17 Aug Florida Leads the Nation–and Not in a Good Way
Above image: Neighbors advising neighbors: warnings sent out about where immigration traffic stops are happening up and down Florida
Florida deports more people than any state in the U.S. State Police, the Florida Highway Patrol, and the Sheriffs’ Offices all actively assist ICE. Their goal: capture, incarcerate, separate families, and eventually deport as many humans as possible. The hundreds arrested daily in Florida contribute to the Department of Homeland Security’s national benchmark of arresting 2,000 people per day. Thousands of American born children are being separated from their parents in Florida. Sui Chung, who directs Americans for Immigrant Justice, estimates that nationally 100,000 citizen children have parents who were captured, are now imprisoned, or have been deported. Sit with that for a minute. 100,000 children.
Why don’t we know about the vast operation underway in Florida? It’s because of the seamless cooperation between the local, state and federal government. It’s because there are fewer allies who document what’s going on, come out to protect their neighbors, or put themselves between ICE and their targets. Sui Chung says, “Even our own community here [in Florida] is not fully comprehending how ugly it is in terms of separation of families.” But there are some brave souls.
Filmmakers José Jesús Zaragoza and Max Maldonado have exposed this operation in telling the story of Olga Pérez and her family in a podcast for Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting. Olga, a Maya Mam/Spanish interpreter, was dedicated to helping her community navigate a completely different existence in Florida. She had been here for 30 years and had four U.S. born children. Three are still teenagers. Her husband had a landscaping business.
Beloved by the community both Olga and her husband were kidnapped by ICE, and spent months cruelly imprisoned before being deported to Guatemala, leaving their children and businesses behind. You can listen to the podcast here. I hope it will channel your outrage into action.
Florida is also where we, along with local communities, are working to develop truth commissions, part of our forthcoming documentary film and justice-seeking initiative, The Truth Tellers. More on this soon.
ICYMI a couple of compelling Instagram reels created by our team member Valentina Vargas put Skylight’s emphasis on the importance of documentation and truth telling into a framework of liberation. We invite you to watch these short film gems. They will recharge your resolve.
