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Los Angeles Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
As immigration fears surge, LAUSD ‘compassion fund' to support families amid return to school
As many immigrant parents express fear about sending their children back to school next week, Los Angeles Unified has amassed $1 million in donations for a 'compassion fund' for families affected by federal immigration raids, Supt. Alberto Carvalho announced Tuesday. The funds donated to the LAUSD Education Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the school system, will cover needs from 'A to Z,' said Carvalho during an annual event in which he makes home visits to encourage regular school attendance. 'We're talking about support systems for kids who may have to go into court or employees,' Carvalho said while visiting two families that live near Sheridan Elementary School in Boyle Heights. 'Additional transportation costs that may go beyond our school buses, anything the family may need. We are not restricting it. We want to hear what the challenge is, what the difficulty is, and then use the fund to bring ease, comfort and viable solutions for these families.' Food aid could be provided through other sources, Carvalho added: 'We have very viable partners that have already committed to providing the food through information that we provide.' The district estimates that it employs at least 300 staff members who lack citizenship — all working legally with either Temporary Protected Status, for immigrants who were in danger in their native country, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, for immigrants who arrived as children. The employees are at risk of losing their right to live and work in the United States. Carvalho's pledges — on top of measures already taken that include trying to establish safe zones around campuses — come as teachers-union members rallied last weekend demanding that the district do more to help immigrant families in the nation's second-largest school district. At that union gathering, school board President Scott Schmerelson, who attended as a spectator, said he agreed with the intent of the union to help affected families and employees as much as possible and said that district officials would work with labor leaders. The impact of immigration raids present a new wild card to concerns about attendance as the Aug. 14 start of the school year approaches. Craig Sipes, the Sheridan Elementary principal, said the school is virtually all Latino and almost all families are low income. Economic activity in the neighborhood has declined sharply, he said. 'We have some families who are scared to come out from their apartments, from their homes,' Sipes said. 'Some kids are staying home from school. Parents are staying home from work within the community.' Sipes said the impact of immigration raids accelerated toward the end of the most-recent school year and it's not clear what will happen next week. Parents are invited onto school grounds of the first day. After that, the school will do what it can to expedite pick up and drop off. His message to parents, he said, is that school will be a safe place — and the best place for their children to be. 'I know parents are concerned, and I understand that concern,' Sipes said. The compassion fund is one way to address the families' worries and needs. Online, the fund's mission is described as addressing 'acute hardships,' including those faced by: The fund aims to 'provide discreet, flexible aid through school-based staff who know their communities best.' The spending could include support for emergency housing or relocation; food, diapers and school essentials; transportation to critical appointments; temporary caregiving or child supervision, and other 'urgent needs that create barriers to learning and stability.' Carvalho made it clear Tuesday that a central focus would be responding to needs of families affected by immigration raids and other immigration-related hardships. He spoke about the fund during the district's annual 'iAttend' outreach, which focuses attention on families struggling with transportation, academic and mental health issues that result in poor student attendance. Carvalho and his predecessors have regularly participated prior to the start of school and occasionally later into the school year. Parent Elida Villalobos, who received a visit in Boyle Heights, has a particularly challenging opening of school ahead. The two oldest of her five children are starting in new schools — Roosevelt High and Hollenbeck Middle — while her four-year-old is beginning home schooling. Carvalho — along with an entourage of district staff and media — descended on Villalobos' apartment. Villalobos knew they were coming and was rewarded for taking part with backpacks for her children and gift cards. Villalobos recounted how Matias, age 12, went through a long period of 5th grade during which he didn't want to go to school. It was harder for Villalobos to deal with at the time because she was pregnant. By the 6th grade, Matias was turning things around and said Tuesday that he's looking forward to starting middle school as a 7th grader, seeing old friends and making new ones. Carvalho promised to take the family to a Dodgers game if Matias made it through the first two months with an absence. Matias said he's sure he can do it. He's a big Dodgers fan. The key to turning around poor attendance is getting to know the family and how they need to be helped, said Dora Casillas, the attendance counselor at Sheridan Elementary. The challenges at Sheridan include a substantial population of families experiencing homelessness. Visiting families wherever they live is a normal part of the job for Casillas, who came in on an unscheduled work day — and her birthday — to visit the family of incoming 1st grader Issac Paguay at the family's apartment. Isaac ran to hug Casillas when he learned of her birthday. The boy, who had turned six the day before, promised Carvalho he would go to school 'three times a day.'
