Thank you to the folks who have already emailed me privately about State visits, as well as FaceKhan and an Anonymous intelligent perspective. Yes!!!! Write your elected representatives.
It appears most people reading this request understand what I want and why. Disregarding Carey and the other person posting really clueless sound bites about State visits...
State from Tijuana DOES visit regularly. I positively know this. Could be from the 3 weeks continual phone calls between me and Tijuana Consulate, or maybe my 1+ hour conversation when the main consular officer phoned me at home. From these conversations, I know they do visit according to law, but their "random, surprise" visits are arranged well in advance, and usually involve lunch with Dace before the "inspection".
If you are a former inmate or a parent of one, please ask if anyone ever personally saw visitors (an entourage of "suits") walking around. Tijuana State told me he often brings Mexican officials with him on these inspections, thereby presumably also blunting the impact of the visit for the concerned Mexican authorities as well. From his very candid and detailed call, I *know* what he does (because I believe what he said).
If a shred of what kids say on this and other Internet sites is correct, the consular officer is only being shown Upper Level areas (he is told other areas are off limits, because "it disturbs the students" to have visitors roaming around). He told me what food was being served, little anecdotes about student activities, the silence of nearly 600 teens which he equated to his Catholic school experience as normal. Ask any of your Casa friends if 5 kids sunning themselves in beach chairs overlooking the Pacific Ocean is a normal Casa afternoon. Mr. Anceldua thought so!
This gentleman has his own agenda, which I interpret as maintaining the quiet status quo in his own little kingdom. Since he has become the Front Man for the American Government, it is imperative to use the power of the US government to gain access to "questionable" areas of Casa by the Sea. The US Department of State has become the de facto arbitrator of whether there is abuse or not, not something his job description emphasized. Pressure needs to be put upon the State Department in D.C. to broaden the witnessing and recognition of abuse...to not accept a cursory look-see and declare this facility A-OK.
Bruce Grant is the State Department official responsible for inspecting Tranquility Bay. Only in the last 2 months or so has he begun to treat the public, his bosses in Washington, and inquring parents as anything more than nasty impediments to his tidy station in Jamaica. Parents have tried to determine the conditions at TB before they send their kids in, and State in Kingston, Jamaica has said there have been no complaints...when, in fact, there have been a raft of them specifically to the Embassy in Jamaica. There has been a change lately, however, with a lot more candor and cooperation from Mr. Grant and his staff. It may be a coincidence that several very high-profile media reports absolutely blasting Tranquility Bay have appeared in the media in the last 2 months.
I want to see the State Department do a better job in protecting US citizens in Mexico. Please think hard, and let me know if you can add any corroboration, so we can talk to Washington, D.C. and implement the controls the government thinks it already has in place in Mexico. Ask any WWASPS veterans you know, especially those who do not regularly read this forum. Thank you.
