SELA community demands abolishment of ICE, resources to be provided to the affected communities

For eight months, the massive ICE raids across the country have disrupted the lives of entire communities, separated thousands of families and caused unnecessary deaths. 

In Los Angeles County, the Southeast Los Angeles (SELA) area has been severely impacted by ICE raids, especially in cities like Huntington Park and South Gate. 

Despite the fear and anxiety, on Saturday, elected officials and community leaders of these cities and others that comprise SELA, including Cudahy, Bell Gardens, Maywood, Bell and Lynwood, gathered in front of South Gate City Hall to call on county, state and federal officials to step in and help.

Bell Gardens Councilman Jorgel Chavez said the community looks up to their local council for answers during these difficult times and while they continue searching for ideas and supporting one another, the reality is that more action, resources and funding are needed.

The participants at the press conference agreed that it is paramount that federal elected representatives dismantle ICE.

“We need to abolish this horrible, torturous agency that was created to terrify people like us, people like me, just based on the color of our skin, the language that we speak or where we come from,” Chavez said. 

Lynwood Councilman Juan Muñoz emphasized that ICE was created in 2003 without any guardrails or accountability and Congress must act now. 

“Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution says that Congress has a responsibility to provide for the general welfare of the people of this country, and in my opinion, they are abdicating that responsibility by not calling for an immediate abolishment of ICE,” Muñoz said. 

Cudahy Mayor Cynthia Gonzalez sent a message especially to the congressional Democrats in the House and the Senate. She said communities are tired of leadership that is not willing to fight for what is right. She said Democrats who play politics and by rules that no longer exist have only put communities in danger. 

“We are in a unique moment in history where you have to decide what side you are on,” she said. “Will you be fighting for the working class of this country or will you stand with the MAGA confederate billionaire class?”

A message to local law enforcement and county

Gonzalez also asked local law enforcement if they want to continue having their salaries, pension and the opportunity of a nice middle class life. If the answer is yes, she said, then they  need to protect the local businesses that pay for those salaries, and even the undocumented residents whose rent payments and property taxes fund local law enforcement salaries. 

“Harming us means harming yourself,” she said. “Saying that you can’t get involved in any type of federal jurisdiction is not enough. We will no longer tolerate continuing paying into contracts to individuals who refuse to protect the constitutional rights and the safety of the people that pay them.”

More funding for food

Another petition was directed to the state and county representatives to acknowledge that these affected communities are in need of basic resources like food distribution.

“Our community is afraid, our small businesses are suffering and it’s impacting everybody and this has to stop,” Chavez said. 

Wilma Franco, executive director of the SELA collaborative, said during these difficult times they have been able to do only one food distribution, with the help of the local YMCA.

She said the community was barely getting back on track after being severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and now they feel they are going back. 

Oftentimes, the community has said that their trusted partners are nonprofits, faith-based organizations and the schools. “But when nonprofits are not being resourced, how are we supposed to do the work?” she questioned. “Our only partner that we’re aware of that was funded to do food distribution is our funding member, the YMCA… but none of the other partners are being funded.”

One of the biggest allies for SELA Collaborative is the Council of Mexican Federations (COFEM), which according to Franco is not being funded, therefore, they cannot help the SELA community. 

She said it is important to continue helping the community by advocating and making calls to all legislators, the county and even leaders and philanthropic partners to remember SELA. 

“Our communities are suffering, and we are being impacted heavily, and that is the reason why we are here today,” Franco said.