stuffed, “some of them wear masks, others don’t.” At least one of the dorms in LaSalle had already seen an infection, and all of its detainees have been transferred. Despite the very real threat, Giscard told me: “I’m scared of nothing right now. I’ve seen my life turned upside down. Anything that comes my way, I can handle it.”7
Giscard, 33 years old
04/21/2020
Dear John,8
I must say it is a great pleasure for me to write to you! I’m doing well, thanks for asking. Hope you too are doing well. As you already know, these are challenging moments for us in detention. As a result, it is normal to hear us at times say we are depressed, at times thinking negatively, and losing hope of survival.9 Migrant Voices ‘That First Night in America, I Couldn’t Sleep’ John Washington
I know my story will need some editing because my English is not that good. I hope the messages in my story will be understood.10
I am a refugee in prison, but some people call it detention. Prison or detention doesn’t really matter because I am confined to one environment and my freedom seized as well as my every movement and action monitored. The only difference of where I am from the prisons where I come from is the fact that the system here is trying too hard for us to catch pneumonia, as, irrespective of the climate, the cells are always frozen.11
Before I start with my life and time in my country Cameroon, permit me to tell you a little bit of the history of the English part of Cameroon known as Southern Cameroons. Cameroon is a bilingual country speaking French and English. Cameroon is divided into 10 regions with the Southern Cameroons occupying just two regions and making up 20 percent of the total population. Since the independence of Southern Cameroons in 1961, we have had no control over airports, seaports, or our roads.12
When the two Cameroons joined to become one, there was a constitution that was not to be tampered or messed with. For example, it was agreed that at no point should the majority use their numbers to impose laws and authority on the minority. It was also agreed that if at some point in the future one part feels as the union is not moving as said and that if they feel that the terms of agreement are being violated, they have the right to quit the union. We feel that we are being assimilated. They are trying to turn the country into a French country and want to assimilate the Southern Cameroons, which we refuse to be assimilated.13
I come from a small agricultural town, Muyuka. There are no farm-to-market roads. We have a cocoa plantation. You need to see the level of suffering farmers from this part undergo just to take their product to the market. Some even end up dying just in the name of trying to take their goods to the market that is controlled by the government. They dictate the price of the goods and the prices keep fluctuating all the time. A kilogram of cocoa is sold in Ivory Coast at $5 but in Southern Cameroons it is sold at less than $2. Timber is being exploited and exported every day from Anglophone Cameroon to France, but we have classrooms in some parts where children sit on the floor to learn.14 Migrant Voices ‘It’s Like Living in Solitary Confinement, but Out in the World’ John Washington
My dad and my uncle were members of a pressure group in Cameroon known as Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC) fighting for the restoration of former British Cameroon. This group has been studying the problems of the southern Cameroonians and writing petitions to the government, who were slow and reluctant to react. Through my dad and my uncle I also became a member of the SCNC and began participating in protest marches and in organizing meetings. In 2016 when lawyers in Anglophone Cameroon were protesting, the government sent military to go beat them up and shoot them. We all saw the inhuman treatment and said enough is enough. From this point on the fight took a different dimension. Being an Anglophone Cameroonian and seeing all these, I was left with no choice than to join the struggle for the betterment of the future of Southern Cameroons.15
The Arrest
As an SCNC member, I always participated in protest marches and organized SCNC meetings, which the government considers unauthorized gatherings. In one of our meetings at my uncle’s place, we were raided by a security team that was made up of the police, gendarmerie, and army. The meeting ground now became a survival of the fittest with everyone trying to escape. Little did we know that some soldiers were stationed at the roads we were to use for our escape. As I was running some were behind me, and I ran to the stationed ones, who caught me, and some few seconds later the ones that were chasing me came to the scene. None of them asked me any questions, they just immediately started beating me. They were like six in number, some were kicking, some boxing, some hitting me with their baton. I stretched out my hands trying to cover my face, but one of them grabbed my right hand and used a military technique and dislocated my right shoulder. Then one held my leg and was dragging me on the ground, over sharp stones, broken bottles, and various sharp objects. All this while none of them said a word in English or pidgin, which is the common language spoken all over the Anglophone Cameroon. I was then moved to where their car was parked. There I meet several other members who also did not succeed in escaping, plus my uncle Deni. I tried escaping again. But I’d lost my energy, I was weak so I didn’t get very far. The last thing I was aware of was something hitting me on the head.16
The only good thing about the police in my country is the fact that you really have to be a hardened criminal for them to handcuff you. So we were taken to the station without being shackled. At the station I was interrogated.… My answer to all these questions was negative, no no no. So they considered me to be a hardened criminal, said I didn’t want to cooperate. So the beating started. I was tied up like an animal pending slaughter, and they used their batons to beat me under my feet, on my back, and even on my head. No result was gotten, so they threatened my life, and this time put me in a hanging chair where they attempted to suffocate me with a bucket of water.17
In the cell that I was assigned, I met some criminals who also contributed to beating me…. I had a swollen face, I spat blood. My whole body was hurting. I was scared that I might die, if not in the hands of the police then maybe in the hands of my fellow inmates.… The cell had no toilet. We slept on the floor with no cover, no window for ventilation. The cell was dark and there was much writing on the walls. The writing was mostly done with pear seeds or avocado seeds, kola nuts, chalk, or the end product of a burned wood commonly known as “chacol” in pidgin language. Printed on the wall, some with beautiful handcraft, one could see the names of some notorious criminals like “Don for Quart,” “Grand Bokilo,” “Serpent Noir,” and many lines like “Fuck the Police.” The room had a pungent odor one that could cause a pregnant women to miscarry. I remember throwing up when I just got in the room. No place to sit on, but each had a spot on the floor. Mine was just close, I mean the closest, to the bucket used for bowel movement. I basically inhaled all the pungent odor from the bowels of my fellow inmates. In the morning I was called again for another interrogation, another nightmare with a series of threat and beatings, the guards laughing at me. I had the feeling I had been to hell and back. I felt like the weight of the whole world was on my head. I lost appetite and I was very weak.18
