raids

Members of community, labor, religious and student organizations gathered on February 11th to hear from and support workers facing exploitation at the hands of Gillette stadium's contractor and the outrageous tactics by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in ambushing  dozens of immigrant workers.

Earlier this year ICE detained 58 workers who were on their way to work at Gillette Stadium at a roadblock in Foxboro.  The workers were hired to shovel snow from the stadium seats in preparation for a New England Patriots game.  These hardworking Rhode Islanders now face deportation.

This ICE attack is the most high-profile act by ICE against Rhode Islanders since the raids at six RI courthouses in 2008.  It is the largest number of Rhode Islanders detained by ICE since the 2007 raid at the Bianco Factory in New Bedford.

While ICE and the Department of Homeland Security have tried to claim that the raid was directed toward people with criminal records, the vast majority of people arrested had no record whatsoever, and were unknown to ICE at the time of their arrest.  According to Juan Garcia of the Immigrants in Action Committee, “This action shows that ICE is not focused on going after people with records – they continue to go after large groups of people just for being immigrants.”

Camilo Viveiros of RI Jobs with Justice said:

Mass deportations and workplace raids continue to terrorize communities across the United States.  Racist immigration policies further divide families and communities and force millions of people to live under the constant threat that any interaction with police—however minor—could lead to detention and even deportation.

On January 26th, hundreds rallied outside the Department of Homeland Security and dozens blocked streets to bring attention to the need for immigration reform NOW.  The protest was organized by CASA de Maryland and brought activists from DC Jobs with Justice, Nakasec, National Day Labor Organizing Network, and more.

Mackenzie Baris of DC JwJ explained, "this broken immigration system not only hurts the individuals and families who are caught in raids, but also hurts all workers and the economy as a whole by allowing employers to exploit the differences in immigration status to take advantage of workers and deny their rights."

Tuesday’s action also drew attention to The Trail of DREAMs.  Drawing inspiration from the civil rights movement, four students are walking from Florida to DC to bring public attention to a failed immigration system that tears families apart and halts the progress of students studying to contribute to their communities.