Amid concerns over the Trump Administration’s plans for mass deportations, nearly three dozen people who live in Brooklyn Park and Brooklyn Center attended a panel discussion Wednesday night to ask questions about how to respond if ICE shows up at a home or workplace, and also asked about the role of police when it comes to immigration enforcement.
The discussion took place at Brooklyn United Methodist Church in Brooklyn Center and included the Advocates for Human Rights, Brooklyn Park police and The Gillman Immigration Law Firm.
Community leader and former Brooklyn Park City Council member Wynfred Russell, who immigrated to Minnesota from Liberia, hosted the conversation and said he wanted to give community members a chance to ask questions about immigration during a time of uncertainty.
“So there are a lot of people who are scared, and so people have reached out to me, asking for information, asking me for where they could turn to,” Russell said. “They’re confused, they’re nervous, they’re worried about what this means for them.”
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Community leader and former Brooklyn Park City Council member Wynfred Russell, hosted the “Know Your Rights” conversation.
Sarah Thamer | MPR News
Deputy Chief with the Brooklyn Park Police Department Elliot Faust was part of the panel discussion and said the department does not ask for immigration status except in rare cases involving human trafficking, and said the department does not enforce immigration laws.
“We need the community to understand that when you call 911, we will come and we will be stewards of the community for whatever reason you call us for,” Faust said. “We’re not there to assess immigration violations. There are many community members that may feel deterred from using 911, because they’re fearful that we might come and call ICE and have them deported. That’s not what we will do. Under no circumstances will we do that.”
The stance is similar to other police departments including in Minneapolis.
Kiki Gillman, principal attorney at The Gillman Immigration Law Firm, said there’s been a surge in immigration consultations since Jan. 21, with a record high in call volume.
“A lot of people are concerned. They want to know what their options are. They’re worried about their future. They’re worried about family separation,” Gillman said. “You have mixed-status families where the parents are undocumented, but the children are here. They’re born here, and they’re documented.”
Faust said the Brooklyn Park Police Department has received “courtesy calls” from ICE letting them know they’re in the area.
“ICE has always been active in Minnesota. They’ve always been active in the suburbs, in Minneapolis,” Faust said. “I can say that we have noticed an increase in the frequency of these calls. So I think ICE is more active in the community.”
Organizers say in addition to the people in the church, more than 3,000 viewed the meeting through a live Facebook feed.
