WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES AUGUST 16, 2018 11
ICE raids have skyrocketed under Trump
BY RYAN KELLEY
RKELLEY@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
TWITTER @R_KELLEY6
Raids conducted by Immigration
and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) agents in Queens have increased
dramatically since President
Donald Trump took offi ce, according
to research conducted by a pair of legal
rights advocacy organizations.
The Immigrant Defense Project
(IDP) and the Center for Constitutional
Rights (CCR) released the fi ndings in
July in the form of an interactive map
called ICEwatch that shows nearly 700
ICE raids in the New York area since
2013. In Queens alone, there have been
131 incidents during that time, the
highest number in the fi ve boroughs.
The map also shows that 94 of those
Queens raids, or 72 percent, have
taken place since Jan. 20, 2017, when
Trump’s term offi cially began.
In a press release coinciding with
the launch of the map, IDP Senior
Staff Attorney Genia Blaser said that
its purpose is to expose the questionable
tactics used by ICE agents when
arresting illegal immigrants.
“ICE relies on fear-mongering, secrecy,
deceit, manipulation and force
to enact its devastating deportation
mandate to deport as many people as
possible,” Blaser said. “By making the
reports of their dehumanizing tactics
widely available through ICEwatch, we
aim to inform the public and community
members around the escalation of
‘unshackled’ ICE policing.”
The map includes options for the
user to fi lter the incidents shown
by date, type of incident, county,
location and ICE tactics used, which
reveal more trends in the data. There
are 698 incidents included on the map,
and 462 of them, or 66 percent, have
taken place since the president took
offi ce.
In Queens, 50 percent of all incidents
on the map have been home
raids and 30 percent have occurred at
a courthouse. In addition, 40 percent
have involved the surveillance of a
suspected immigrant while 28 percent
have involved a ruse, or a deceptive
tactic meant to trick the suspect into
an arrest.
A description of each incident is
also available when a user clicks it on
the map. During a February incident
in Maspeth, for example, three ICE
agents dressed as police showed up
at a individual’s home and demanded
to see his identifi cation aft er he let
them inside. Aft er he showed his ID,
the agents arrested him in front of his
10-year-old autistic son.
In January, ICE agents showed up
to a Corona man’s home and his wife
let them inside because they said
they were police, the map states. The
agents arrested the individual and
threatened his wife while their four
minor children were awoken by the
commotion. Since the man’s arrest, his
wife and children have been evicted
and are currently living in a homeless
shelter.
When reached over the phone on
Aug. 14, IDP spokesperson Alejandra
Lopez said that the incidents included
on the map were verifi ed through
the organization’s partnerships with
Regional Immigration Assistance
Centers and the New York Immigrant
Family Unity Project. Firsthand
accounts from witnesses who
called IDP’s hotline have been vetted
through the attorneys representing
those who have been arrested, Lopez
explained.
While there are incidents that were
left off the map because they could not
be verifi ed, Lopez added that there
are also raids that go unreported
so the map should not be seen as
comprehensive.
ICE has not yet responded to a request
for comment about the map.
Photo courtesy of ICE
Pols at City Hall plead with ICE to release Maspeth man facing deportation
BY JENNA BAGCAL
JBAGCAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@JENNA_BAGCAL
Ralliers gathered at City Hall on
Friday in a fi nal plea for immigration
Judge Mirlande Tadal
to halt the deportation of Maspeth
resident Edisson Barros.
The Ecuadorian-born Barros’ deportation
was set for Friday morning
on the same day as the rally, which
took place on the steps of City Hall on
the morning of Aug. 10.
His family members were joined by
Councilmen Francisco Moya and Carlos
Menchaca, Vice Consul General of
the Ecuadorian Consulate in New York
Maria Acosta, members of the Young
Progressives of America, New York
Public Interest Research Group and
the Independent Drivers Guild and
immigration activist Ronald Bautista.
Protestors gathered with handmade
signs with the words #FreeEdisson
and “F*** ICE” written on them.
Barros’ daughter Paola held a sign
that read “Give Me Back My Dad!
Immigrants Are Welcome!”
“Deporting Edisson Barros will not
‘Make America Great Again.’ It will
succeed only in decimating and devastating
a family,” Moya said. “There
is no honor in visiting this hell on
Edisson and his family, and doing so is
not a defense of America or liberty. In
the interest of justice, we are calling on
Judge Mirlande Tadal to stay his deportation,
at least until she can review his
case and make an informed decision.”
Assemblywoman Ari Espinal also
demanded justice for Barros and the
other immigrant families who have
been subjected to similar fates.
“I am horrifi ed and angered by the
actions taken by the federal government
to try to take Edisson Barros away
from his family and his home for the
last 25 years,” Espinal said. “I join Council
member Francisco Moya in asking
Judge Mirlande Tadal to stay Edisson’s
deportation. The federal government
must stop tearing families apart.”
As previously reported, Barros
was arrested trying to save his family’s
dog back in May. The taxi driver
was reportedly walking his dog in
Maspeth when it ran into the street.
To stop an oncoming driver from
hitting the dog, Barros threw his
keys at the car to alert him to stop.
The driver of the vehicle got upset
and called the police, who arrested
Barros for public disorder. He wound
up being turned over to ICE following
his arrest and is now in custody at
the Hudson Correctional Facility in
Kearny, New Jersey.
The father and husband fi rst came
from Ecuador in 1994 and obtained a
Photo via twitter.com/FranciscoMoyaNY
work permit. Both of his young adult
daughters were born in the United
States. A family emergency required
him to return to his home country in
2003. But ICE spokeswoman Yong
Yow told Patch that Barros is being
subject to “deportation under a fi nal
order of removal from 2003.”
“Judge Tadal has already expressed
an interest in reviewing Mr. Barros’
2003 case, from which this deportation
ruling originates. We hope
that is true and urge her to stay the
deportation at least she can make an
informed decision,” according to a
statement from Councilman Moya’s
offi ce.
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