Indy residents gather for food, fellowship, and support for their immigrant neighbors

Nancy Gideon came to the United States from Haiti when she was a young girl. She said there is a lot of uncertainty and fear in the immigrant community right now.

"People are being held without bond, they're basically kidnapping people off the streets for no reason, people with no criminal record," Gideon said.

The scariest thing on her mind is hundreds of thousands of people losing Temporary Protection Status from countries like Haiti.

"People who have been part of our community for 15 years or more," Gideon said. "These are people who are in America right now, you know, contributing, working hard. They're taxpayers, you know, they're part of our community."

Gideon was one of several immigrants who shared their personal experiences in a packed Indianapolis church Sunday afternoon. People congregated at Northview Church of the Brethren for food, music and fellowship to learn how they can support their immigrant neighbors. The gathering focused on what to do next.

Record numbers of detainments have been recorded under the Trump Administration. Data published in December shows about one third of people arrested by ICE in the first nine months of President Trump's second term had no criminal record.

"I am not against detaining and deporting violent criminals who are here illegally," said Stuart Mora, a community organizer. "Nobody is against that. That is not what is happening right now. We are rounding up people who belong to families, who are not criminals, holding them without due process, holding them without bond."
 

The increase of immigration enforcement in Minnesota has drawn national attention in January, particularly after two U.S. citizens — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — were killed by federal agents. 

More deaths have occurred in detention centers. Last year 32 people were reported to have died while in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. Six deaths have been reported so far this year, including Geraldo Lunas Campos, a Cuban migrant who was held in solitary confinement at an immigration detention facility in Texas. 

Mora said Indiana officials have increased the state's involvement, with expanding beds available to ICE in the state's prison system.

"We are holding almost 600 ICE detainees at the Miami Correctional Facility, a State of Indiana facility," Mora said. "And I'll be frank, I would consider that detention camp to be a concentration camp."

Mora said he and others are calling on Gov. Mike Braun to end ICE detention at Miami.

Sunday's "Standing in Solidarity with Our Immigrant Neighbors" event comes on the heels of several Indianapolis protests against ICE and immigration enforcement organized over the weekend.

Amy Guzman with Westside Indy Indivisible was adopted from Columbia. She said being involved in President Donald Trump's immigration enforcement the past year has been draining, but the attendance at recent events supporting immigrants gives her hope.

"To see a whole new group of people rising up, like, it's just so heartening," Guzman said. "It makes me want to cry because, you know, we're tired."

The event was organized by Indivisible Central Indiana, Indianapolis Peace and Justice Center and the Peace Church Coalition. Rhonda Baker is one of the leaders of the Peace Church Coalition. She said they expected about 30 people to show up. They got more than 100.

"People are really wanting this," Baker said.

Baker said she wanted the event to help people learn how to take action.

"We have some people who want to get involved, and that some people feel fearful about going to a rally, or they feel like, oh, I want to do something, but I just don't know where I can fit in," Baker said. "And so part of this is to say, 'Hey, everyone has a voice. Everyone has something that they are good at, that they can be part of this.'"

Baker said more events are being planned for the future.

Contact WFYI All Things Considered newscaster and reporter Samantha Horton at shorton@wfyi.org or on Signal at SamHorton.05