7-minute read
Fear of being stopped and possibly detained is causing members of immigrant communities in Polk County to curtail normal activities, such as going grocery shopping or to school, panelists said at a Nov. 15 forum on immigration hosted by the League of Women Voters of Polk County (LWV Polk).
Five panelists focused on challenges faced by children, families, students and working adults at the forum, held at Beacon Hill Fellowship in Lakeland. The hosting organization also collected food and hygiene products to be donated to affected families.
Jo Shim, president of LWV Polk, said they chose this topic because “so many of our members are really passionate about this issue.”
The forum comes at a time when Polk County tallied the highest number of law enforcement encounters with immigrants out of all of Florida’s 67 counties.
The panelists
“I am Puerto Rican. I migrated as an adult,” said Teresita Matos-Post, executive director of Beth-El Farmworker Ministry. “I got to come here with very little obstacles … because we’re U.S. citizens, so my experience does not mirror or affect in any way what the families are facing right now in this country who have nuanced statuses.”
“I grew up in Florida,” said Julianna Zavala. “I was born here, but my parents are from a Mexican background, and they did migrate to Florida back in — it was 1988 when they came here. So they were migrant farm workers.” Today, she is the Polk County Public Schools senior coordinator for Title I, Part C – Migrant Education Program and Title I, Part D – Local Programs for Neglected and Delinquent Students.
Nancy Futch, a member of LWV Polk, began her career as a fifth grade teacher in Georgia, then moved to Lakeland and continued to volunteer and eventually work in Polk County schools. She is an advocate for immigrant and undocumented students. “They could be your nurse practitioner. They can be your child’s teacher, deputy, fireman, doing all manner of work,” Futch said.
At 10 years old, Enrique Martinez followed his mother to the U.S. after years of separation. He did not learn that he was an undocumented immigrant until he wanted to apply for college scholarships, and his mother told him that he did not have a Social Security number. Nonetheless, Martinez graduated from Lakeland High School in 2006 with a 4.0. He earned an associates degree in engineering, but could not take his education further at the time because of his immigration status.
Martinez became an organizer for the immigration movement. He met and married his wife, Isabel, then became a U.S. citizen. Sadly, only seven months later, Isabel was killed in a car accident. After her death, Enrique was able to continue his education because he was now a citizen. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of South Florida. Today he works at an engineering firm headquartered in Atlanta.
Jacky Flores, a last-minute addition to the forum, graduated from Mulberry High School in 2019, then went on to earn a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in accounting from USF. Today, she is a certified public accountant working in corporate accounting. She worries about undocumented family members and friends in her community.
Impacts across Polk County
Polk County, ninth in the state in population, has the highest number of immigration encounters with law enforcement out of Florida’s 67 counties, according to the Florida Board of Immigration Enforcement. The 812 encounters include 454 from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, 302 from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and the rest from smaller law enforcement agencies.
Matos-Post said Beth-El is telling families “to prepare for the worst case scenario right now. … The families that we serve are not fearful; they’re in terror.” Some are avoiding leaving their homes altogether, said panelists.
Of the 454 encounters with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, 97 individuals, two of whom were reported to have gang affiliation, face federal immigration charges. 263 individuals face local/state charges. 94 people were not arrested.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd serves as chairperson of the State Immigration Enforcement Council.
According to an Oct. 25 article from The Ledger, Judd said he could not explain the high number of encounters in Polk County. However, he said that changes at the federal level have resulted in more local referrals to ICE. As ICE enters more deportation warrants into the National Crime Information Center and Florida Crime Information Center databases, “We find out they’re here illegally during our normal course of business,” he said.
The Lakeland Police Department has reported two encounters leading to local/state charges.
“As you see in the news, predominantly males get detained and deported,” Matos-Post said. “And that means a lot of moms are left behind trying to figure out how to do everything.”
She shared the story of a woman who came to Beth-El: “She was on her way to Publix to get her medication, and ICE trucks were there, and she simply decided not to go, and instead of going there, she came to us shaking because she did not want to even think about the possibility of being stopped while she was going to Publix.”
“It’s come to a point where calling an ambulance has become worrisome after hearing that a group of men were injured at work, and upon calling 911 to receive first aid, they were detained,” Flores said. “If they don’t work, they can’t feed their families, and that’s what keeps them going, despite the fear.”
Impacting children and education
“It’s traumatizing for us,” Flores said, “but especially for the kids whose parents are here one day and gone the next, when a 16 year old now feels responsible for her two younger siblings because both mom and dad have been deported.”
An audience member and third grade teacher also spoke up. “I already had to say goodbye to three of my students. I don’t want to continue doing that,” said Betty, who did not give her last name.
Zavala said supporting families helps keep students in school. “We want the students in school today, not a month from now, not a couple weeks from now. We want them in school immediately so they could start that education, so we could give them the resources that they need.”
“Once we give these students the resources that they need and families the resources that they need at home, where it all starts, they could become great leaders in the community as well, and in their schools, just anywhere,” she said. “We know that they’re able to thrive just given that opportunity.”
Advocates and Supporters
The speakers said they were encouraged by the number of people who attended the forum.
“Come out as an ally and say so explicitly,” Matos-Post encouraged audience members. “Go out and support immigrants’ businesses, and let them know that you are here, that you’re supporting and that you’re advocating and that you’re fighting and you’re calling your congressman and your mayor and all the policymakers.”
Zavala agreed. “Just having those advocates, those supporters, those people that are believing in them, that let them know that this is possible, and even just that step is huge.”
“We really need to build coalitions, and we need … to work together, because change is going to come through the power of people,” Matos-Post said.
latest news
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.
Follow the law. No excuses.
Come here legally and attain US citizenship, don’t arrive as an illegal and put your children at jeopardy. Learn English as your first language if you reside legally in the USA.
Registered Voter & Lakeland homeowner – Kristen Moser