Group to document discrimination, violence in Latino communities

By Amy Isackson / Border Reporter, KPBS Public Broadcasting

Published November 17, 2005 at 9:00 PM PST

This story was published more than 18 years ago.

A San Diego human rights group is spearheading a movement within border states to document abuses of Latino residents. KPBS Reporter Amy Isackson has the story.

A San Diego human rights group is spearheading a movement within border states to document abuses of Latino residents. KPBS Reporter Amy Isackson has the story.

The American Friends Service Committee plans to deploy volunteers in communities with large populations of Latino residents. The volunteers will record the stories of people who say they've been abused or discriminated against by law enforcement authorities or government officials.

American Friends Service Committee spokesman Benjamin Prado says both violence and discrimination against Latinos have been on the upswing since 9-11.

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Prado: "And today we see Border Patrol, ICE, the Department of Homeland Security implementing a policy of racial profiling, discrimination, of separating families, and so we see a wave of violence against migrant communities."

Prado says they'll take the stories they collect to Congress in the hopes that it will re-think border policy. Amy Isackson, KPBS news.

Amy Isackson

Amy Isackson was the border reporter at KPBS from 2004 to 2011. She covered breaking news and feature stories on California-Mexico border issues and immigration, for local and national broadcast. Amy got her start in public radio by pitching a series of stories about rural New Zealand - horse dentistry and sheep sheering - to Radio New Zealand's "Country Life" program. She then worked with Peabody Award-winning radio producers Nikki Silva and Davia Nelson, to help create the Sonic Memorial, a series of stories on the World Trade Center before, during and after 9/11. Amy's work has been recognized with awards from the Associated Press Television-Radio Association of California and Nevada, the California Chicano News Media Association, and the San Diego Press Club. She won the Sol Price Prize for Responsible Journalism in 2009 from the Society of Professional Journalists for her story about high school students smuggling people and drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border. Prior to venturing into the wonderful world of public radio, Amy worked for Yahoo! Inc. for nearly five years as an editorial surfer, associate producer and broadcast communications manager. She majored in Latin American History at Williams College. She grew up in San Diego and made frequent trips south of the border.

See stories by Amy Isackson