Immigration raid at New Bedford - Another story that shows Kerry human side

50 are held in immigration raid
New Bedford factory employed illegals, US says

By Yvonne Abraham and Brian R. Ballou, Globe Staff | March 7, 2007

NEW BEDFORD -- Hundreds of immigration officers and police descended on a New Bedford leather goods factory yesterday , charged top officials with employing illegal immigrants, and rounded up 350 workers who could not prove they were in the country legally.

The waterfront company, Michael Bianco Inc., was using the illegal immigrants to produce safety vests and backpacks for the US military, officials said.

Workers inside the plant described a terrifying scene. At first, several hundred employees, most of them Guatemalan or Salvadoran, were told to remain at their sewing stations as officials reviewed their status. Chaos ensued, as some panicked workers tried to flee.

...

According to affidavits unsealed yesterday, Insolia hired illegal immigrants instead of legal workers because the immigrants were desperate for jobs and more willing to put up with working conditions in his factory. Federal investigators allege workers were denied overtime , docked 15 minutes for every minute they were late , and fined for talking on the job, or for spending more than two minutes in the plant's squalid bathrooms.
...


Activists said they were concerned yesterday that the children of workers would be left without care.

"This has been a total nightmare," Marques said. "I've never seen so much panic." Many of those impacted gathered last night at Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. James Church. Luis Matias came to seek help for the 9-month-old and 3-year-old daughters of his tenant, Rosa Gutierez, 26, of Guatemala, who was taken into custody.

"She's a hard worker, a good person, who came to the US to find a better life," he said in a phone interview. "She's a very good mother. It's inhumane to take a mother away from her children," he said. "She's not a criminal."

Kerry on New Bedford immigration raid that left dozens of children stranded



BOSTON - Senator John Kerry today released the following statement yesterday's immigration raid in New Bedford that left dozens of children stranded.

"Better preparation was urgently needed for the unintended consequences of yesterday's raid. Better cooperation and coordination with the Department of Social Services should have been included in the planning. There's no need to separate dozens of young children from their parents - many of whom are the sole caregivers -- without a back-up plan. That's a false choice that could have been avoided. The illegal hiring practices of companies that break the law should not twice victimize innocent children.

"It's incumbent upon all of us to act to address this situation. I am sending a letter to ICE seeking an explanation into why this happened, and demanding answers about what they're doing to address what those on the ground are describing as a humanitarian crisis in Southeastern Massachusetts."

Kerry asks ICE to reunite parents and stranded children as quickly as possible



BOSTON - Senator John Kerry today sent a letter the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement director requesting an explanation of yesterday's incident, and urging the agency to work as quickly as possible to reunite the stranded children with their parents.

The text of the letter is below:

Karyn Lang Director Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Director Lang:

I was deeply concerned to read reports today that dozens of young children were stranded-including nursing infants-when their parents were detained as part of the immigration raid at Michael Bianco Inc.'s in New Bedford, Massachusetts. (Attached) I recognize the importance of enforcing our immigration laws and cracking down on companies that brazenly violate them, but it is absolutely critical that we do so without jeopardizing the health and safety of innocent children.

I understand that you coordinated with the Massachusetts Department of Social Services (DSS) prior to the raid, and that DSS was on site during the raid. I also understand that the immigrants were questioned as they were detained in an attempt to determine whether any single parents or sole caregivers needed a humanitarian release to care for their children. The problem is that not all of the detainees indicated that they fell into this category.

It is understandable that illegal immigrants would not necessarily feel comfortable telling the truth about their children to federal officers during an immigration raid. They may not have understood the questions, they could have feared for the safety of their children, or they could have feared for their own safety.

It's clear that further steps were necessary. At a minimum, it is incumbent upon ICE to work with the state and social service agencies to ensure that children are immediately placed into safe and secure environments when they are separated from their parents.

Even if this situation was not foreseeable, ICE should have worked more closely with DSS once the problem became apparent. DSS now reports that they have been unable to get in touch with the men and women whose children have been stranded. I urge ICE to work with the Boston Detention Removal Operations and with DSS to locate the parents of stranded children and secure their release as quickly as possible.

Sincerely,

John F. Kerry