Town Hall Richmond

“He had never been on a plane before, he was five years old. And he was told by American federal officials that his parents never wanted to see him again. We were told that several times. My instincts told me that was all truthful.”

Representative Mark DeSaulnier

Rep Mark DeSaulnier speaks about his views on immigration and his experience at the border, in Richmond, Calif., Monday, Aug. 5, 2019. “The most upsetting time was listening to a five year old with his dad tell what happened to him when they came across the border. He was put on a plane to a group home in Georgia. He had never been on a plane before, he was five years old. And he was told by American federal officials that his parents never wanted to see him again. We were told that several times. My instincts told me that was all truthful.”
Heliodoro Moreno (left) Contra Costa Public Defender discusses fighting the “deportation machine” and Removal Defense, in Richmond, Calif., Monday, Aug. 5, 2019.. “One of the biggest things that we see when representing detainees and non-citizens at removal proceedings is we need guaranteed access to council.”
Jane Lee (left) of Catholic Charities of the East Bay talks about the conditions at a detention facility in South Texas. She says, “the one that I visited in Dilley, Texas has 2,500 beds for women and children. That was started by the Obama administration.” She describes the process of getting tap water or purchasing bottled water, in an area that has fracking water. One woman said her children were cold and without dry clothes for a period upon arrival and that many people had colds. She also stated that sometimes in the middle of the night officers would show up for roll call. Richmond, Calif., Monday, Aug. 5, 2019.
Sarah Gavigan of the CARECEN SF & AILA discusses what we can do to help detainees and how community members can donate through CARECEN SF, to “help people – especially children – to get access to an attorney” in Richmond, Calif., Monday, Aug. 5, 2019.
Rep. Mark DeSaulnier “I don’t know how anyone, irrespective of their political ideology, could see what I saw and not be appalled at what is happening in our names. We need to fix this. This is a human tragedy.” Richmond, Calif., Monday, Aug. 5, 2019.