Journey
My life as a refugee started when I fled my country to our neighboring country, Nigeria. The pressure was hot in Cameroon, and is currently still hot after several escapes from being caught by the soldiers who burned down houses, killed, and raped women. I was advised to flee. I therefore respected Matthew 10:23, “When they persecute you in one place, flee to another.” That was why and how I found myself in Nigeria. Most of the SCNC members that fled to Nigeria were being arrested and extradited back to Cameroon. Hence the place was no longer safe for us and I again moved to where I knew it would be safer for me. Ecuador was my next stop because of its easy visa requirements for us African nationals.19
My journey from Ecuador to the United States is an experience I wouldn’t wish my worst enemy to undergo. This journey through the Darién Gap is classified as one of the most dangerous and deadliest journeys on Earth. It comprises all means of transportation but flight—aboard vehicles, on boats, trekking, and piggyback if necessary.20
From Ecuador we traveled north through Colombia. At Turbo, the most difficult part of the journey began. The only way to get to Colombia was to arrange with some fishermen who were introduced to us, who from my point of view were very much involved with the trafficking business. We each paid $250. The journey we were told was a five-to-six-hour trip ended up taking three days to finish. There were no life jackets for us and we had to go through the high sea without them. After just two hours on board, the engine of the boat was broken and the strong, high waves of the sea became our only guide, swinging us from left to right, up and down. You should have been there to hear all the kinds of prayers and various ways to call God. Before we went on board, I gathered many of the light white trays used to serve food in some restaurants, shaped them, and put some on my back and some on my stomach before putting on my T-shirt. Just when we thought everything had died down, another strong and high wave started moving towards our direction. From the look of it, we could see the danger that was coming our way. This time around the prayers were very loud. The wave then hit our boat with great intensity and the boat went up flying like a plane. No matter how high a boat flies in the air, it can never be turned into a plane. I can’t really explain what happened, because the boat capsized. We were left in a “swim or sink” situation. I really thank my stars for what I wore inside my T-shirt, as it actually helped me to hang on. At the end of this fiasco, the boat population had been reduced by four persons. Three adults and one child.21 Migrant Voices ‘We Are So Much More Than Victims’ John Washington
God was kind, we floated to a creek. The most holy journey I have had—everyone on board, even the hypocrites and pagans, were singing “Hallelujah” songs and praying all kinds of prayers. The first phase of the journey was completed.22
Walking Through the Darién Gap
The day in my life I will never forget. I was in the middle of nowhere in the Darién gap surrounded by beautiful trees with green leaves of various sizes and heights. This is a world where dead people talk. In the middle of the Darién Gap, it is impossible for you to see more than 15 meters ahead, as it is made up of trees that have been juxtaposed and arranged in a zigzag manner. It’s so easy for the slow ones to get lost.23
After trekking for four days plus climbing and descending hills and valleys, my legs were weak, I had muscle cramps, and blisters. The soil was slippery, I had fallen several times. My ash-color joggings [pants] were now turned to brown. I had spots of brown mud on some parts of my body including my face. The bites didn’t only come from bugs, they came also from mosquitoes, from ants, from centipedes.24
The group I was walking with was made up of people from several countries. We had Indians, Nepalese, Ghanaians, Nigerians, Cubans, and Cameroonians. There was no way to communicate with guides because of the language barrier. They spoke in Spanish and we in English, some in French. We didn’t know if they had names, so we called them “amigo” and they called us “amigo” as well. In the jungle there was no Internet we could use to Google translate what they were saying. What I remember hearing them say was “vamanos,” “silencio,” “tranquilo,” and “rápido.”25
The group that went before us were attacked by bandits who stripped them and went away with their money and phones. Remember, the Darién Gap is a lawless, roadless wilderness where Colombian rebels roam freely, and it’s also used as a pathway to transport drugs. The worst experience I had in the forest was around the fourth day. We had climbed a very steep hill, and in our descent we rejoined the river that runs throughout the journey. I was so anxious to quench my thirst that I immediately started drinking, when someone shouted, “Giscard, watch out!” Oh my God, lying just about 10 feet from where I was drinking was the corpse of a black man in his 30s, already half-decayed. When I saw that I spat.26
Every time we heard the sound of a helicopter over us we would lie down flat and try to camouflage from the search team. The hide and seek finally paid off and we succeeded in going through the forest.27
Another such journey for our group was to go across Nicaragua, because it was the same scenario as in the Panama forest. This is how we moved, and now here I am in the United States.28
Detention
It is ironic, the world knows the United States to be the defender of liberty and human rights. Most people know that is not true.29
When I first entered the United States, I was given a hamburger with particles of rocks placed in the middle. From the first bite, I realized where I was and what awaited me. I was stripped for a search and that was the last day I saw my property. Then the first time in my life to have been handcuffed, an experience that I will for ever remain in my mind. I was then taken to a room to be interviewed, where this question was asked: “Are you afraid to go back to your country?” I was then moved to another facility in Louisiana where another interview called the Credible Fear Interview was conducted. This question still appears: “Are you scared to go back to your country?” Talking about credible fear, just the journey I made through the Panama/Colombia jungle is a credible enough demonstration of fear, without even talking about what happened to me in my home country. The interviewer found me credible.30 Migrant Voices ‘I Used to Wonder What My Karma Was That I Had to End Up in a Place Like This’ John Washington
