What We Do:
Advocacy
Lights for Liberty Rally and March!
On July 12 and 13, 2019, the communities of Santa Maria, Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo shined the light on what is happening in immigration detention centers at the border and across the country!
We estimate about 400 people attended the event in San Luis Obispo. Click below to see photos of the events.
TRUTH Act Forum
The TRUTH Act (AB2792) went into effect in California on Jan. 1, 2017. It pertains to the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agency and its access to individuals who have come in contact with law enforcement during the previous calendar year.
In 2018, we coordinated a community response to share questions and concerns during SLO County Sheriff Ian Parkinson's presentation to the Board of Supervisors.
In 2019, we worked with a coalition of community leaders to tour the jail and meet with Sheriff Parkinson in an effort to ensure transparency and accountability regarding the interactions of local law enforcement with ICE.
The TRUTH Act
It has been widely reported over the years that in the ICE interviews conducted in jails, deportation agents often coerce, intimidate, and violate basic rights. The TRUTH Act is a State law that passed in 2016 and was implemented in 2017 to establish transparency and reduce the collaborative actions between the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and local law enforcement.
It puts vital know-your-rights information in the hands of immigrant community members held in local jails and targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
It ensures the equal protection under U.S law regardless of immigration status in the following ways:
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The TRUTH Act requires that if a local law enforcement agency provides ICE with notification of an individual’s release date and time, then the local law enforcement agency must also provide the same notification to the individual and their attorney or permitted designee.
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The TRUTH Act ensures community members have the “right to know” if ICE has asked the jail to turn them over for deportation and protects the “right to say no” to any interrogations or to request to have an attorney present for interrogations in local jails. Prior to the law, local agencies were transferring people over to immigration without notification to the individual. This meant that someone could be deported or transferred to immigration detention before their lawyer or their family were advised.
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The law ensures transparency. All information pertaining to interactions with ICE are subject to the California Public Records Act, making any involvement of local law enforcement with ICE open to the public. Additionally, The TRUTH Act also requires that local law enforcement report any interactions with ICE to the public through a public forum, and give opportunity for public comment. The public can share personal stories and testimonies about any interactions, communications, or collaborations with ICE, and the impact on the family. During this forum, local law enforcement is required to share data about who ICE is after and how many people have been transferred over to ICE in the past year. Community members can ask questions and learn more about the policies involving transfers.