This is part 1 of a series about how raids and arrests are impacting families.
This Father’s Day will be difficult for Maria and her three siblings. Their dad was arrested during recent immigration raids in Los Angeles and is expected to spend the holiday 100 miles away at a detention center in Adelanto, San Bernardino County.
What’s worse, she says, is that there is no way to know if or when Don Miguel will be released, avoid being deported or return home. Maria’s family is devastated by the separation and incertitude.
The family, which lives in central LA, fears reprisals and requested that their real names not be used in this article.
On June 6, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out a significant operation at three businesses in LA, leading to the arrest of more than 40 people. Among those detained was Maria’s father, an employee at Ambiance Apparel, a clothing store located in the city’s Fashion District. Approximately two dozen arrests occurred at that location.
The raids are part of a significant, ongoing immigration crackdown that President Donald Trump pledged during his second campaign for the White House. Initially, Trump’s focus was targeting criminal immigrants; however, now hard-working individuals with no criminal records are also being detained. Additionally, families with members holding different immigration statuses are experiencing separation.
Raids Lead to Protests
The community’s response has been swift, resulting in major protests in LA since last Friday. The demonstrations have mostly remained peaceful, with some sporadic clashes between law enforcement and protesters downtown, where some businesses were vandalized.
It was Friday morning when the ordeal unfolded for Maria, 24, a part-time worker and university graduate student. At work, she received a text from her older sister alerting her that “something was happening at my dad’s workplace.” Concerned, Maria quickly drove to Ambiance and encountered a scene that made her heart race – FBI agents were present, green immigration vans lined the street and neighboring roads were blocked off.
The gravity of the situation hit her as she realized the potential impact on her family: her father had been arrested by ICE.
Like Detective Work
Eager to know where her father was being taken, Maria surreptitiously followed the ICE vans, which led her to the downtown detention center at the Edward Roybal Building. There, she found other families trying to see their loved ones in custody and attorneys hoping to be given access to their clients. Unfortunately, only a few managed to enter, and Maria was not among them. She returned on Saturday, hoping for better luck, but encountered the same obstacles. Even lawyers were being turned away, she recalled.
After waiting outside the building for some time, Maria caught a glimpse of detainees being loaded into vans with dark-tinted windows.
“I briefly saw my dad boarding a vehicle,” she said. “His hands were cuffed and legs chained.”
Worried that she would lose track of her father’s whereabouts and distrustful of ICE, Maria once again followed the ICE vans to another location; this time to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Building in Santa Ana.
Feeling little relief, she reached out to community organizations, leaders and elected officials, but felt disappointed.
“They did nothing,” she stated. “I felt abandoned, and I still feel that many people have forgotten about us.”
Maria emphasized that there are still families and attorneys who have not been able to see the detainees.
“One feels powerless in those circumstances,” she said. “It’s hard for both the families and the immigrants who are under arrest.”
Don’t Forget the Detainees
Maria wants people to remember that the protests, which seem to dominate the headlines, began because of these raids.
“Our loved ones were kidnapped when they went to work and delivered to ICE by their employers,” she stated, her voice subdued with anger. “Let’s not forget about our immigrants in detention.”
At home, the arrest and separation are causing a lot of pain, according to Maria.
“We are a tight-knit family,” she said with pride.
“But for the first time in years, our dad was absent from our weekly Sunday dinner,” she added with a breaking voice.
Her younger sister, 22, is graduating from the University of California this week, and their dad won’t be there to celebrate.
“He was supposed to walk with her, go up on the stage to pick up her diploma,” Maria explained.
The youngest sibling, a 10-year-old boy, is also struggling to cope with his dad’s sudden and prolonged absence. He is finding it difficult to process what happened so quickly and unexpectedly, and he is afraid of a future without Don Miguel.
Additionally, the family is worried about their finances without their breadwinner.
“My dad is the sole provider at home,” Maria said.
Crowdfunding to the Rescue
Help may be on the way for the families of detainees who worked at Ambience Apparel. A GoFundMe campaign titled “Urgent Aid for LA Families of 14 Detained by ICE” has been launched to collect donations and has already surpassed its initial goal of $250,000. As of Wednesday, the campaign has raised $252,341, and organizers plan to continue accepting donations.
“The families require financial assistance for their immediate needs, including immigration attorneys for their loved ones,” Maria explained. “This situation is not easy for our families, and it will take time for everyone to heal.”
To donate to the “Urgent Aid for LA Families of 14 Detained by ICE” GoFundMe visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/urgent-aid-for-families-of-14-detained-members