From this stage, I had to go to court to see a judge. As usual, there was no level playing field. The court I was taken to is inhuman. We were chained and handcuffed like slaves. No different from what our ancestors endured during the slave trade. Even in front of the judge, I did my entire court session in chains. We all know that at that moment one is psychologically defeated. As if that was not enough, the question “Are you scared to go back to your country?” still popped up. To tell the truth, yes I am scared to go back to my country, and from what I have witnessed here, I am scared to live here as well.31
Justice delayed is justice denied. My judge, who was suppose to act like a referee between me and the ICE prosecutor, turned out to do the work of the ICE prosecutor. She took center stage and did three fourths of the questioning. She asked me more than 200 questions, only trying so hard to make me fail. At the end of the hearing she told us that she will not make a decision right away. On my individual hearing, I was handcuffed and chained for more than 12 hours, an experience that will forever remain in my memory. The time the immigration judge took to finally make a decision on my case was five weeks, which were like five years for me because they were very painful moments. I was visiting the phones at least five times a day to know my status. All the time the phone kept telling me, “Your case is currently pending.” There is no day I will not hear the recorded messages in our detention phone system. “Press one for English. Para Español marque dos.” I kept checking all the time, and on November 28, 2018, it changed from “Your case is currently pending” to “The immigration judge ordered your removal in your case.” I asked some older inmates what it meant, and they told me it means you are being deported. All kind of negative ideas ran through my mind. I thought of committing suicide. In an attempt to drive those negative thoughts away, I decided to go play soccer. That was another big mistake, because it was the first time I got into a fight while playing soccer in detention. I got mad over a tackle from my opponent. I ended the game, went back to the dorm, and tried to sleep. No way could I sleep and I lost appetite. All these feelings just as a result of picturing what’s gonna happen to me if I got to go back….32
The moment I applied at the Board of Immigration Appeals, I was moved to another facility in Alabama: Etowah. There I meet people who had lost their cases and were appealing as well. Most of them were handling their cases pro se and were transformed into inmate lawyers. Those who did not have lawyers, we put our heads together to find a solution on their behalf. We gathered ideas from the paperwork of those who had lawyers and who had similar cases.33
Here is the thing, I always like to compare what we are facing here as refugees to what happened during slavery and the slave trade. I will begin with the separation of families. During the slave trade, there was separation of families. Life as a refugee, families are separated. Life as a refugee, like during slavery, there is a high level of uncertainty. No hope of freedom in the near future, for there is no defined detention period. During slavery the masters were making huge sums of money from the buying and selling of slaves. Now the supposed masters and owners of private detentions are making colossal amounts of money from the keeping of us detainees. The way we are being transported, too, is no different. We are chained and handcuffed every time we need to be transferred.34
So far I have been to five detentions: Rio Grande in Texas; Pine Prairie, Louisiana; Etowah County Jail, Alabama; Jena, Louisiana; and LaSalle Correctional Center still in Louisiana. The reason they keep moving people from one place to another cannot be accounted for. Sometimes they move you to a facility where you spend just a day and the next day move you to another. The reason I can give for this is that they want to boost the affairs of the detentions they move us to. Remember, these private prisons are paid handsomely for housing and keeping us. Some say $130 per day per detainee. Some of these facilities that I have been to, if I estimate how much is being spent per day from the huge sums collected to spend on us, you will be shocked to realize the kind of profit they make. Some jails are now used for immigration purposes because of the kind of money involved. Some facilities have no yards, we don’t get to go out to feel the sun just because they were not meant for housing immigrants. No classification of inmates, the hygiene conditions low. People in prison are better off than us.35 Migrant Voices ‘It’s Not Shameful to Work in the Fields. But It’s Hard.’ John Washington
They sent me to one of the worst states when it comes to immigration, where they do not respect federal immigration laws. An example of this is in the 2009 parole directive [ICE Directive 11002.1, Parole to Arriving Aliens found to have a credible fear of persecution or torture]. That law does not apply here in Louisiana.…36
I have seen people suffering in detention—most recently, some Indians in my dorm at Jena who went on hunger strike because they had lost hope and were fed up with what is happening to them. These guys went without food for 45 days when I was leaving Jena. One of them had grown crankier and skinnier. All you could see of him was his eyeballs that seemed to increase in size. He was on a stretcher. The moment I saw him, I thought he was dead, but he raised his hands and waved at me. I said to myself, if I can’t help, then nobody will.37
This place, call it detention or prison, whatever you want to call it, is not a good place to be. Why make me do this time? I have done close to two years now in custody…. We are all the same and I am a human being, for crying out loud. One made in the image of God. I still believe that I have not done anything wrong to be put in prison for this length of time….38 Read Next ‘They Had Found Out That I Am Gay, and They Were Going to Kill Me’ John Washington
What I think awaits me now is nothing but death if something is not done to get me out of this place in a not too distant future. I’m saying so because the moment that invisible enemy Covid-19 gets to this place, that will be the end of our stories. I’m tired of all this and I need my freedom back.39
What would I like to say to the American people? Parents know how to give good gifts to their children. So a child cannot ask for bread from the father and get a stone from him instead. Therefore, America, considered the father of all nations, number one in the world, why do you give us stones when all we are asking for is bread?40
It has been a pleasure knowing you and working with you. Thanks again, and I wish you well.41
With much respect,
Giscard.42


thenation--2020-05-18--Facing a Real Catastrophe With a Pretend President

Former president Barack Obama made a startling criticism of the American government ’ s response to the Covid-19 outbreak in a video released on Saturday addressing graduates from historically black colleges and universities .
