With the crackdown on immigration spreading across the country under the Trump administration, Eyewitness News looks into immigrant rights, and what non-citizens need to know.
With the crackdown on immigration spreading across the country under the Trump administration, Eyewitness News looks into immigrant rights, and what non-citizens need to know.
Enrique is one of thousands of immigrants in the Tri-State living in fear – fear of being separated from his teenage son Antonio.
“I feel sad because all my life I lived with my dad, with my family,” Enrique said.
They fled the violence in their home country of Peru looking for a better life, and ended up in New Jersey.
Antonio has a special juvenile visa, and is allowed to stay, but his father is not.
“I need him, he’s my support you know, he’s my dad,” Antonio said.
They believe Enrique could be detained by ICE and deported any day.
Enrique told Eyewitness News that he will be separated from his son.
“I feel embarrassed because when I came to this country, I did it because I know my country doesn’t have the possibilities for my son,” he said.
Veronica Cardenas represents the family.
“I think it’s unfortunately going to happen any day,” Cardenas said. “I don’t think that they’re going to stand by what a previous administration has said.”
Before working in private practice, Cardenas worked as an ICE prosecutor for the last three presidents.
“I feel like the immigration world has been turned upside down,” she said.
She also has a fear of quotas.
The Trump administration said they want to arrest more than 1,800 undocumented immigrants every day.
“Immigration is focused on the numbers, and anytime they focus on the numbers, you lose due process rights,” Cardenas said.
She says it’s not just non-citizens and criminals who are getting picked up.
A military veteran was reportedly picked up in the raid at a Newark seafood market last week.
“Non-citizens are probably the easiest targets but where does it end? Where does it stop? And what is his end game here?” Cardenas said.
That’s why she’s educating people about their rights.
“They know non-citizens right now are equipped with what their rights are. they know that they don’ have to speak to immigration, but they’re doing it by force and they’re doing it by tactics like screaming at people,” Cardenas said.
She says that if non-citizens are walking out on the street and someone asks them their name, or where they are from, they shouldn’t answer those questions unless they are actually under arrest, and even then, they shouldn’t answer questions.
If they are at home and someone knocks on their door, Cardenas says “do not answer.”
“And one thing that I think people don’t realize is that ICE can lie to you,” she said. “They can knock on your door and say ‘hey, we’re here. There was a robbery next door. We just want to ask if you have any questions.’ They can say whatever they want to get you to open that door and sometimes they will, so my advice would be, if you’re not expecting anyone, do not open the door.”
She says if someone is knocking on the other side, non-citizens should ask them if they have a warrant.
“I think everyone deserves a fair day in court where the laws are not skewed against a person,” she said.
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With the crackdown on immigration spreading across the country under the Trump administration, Eyewitness News looks into immigrant rights, and what non-citizens need to know.
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