Pedro feels blessed because during the four migratory raids that have been carried out in the parking lot of the Home Depot store in the Westlake neighborhood in Los Angeles, between June and August, he has not been present.
“Blessed God those days I have had work with my patterns. When I don’t get anything with them or rest, almost always once or twice I come here to Home Depot,” says the day laborer.
The Home Depot store parking in Los Angeles County and Southern California have been subject to constant migratory raids since June.
The Home Depot Store of the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles has been the subject of four operations by agents of the Migration and Customs Service (ICE) and the border patrol.
The first operation was on June 6 when the violent mass raids began in Los Angeles; Another was recorded on June 22; On August 6 they returned with Troy Horse operation (Operation trojan Horse) where federal agents arrived with a shift truck of the PENSKE company making them pass as employers in search of workers. In this operation they took 16 day laborers.
On August 29 there was another operation in the same home depot park of the Westlake district and stopped between 8 and 15 day laborers.
“I’ve been in this country for eight years, and God has allowed me to work without problems. But I am not worried because they arrest me. God has the last word. I have my confidence placed in my heavenly Father who gave me life, and I came here to support my children,” says Pedro, who holds his wife and his two children in Guatemala.
Although Pedro, whose specialty at work is painting, says he is not afraid, tries to stay away from the largest day laborer group that is closest to the home depot store.
“I don’t like to mix with them because they smoke, and I have no vices,” he says.
For decades, employers, contractors and people who reforms to their home, have gone to the Home Depot to buy materials. Many of them usually hire day laborers who remain outside stores in search of informal employment.
But because these stores have become the target of the migratory operations of federal agents, many in the community wonder why day laborers continue to seek work.
“It is the need. We have to pay the rent, and send money to the family in our countries,” says Pedro.
The day laborers arrive from six in the morning to the Home Depot stores and are placed to the tickets waiting for work. Some remain in search of employment until 3 in the afternoon.
The multiple raids have not prevented them from still going every day in the hope of gaining some income. They barely observe that a car or a moving truck approaches to offer their services to the driver.
After the raids, around the home depot of the Westlake district of Los Angeles, there are at least four volunteers of the tenant union, who have given themselves the task of offering their time to immediately spread if the migration agents arrive.
“It is a devastating situation. We are living moments of terror against the immigrant community. The day laborers and lavacarros are being harassed,” says Martha Arévalo, director of lack, an organization that has a center for day laborers a few steps from the home depot of the Westlake, where federal agents have come to make their reades military style, with vehicles of the army, masked tearful and rubber bullets.
The pro -immigrant leader says that the need forces the day laborers to continue arriving at the Home Depot in search of job occupation, despite the threat that The migra I arrive at any time.
“The workers are very afraid, but their need to put food on the table for their children, to pay the rent, and provide for their people.”
He adds that day laborers are a fighter community, and their strength is incredible.
“All they want is to work in peace while the raids are increasingly violent,” he laments.
Arévalo adds that unfortunately the recent ruling of the Supreme Court will allow migration agents to arrest anyone who seems Latin, who speak Spanish, to be day laborers and domestic workers.
“That opinion is sufficient justification to violate their rights, and we will continue to see these raids.”
How to protect day laborers
Arévalo says they have developed security protocols, and provided training to their team to keep the center next to the Home Depot in the Westlake neighborhood. “
Every time we have a raid, we meet to ask how to improve these protocols. It has been very difficult to plan and protect the community because we are facing an administration that ignores the laws of our country; Nor follow the orders of the Federal Courts. ”
So – he says – that they are very clear that they will continue to fight for the rights of undocumented immigrants.
After September 8, the United States Supreme Court gave green light to carry out immigration operations based on the racial profile, the national day laborers (NDLON) through its leader, Pablo Alvarado called to organize and attend vigils and demonstrations on September 18 to demand the cuts that protect the rights of the fourth amendment of the Constitution.
The NDLON has also launched the campaign adopts a corner of the day laborer (Adopt to Day Labor Corner) to record and report the raids; and invite to participate as volunteers to those who do not have a risk of deportation.
“If you are an American citizen, it supports immigrant workers, adopts a corner, an Home Depot, a car wash,” he says.
And ask to disseminate information about their national direct line for American citizens victims of racial discrimination, which you can call for help and information if they stop them or capture them in the middle of the ICE crisis.
Hundreds of day laborers have literally kidnapped in the raids in the Home Depot of Southern California. In August, a day laborer who escaped from a raid outside the home depot of the city of Monrovia was hit and killed by a vehicle.
According to the pleasure firm. It is a fall much greater than other stores in the country in the same period of time, which reported casualties between 2.7 and 3.8%.