“ More than anything , this pandemic has fully , finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they ’ re doing , ” he said .
“ A lot of them aren ’ t even pretending to be in charge.
” As is customary , Obama mentioned no names .
But his comments were clearly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a veiled comment , Obama ’ s words go far beyond the norms of what a former commander in chief usually says about a sitting president .
Yet they can ’ t be dismissed as mere partisan sniping , especially given the fact that Obama has been exceptionally cautious in the past about criticizing Donald Trump .
Obama ’ s observation conforms to the best reporting we have on Trump ’ s response to the coronavirus .
From the start , Trump has followed an ostrich strategy of denying the reality of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scale of the problem would damage the economy .
The current pandemic is often compared to a world-historical catastrophe like the Great Depression or the two world wars .
But there is one significant difference : In all of those previous crises , America had national leadership , however shaken by events .
In the pandemic , the president has been , in a very real sense , AWOL from the beginning .
Would You Buy a Used Progressive Agenda From This Man ?
Racism Is All Trump Has Left The New Cold @ @ @ @ @ @ @ To be sure , as a TV and Twitter presence , Trump is still all too present .
But that is precisely the problem .
Once Covid-19 could no longer be wished away , Trump ’ s goal became to play the heroic wartime leader , not to do the actual , difficult work of governing .
Preserving his own image and reelection chances are all Trump cares about .
On Saturday , Trump tweeted a video showing a scene from the movie Independence Day ( 1996 ) , where the heroic American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rallies a group of fighting men with a defiant speech about the need for humanity to unite against an existential threat .
The clip Trump released had his face superimposed on Pullman ’ s visage .
The soldiers of the sci-fi epic all had pasted-on faces of Trump loyalists , including Ted Cruz ( shown with tears streaking across his cheeks ) , Sean Hannity , and Dinesh D ’ Souza .
This ridiculous video was a perfect distillation of Trump ’ s presidency and his response to the crisis : a man @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a heroic wartime leader .
In a comprehensive chronicle of the Trump administration ’ s response to the crisis , Financial Times national editor Edward Luce highlights how disengaged from reality the White House has been .
“ Again and again , ” Luce writes , “ the story that emerged is of a president who ignored increasingly urgent intelligence warnings from January , dismisses anyone who claims to know more than him and trusts no one outside a tiny coterie , led by his daughter Ivanka and her husband , Jared Kushner—the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sideline the best-funded disaster response bureaucracy in the world.
” In essence , Kushner won Trump over to a do-nothing approach .
For a six-week interlude from mid-March until late April , the surge of bad news forced Trump to act like he was doing something .
But now that the pandemic is plateauing , Trump has announced a “ transition to greatness ” policy that is in fact a return to his initial approach of disengagement .
Some Democrats are pleased to let Trump preside merely as a figurehead .
Senator Chris @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ At this point , I think the president has proved to be so incompetent that most of us in Connecticut don ’ t want him or the people that work for him micromanaging our response.
” It ’ s easy to sympathize with Murphy ’ s argument that more—and more effective—policy responses happen when Trump is out of the loop .
It is true that many governors , business leaders , and scientists , along with American civil society as a whole , have learned to live without a hands-on president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the pandemic in America is of ordinary people triumphing over national leadership .
Yet there are many critical tasks for which a president is essential .
Only a president can run foreign policy .
In a worldwide health crisis , America needs a leader who can engage with other countries in the sharing of medical strategies and resources .
Trump , alas , has failed at this job .
As Luce notes , “ Trump ’ s dog-eat-dog instinct has been just as strong abroad as at home .
A meeting of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agree on a statement after Mike Pompeo , the US secretary of state , insisted they brand it the ‘ Wuhan virus.
