Advocates for Latino communities from across the country gathered on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to push members of Congress to address the issues — not just immigration — they say concern their constituents.
Stefania Arteaga, co-executive director of the Carolina Migrant Network in Charlotte, North Carolina, told WTOP that following the deportation of Venezuelan immigrants who were sent to a Salvadoran prison, there’s a tremendous level of fear among Latino communities, including among those with Temporary Protected Status.
“In my own neighborhood, my neighbors, we have plans on what to do … if someone’s detained or if ICE is in our neighborhood,” she said. That includes how the natural-born children of immigrants would be looked after.
Darryl Morin, national president of Forward Latino, emphasized the impact that migrant labor has on the U.S. economy. Morin cited data that shows 40% of the migrants who work in the agriculture sector don’t have work authorization.
“So if you think egg prices are high now, if you think avocado prices are high now, they’re going to be going through the roof because we’re going to see a lot of produce going to waste because it’s not going to be picked, and it’s not going to be making its way to store shelves,” Morin said regarding deportation.
Frankie Miranda, president and CEO of the Hispanic Federation, which organized the news conference at the foot of the U.S. Capitol Building said the “very dangerous trend” of demonizing Latino immigrants has resulted “in hate crimes against our community.”
“What we’re trying to do is make sure the elected officials don’t continue adopting that trend,” he said.
Miranda said his organization works alongside 130 others from across the country to advance the concerns of Latinos.
He said his organization is nonpartisan and that one of the messages he wants politicians to understand is that among those Latinos who voted in the last election, “They voted for the candidate that they felt that better addressed their pocketbook issues — inflation, cost of living, affordable housing, jobs.”
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