Thread: Hispanics in Irving feeling disheartened

Hispanics in Irving feeling disheartened


Immigration stance affecting citizens' comfort level, too


12:00 AM CDT on Sunday, October 7, 2007
By BRANDON FORMBY / The Dallas Morning News
bformby@dallasnews.com



For 20 years, Ruben and Martha Carranza saw Irving as a melting pot of cultures.




Citizens Ruben and Martha Carranza say they no longer feel welcome in Irving, a city they've long embraced. 'It may not be real, but there's that feeling,' said Mr. Carranza. Here, they were encouraged to live out their version of the American dream – building a respectable life as they worked and raised their children.

"I always felt Irving was a friendly place and was just a wonderful city," Mr. Carranza said.

But in just a few short weeks, that peace and comfort has dramatically dissolved. A firestorm of controversy surrounding the Police Department's use of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement program placed Irving in the national spotlight. In the last year, the program has turned over for deportation proceedings more than 1,600 people – more than any other city in the nation, officials believe.

The racial rhetoric and rampant rumors that followed have left many Irving Hispanics – even those who are in the U.S. legally – feeling forced into the shadows.

Many Hispanics are afraid to leave their homes or send their children to schools in a suburb where one-third of the population is foreign-born. They feel racially profiled by police and unwanted by white neighbors.

"It may not be real, but there's that feeling," said Mr. Carranza, who became a U.S. citizen at age 18. "As Hispanics right now, our skin becomes our yellow star."

City officials have worked to dispel claims of wrongful arrests and unproven rumors of police raids at places such as the Irving Mall and Hispanic grocery stores. They blame media reports and some activists for spreading misinformation that is fueling a growing divide between Hispanics and city leaders.

At Nimitz High School on Thursday, Mayor Herbert Gears assured about 100 students that nobody would visit schools to check their immigration status. School officials have said at least 90 students had withdrawn recently from the Irving district because of deportation fears.

"A lot of work over the years has simply been destroyed," Mr. Gears said. "There is a large segment of our city that is now anxious about talking to a police officer, and it is causing problems."

Irving police began using the Criminal Alien Program last year. It provides for around-the-clock communication with federal authorities. And its purpose is to detain illegal immigrants who have been accused of a crime.

Irving officials say they aren't deporting anyone – they're just working with federal officials in a program that is open to all cities.

ICE officials from a division based in Irving initially made sweeps of the jail to check on an arrestee's immigration status. But they caught only inmates who were in the jail when they were. When the CAP program moved to a Dallas office earlier this year, ICE officials stopped physical visits and began doing phone interviews with inmates whose immigration or citizenship status was unclear. This put all inmates under scrutiny.

About the same time as the switch, the number of holds ICE officials placed on Irving jail inmates jumped. They went from 105 in May to 190 in June. That spike drew scrutiny from Hispanics.


Consul's warning
Last month, Mexican Consul Enrique Hubbard Urrea warned immigrants from his country to avoid the suburb. Days later, more than 1,000 protesters rallied at City Hall, waving American flags and demanding that officials put a moratorium on the city's use of CAP. One rally organizer threatened a boycott of Irving businesses if the city persisted.

Word about the program spread. In the two-week period that ended Sept. 30, 78 inmates had immigration holds. Police Chief Larry Boyd said that's about half the number the jail has typically had during a two-week period. Chief Boyd said he's not sure why there was a drop.

"Nothing's changed with our program, so you can only make assumptions that people have adjusted their behavior to avoid being taken to jail," he said.

Similar fears about Hispanics being targeted arose in neighboring Farmers Branch over its proposals targeting illegal immigrants. In May, residents there voted overwhelmingly to ban landlords from renting to most illegal immigrants. Proponents of the measure said the city should uphold federal immigration laws. But opponents considered the ordinance mean-spirited, discriminatory and bad for business. Though debate over immigration there continues, the city's ordinance is on hold as it works its way through court challenges.


'So scared'

On a recent weeknight at Irving Mall, Raul Cedillo and Wilfredo Orellana stood outside a cellphone store trying to drum up business. They said mall traffic and their customer base fell dramatically after publicity of CAP and the Mexican consul's warning.

"Everybody's so scared to come to Irving," said Mr. Cedillo, a 30-year-old from Mexico who has permanent residency and is working to become an American citizen. "It's keeping everyone away."

Many Hispanics are under the impression that Irving police are going after as many of them as possible. Officials have continually said that's not true.

But René Castilla said that perception affects how Hispanics live their day-to-day lives and where they shop.

"If they see a police officer parked out front, they're afraid they're going to be stopped and asked who they are," said Mr. Castilla, a North Lake College official. "All the confidence Chief Boyd has established with the Hispanic community is gone."

