SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Fear about the deployment of federal agents to their neighborhoods is making immigrants throughout the Bay Area question everything they see.
A woman who did not want to be identified said her neighbors and friends are flagging any suspicious vehicles they see.
“My friend in the morning, I see 4 cars for ICE, but I don’t know if it’s true or not,” said the woman, adding, “Nobody comes on the street, nobody you know, is very bad for everybody.”
On Friday, the Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee confirmed federal agent operations were canceled for the entire Bay Area, but according to local nonprofits, rumors continue to spread.
“There’s already a lot of fear and panic and anxiety, and when people are responding to these rapid changes in a way where they’re responding to inaccurate information, it’s just hurtful,” said Madeline Hernandez, Attorney with Immigration Institute of the Bay Area.
A vast number of Bay Area nonprofits and volunteers have been on the ground reminding this community about 24 / 7 hotlines specific in their counties. That is where they can report any potential federal agent activity.
“These networks are able to connect individuals to local attorneys that could help either represent them, or assist their families and also, they are able to send out legal observers. And what’s really important about these legal observers is they’re trained to either verify ICE presence, whether it’s actually ICE or not, first of all. And then if it is ICE presence, they are actually trained to record, to record the apprehension, to make sure that there are no violations of constitutional rights. And if there are violations of constitutional rights by these agencies, then it’s recorded,” said Hernandez.
The Migration Policy Institute estimates there are 42,000 undocumented immigrants in San Francisco alone. Thousands could be at risk of deportation. A reality that has many afraid to leave their homes.
“We gave them know your rights orientations, privacy notices for the businesses that could have them to put on their windows. And you might see them when you walk around and it basically helps business owners and managers exert their rights within the workplace too,” said Dalia Blevins, JD Case Worker for the removal defense program at La Raza Centro Legal.
MORE: ‘I’m afraid’: Federal agents in Bay Area pushing immigrant community into hiding
In San Francisco, the nonprofit La Raza Centro Legal deployed their community outreach teams to tackle misinformation about unconfirmed actions.
“It’s important that if you are concerned that its ICE, you document what it is that you are seeing,” said Blevins.
Despite all the reassurances, many in the community are still unsettled.
“They can detain me at any time, but it hasn’t happened. I haven’t been detained,” said a San Francisco resident, who did not want to be identified.
Here’s a full list of Rapid Response Network hotline contacts here.
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