MIRAMAR, FLA. (WSVN) - Immigration activists are raising the alarm about what they described as an escalation in United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity targeting the Haitian community in the aftermath of the end of temporary protected status.
Several advocates gathered Wednesday afternoon in front of the ICE office in Miramar to make their voices heard and shared their plans for the future.
“We’re here today to denounce what is happening here in our communities,” said Yareliz Mendez Zamora, Policy Coordinator with the American Friends Service Committee. “How many children are going to sleep tonight not knowing whether or not they’re going to see their parents tomorrow? This is our reality that is happening in our state, especially as TPS for Haitians comes to an end.”
“This is processing center, not a detention center. And it is not equipped to hold people for more than 12 hours. Yet they continue to do so without any oversight,” said Silvia Munoz, with the Circle of Protection.
Concerned community leaders at the gathering said they have noticed what they called an alarming increase in law enforcement operations in South Florida and throughout the state.
Advocates specifically called out Miami city leaders and asked them to end policies they said are separating families, as well as the criminalization of immigrant communities.
“As you guys probably know and have covered yourselves, there’s been a significant uptick in immigration enforcement operations, not just in South Florida, but across the country, but it’s obviously hitting us here this state, a state made up of immigrants,” said Thomas Kennedy, Policy Analyst with the Florida Immigrant Coalition.
Participants emphasized that law enforcement officers should be focused on public safety, not immigration.
“We’re seeing enforcement operations hitting South Florida, all over Miami-Dade, Homestead, the Lake Worth area, Palm Beach, Central Florida, Jacksonville, and that’s leading to a stress in detention capacity where people are being detained not just in detention facilities, traditional immigration detention sites, which are horrible in their own right, but in administrative offices like this one.” said Kennedy. “We are also calling on local officials to rescind these agreements so that police can go back to their original intended jobs, which is public safety, not participating in this witch hunt against immigrants.”
TPS previously ended on Monday after a Supreme Court ruling made it possible for the Trump administration to end the protection for Haitians and Syrians.
“Make America great is a worthy goal, but you’re not going to make America great by making America mean. And to turn our backs on 350,000 people who are brothers and sisters to us all, who are human beings like us,” said Archbishop Thomas Wenski.
In a statement to 7News, ICE denied the activists allegations, saying:
FALSE. ICE has zero intention of installing or using tents at the Miramar facility. ICE continually evaluates options to address temporary fluctuations in detainee populations based on operational needs. The Miramar facility functions as a check-in location for individuals on a non-detained docket and serves as a processing site for daily operational arrests. The number of individuals temporarily held at the facility varies based on operational needs. After processing, individuals are transferred to detention centers. Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $2,600 and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.
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