By Danielle Riendeau, Communications Coordinator, ACLU of Northern California
On Wednesday, July 18th the ACLU and community members gathered to support Juana Reyes, who is facing deportation after an arrest for selling tamales outside of the Florin Rd. Walmart in Sacramento and to urge the passage of the TRUST Act.
Juana Reyes is your neighbor, your friend, or your family member. The food vendor and mother of two was recently arrested, chained and held in immigration detention for two weeks (while her children were taken away and placed in foster care) – all because she was selling tamales in front of a Sacramento Walmart.
In fact, she’s been a food vendor for years – the trouble only came when a new security guard tried to remove her from the premises, and local police threw trespassing and “interfering with business”charges at her. Just like that, Juana was locked away, even though the charges were minor and eventually dropped. Her story is a bold reminder of just how desperately we need to fix the broken immigration detention system in California.
The passing of the TRUST Act – AB 1081, authored by Assembly member Tom Ammiano – in the state senate on July 5th was a bold, groundbreaking step forward. The act seeks to mitigate the failures of the utterly broken Secure Communities (S-Comm) program and help ensure fair treatment for law-abiding people in all communities around California.
S-Comm is a federal program that was purportedly aimed at deporting serious and violent felons. Instead, it has become a racial profiling nightmare for communities all over the state. People have been locked up and thrown out of the country for minor violations, and Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s massive dragnet has even ensnared US citizens, thanks to database snafus.
On the whole, S-Comm has resulted in the deportations of over 75,000 Californians – more than any other state. It has torn families apart, made entire communities afraid of reporting crime to the police, and threatened public safety.
The TRUST Act will restore good faith and transparency between our communities and local police by limiting local jails from holding people on immigration-based detention requests when they pose no risk to public safety. It will allow local police to do their jobs and focus on public safety – for everyone in the community.
This doesn’t mean it’s a done deal yet – the act still needs votes and the governor’s signature. Call the governor today and urge him to support the TRUST Act, and help make California a safe place for everyone who lives here.