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
A legal win for immigrant protections — but the clock is still ticking
Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up The program allows people whose home countries have experienced natural disasters, war, or civil strife to live in the United States and apply for work permits. Ending the protections is supposed to be based on whether it's safe to return, but the Trump administration seems intent on revoking it out of racism and spite. Related : 'The freedom to live fearlessly, the opportunity of liberty, and the American dream,' Thompson wrote. 'That is all Plaintiffs seek. Instead, they are told to atone for their race, leave because of their names, and purify their blood. The Court disagrees.' One of the plaintiffs is Maria Elena Hernandez, a Nicaraguan immigrant who arrived in the United States nearly three decades ago. She was visiting her brothers in Florida when 'We are not criminals, we are not illegal, we are not undocumented, and we work legally with the permit that TPS gives us,' Hernandez, 67, told me in an interview. She has worked as a janitor in a Florida university for the past 18 years. 'We contribute economically because we have always paid our taxes. We have always respected the laws of this country and have always lived with the promise that if our countries are not safe, they will protect us here.' Jackey Baiza, who came to the United States from Honduras at age 2, spoke during a rally in solidarity with TPS holders from Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua during a vigil on July 29 in Boston. Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff Thompson's ruling also acknowledges the broader consequences of terminating Temporary Protected Status. Many of the plaintiffs, she noted, are 'long-standing employees' who have built lives and livelihoods over decades in the US. 'Termination of TPS for Nepal, Honduras, and Nicaragua will result in a $1.4 billion loss to the United States economy,' the federal judge wrote. Hernandez said she decided to join the lawsuit because she wanted to fight the Trump administration's unjust attempts to end the program. 'It would be very devastating for me' to move back to Nicaragua, she told me, 'not only because it would separate me from my family, but also because I would lose my Social Security, to which I have contributed for so many years, and my health insurance, which I need so much because I have chronic asthma and a heart condition.' Advertisement Lest we forget, the US government itself The fight to preserve the protections is far from over, but the reality is grim. The Trump administration seems intent in decimating the program, which as of Sept. 30 was protecting Still, for Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, a nonprofit advocacy organization based in Southern California, it is vital to highlight Thompson's ruling as a powerful affirmation that 'our communities matter,' she said in an interview. Indeed, Thompson's ruling offers a clear-eyed assessment of what's really driving the push to end temporary protections: It isn't national security; it's racialized fear. Unless Congress steps in with a permanent solution (here's hoping against hope) decades of contribution and belonging can still be wiped out with the stroke of a pen. Advertisement Marcela García is a Globe columnist. She can be reached at
Los Angeles Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by Trump braces to defend them against deportation
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — An Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by a Donald Trump falsehood last year as he pitched voters on his plans for an immigration crackdown is now bracing to defend the community against possible deportation. A group of about 100 community members, clergy and Haitian leaders in Springfield gathered this week for several days of training sessions as they prepare to defend potential deportees and provide them refuge. 'We feel that this is something that our faith requires, that people of faith are typically law-abiding people — that's who we want to be — but if there are laws that are unjust, if there are laws that don't respect human dignity, we feel that our commitment to Christ requires that we put ourselves in places where we may face some of the same threats,' said Carl Ruby, senior pastor of Central Christian Church. Ruby said the ultimate goal of the group is to persuade the Trump administration to reverse its decision to terminate legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Haitians in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status, or TPS. 'One way of standing with the Haitians is getting out the message of how much value they bring to the city of Springfield,' he said. 'It would be an absolute disaster if we lost 10,000 of our best workers overnight because their TPS ends and they can no longer work.' In lieu of that, Ruby said, participants in the effort are learning how to help Haitians in other ways. That includes building relationships, accompanying migrants to appointments with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and providing their families with physical shelter. Springfield found itself in an unwelcome spotlight last year after Trump amplified false rumors during a presidential debate that members of the mid-size city's burgeoning Haitian population were abducting and eating cats and dogs. It was the type of inflammatory and anti-immigrant rhetoric he promoted throughout his campaign. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced in June that it would terminate TPS as soon as Sept. 2 for about 500,000 Haitians who are already in the United States, some of whom have lived here for more than a decade. The department said conditions in the island nation have improved adequately to allow their safe return. The United Nations contradicts that assertion, saying that the economic and humanitarian crisis in Haiti has only worsened with the Trump administration's cuts in foreign aid. The announcement came three months after the administration revoked legal protections for thousands of Haitians who arrived legally in the United States under a humanitarian parole program as part of a series of measures implemented to curb immigration. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal judge's order preventing the administration from revoking the parole program. Last month, a federal judge in New York blocked the administration from accelerating an end to Haitians' TPS protections, which the Biden administration had extended through at least Feb. 3, 2026, citing gang violence, political unrest, a major earthquake in 2021 and other factors. