The Hispanic Federation launched its Los Angeles office on Wednesday to support immigration rights groups such as Chillra and Cielo amid ongoing protests in the city.
At a press conference in downtown Los Angeles, the group spoke about some of the horrors and uncertainties of the immigrant community.
Chirla estimates that around 300 people have been in custody since Friday. But they said they certainly couldn’t know because they couldn’t speak to those people. Chirla added that he made an estimate based on calls they said they got from their families.
The immigration rights group told NBC4 that only five people can visit in federal custody.
“We can’t find many of our loved ones. We don’t know if they’re in Adelanto or not. Are they in Santa Ana or in the views of the desert?
Cielo, representing Indigenous communities, says dozens of detained people speak the Indigenous language as their first language, and they are concerned about whether those people will have access to people who can communicate fluently about their cases.
“I can’t imagine my relatives experiencing monolingualism in these spaces,” Odilia Romero said, Cielo.
The Hispanic Union also sought financial support. The federation said it has launched a $1 million fund nationwide to support migrant groups on the ground and another fund called “Immigrants, we get the job done.”
“We have to do more than get mad. We have to invest,” said Frankie Miranda, CEO of the Hispanic Federation.
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