Thread: After The Raids

After the Raids
By David Alire Garcia

Published: March 7, 2007





Local immigrants rebound after federal sweeps.


Last week, a chill swept over Santa Fe’s immigrant population as federal agents in caravans of unmarked cars raided a number of south-side residences.

When all was said and done, the Feb. 26 through March 3 raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) resulted in 30 arrests, according to Leticia Zamarripa, the El Paso-based ICE spokeswoman. Roughly half of those arrested have been deported.



Carlos André, owner of El Paisano grocery stores, first entered the US as an illegal immigrant and believes those here to work shouldn’t be punished. (Photo by David Alire Garcia.)
The raids, Zamarripa tells SFR, are now over.

But the emotional fallout for Santa Fe’s immigrant community—legal and illegal—continues.

“My reaction is one of sadness and even humiliation,” Carlos André, owner of El Paisano, Inc., a growing chain of Mexican grocery stores in Santa Fe, says.

André was once an illegal immigrant himself—he made his way into the US without papers. Today he has legal status and a belief that the country needs immigration reform. Going after illegal immigrants who commit crimes is one thing. Going after those who are here for work, he says, is another.

“Hunger doesn’t have a border,” André says. “Hunger doesn’t respect limitations.”

ICE’s “Operation Return to Sender” defines immigrant violators as those immigrants who have failed to appear at immigration hearings or have otherwise disobeyed a judge’s order. Since May 2006, the operation has netted more than 13,000 total undocumented immigrants. Estimates of the nation’s undocumented population range widely from 7 to 20 million.

Santa Fe Mayor David Coss condemned the immigration sweeps and reiterated city policy that forbids any city resources—including police—from being used to enforce immigration law. At a news conference as the sweeps began, Coss, expressing outrage, was flanked by police officers and school officials. Coss accused ICE agents of failing to provide city law enforcement with advance notice of the raids; ICE has disputed the claim.

Coss also announced that the city attorney will work with community groups to document any civil rights abuses and file formal complains with the federal Department of Homeland Security. SFR spoke with one undocumented immigrant who was nearly apprehended during last week’s raids.

“I was outside my house around 5 in the afternoon and I looked over at the street corner and saw six cars all arriving at the same time,” he explains. The recently licensed contractor is uneasy about disclosing his name or where he lives for fear that agents might return.

“They came to my house, knocked and my wife hid from them. She was very afraid.”

The man, a native of Chihuahua, points out that his wife is a legal permanent resident, and their daughter, born here in Santa Fe, is a US citizen. Five years have passed since he applied to legalize his own status.

“I don’t have papers, but I found a beautiful family here,” he says. “I have my own business, my own house. I have a better life than what I had in Mexico.”

On the day ICE agents knocked on the door and sent his wife into hiding in their own home, he says he waited the entire day nearby before he felt it was safe to return.

“Sometimes I lose my calm and get really sad,” he says. “I don’t want to spend my whole life hiding.”

For now, life seems to be returning to normal in the wake of the raids.
“What other choice do these people have?” Santa Fe immigration attorney Victoria Ferrara asks. “They can’t be in hiding for the rest of their lives. They have to support their families.”

And this is the reason most immigrants are here in the first place, André says. “It’s worth it because this is a country where your hard work pays off,” he says. “In your country of origin, you may never have the same opportunities.”

© Copyright 2000–2007 by the Santa Fe Reporter

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Santa Fe Mayor David Coss condemned the immigration sweeps and reiterated city policy that forbids any city resources—including police—from being used to enforce immigration law.

So basically this so called Mayor refuse's to uphold the law of the U.S. government. KICK HIS BUTT OUT HE IS ALSO A CRIMINAL!!!!

Throw him out citizens !!! Anyone who refuses to enforce the laws should not hold any office in this country! time to get rid of them!!

hard to toss out a mayor who gets fraudulent votes.

Originally Posted by dragons5

hard to toss out a mayor who gets fraudulent votes.

Ahhh!! another one of those elections huh, they seem to be getting prevalent in this country, we better get a paper trail and before 2008!!

Amazing! They always have lame excuses for breaking the law. Always the same ones too!