Springfield protest decries ICE detention of farmworker

SPRINGFIELD — Eight days ago, Ari Keigan was heading to court with a farmworker when three unmarked vehicles cut off their car. Six immigration officers jumped out, one held a gun on them while the others surrounded the car, opened the doors and grabbed them.

“It was an absolutely terrifying moment,” said Keigan, of the Pioneer Valley Workers Center.

She and a third person in the car, a juvenile, were eventually released. What she described as more terrifying is that the farmworker, called Demetrio, has been detained, and few know what happened to him.

On Labor Day, eight days after Demetrio was taken into custody, the Workers Center joined with Neighbor to Neighbor and LUCE Immigrant Justice Network of Massachusetts to hold a protest against his detention, as well as many other actions by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, better known as ICE.

Keigan would not reveal Demetrio’s last name or his lawyer’s name but said they were leaving his Springfield neighborhood and heading to District Court for a hearing on a motor vehicle violation. Other officials said he is from Mexico and is a longtime farmworker in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Florida, and is the father of three.

Protest organizers urged the roughly 150 people gathered on Court Square to take action by speaking against deportations, spreading the stories about farmworkers and others being detained, and learning about their rights in case they are confronted by ICE agents. They were encouraged to share the information in multiple languages.

Robert Butler has spent the last 10 years helping refugees acclimate to the U.S. He lowers his head on Labor Day at a vigil for Demetrio, a farmworker who was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Douglas Hook / The Republican)Douglas Hook

Simbrit Paskins, a chapter organizer for Neighbor to Neighbor, said she was born and raised in Springfield, but her family is from Trinidad, and she can’t imagine what it would be like to see a relative taken into custody.

While leading the crowd on chants including “Not one more!” Paskins said she worries that trends show there might be many more detentions in Massachusetts — and in Springfield — in upcoming weeks.

ICE detentions have been stepping up in Washington, D.C., and other cities, and Paskins said officials believe that will soon spread to other places, especially where political leaders are resistant to President Trump’s efforts to increase deportations.

“It has been happening all along here, but this was really aggressive,” she said.

She isn’t alone in her sentiments.

State Sen. Adam Gomez, D-Springfield, said Demetrio should be home with his family and not detained in an unknown location. He called for protesters, no matter what race, no matter whom they pray to, to come together to fight the detentions and deportations.

He urged people to talk to legislators, local officials and other stakeholders about the detentions.

“This story highlights a harsh reality. Our community depends on these workers. They feed us, contribute to our economy,” Gomez said. “Masked men run rampant in our neighborhoods without accountability.”

The state Legislature is currently debating several bills to address problems with ICE, including one that bans law enforcement from covering their faces, which the federal agents are known to do.

“I’m terribly concerned, especially about the Republican bill that just passed through Congress, that will put tens of millions of dollars to ratchet up deportation,” said state Sen. Jo Comerford, who also attended the rally.

The Legislature continues to fight “the horror” of the efforts to detain and deport immigrants, some who are here legally, and to protect them, she said.

“In some cases we are on the offense, and at other times we are on the defense,” she said.

Hundreds of people attended a vigil on Court Square in Springfield on Monday to highlight the worries members of the community have with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement tactics. (Douglas Hook / The Republican)Douglas Hook

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