Anti-ICE protesters rally outside Sonoma County Jail to voice immigrants' fear
Anti-ICE protesters rally outside Sonoma County Jail to voice immigrants fear
About 100 protesters with the Sonoma County Sanctuary Coalition gathered at the exit of the Sonoma County Detention Center in Santa Rosa Thursday, calling on Sonoma Countys Board to pass an ordinance explicitly stating their "non-collaboration with ICE."
SANTA ROSA, Calif. - About 100 protesters with the Sonoma County Sanctuary Coalition gathered at the exit of the Sonoma County Detention Center in Santa Rosa Thursday, calling on Sonoma County's Board to pass an ordinance explicitly stating their "non-collaboration with ICE."
"The Latino Community alone represents about 30% of the county and while not all of us are undocumented, most of us live in mixed-status families," Renee Sauceda, a spokesperson for the Sonoma County Sanctuary Coalition.
Rumored threats
Protesters said they had heard that the Sonoma County Sheriff Eddie Engram and Board Supervisor Lynda Hopkins had met with the Department of Homeland Security and that DHS had threatened to conduct raids at Home Depot and workplaces if Sonoma County didn't cooperate with ICE.
The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office says there were no threats. The Sheriff's communications spokesperson Sgt. Juan Valencia said the Sheriff did meet with DHS officials on October 8, but was told there were no ICE actions planned in Sonoma County. Valencia also said that the sheriff refused the DHS request that he change his policy regarding sharing information with ICE.
"We do not proactively engage ICE. We don't send them information," Sgt. Valencia said. "If they send a request wanting information regarding a certain inmate that meets the criteria that's been convicted of a crime and meets the criteria, for example, rape, child molest, arson, then what happens is we reply back with the date they're going to be released."
Sgt. Valencia says the Sheriff implemented strict measures to not release information on people who are arrested. The sheriff made a policy to only give release dates for people who are convicted of violent crimes.
"The information that is released to immigration or ICE is public information," Sgt. Valencia said. "Last year, we had 400+ requests and only 64 met the criteria that we replied back to ICE."
Community in fear
Still, protesters say fear in the community is real.
"The Latino community alone represents about 30% of the county and while not all of us are undocumented, most of us live in mixed-status families," Renee Sauceda, one of the rally organizers and an attorney, said. "I accompanied a family to their ICE appointment just yesterday and they were having a conversation of what they would do if they were separated from their teenage daughter."
She wants the Bay Area to know how much fear immigrant families are feeling.
"People, young people, children suffering from emotional distress because they explain don't know if they're going to find their parents at home when they get home from school," Sauceda said.
Sauceda says her own mother was deported in 2016 and died a few months ago.
"I am a US citizen and you deport my mom who is elderly and has Alzheimer's?" Sauceda said. She says she eventually was able to bring her mother back to Sonoma County on a humanitarian visa.
Socorra Diaz, an Almas Libres spokesperson, says she hears daily of families who are so worried they won't leave their homes.
"They're very scared. They have a lot of trauma, mostly now when people don't have any job to do," Diaz said. "Ladies told me I'm not going out for a week, I'm just staying home hiding."
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