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Immigrants: “We Were Set Up by Amtrak and Greyhound!”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Maria Muentes, maria@familiesforfreedom.org

April 2, 2008

Families who were targeted for deportation after riding on Amtrak and Greyhound today denounced the private transport companies for laying a trap for them.  Immigrant rights activists joined the families who rallied in front of Amtrak and Greyhound headquarters to hold the travel companies accountable for taking their money and not warning them that they may be interrogated, arrested and detained by immigration officials.    
 
Sonia, who immigration officials arrested along with her family while they rode peacefully on an Amtrak train, spoke about the terror of being grilled by immigration officials and separated from her family.  “This is the last thing I expected coming home.  They seemed to be approaching all of the Latinos on the train and asking them for papers. One family even had work permits but immigration officials told them that this was not enough and they were detained also. I’m a customer, I paid just like everyone else, but my family and I were treated like we are less than human beings,” Sonia said.  Sonia’s family was detained at the Amtrak station and then transported to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility where some members were sent home and others imprisoned in the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility.
 
After being bonded out they experienced the same terror a second time coming home on the Greyhound bus.
“What this says to us is that immigrants--documented or undocumented--can expect to be targeted and inspected every single time they board Amtrak or Greyhound to go anywhere near a U.S. border crossing. That these companies do not warn people they may end up in immigration detention through the simple act of purchasing a ticket is unconscionable,” said Maria Muentes of Families for Freedom, a network by and for families facing and fighting deportation.

“I have witnessed a raid on a Greyhound bus and could see that the families detained were scared and unable to communicate with the ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials, said Joanne Macri, Director of the New York State Defenders Association Immigrant Defense Project.  “We all sat stunned as they took families with children off of the bus.  Passengers are not expecting a raid on a routine bus or train ride.  I could see they did not know it was their legal right to ask for an attorney or refuse to proceed with the interrogation,” Macri continued.
 
This shocking trend is part of the Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to deputize everyone in the community to help them enforce immigration law. 

“They claim that they are simply stepping up border inspections but essentially they are bringing the border to you.  It’s easy pickings for them to target unsuspecting people on these busses and trains but a nightmare for New York City families who will face deportation as a result of having taken that train or bus ride,” demanded Juan Carlos Ruiz, Director of New York New Sanctuary Movement.

Families for Freedom, who helped organize this rally wants to warn immigrants of the following,

• When stopped by immigration officials it is your right:
• To ask for an attorney. You can say, “I cannot answer your questions without my attorney present.”
• To not sign anything.
• Don’t Lie.
• Do not be combative, be polite and clear. You don’t want to give them an excuse to assault you physically.
• Make sure someone in your family knows where you are going and has all your information so they can find you if you are detained.
• Expect to be investigated by immigration officials each and every time you ride Amtrak or Greyhound or anytime you drive near the border.