’ America declined to participate in a recent summit hosted by Emmanuel Macron , France ’ s president , to collaborate on a vaccine.
” The power vacuum in Washington will make the pandemic much worse .
America will not be engaging in much-needed international cooperation until there is a new president .
By pushing for a premature end to stay-at-home orders , Trump increases the likelihood that the current plateau @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possibility of a new surge .
Trump is not the only American leader who has been AWOL .
Obama ’ s critique of Trump attracted enormous attention because the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee , Joe Biden , has been keeping a low profile .
It ’ s true that Biden does tweet out the occasional criticism of Trump and make TV appearances .
But he rarely conveys the urgency of the current crisis .
A Fox News Anchor Egged On a Clash With Police .
It Didn ’ t Work .
How Do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ More in this series Biden seems to have decided that the low-voltage campaigning style that made him the presumptive nominee is the way forward for the general election .
He might be right , politically .
Keeping a low profile might win him the White House .
But his anemic campaign does nothing to address the problem of a nation left leaderless during a harrowing global emergency .
Obama is stepping into the vacuum created not just by Trump but also by Biden .
It ’ s likely that Obama will play an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , helping to carry his vice president across the finish line .
Yet , as welcome as Obama ’ s presence is , the fact that he ’ s needed calls attention to a deeper failure .
Over the past four years , the American political system has failed to check a president who from the start was clearly unfit for office .
Most of the blame unquestionably falls on the Republican Party , which has enabled Trump at every turn .
But the Democrats , including Obama himself , have also failed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ respect for norms governing the behavior of former presidents , Obama refrained from commenting on Trump ’ s manifest corruption , incompetence , and degradation of the office of the presidency .
He seems to have been operating from an assumption—shared by much of the political elite—that the system would restrain Trump from his worst excesses .
There might have been some merit in this assumption in the early days of the presidency , when his staff kept Trump from acting on many of his impulses .
But this approach was already failing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an elite fantasy .
In the midst of one of the greatest catastrophes ever to engulf the nation , America has no real president .
Nor is it likely to get one anytime soon .

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Nation believes that helping readers stay informed about the impact of the coronavirus crisis is a form of public service. For that reason, this article, and all of our coronavirus coverage, is now free. Please subscribe to support our writers and staff, and stay healthy.
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Former president Barack Obama made a startling criticism of the American government’s response to the Covid-19 outbreak in a video released on Saturday addressing graduates from historically black colleges and universities. “More than anything, this pandemic has fully, finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they’re doing,” he said. “A lot of them aren’t even pretending to be in charge.”
As is customary, Obama mentioned no names. But his comments were clearly directed at his successor. Even as a veiled comment, Obama’s words go far beyond the norms of what a former commander in chief usually says about a sitting president. Yet they can’t be dismissed as mere partisan sniping, especially given the fact that Obama has been exceptionally cautious in the past about criticizing Donald Trump.
Obama’s observation conforms to the best reporting we have on Trump’s response to the coronavirus. From the start, Trump has followed an ostrich strategy of denying the reality of the pandemic out of fear that acknowledging the scale of the problem would damage the economy.
The current pandemic is often compared to a world-historical catastrophe like the Great Depression or the two world wars. But there is one significant difference: In all of those previous crises, America had national leadership, however shaken by events. In the pandemic, the president has been, in a very real sense, AWOL from the beginning. More From Jeet Heer The Indigenous Roots of Robbie Robertson’s Rock and Roll Revolution August 14, 2023 Why Does This Racist Keep Getting Silicon Valley Money? August 11, 2023 When Phallocrats Go Limp August 4, 2023
To be sure, as a TV and Twitter presence, Trump is still all too present. But that is precisely the problem. Once Covid-19 could no longer be wished away, Trump’s goal became to play the heroic wartime leader, not to do the actual, difficult work of governing. Preserving his own image and reelection chances are all Trump cares about.
On Saturday, Trump tweeted a video showing a scene from the movie Independence Day (1996), where the heroic American president (played by Bill Pullman) rallies a group of fighting men with a defiant speech about the need for humanity to unite against an existential threat. The clip Trump released had his face superimposed on Pullman’s visage. The soldiers of the sci-fi epic all had pasted-on faces of Trump loyalists, including Ted Cruz (shown with tears streaking across his cheeks), Sean Hannity, and Dinesh D’Souza.
This ridiculous video was a perfect distillation of Trump’s presidency and his response to the crisis: a man intent on creating a pulp simulacrum of a heroic wartime leader. Current Issue View our current issue
In a comprehensive chronicle of the Trump administration’s response to the crisis, Financial Times national editor Edward Luce highlights how disengaged from reality the White House has been. “Again and again,” Luce writes, “the story that emerged is of a president who ignored increasingly urgent intelligence warnings from January, dismisses anyone who claims to know more than him and trusts no one outside a tiny coterie, led by his daughter Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner—the property developer who Trump has empowered to sideline the best-funded disaster response bureaucracy in the world.” Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
In essence, Kushner won Trump over to a do-nothing approach. For a six-week interlude from mid-March until late April, the surge of bad news forced Trump to act like he was doing something. But now that the pandemic is plateauing, Trump has announced a “transition to greatness” policy that is in fact a return to his initial approach of disengagement.
On Saturday, The Washington Post reported:
Trump appears poised to preside over the eventual transition more as a salesman and marketer than a decider. Many consequential actions are being done by others. The nation’s governors are overseeing their states’ plans to reopen their economies. Business leaders are making their own choices about how their employees can safely and responsibly return to work. Treasury officials are negotiating with Congress the details of financial stimulus packages. And scientists and public health officials are leading the race for a vaccine.
Some Democrats are pleased to let Trump preside merely as a figurehead. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told the Post, “At this point, I think the president has proved to be so incompetent that most of us in Connecticut don’t want him or the people that work for him micromanaging our response.”
It’s easy to sympathize with Murphy’s argument that more—and more effective—policy responses happen when Trump is out of the loop. It is true that many governors, business leaders, and scientists, along with American civil society as a whole, have learned to live without a hands-on president. In many ways, the story of the pandemic in America is of ordinary people triumphing over national leadership.
Yet there are many critical tasks for which a president is essential. Only a president can run foreign policy. In a worldwide health crisis, America needs a leader who can engage with other countries in the sharing of medical strategies and resources. Trump, alas, has failed at this job.
As Luce notes, “Trump’s dog-eat-dog instinct has been just as strong abroad as at home. A meeting of G7 foreign ministers in March failed to agree on a statement after Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, insisted they brand it the ‘Wuhan virus.’ America declined to participate in a recent summit hosted by Emmanuel Macron, France’s president, to collaborate on a vaccine.”
The power vacuum in Washington will make the pandemic much worse. America will not be engaging in much-needed international cooperation until there is a new president. By pushing for a premature end to stay-at-home orders, Trump increases the likelihood that the current plateau will be protracted, with a real possibility of a new surge.
Trump is not the only American leader who has been AWOL. Obama’s critique of Trump attracted enormous attention because the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, has been keeping a low profile. It’s true that Biden does tweet out the occasional criticism of Trump and make TV appearances. But he rarely conveys the urgency of the current crisis. Coronavirus Amid Partisan Politicking, Revelations on a Covid Origins Article Jimmy Tobias It’s Not “Unreasonable” to Want to Change Our Rotten Health Care System Gregg Gonsalves Covid Has Left Deep Wounds in America’s Rural Communities Anne N. Sosin
Biden seems to have decided that the low-voltage campaigning style that made him the presumptive nominee is the way forward for the general election. He might be right, politically. Keeping a low profile might win him the White House. But his anemic campaign does nothing to address the problem of a nation left leaderless during a harrowing global emergency.
Obama is stepping into the vacuum created not just by Trump but also by Biden. It’s likely that Obama will play an unusually large role in the coming election, helping to carry his vice president across the finish line. Yet, as welcome as Obama’s presence is, the fact that he’s needed calls attention to a deeper failure. Over the past four years, the American political system has failed to check a president who from the start was clearly unfit for office. Most of the blame unquestionably falls on the Republican Party, which has enabled Trump at every turn.
But the Democrats, including Obama himself, have also failed to counter Trump. Restrained by his respect for norms governing the behavior of former presidents, Obama refrained from commenting on Trump’s manifest corruption, incompetence, and degradation of the office of the presidency. He seems to have been operating from an assumption—shared by much of the political elite—that the system would restrain Trump from his worst excesses. There might have been some merit in this assumption in the early days of the presidency, when his staff kept Trump from acting on many of his impulses. But this approach was already failing before the pandemic and now stands as an elite fantasy.
In the midst of one of the greatest catastrophes ever to engulf the nation, America has no real president. Nor is it likely to get one anytime soon.


thenation--2020-05-18--How Do You Organize Students Without a Campus?

Kaylah Brathwaite used to find it strange to say , but most of her friends are online .
“ It is still a new weird concept that we laugh at sometimes , ” Brathwaite , 18 , said .
“ We ’ ve seen each other at like three real events.
” A native of Charlotte , N.C. , Brathwaite met her friends through Zero Hour , a new youth- and woman-led environmental justice movement created two years ago .
Now the movement ’ s director of operations , Brathwaite said the close relationships between members of the organization ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ better and more closely .
“ It ’ s like when we ’ re not working , we ’ re being incredibly silly—they ’ re the most complex people I know , ” Brathwaite said .
“ We ’ re so close , and that really helps me do work easily.
” This story was produced for Student Nation , a section devoted to highlighting campus activism and student movements from students in their own words .
For more Student Nation , check out our archive .
Are you a student with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pitches to Samantha Schuyler at samantha @ thenation.com .
The Student Nation program is made possible through generous funding from The Puffin Foundation .
Their remote friendship is now far from unique .
Governments across the world are telling their citizens to stay home .
For activists , whose work often thrives on human contact and meeting with others face-to-face , the new world of the pandemic has put them into a bind .
But even before the coronavirus , Generation Z had been rapidly changing the way advocacy work looks .
So-called @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of choice online first , which has allowed young people like Greta Thunberg to develop international movements without ever meeting the organizers they inspire .
Now that everyone ’ s stuck inside , youth activists are finding new ways to drive engagement and reach new recruits .
