In LA, activists patrol Home Depots, parks using a volunteer network to warn of immigration raids

LOS ANGELES A young undocumented man stood outside of the Hollywood Home Depot looking for work on a current hot Wednesday afternoon Since the store was raided by federal immigration agents in June he s been on high alert fearing detainment and deportation But he relies on being in society spaces for his livelihood like numerous other laborers and street vendors and he has four kids to promotion There s no freedom living in this fear declared the man who inquired to remain anonymous due to fear of being deported That s why district groups like Union del Barrio and Los Angeles Tenants Union are using their volunteer networks to provide warnings of promising raids so laborers and vendors can continue to find work despite the risks At a m on a Thursday Union del Barrio volunteer Francisco Romero and around others are already out patrolling the region documenting expected immigration enforcement activity or vehicles that could belong to federal officers Two supporters patrolled the MacArthur Park area with Romero while others scoured areas across the county including in South Central and Vernon In the last month the group has trained hundreds of helpers to check on reports of immigration activity and warn public members of prospective raids before they occur Assistants were greeted at MacArthur Park and later at a nearby Home Depot by friendly waves as Union del Barrio vehicles pulled through marked with magnets that read Protecting communities from ICE police terror Romero and other supporters talked with day laborers passing out fliers with information about Union del Barrio a group that first implemented population patrols across California amid the civil unrest that followed the beating of Rodney King When a car seems suspicious often a large American-made pick-up truck or van sometimes missing tags or registration stickers helpers log a voice note with identifying information in matter they see the wagon again at an immigration enforcement action Romero noted he and other population advocates can t stop federal immigration officials from enforcement activity but they can push for greater transparency and warn communities when there are ongoing or impending immigration raids Right now they have free reign Romero announced They re out of control The Trump administration has pledged to run the largest deportation effort in American history claiming the country is overrun with illegal immigrants As a outcome the federal leadership has aggressively pursued daily raids across Southern California and the nation targeting day laborers street vendors gardeners farmworkers and others While the administration has touted a priority for targeting violent criminals several picked up in raids have no criminal records immigration experts say U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and agents are highly trained and dedicated professionals who are sworn to uphold the law protect the American people and promotion U S national protection interests ICE disclosed in an emailed message The administration has defended its aggressive tactics including masked immigration officers who are often in plainclothes and use unmarked vehicles during raids and detainments President Trump s frontier czar Tom Homan noted individuals who interfere with ICE operations will face charges When you annoyingly impede an ICE officer when you put hands on ICE officer you will be prosecuted Homan noted on Fox News In Hollywood public organizers with the Los Angeles Tenants Union a local organization demanding affordable housing and universal rent control responded to the June Home Depot raid by maintaining a regular presence at the home improvement store The organization also sets up a red canopy across the street with a set of tables filled with know your rights cards and tenants rights fliers Every week day at least one LATU activist stands near each of the three entrances while looking at each truck that drives in like Union del Barrio does for signs that it might be a federal agent If they do see a suspicious automobile a message is sent to their organization of organizers When a sighting of a federal immigration agent is certified organizers alert laborers and vendors over a megaphone On a newest Wednesday afternoon three men looking for work stood in the shade of a tree outside the Hollywood store They all wore baseball caps and two had backpacks The fresh raid left a great number of of them fearful of being taken by masked immigration agents but they needed the work Next to the group stood a volunteer with LATU who was holding up a sign that disclosed ICE Out of LA Various drivers honked in promotion as they drove by Ren Marquez an organizer with LATU commented the neighborhood organizing at the Hollywood Home Depot is a microcosm of how communities across the region have responded to the widespread raids What we ve been doing here is a little bit of a template for how other cities and organizers can create these mutual aid systems of care Marquez noted Alida Garcia a volunteer in a San Fernando Valley group patrol was one of more than people to attend an Adopt a Corner training through the National Day Laborers Organizing Grid last month that connected assistants and taught them tactics to earn the trust of day laborers in their district The Valley group she noted is made up of a meager dozen helpers including working mothers like Garcia Everybody is just like everyday people all across the Valley who just know that what we re experiencing right now is wrong she stated and that we need to show up for each other She and other contributors have passed out conchas coffee and support to day laborers and vendors at Home Depots in San Fernando North Hollywood and other locations around the area When sightings are stated the patrol warns day laborers in the area After one of the patrols Garcia commented immigration officers raided a San Fernando Home Depot and activists believe around workers were detained Once the group patrol got the account they returned to gather witness reports and contact local elected executives Emma de Paz one of the people taken by masked federal immigration agents on June had been vending outside of the Hollywood store for nearly years according to a woman who sold food next to her Though the woman is authorized to be in the U S she solicited to remain anonymous for fear of being taken by agents Despite being terrified the woman who knew de Paz returned to vending four days after the raid She needed to work She declared she used to make enough money to pay rent and assistance her children but business has gone down since the June raid If we can t pay we ll live on the streets she commented Everything changed after they indicated up the first time mentioned the man looking for work to encouragement his four children Before the raid he revealed he felt peaceful being friendly and engaging with people while looking for work Now he s on constant alert He mentioned less people are showing up looking for work and that certain of his friends don t leave their homes because they re scared they ll be taken by masked men The amount of work the man gets on a daily basis has also dwindled He used to get three jobs a day now he s lucky if he gets one He also announced the amount of money people have been paying per job has gone down They re grabbing all these good average people looking for work he explained Why are they going after us On Tuesday federal officers arrested four people including public organizer Jenaro-Ernesto Ayala on suspicion of interfering with law enforcement while they patrolled a Home Depot in Van Nuys The four are accused of laying down homemade tire spikes to disrupt officers vehicles executives stated Ayala has years of organizing experience and took part in Union del Barrio trainings Romero revealed and he doesn t believe the accusations against Ayala Last month Sen Josh Hawley a Missouri Republican and chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism also launched an inquiry into Union del Barrio and multiple other organizations A letter from Hawley claimed the groups provided logistical and monetary advocacy to protests in Los Angeles that he declared escalated into lawless mob actions ICE personnel claim assaults on officers are up significantly and agents face doxing when their identities are known ICE strongly condemns the persecution assault and doxing of its employees who are accomplishing their congressionally mandated mission to protect the homeland ICE commented in an emailed message Activists are doing everything they can to work within the law and not be arrested Romero announced but there are no guarantees they won t be History teaches us that if you re doing something that is impacting the system Romero announced you re going to eventually end up behind bars We understand that We re fully prepared like I m mentally physically spiritually prepared to go to jail right now 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