Immigrants play a vital role in our communities, contributing to the workforce and economy by taking essential jobs that are often hazardous, involve manual labor, long hours and pay low wages. They pay into a tax system and report income, however people without legal residency do not qualify for any form of government relief except in certain states. The current immigration system in place is difficult to navigate and is not accessible to everyone. If you do not have capital or family in America to petition or sponsor you there is no legal path to residency or work authorization.
Immigrants are human beings fleeing violence, religious or political persecution, climate disasters, seeking refuge in safer communities to survive. They are protected by the United Nations human rights that have been accepted by the U.S, and are underlined in our constitution. Presently, asylum seekers are forced to wait at the border with their families, waiting to be called from a list that only allows a certain number of people to come in daily. Migrants waiting at the border are living in camps, vulnerable to cartels and criminal activity at night.
ICE and Border Patrol are not the same as local law enforcement. ICE raids in our communities to detain immigrants make our communities more vulnerable to racial profiling, discrimination, family separation, child exploitation, and impact the local economy negatively. Ice raids, in safe community spaces such as schools, churches and healthcare facilities, especially cause fear in families. They make victims of crimes hesitant to report sexual attacks and other violations for fear of being detained, making them more vulnerable to exploitation and can inflict long lasting trauma.
People of faith and conscience are struggling with this reality in our communities because a violation of one person’s human rights is a violation to everyone’s human rights.
Here are some things you can do to protect immigrant in our communities:
- Petition Congress for comprehensive immigration reform. (The current system is not accessible to vulnerable people with limited income and leaves people vulnerable to exploitation, wage theft, labor exploitation, human trafficking, and violence).
- Ask local law enforcement not to work with ICE. Local law enforcement is not required to enforce federal immigration laws; they can deny requests to cooperate. Local law enforcement needs to focus on relationships with their community and addressing safety. Many are already short on staff and funding as it is. Diverting their focus and resources will cause other community issues.
- Display ICE free zone flyers as reminders of what to do if ICE wants to enter and to declare ICE free zones as safe spaces for immigrants. Print red cards from ilrc.org/redcards to distribute in your community.
- Protect vulnerable immigrant community members who are employed by reminding them if they have experienced wage theft, unpaid salaries, or other forms of worker rights violations they are currently protected under the program FAQ: Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement (DALE) and should seek out immigration advice from legal aid to process protections.
- Remind immigrants to report hate crimes or acts of violence on immigrants, through police reports. They may qualify for relief programs such as a Visa U, T or VAWA. Please refer to victim services.
- Share “Know Your Rights to Defend Your Rights” Pamphlet (put together by GLAHR, Puente Human Rights Movement, & Mijente; English: https://mijente.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/2017-04-19-kyr-english-final.pdf Español: https://mijente.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/2017-09-11-kyr-espanol-final.pdf
- Be vigilant and report ICE Raids. If you see an ICE raid or checkpoint, stay calm, keep a safe distance, record and document things such as badge #’s or ICE vehicle information. Get names of other witnesses, and report to immigration advocacy groups like ACLU.org.
Here is a non-exhaustive list of immigration-focused organizations across the country.