Amid a global health crisis , the youngest are leading the way for the movement .
“ A lot of the older orgs are like , ‘ How do we do this ?
What ’ s an idea that we can engage youth more and connect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Khristen Hamilton , volunteer management director of Zero Hour .
“ It ’ s just something that comes naturally to a young org.
” At American University , climate activists have already notched a win in the pandemic era .
After years of advocacy , 93 percent of the student body voted in a recent referendum to urge the board of trustees to divest from fossil fuels .
“ [ The support ] was kind of zero to one hundred , ” said Anna Elias , communications leader of Fossil Free AU .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ this kind of momentum in years.
” The university had previously passed a student referendum in favor of divestment in 2013 , but the following year the university ’ s board of trustees decided not to follow the will of the student body .
Now , however , American University is joining universities like Stanford and Syracuse in disentangling its endowment from the fossil fuel industry .
“ For more than a decade , AU has been on a campus-wide sustainability journey—something that ’ s not just part of our mission , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Burwell , president of American University , said in a press release .
“ “ Our actions…will continue to serve as a model for sustainability.
” Much of the work of getting the student body to vote in favor of the April 17 referendum had to occur online .
Operating without official club designation from their university but with a sizable social media following , Fossil Free AU took to “ digital flyering ” to get the word out .
This involved members ’ sending out fliers educating students about the vote to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ having those contacts spread the word on their social media and through texts and direct messages , spreading the message organically throughout the student body .
“ I literally went through my followers and people I followed and was like , ‘ Hey I see you go to AU , share this , share this , ’ ” Elias said .
Elias wasn ’ t on campus when students were sent home .
The junior had planned to spend her spring semester abroad in Chile , but was forced to return home when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ amid international shutdowns .
“ I was stressed about everything else , but I was like , ‘ Well , at least I have Fossil Free , ’ ” Elias said .
“ It ’ s a nice break from classwork and having a way to stay involved.
” Like other young activists , Elias had already been familiar with Zoom and other online organizing tools .
When social distancing measures hit , she shrugged and continued her work from home like she would have from Chile .
Other youth-led social movements have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the splashiest events held this socially distanced Earth Day was Earth Day Live , a three-day livestream organized by Future Coalition , which featured performances by Questlove and Joaquin Phoenix and Al Gore speaking .
Sunrise Movement , an early champion of the Green New Deal , recently launched an online “ Sunrise School ” with courses on topics about everything from the intricacies of the landmark policy proposal to graphic design for activists during the pandemic .
When the program was launched last month , organizers expected about 600 people to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Instead , they heard from about 3,500 interested participants .
“ We were honestly kind of blown away , ” Karasek said .
“ A lot of the people that were signing up were new to Sunrise.
” Whether Sunrise School will continue once social distancing ends is unclear , but Karasek said that already the program has shown how digital organizing can and will shape the future of the climate movement .
“ It ’ s really shown that online organizing is extremely important , and there are a lot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be learning during this time , ” Karasek said .
“ I think it has already changed what digital organizing looks like.
” But activists can ’ t always rely on Zoom to build connections during the pandemic .
After Zero Hour was forced to cancel a planned bus tour from Philadelphia to Milwaukee , Global Outreach Coordinator Sohayla Eldeeb said recruitment has been a challenge , since so much of it relies on the relationships forged through these kinds of in-person conversations .
“ It was really heartbreaking to tell the organizers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have us come , ” Eldeeb said .
Although they ’ re accustomed to a world and social life that revolve around technology , many young activists are still reeling from the effects of stay-at-home orders .
Because Brathwaite was taking a gap year to focus on her organizing at the time , she didn ’ t have to rush home mid-semester like many of her friends .
But she says she ’ s still found it difficult to stay focused .
“ I was really lost about what to do , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ figure out the flow of work under a pandemic , ” Brathwaite said .
“ I think it ’ s okay to not expect ourselves to work ourselves into the ground , which I think a lot of activists are used to doing.
” At a time when even world leaders are uncertain how to answer questions about what a post-pandemic world will look like , most organizers are focusing on the present .
But with universities hesitant to say classes will begin as normal in the fall , and the clock ticking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their work won ’ t wait for the pandemic to end .
“ Everything is literally : What work can I do in my backyard and in my room and still make this a campaign that reaches thousands of folks ?
” Brathwaite said .
“ It ’ s a weird time , but if the work stops , I don ’ t know when we ’ re going to pick it up again .
”

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Kaylah Brathwaite used to find it strange to say, but most of her friends are online.
“It is still a new weird concept that we laugh at sometimes,” Brathwaite, 18, said. “We’ve seen each other at like three real events.”
A native of Charlotte, N.C., Brathwaite met her friends through Zero Hour, a new youth- and woman-led environmental justice movement created two years ago. Now the movement’s director of operations, Brathwaite said the close relationships between members of the organization’s leadership has allowed them to work better and more closely.
“It’s like when we’re not working, we’re being incredibly silly—they’re the most complex people I know,” Brathwaite said. “We’re so close, and that really helps me do work easily.” This story was produced for Student Nation, a section devoted to highlighting campus activism and student movements from students in their own words. For more Student Nation, check out our archive. Are you a student with a campus activism story? Send questions and pitches to Samantha Schuyler at [email protected]. The Student Nation program is made possible through generous funding from The Puffin Foundation.
