The Center and Valley Watch Network with Faith in the Valley partnered for a mutual aid event to collect donations to help people being released from detention centers. Abigail Rodela said that since January, over 1,000 people have been released in Kern County; however, they typically lack access to resources and are at risk of homelessness, so Valley Watch Network is there to help.
“They’re released with a red onion bag that holds all of their paperwork and all their belongings, and usually they’re released with the clothes they had on the day that they were detained. So that could be weeks ago to a year or more ago. And so these people are not just at risk of being stranded; they’re also at risk of becoming unsheltered because people get released without a cell phone or their cell phone doesn’t have service, and there’s a language barrier, or they don’t have money, let’s say, or a place to stay,” said Rodela.
She continued, explaining that they stand outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in Bakersfield on Tuesdays to assist people. Along with mutual aid, Rodela said they provide emotional and spiritual support and help people get food and a room to stay when needed.
“I think there’s some people who are in shock, and they seem fine, but once they start talking to you, it’s like you hear very dark things about what they experienced. There’s other people who they’re just in a daze. They don’t really want to speak much, but you can tell that they’ve been through a lot. There’s other people who start telling stories, and they start crying. And so we have people who just really lean on their faith. Others, they lean really on their family or their culture, and so we’re able to see that strength too. But it’s been a traumatizing experience for really almost every person that’s passed through there,” explained Rodela.
When listening to their stories, Rodela stated that people are being denied medical care, facing retaliation for wanting better conditions, and being served food that is bad. She added that there is a rumor in the detention center that women are also being punished for crying.
“I remember speaking to a woman who came out of Cal City who told me that when she was in detention, there was rumors among the women there that women who would cry too much when they had first been brought there were at risk of being sent to solitary confinement and being given sleeping pills to stop that. And so there’s just a lot of violations happening, not just violations of ICE’s own standards, but also just state standards,” said Rodela.
During the event, there was also a space for attendees to write letters to Carlos Mendoza. Mendoza was shot by ICE in April seven times in Patterson, California, when he was on his way to work and was transferred to several facilities afterward, causing even more stress for his fiancée and family. His attorney even lost track of him at one point before he was located in Taft and later transferred to California City Detention Center.
“He wasn’t even supposed to be there while having bullets still lodged in his body. And so really the only medical attention he was given was he was given ibuprofen pills. That was it. And it wasn’t until, I believe, a few weeks ago, a couple weeks ago, that he actually went through surgery. They took out the bullets,” said Rodela, adding that there were still concerns about if she was receiving adequate care.
According to Rodela, he is currently waiting for a hearing because he was accused of weaponizing his vehicle against the ICE officers by trying to escape. Prior to being detained, Mendoza had no criminal history.
“His sister shares how to stay just distracted or just encouraged while in detention; he does art, he does crafts,” said Rodela. “I know that he speaks to his family through FaceTime. He has a 2-year-old daughter right now. And so he also reads letters that people all over the country and California are sending to him. And so we wanted to dedicate this space especially for him, considering that we’re like his siblings from the Central Valley and just reminding him that he’s not forgotten and that he’s always in our minds.”
Fry Friend, the Youth and Young Adult Coordinator with the Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity, said they hope people who attended the event learned about the different opportunities to volunteer and the multiple organizations doing this work. They added that it is on the community to step up and help during these times.
“I think we also want this to be a space of education for folks to learn more about what’s happening in ICE detention centers, what’s happening when ICE is targeting and kidnapping our community members on the streets and in their homes,” said Friend. “And I think also a big component of this is the mutual aid aspect, where we are trying to facilitate a space where folks can come and bring donations and help us assemble those donations that go directly to people recently released to show how simple it can be to help our neighbors and to help our community members and to show that everyone does have a role and everyone can be part of the movement to support our neighbors and our immigrant siblings.”
One attendee, Nick Verdin, spoke about his family’s history, saying it is part of why he cares so deeply about these issues, and he was excited to learn about the work Faith in the Valley does.
“My grandparents came over here, and it took them forever to get, like, their green card. I think my grandpa got his just a couple years before he passed, I believe. And, you know, on top of, you know, everything horrible that’s happening with ICE detention centers and everything, people say, why don’t you do it the right way? And, like, it’s so hard to do it the right way. And they’re making it, you know, harder. It’s getting to the point where being born here is on the chopping block of potentially not keeping you safe,” said Verdin.
He explained nobody should have to live in fear of being taken and separated from their families.
“You can look at it as you can be next, or you look at it as no one deserves to have it happen to them at all. And I think that’s, you know, where we should be coming from. No one deserves to have this happen to them at all. And there’s no reason we can’t all live comfortably, be happy, and be peaceful and be legal. Not that it should matter,” said Verdin.
To elected officials, Verdin stated that they need to be looking out for and caring about the community they were elected to serve.
“Do what you were elected to do. Look out for us,” said Verdin. “Because, you know, even as someone who’s legal, I’m still affected by someone who’s been detained. No, not that it’s about me, but you’re affecting your citizens. People who you’re claiming to protect and want to serve, we don’t want it. We don’t want these people treated this way. We don’t want people ripped from their homes. So no matter how you look at it, it’s not what we want. I’m sure there are some people who have whatever reason they want, but I think the majority of people don’t want this. And I think we’re seeing more of that. So yeah, if you’re an elected official, if you want to be, you want to be here still, prove it and listen to us.”
