Zero tolerance tearing apart Valley families, communities, YSU speaker says

YOUNGSTOWN

Zero tolerance for policing immigrants is causing fear, said Veronica Isabel Dahlberg, founding executive director of HOLA Ohio, speaking Wednesday at Youngstown State University.

HOLA Ohio is a grassroots Latino organization based in northeast Ohio, focusing on community organizing, leadership development and civic engagement.

Dahlberg and Pastor Manuel Lux of Iglesia Esperanza de Vida in Salem spoke at the “Zero Tolerance: Policing Immigrants and Community Response” discussion.

Dahlberg and Lux have been working to aid families affected by a raid in June by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents of Fresh Mark meat-packing plant in Salem. Nearly 150 workers presumed to be undocumented were arrested.

The same night as the arrests, about 70 individuals – mothers who had children at home and people with medical issues – were released, Lux said.

The difficulty came after.

“Everybody lost their jobs and the company wouldn’t take them back,” he said.

Dahlberg said the community truly lives in shadows.

"You hear, ‘the law is the law,’ but if that’s the case why do we have lawmakers? Laws aren’t static. They can change. The existing laws are hurting, damaging and destroying families in our communities," she said.

Read more about the hardships these families face in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.