NORTHAMPTON — As people in the area digested the impending reality of a Donald Trump presidency, immigrants on Wednesday reached out to allies for guidance.
Lillian Torres, director of the Florence nonprofit Casa Latina, said the office was inundated with calls.
“I know our community is very afraid,” she said.
Between plans to build a wall along the country’s southern border and calls for mass deportations, the president-elect has made it clear he will target illegal immigration. No matter their status, advocates said Wednesday, immigrants are worried Trump’s win will separate them from their families and their communities.
Advocates said they remain hopeful that the bulk of Trump’s comments were merely rhetoric. Rose Bookbinder, an organizer with the Pioneer Valley Workers Center, said immigration issues are not necessarily partisan.
“The reality is Obama deported more undocumented folks than Bush did,” she said. “But, clearly, Trump’s statements indicate he’ll be ramping up immigration enforcement.”
And dozens of concerned residents showed up at the center Wednesday in search of solidarity and resources. Diana Sierra, another organizer with the center, said immigrant workers already suffer exploitation and Trump’s comments could fuel the fire.
“You can imagine, given the current climate, (employers are) going to feel emboldened,” she said.
Some immigrant workers at the center were anxious about patronizing businesses with Trump signs, while others felt intimidated by employers who spoke boastfully about voting for Trump, organizers said. The advocates said they are preparing to provide more support in the event there is an uptick in deportations.
“We need to show that we’re going to support immigrant and undocumented workers in our community,” Bookbinder said.
Advocates’ concerns spread beyond law enforcement.
“Those of us who work with immigrants are in complete shock and fear,” said Amy Ben-Ezra, educational counselor at the International Language Institute in Northampton. “I’m concerned that there will be a license for more harassment of immigrants, that people will feel more justified in acting in that way.”
Billy Peard, a labor attorney with the Central West Justice Center in Springfield, cautioned against letting panic lead to using questionable immigration resources, and to turn instead to the well-established network of advocacy centers in the area.
“What we want to ensure is people aren’t running to unscrupulous immigration service providers, paying exorbitant sums in hopes of fixing their immigration situation,” he said.
Sabine Merz, a Northampton yoga teacher and green card-carrying German immigrant, said she felt helpless watching the Donald Trump campaign play out, knowing she’d be unable to vote in the election.
She said Americans have a reputation in the world for being hospitable to immigrants, and Tuesday’s results were a leap away from that.
“People voted against everything I think is so amazing about the U.S.,” she said.
Amanda Drane can be contacted at adrane@gazettenet.com.