Their remote friendship is now far from unique. Governments across the world are telling their citizens to stay home. For activists, whose work often thrives on human contact and meeting with others face-to-face, the new world of the pandemic has put them into a bind.
But even before the coronavirus, Generation Z had been rapidly changing the way advocacy work looks. So-called digital natives often hear about their movement of choice online first, which has allowed young people like Greta Thunberg to develop international movements without ever meeting the organizers they inspire. Now that everyone’s stuck inside, youth activists are finding new ways to drive engagement and reach new recruits. Amid a global health crisis, the youngest are leading the way for the movement.
“A lot of the older orgs are like, ‘How do we do this? What’s an idea that we can engage youth more and connect over social media?’” said Khristen Hamilton, volunteer management director of Zero Hour. “It’s just something that comes naturally to a young org.” Current Issue View our current issue
At American University, climate activists have already notched a win in the pandemic era. After years of advocacy, 93 percent of the student body voted in a recent referendum to urge the board of trustees to divest from fossil fuels. “[The support] was kind of zero to one hundred,” said Anna Elias, communications leader of Fossil Free AU. “This movement hasn’t had this kind of momentum in years.”
The university had previously passed a student referendum in favor of divestment in 2013, but the following year the university’s board of trustees decided not to follow the will of the student body. Now, however, American University is joining universities like Stanford and Syracuse in disentangling its endowment from the fossil fuel industry. Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
“For more than a decade, AU has been on a campus-wide sustainability journey—something that’s not just part of our mission, but our DNA as change-makers,” Sylvia Burwell, president of American University, said in a press release. ““Our actions…will continue to serve as a model for sustainability.”
Much of the work of getting the student body to vote in favor of the April 17 referendum had to occur online. Operating without official club designation from their university but with a sizable social media following, Fossil Free AU took to “digital flyering” to get the word out. This involved members’ sending out fliers educating students about the vote to at least five different contacts, and having those contacts spread the word on their social media and through texts and direct messages, spreading the message organically throughout the student body. “I literally went through my followers and people I followed and was like, ‘Hey I see you go to AU, share this, share this,’” Elias said.
Elias wasn’t on campus when students were sent home. The junior had planned to spend her spring semester abroad in Chile, but was forced to return home when American University called back its students abroad amid international shutdowns.
“I was stressed about everything else, but I was like, ‘Well, at least I have Fossil Free,’” Elias said. “It’s a nice break from classwork and having a way to stay involved.”
Like other young activists, Elias had already been familiar with Zoom and other online organizing tools. When social distancing measures hit, she shrugged and continued her work from home like she would have from Chile.
Other youth-led social movements have pivoted rapidly to digital activism. One of the splashiest events held this socially distanced Earth Day was Earth Day Live, a three-day livestream organized by Future Coalition, which featured performances by Questlove and Joaquin Phoenix and Al Gore speaking.
Sunrise Movement, an early champion of the Green New Deal, recently launched an online “Sunrise School” with courses on topics about everything from the intricacies of the landmark policy proposal to graphic design for activists during the pandemic. When the program was launched last month, organizers expected about 600 people to participate, Deputy Communications Director Sofie Karasek said. Instead, they heard from about 3,500 interested participants. “We were honestly kind of blown away,” Karasek said. “A lot of the people that were signing up were new to Sunrise.”
Whether Sunrise School will continue once social distancing ends is unclear, but Karasek said that already the program has shown how digital organizing can and will shape the future of the climate movement.
“It’s really shown that online organizing is extremely important, and there are a lot of skills we’re going to be learning during this time,” Karasek said. “I think it has already changed what digital organizing looks like.”
But activists can’t always rely on Zoom to build connections during the pandemic. After Zero Hour was forced to cancel a planned bus tour from Philadelphia to Milwaukee, Global Outreach Coordinator Sohayla Eldeeb said recruitment has been a challenge, since so much of it relies on the relationships forged through these kinds of in-person conversations. “It was really heartbreaking to tell the organizers, they were all really excited to have us come,” Eldeeb said.
Although they’re accustomed to a world and social life that revolve around technology, many young activists are still reeling from the effects of stay-at-home orders. Because Brathwaite was taking a gap year to focus on her organizing at the time, she didn’t have to rush home mid-semester like many of her friends. But she says she’s still found it difficult to stay focused.
“I was really lost about what to do, and it took a really long time to figure out the flow of work under a pandemic,” Brathwaite said. “I think it’s okay to not expect ourselves to work ourselves into the ground, which I think a lot of activists are used to doing.”
At a time when even world leaders are uncertain how to answer questions about what a post-pandemic world will look like, most organizers are focusing on the present. But with universities hesitant to say classes will begin as normal in the fall, and the clock ticking on climate action, young activists say their work won’t wait for the pandemic to end.
“Everything is literally: What work can I do in my backyard and in my room and still make this a campaign that reaches thousands of folks?” Brathwaite said. “It’s a weird time, but if the work stops, I don’t know when we’re going to pick it up again.”