Chief Boyd said he, too, has heard the rumors of massive raids and officers asking anyone and everyone for immigrant papers – events that officials say have never happened.

"I don't know where the rumors originate from," Chief Boyd said.

Undermining the Hispanic community's trust in his department is something he does not want to happen, he said.

Sue Richardson, vice president of the Greater Irving Republic Club, said she fully supports the use of CAP. She said illegal immigrants are straining Irving's resources and infrastructure. But she doesn't think legal Hispanic residents should feel unwelcome.

"I don't know anyone at the forefront of this issue who has said anything or done anything about people here legally," she said. "We embrace legal immigration. We always have, and we always will."


Division

While officials try to dispel rumors and educate residents, many say the anti-Hispanic sentiment is boiling over in Irving.

When the City Council voted on its 2007-08 budget last month, several residents complained about public money being spent on Spanish library books and maintaining a Spanish version of the city's Web site. Some also said the city should put money aside for 287g, a federal program that trains police and jailers to act as immigration officers.

"Those are the people who are really dividing the community," said the Rev. Pedro Portillo, pastor of Santa Maria de Guadalupe Church on Irving Boulevard.

While Mr. Gears and a majority of council members aren't in favor of 287g, council members Beth Van Duyne and Tom Spink have publicly supported it. Mr. Spink ousted an incumbent council member in May after running on an anti-illegal-immigration platform. And calls to the city after last month's rally overwhelmingly supported the police department's participation in CAP.

And because the City Council and Irving school board currently have no Hispanics in a city that is predominantly minority, many people feel disenfranchised and unrepresented, said Mr. Carranza, who ran unsuccessfully to become a school trustee in May.

"Every Hispanic that I know is running goosey," he said. "My children are goosey. I'm talking about teenagers who have lived here their entire lives."

The confusion, mixed messages and political strife have left Mr. Carranza unable to recognize the city he has loved for so long.

"By making these moves, the conservative movement has knocked Humpty Dumpty off the wall," Mr. Carranza said. "There has been a sign put up that says, 'You are not welcome.' "

http://www.dallasnews.com

So scared they wont selfdeport!

All these scared people are planning a march.

Dixie

THATS RIGHT DIXIE THEY ARE NOT SCARED ENOUGH TO SELF DEPORT. I SAY MORE RAIDS ARE NEEDED UNTIL THEY DO LEAVE. THEN I WILL FEEL LIKE SOMETHING IS BEING ACCOMPLISHED

Originally Posted by Dixie

So scared they wont selfdeport!

All these scared people are planning a march.

Dixie

Saw that on the news earlier...
a protest rally and five mile march. Whoopee, five miles, I'm so impressed with their "hard working ethics." I did five miles double time twice a week every week in high school JROTC, big 'effing deal. Why don't they make a BIG march? Oh, say, 1000 miles! South, at that!

And because the City Council and Irving school board currently have no Hispanics in a city that is predominantly minority, many people feel disenfranchised and unrepresented, said Mr. Carranza, who ran unsuccessfully to become a school trustee in May.

Of course they are not represented! Nor should they be. The citizens get to vote for representation, not the criminal, not the visitor, nor the invading masses.

All the neighborhood kids don't get to descend upon my home (uninvited, no less) and make the 2 adults turn authority over to the squirt so that they can run up the bills, eat all the food, and walk away with our stuff when (if) they decide to go back to their homes, it just doesn't work that way.

Wah, wah, wah... "Every Hispanic that I know is running goosey," he said. "My children are goosey. I'm talking about teenagers who have lived here their entire lives."

The confusion, mixed messages and political strife have left Mr. Carranza unable to recognize the city he has loved for so long.

"By making these moves, the conservative movement has knocked Humpty Dumpty off the wall," Mr. Carranza said. "There has been a sign put up that says, 'You are not welcome.' "

If you're LEGAL, no sweat. I am so sick of them TRYING to tug on our heartstrings.

Originally Posted by Dixie

So scared they wont selfdeport!

All these scared people are planning a march.

Dixie

I gots a little feeling they are going to selfdeport one day...

This is the 1st and only time they,the illegals, have ever felt any pressure to deport...In their eyes all this happened in a few months...... So give them time is all new to them...



We are going to win this IF we keep up the pressure....

Another Immigration Sob Story

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Don't you just love the "mean-spirited", "dividing the community", etc. comments. What gall of people to break the law and point fingers at people that want it enforced. Mob rule has to stop! Enough already!

All these scared people are planning a march.

Good! I hope they fill the streets and wave the chicken flags when they march.