NEW YORK, CMC—Caribbean nationals in New York have joined immigrant advocacy teams and neighborhood members in calling for protections forward of United States President-elect Donald Trump’s second time period.
Rita Joseph
The immigrant advocacy group Make the Highway New York, alongside accomplice organizations and Metropolis Council Member Rita Joseph, has honored Caribbean and different immigrants’ elementary contributions to the cultural vibrancy, variety, and economic system of New York Metropolis.
As a part of a Nationwide Day of Motion, their name got here after New York CITY Mayor Eric Adams met with Border Czar Tom Homan, who has threatened to deport total mixed-status households as a part of Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
Joseph, the Haitian-born consultant for the fortieth Council District in Brooklyn, instructed a rally on the steps of Metropolis Corridor in decrease Manhattan that “New York Metropolis id is rooted in tales within the successes of immigrants.
“Deportation threatens to tear aside households and destabilize neighborhoods that town has labored so arduous to construct,” she warned.
“As we method the vacation season, immigrants are talking up and calling on Mayor Adams to cease cozying as much as the Trump administration and as a substitute concentrate on delivering concrete protections for immigrant communities,” mentioned Make the Highway New York because it introduced the launch of its new web site.
The web site supplies up-to-date info and Know Your Rights sources, together with a Deportation Protection Handbook.
“As Trump’s inauguration day quick approaches, immigrant communities and allies want up to date info and simply accessible sources,” Make the Highway New York added.
Geidy Polanco, Staten Island, New York resident and member of Make the Highway New York, mentioned, “As a hard-working mom and a long-time New York Metropolis resident, it pains me to listen to Mayor Adams’ willingness to work with Border Czar Homan and wanting our metropolis to collaborate with ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement).
“This brings actual concern to not solely my household however to all immigrant New Yorkers like me who name this metropolis our residence,” Polanco mentioned. “Now, as we method the vacations, as a substitute of having fun with them absolutely, I as soon as once more have to have conversations with my kids to attempt to calm them down their fears and make a plan. I urge Mayor Adams to refocus and cease cozying to an administration that may solely hurt New York Metropolis. He should assist and shield immigrants who work, day in and day trip, to supply for our family members and this metropolis.”
Immigrant New Yorkers and allies—with Make the Highway New York, Immigrant Protection Undertaking, WSLS Immigrant Rights Clinic, Las Doñas Academy with Widespread Democracy, La Victoria Basis, and UnLocal— shared the urgency for Mayor Adams and Metropolis Council to uphold the present legal guidelines limiting when the NYPD and Division of Corrections (DOC) will honor an ICE detainer and whose info they might share with ICE, along with passing laws akin to Intro 214.
They mentioned this invoice would be certain that the Division of Corrections and NYPD face penalties after they ignore native legal guidelines limiting their cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
“That is important for stopping household separation of immigrant New Yorkers,” Make the Highway New York mentioned.
Tony Alarcon, a senior organizer with Widespread Democracy, mentioned, “Immigrants contribute to the economic system, enrich cultural variety, and strengthen the social cloth of our communities.
“Insurance policies that foster belief and cooperation between native governments and immigrant populations create safer, extra cohesive neighborhoods,” he added. “Sadly, some elected leaders promote concern and division by supporting insurance policies or rhetoric that criminalize immigrants and threaten deportation. This creates a chilling impact, discouraging immigrants from participating with important providers, reporting crimes, or absolutely collaborating of their communities.
“Such fear-driven approaches weaken the belief between immigrants and native governments, making neighborhoods much less protected and communities extra fragmented,” Alarcon continued. “Supporting immigrants isn’t just an ethical crucial; it’s a cornerstone of constructing stronger, united communities.”
Yasmine Farhang, director of advocacy on the Immigrant Protection Undertaking, mentioned: “At this time, we’re calling to guard all immigrant New Yorkers – particularly those that typically face the double punishment of the prison after which the immigration authorized system.
“It is a second of urgency – the place we want proactive motion from our native and state elected officers to face up and be clear that they won’t simply converse in assist of immigrants – however flip that into motion, passing essential laws on the metropolis and state degree to defend immigrant New Yorkers and all New Yorkers in opposition to the threats of this administration,” she added.
Government director of the La Victoria Basis, Katherine Gomez, mentioned, “Immigrants constructed New York Metropolis, and it thrives due to them. Any assault on our immigrant communities is an assault on the very soul of NYC.
“It’s time to rise, stand united, and demand justice for our immigrant communities—NYC won’t tolerate injustice,” she added. “Say no to mass deportations, say no to ICE collusions, say no to household unity separation. NYC says no to any administration depriving our immigrants of their rights!”
“New York Metropolis should act urgently to guard the rights of all its residents, no matter immigration standing. Now could be the time to unite round our values and shield all New York households from lawless raids and separations,” mentioned Alina Das, co-director of the Immigrant Rights Clinic of Washington Sq. Authorized Providers.
In recognition of Worldwide Migrants Day, the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), an umbrella group of over 200 immigrant teams in New York, joined the Honest Immigration Reform Motion (FIRM) community in urging President Joe Biden and Congress to behave decisively throughout this lame-duck session to guard and defend immigrants from throughout the nation, no matter immigration standing, from Trump’s deportation agenda.
NYIC mentioned about 5.5 million US citizen kids (together with 254,00 New York kids) stay with no less than one undocumented member of the family.
“Separating members of the family would result in great emotional stress and will additionally trigger financial hardship for a lot of of those mixed-status households who may lose their breadwinners, to not point out the dire penalties for the US economic system,” NYIC’s President and CEO Murad Awawdeh instructed the Caribbean Media Company (CMC).
“That is the time for our elected management to take decisive motion by voting in opposition to reconciliation payments or proposals that may damage our economic system and develop or fund immigration enforcement and detention,” Awawdeh continued. “As an alternative, we demand the Biden administration shield immigrant households, no matter their immigration standing, together with these with TPS (Non permanent Protected Standing) and DACA (Deferred Motion for Early Childhood Arrivals), to make sure they’ll stay with their households and proceed contributing to their communities with out the specter of ICE round each nook.
“Separating kids from their mother and father hurts households and does nothing to profit our communities, public security or economic system—spiking inflation, driving up deficits, reducing tax revenues, and shrinking GDP (gross home product) and employment alike,” he mentioned.
Awawdeh pointed to a latest American Immigration Council report on the prices of mass deportation, which finds that GDP will drop by 4.2-6.8 %, greater than the Nice Recession.
He mentioned deporting a million immigrants per yr would incur an annual price of $88 billion, with nearly all of that price going in the direction of constructing detention camps.
“It might take over ten years, and the constructing of tons of to 1000’s of recent detention amenities, to arrest, detain, course of and take away all 13.3 million focused immigrants—even assuming that 20 % of that inhabitants would depart voluntarily throughout any multi-year mass deportation effort,” Awawdeh mentioned.
