HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) – Federal immigration authorities have conducted raids at businesses, homes, courthouses and many other locations across the nation.
In South Texas, a number of restaurants were raided by ICE agents earlier this month. In Port Isabel a construction site was raided and several workers were detained.
The first publicly known raid took place in February at Abby’s Bakery in Los Fresnos. The owners of the well-known business are facing charges of harboring illegal workers.
U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, says nearly all of the immigrants being detained and deported are hardworking residents contributing to their communities.
He says the raids are hurting many businesses, including farmers, construction and restaurants who are left without workers.
Gonzalez said that is why he sent President Donald Trump a letter on Monday urging executive action to help struggling businesses in South Texas and across the U.S.
“That is why I urge you to protect American businesses and issue an executive order that would allow small business to sponsor undocumented migrants who have been in the country for three years and have no criminal record,” he said in the letter.
He said the ICE raids being conducted across the Rio Grande Valley are disgraceful and inhumane.
“I am shocked by some of the visuals that I see on TV that I see on social media, it’s a very aggressive enforcement. I don’t think anybody had ever seen before in this country not in our lifetime,” Gonzalez said. “And I think it’s shameful for this administration, the way they’re conducting themselves.”
Gonzalez said he believes immigrants without criminal records are being detained so the Trump administration can reach a quota.
“These are good people that have never committed crimes and in fact, that’s why they’re picking them up because they couldn’t find enough criminals the way they initially told us. You’re not going to get a million criminals,” Gonzalez said on Tuesday from the U.S. Capitol.
“I mean, it’s been proven immigrants that come to this country commit crimes at a much lower rate than American citizens do. So, you’re not going to round up a million criminals that are undocumented and I think they’re trying to keep up with their quota,” Gonzalez said. “They’ve gotten very, very aggressive, it’s created unrest of America, and we need to bring this to the end, but more than anything, it’s hurting American businesses.”
Gonzalez said that fear among people without legal status in the United States is causing many to not show up for work.
“It’s hurting our agriculture sector, our construction sector in Texas,” Gonzalez said. “People aren’t showing up to jobs. This is putting pressure on banks, that have made construction loans that have timelines to them in jobs that can’t be fulfilled.“
He said business leaders have told him some construction workers are pouring concrete at midnight because that’s the only time that they think that they can evade ICE arrests.
“The construction work industry is very concerned. The poultry industry, the beef industry,” Gonzalez said. “The hardest jobs in America are done by immigrant labor. That’s just a fact. And we need to come to terms with it.”
U.S. Rep. Monica de la Cruz, R-Edinburg was not available for an interview Tuesday.
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