A Central Coast Congressman got a first hand look inside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Santa Maria. KCBX's Gabriela Fernandez spoke with Congressman Salud Carbajal, who said the visit was part of his push to hold the agency accountable and to inquire about his constituents' concerns.
FERNANDEZ: “Thank you for joining me today, Congressman Carbajal.”
CARBAJAL: “Thank you, Gabriela. Good to be here.”
FERNANDEZ: “We asked you to speak with us today because you recently visited the Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE Facility in Santa Maria. Can you please explain what you saw, who you engaged with, and if you saw any immediate concerns?”
CARBAJAL: “Well, when I did visit the ICE facility I met with representatives from Los Angeles ICE Facility and Santa Maria ICE facility. But guess what? There was not one person there. The facility was clean. It basically had two large rooms with restroom facilities that were semi-private, not completely private. And there was a smaller room. So for a total of maybe 24 to 26 individuals could be housed at that facility at any one time.
I was told that no children are processed or held at that facility. They said that there was no running water in the sink, but that they do provide food and water to individuals that are being detained there while they're being temporarily processed. They don't have medical or mental health professionals on site, but if they see somebody who says they're in need of care that they will make sure that they are taken to see medical professionals. It did lend itself to a conversation also about ICE raids and operation practices.
I point blank ask them, if you approach someone without due cause on the street, do they have the right to just not engage you and walk away? They said, yes. Now that answer in my opinion, was the one answer that they gave me that did not seem credible based on the facts, the videos, and the interactions that many people have witnessed and which led me to believe the validity of other answers that they gave me, quite frankly.
We talked about the masks and the military uniforms that ICE agents wore and told them that I felt that was creating tensions in the community and creating hostile environments, not having ID or identifying themselves.
They said that they're concerned for their own safety. But at the end of the day, they could be concerned about their safety, but the public's concerned about their safety.”
FERNANDEZ: “And we're also seeing with these mass raids that some people that have been detained are also legal citizens as well. You saw that in Carpinteria at the Glass House Farms a couple months ago. What steps are we taking, or do we need to take in order to prevent that from happening any further?”
CARBAJAL: “So the courts are a big factor in making sure that they are not violating people's civil rights and that they adhere to legal practices protecting people's rights.
The second thing that we can do is move legislation forward. I have signed on to legislation called the No Secret Police Act. Which would require DHS officers, CBP ICE officers to stop wearing face coverings or any item that conceals their face during detentions to, and forces them to identify the specific component of DHS, that they are part of.
And lastly, to wear or display official insignia or uniforms in a manner that is clearly visible to others. Thirdly, what we need to do is continue to move forward with other legislation that reforms our broken immigration system. You know, I'm part of two bipartisan bills called the Dignity Act, and the other one, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act that would actually bring about reforms to fix our broken immigration system.”
FERNANDEZ: “Are you expecting to stumble across any barriers when it comes to those solutions?”
CARBAJAL: “Well, yes. Republicans are in charge and they have no interest in moving any of those bills forward, even if they're bipartisan. And then this administration slow walks, their direction, the actions that the judges take. I think we're gonna continue to see barriers, but we need to continue fighting. The public at large—it's all hands on deck—everybody needs to show their concern, demonstrate and organize, and let this administration know their dissatisfaction with their policies.”
FERNANDEZ: “Thank you Congressman, for taking the time to speak with me today. I appreciate it.”
CARBAJAL: “Thank you for your interest in this important issue.”