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said at the time that the Trump administration would eventually prevail and that its predecessors treated TPS like a 'de facto asylum program.' In the meantime, the government has set the expiration date back to early February. TPS allows people already in the United States to stay and work legally if their homelands are deemed unsafe. Immigrants from 17 countries, including Haiti, Afghanistan, Sudan and Lebanon, were receiving those protections before Trump took office for his second term in January. Charla Weiss, a founding member of Undivided, the group that hosted the Springfield workshop, said participants were asked the question of how far they would go to help Haitian residents avoid deportation. 'The question that I know was before me is, how far am I willing to go to support my passion about the unlawful detainment and deportation of Haitians, in particular here in Springfield?' she said. Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a longtime supporter of the Haitian community, was briefed by Springfield leaders during a visit to the city Friday. He told reporters that the state is bracing for the potential of mass layoffs in the region as a result of the TPS policy change, a negative for the workers and the companies that employ them. 'It's not going to be good,' he said. Lamy and Smyth write for the Associated Press and reported from Springfield and Columbus, Ohio, respectively.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
US Fed judge blocks Trump's plan to end protection from deportation of over 60,000 citizens of Nepal and other nations
San Francisco-based US District Judge Trina Thompson agreed the plaintiffs had shown there was sufficient racial animus behind the decision and that the Trump administration had failed to undertake an "objective review of the country conditions" before ending protections. A migrant is detained by federal immigration officers at U.S. immigration court in Manhattan, New York City, U.S. (File Photo) Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A federal judge ruled against US President Donald Trump 's administration plans to end protections from deportation for citizens of Nepal Nicaragua and Honduras , barring their removal while the case continues, The Hill Francisco-based US District Judge Trina Thompson agreed the plaintiffs had shown there was sufficient racial animus behind the decision and that the Trump administration had failed to undertake an "objective review of the country conditions" before ending protections."The freedom to live fearlessly, the opportunity of liberty, and the American dream. That is all Plaintiffs seek. Instead, they are told to atone for their race, leave because of their names, and purify their blood," Thompson wrote. "The Court disagrees."The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Nepal in June and for Nicaragua and Honduras in July. Each country was initially designated after natural disasters, but the protections can also be offered to people unable to be deported to their home country due to civil moves would require 51,000 Hondurans and nearly 3,000 Nicaraguans who have been in the country for roughly 25 years to leave the county by September. Some 7,000 Nepalese citizens were also set to lose protections in just days, as per The reviewed a number of prior comments from Trump as well as Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem, including comments from the secretary referring to migrants as criminals and gang members, and the president stating that migrants were "poisoning the blood of our country.""Indeed, code words may demonstrate discriminatory intent," she wrote, The Hill quoted. "Color is neither a poison nor a crime."Thompson said the DHS failed to do the fulsome review required to end TPS, determining the Trump administration did not consider conditions beyond recovery from the hurricanes that rocked the Central American countries and the earthquake that sparked the designation for Nepal, as per The Hill.
New Straits Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Judge halts Trump's deportation order for Hondurans, Nepalese, Nicaraguans
WASHINGTON: A federal judge in California has temporarily blocked deportations of Hondurans, Nepalese and Nicaraguans whose legal protections have been revoked by the Trump administration. "The freedom to live fearlessly, the opportunity of liberty, and the American dream. That is all Plaintiffs seek," District Judge Trina Thompson said in a 37-page order on Thursday. "Instead, they are told to atone for their race, leave because of their names, and purify their blood," the San Francisco-based judge said. "The Court disagrees." The Trump administration revoked Temporary Protected Status (TPS) last month from more than 51,000 Hondurans and 3,000 Nicaraguans who came to the United States after Hurricane Mitch devastated the Central American nations in 1998. The United States grants TPS to foreign citizens who cannot safely return home because of war, natural disasters or other "extraordinary" conditions. Around 7,000 Nepalese currently have TPS protection following a 2015 earthquake in the Asian nation. In addition to Hondurans, Nepalese and Nicaraguans, the Trump administration has also revoked TPS for hundreds of thousands of Afghans, Cameroonians, Haitians and Venezuelans. Those moves are also facing court challenges. In stripping TPS, the Department of Homeland Security has said it was doing so because conditions have improved in those countries to the point where their nationals can return home safely. "Temporary Protected Status was designed to be just that – temporary," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said. Thompson put the TPS terminations of Hondurans, Nepalese and Nicaraguans on hold until she holds a hearing on Nov 18 on the merits of a lawsuit challenging the move. In her order, the judge said the termination of TPS was "based on a preordained determination to end the TPS program, rather than an objective review of the country conditions." She also said it may be motivated by "racial animus" and referenced a 2024 campaign statement by President Donald Trump who said migrants are "poisoning the blood of our country." "Colour is neither a poison nor a crime," Thompson said.
