Protesters have been gathering lately outside the historic Capitol on Monroe Street. They’re upset that the Florida Legislature is crafting immigration policy to assist the Trump Administration. They’re also protesting federal orders and immigration raids.
“Raids aren’t anything new,” says Tallahassee immigration attorney Elizabeth Ricci, “but the optics have changed.”
Ricci has become the go-to expert in Florida and often times nationally on immigration. (Disclosure: her law firm is a a regular underwriter of WFSU.) She addressed these issues on our weekly program, Speaking Of.
“All reasonable people agree that our immigration system is not working, and I understand that the state is frustrated about that. But the state does not have authority to act on immigration,” Ricci says.
The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) and the Florida Department of of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles announced that they, along with Homeland Security, conducted raids last month in Tallahassee and Jefferson County. The former involved a dozen people being detained for allegedly being in the country illegally. The latter targeted suspected Venezuelan gang members.
“The issue with FHP having additional immigration authority, with all due respect, is that they are not trained in this area,” Ricci says. Part of the latest round of legislation by state lawmakers includes over $300 million for the state to train and provide resources to help federal agents.
Ricci says there is fear among immigrant families about being separated, but she says widespread deportations in the U.S. would be logistically difficult and costly – to the tune of half a trillion dollars. “Even if we did, it would take years,” she says.
On this week’s show, we also hear from a local group that works with refugees who quickly had to flee their home countries. Tallahassee has its share of refugees from countries like Syria, Afghanistan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many of them get help from the faith-based nonprofit Neighborly.
“Here in the U.S. there’s about 9 major resettlement organizations, one of which is the International Rescue Committee, the IRC, here in Tallahassee,” says Neighborly Operations Director Kristin Barnett. Her husband, James Barnett, is Neighborly’s founder and executive director.
“The primary way that Neighborly helps refugees now is through our monthly event called Jubliee Marketplace,” Barnett says. “This is a Saturday morning event where we invite refugee families, and we make it a fun event.” They distribute donated items that are highly needed, like diapers, wipes, and toiletries.
Barnett says Neighborly’s approach is to “look at the person over the problem. When you become friends with someone, when it’s a genuine relationship, there’s a lot more trust.”
Hear more from Barnett and Ricci by clicking LISTEN.
