Practical ways to help immigrants

LIME ROCK — A crowd of about 50 people came to Trinity Lime Rock Episcopal Church Saturday, April 6, for “Unshackling Dreams of America: Supporting Asylum Seekers and Other Immigrants.”

The event was organized by Vecinos Seguros. Director John Carter made brief opening remarks and introduced Elizabeth Augustin of Amenia.

Augustin said she grew up in Amenia and attended Webutuck High School. She is a DACA recipient. (DACA is “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals,” a federal program that allows people who were brought to the U.S. as children but are not legal residents to stay and work.)

She said that three years ago her partner, Fernando, was stopped in Dutchess County for failing to stop at a stop sign. He had no drivers license and was just over the limit on a Breathalyzer.

Augustin said that the drunk driving charge was eventually dropped, and the couple heard nothing more about the matter for two years.

Then, in April 2018, federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents came calling, at 5:30 a.m.

Confused and alarmed, Augustin called Carter and his wife, who came over to try to help.

Eventually the ICE agents, who had a warrant for Fernando’s arrest, took him into custody.

He was held in Orange County, N.Y., for nine months, while Augustin and a succession of lawyers tried to navigate the complex and often cumbersome immigration system.

Augustin, who has three children with her partner, said she was frustrated and depressed.

Finally she found an immigration support group in New York City whose members were able to get Fernando out of lockup on a $10,000 bond.

Fernando, although he does not have to wear an ankle bracelet tracking device, is not allowed to drive or work.

The case is still unresolved. Augustin said the court has a four-year backlog.

Glenn Formica, an immigration lawyer from New Haven, spoke next. He said, contrary to popular opinion, immigration violations are not criminal matters, but civil.

“I wish it were criminal,” he said. “Then we’d have due process.”

“Right now we’re in the worst of both worlds,” he continued. 

Clearly no fan of former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Formica said the Trump administration has “racialized” immigration policy.

Formica said legal immigration happens when an American citizen marries a foreign national; or when a foreign national receives permission to work or go to school in the U.S.

And that’s it.

Getting a “green card” is not easy, he said. Employers have to go through a lengthy process on behalf of the employee.

H1B visas, for foreign workers with college or graduate degrees, are good for two years and may be renewed for another three.

“Everything takes at least two years,” Formica said of the process of legal immigration.

As for refugees, Formica said those who come to the U.S. at a port of entry are not breaking the law. They are requesting asylum because of a fear of persecution on the basis of race, religion, political or social group affiliation.

Formica said refugees are fleeing destabilized countries, such as El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Venezuela.

He blamed American policy for the destabilization. “Now people from these destablized countries show up at our border, and we lock them up.”

He painted a picture of a dysfunctional court system, with endless delays and confusion.

One way people could help, he said, would be as volunteers to help those caught up in the court system handle the substantial paperwork. Formica said that with a minimal amount of training anyone could perform these tasks.

“If I had volunteers I could do a lot more work.”