Community Rallies to ‘Keep ICE Out’ of Central Coast

Hundreds Gather at Santa Barbara Courthouse to Support Protections for Immigrants

A rally in support of protections for immigrants was held at the Santa Barbara Courthouse on June 10. | Credit: Elaine Sanders

As the crowd gathered in front of the Santa Barbara Courthouse Tuesday for a community rally to “Keep ICE Out” of the Central Coast, reports were coming in that federal agents had been conducting operations near farmworker facilities in Oxnard and Santa Maria that same morning, detaining dozens of workers and leaving even more hiding in fear.

The June 10 rally was organized by the Fund for Santa Barbara in response to the increased immigration enforcement across the region and the intense weekend of protests in Los Angeles, which led to a militarized response with National Guard, United States Marines, and at least 32 deputies from the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office.

Primitiva Hernandez, 805UndocuFund executive director, has been on the frontlines operating the 805 Immigrant Rapid Response Line with a group of dedicated volunteers who have been working nonstop verifying reports of potential immigration enforcement in Santa Barbara, Ventura, and San Luis Obispo counties. By the time she took the mic at Tuesday’s rally, she was fighting through tears as she relayed the latest reports of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents in the area for the first time this year.

“Right now, we have ranches that are packed with people waiting for us to go down there and get them out,” Hernandez said.

“What is happening to them can happen to us,” said 805 UndocuFund Executive Director Primitiva Hernandez. “We all saw the tanks and helicopters coming down the 101. I cannot tell you how many calls we received of the community frightened that Santa Barbara County could become like L.A.” | Credit: Elaine Sanders

Until then, it had only been ICE agents in plainclothes and unmarked vehicles. But on Tuesday, videos on social media showed Border Patrol agents in military fatigues, body armor, and masks covering their faces as they pulled workers over to the side of the road in Oxnard.

She expressed her gratitude for all the dedicated volunteers who have worked “countless hours” verifying reports on the Rapid Response Hotline — which has confirmed 81 arrests this year — and called on local government officials to do more to protect immigrants.

A “Mojiganga,” or giant puppet, with a sign saying “We are a country of immigrants.” | Credit: Elaine Sanders

“They’re not doing anything,” Hernandez said, pointing across the street where the County Board of Supervisors were holding a meeting at the time. “And believe me when I tell you that we have gone up to them and asked them for funding, and we asked them for a policy that would prevent the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s from cooperating with ICE, and politics always gets in the way. We cannot allow this to happen because innocent families are being torn apart as we speak.”

On Tuesday, the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office confirmed that it had provided “mutual aid” in Los Angeles with personnel from its Sheriff’s Response and Special Enforcement Teams, which provided “security to buildings” during the protests.

Sheriff Brown said the team was not “not engaged in immigration enforcement activities,” but instead was deployed to assist with what he called “destructive attacks on private property and targeted attacks on law enforcement officers.”

California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Governor Gavin Newsom challenged the heavy-handed response to the Los Angeles protests in a lawsuit filed Monday, which directly asked the court to block the Trump administration from using the military and National Guard. “It’s not just immoral — It’s illegal and dangerous,” Attorney General Bonta said.

“I stand before you today on behalf of the hundreds of immigrants we serve, our neighbors, our coworkers, our friends who live in fear — not because they have done anything wrong, but because our systems have failed to protect them,” said Immigrant Legal Defense Center Executive Director Julissa Peña. | Credit: Elaine Sanders

At the Santa Barbara rally, Immigrant Legal Defense Center Executive Director Julissa Peña said the actions taken in Los Angeles highlight the blatant disregard for the constitutional rights of undocumented individuals, many of whom are being targeted despite having no prior criminal history.

Peña, who works to provide legal representation to those facing deportation proceedings, said that the aggressive immigration agenda of the past few months has left many nonprofits “stretched to the breaking point.” She urged local leaders to step up and support these organizations.

“Every day we receive desperate pleas for legal help from immigrant families, residents of the Tri-County area facing deportation without the ability to pay for counsel,” Peña said. “Immigrants are deeply invested in our civic and economic life. Protecting their rights is not charity. It is sound public policy that benefits every single one of us.”

Fernando Martinez, organizing manager for the Mixteco Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP), said he wanted the community to think of the broader impacts of these deportations on the families and children affected. He pointed out that the farmworkers who are being targeted and labeled as criminals are the same people who were praised as “essential workers” during COVID.

“It’s part of a broader coordinated attack on the people of color, immigrants, and Indigenous communities,” Martinez said.

Fernando Martinez, organizing manager for the Mixteco Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP), said he was heartbroken after hearing of farmworker arrests in Santa Maria and Ventura on June 10. | Credit: Elaine Sanders
Fund for Santa Barbara Executive Director Eder Gaona-Macedo announced an increase in endowments towards immigrants’ rights organizations on the Central Coast. | Credit: Elaine Sanders

Fund for Santa Barbara Executive Director Eder Gaona-Macedo reminded those in attendance of the important contributions immigrants have made to the community. He said he overcame the many struggles of growing up undocumented in Santa Barbara, and, thanks to the support of the community, he was able to earn degrees from UCLA and Columbia and become the first undocumented immigrant to lead a community foundation.

He announced that the Fund for Santa Barbara would be increasing its endowment funding to immigrant rights organizations such as 805UndocuFund and Immigrant Legal Defense Center and called on others to donate whatever they can to help.

“What we have seen the last couple of weeks and the last couple of months is a travesty,” he said. “If you are not paying attention, you should. Our families — regardless of their backgrounds, regardless of citizenship status — are being torn apart. We need your support. We need the city, we need the state, we need the county to step up and help us provide resources to the groups on the ground.”