“Criminal aliens are a threat to the safety of our children, families, community and our nation,” Kenneth Landgrebe, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) official, said in an August 22 statement on the arrests. “Our goal is to remove these threats from the United States.”

The La Plaza apartments on the Northwest side of Houston was one of the housing complexes targeted by ICE agents. Many workers had to shutter themselves in their homes rather than risk being swept up. Anyone the cops deemed a possible immigrant was challenged to produce documents.

“Those who commit crimes should be arrested, but most of us who came here to work should be protected, not persecuted,” María, a Guatemalan-born worker who has lived here 16 years, told the Spanish-language daily El Día.

At the Pine Gardens apartment complex in the Spring Branch section of Houston, Sharegj Díaz de Ortega told the Militant, “At 4:00 a.m. they pounded on my door. When I opened the door they wanted to know if a ‘Juan García’ lived here and claimed he lived in this complex. I told them there was no Juan García that lived here.” Díaz de Ortega, a live-in manager at the apartment complex, said several other residential buildings in Spring Branch were also raided.

“They went door to door, without any warrants, checking documents. Later I found out that they arrested 16 people in my complex and all but one, a citizen, were deported,” she reported. “No one here thinks a single one was on their lists,” she added, referring to the cops’ claim that they were targeting only a list of immigrants who have been issued final removal orders by an immigration judge.

ICE announced August 22 that they had already deported 142 of those arrested. In addition, the media reported several workplace raids around the country, including the arrest of 51 workers—two-thirds of the workforce—at a chair assembly factory in Sulphur, Oklahoma. Immigration raids were reported in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Washington, and Newark, New Jersey.
 
 
Related articles:
Legalize all immigrants now!
‘We’re workers, not criminals!’
Contingents from 17 states expected at Sept. 7 D.C. rally
Anti-immigrant ordinance defeated in Palm Bay, Florida
In tour of Boston, leader of struggle for immigrant rights campaigns for legalization
Chicago: Arellano wins support against deportation wins support  
 
 
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