GREELEY — Families and children still are reeling from the aftershocks of the Dec. 12 raid at the Swift & Co. plant, activists and parents said Wednesday.
“Ten months later and we are still distributing food, diapers and other essentials to these families,” said activist Ricardo Romero.
The effect on families of the Greeley raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents – as well as two other raids by ICE on the same day – was outlined in a report released Wednesday.
The study by the Urban Institute and the National Council of La Raza calls on Congress for more oversight of ICE and suggests that local agencies, including schools and social service groups, need to have a plan in place in case of another raid.
ICE’s procedures, the report said, made it difficult to arrange care for children when parents were arrested. In some cases, parents arrested were deported before they could talk to lawyers or their children.
In all, more than 900 adults were arrested at the three sites – Greeley; Grand Island, Neb.; and New Bedford, Mass. – and the parents among them collectively had more than 500 children, the study said.
Most of the children were U.S. citizens, and a majority were infants, toddlers and preschoolers.
Local agencies and churches scrambled to provide food, baby formula, clothing and other necessities. Some families fearing arrest hid in their homes – in some cases basements and closets – for days and weeks, the study said.
A national spokesman for ICE said Wednesday that it is not the agency’s fault that kids’ live were disrupted.
“This report takes the bizarre position that ICE is somehow responsible for family disruption caused by parents who make poor decisions,” ICE’s Tim Counts said. “Everyone understands that parents are responsible for their actions and the resulting impact on their families.”
Immediately after the raid, congregants from Greeley’s Family of Christ Presbyterian Church donated food, clothing and time, said the Rev. Steve Brown.
“We wanted to respond positively to a sometimes desperate situation,” Brown said. He questioned why the raid had to be conducted in the cold and snow of December, which made the distribution of food even more difficult.
“This raid was ill-conceived or conceived with real vengeance in mind,” Brown said.
One woman arrested in the raid – Florentina – was pregnant with her third child when she was taken to the ICE detention facility in Aurora. Her husband, who is in the country legally, was able to get her children, but she was unable to talk to them throughout the day.
“I was worried about my children,” said Florentina, who didn’t want her last name used. “I didn’t know what would happen to me or them.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com
Recommendations
A report – “Paying the Price: The Impact of Immigration Raids on America’s Children” – was released Wednesday by the National Council of La Raza and the Urban Institute. It recommends:
