Over the past year, Latino advocacy organization Voces Unidas de las Montañas has recorded a slew of civil rights complaints in Garfield County. According to a recent online post published by the Voces Unidas Action Fund, over the past year people have been “disappearing” from Garfield County jail to later appear in Immigration and Customs […]
immigration
Posted inColumns
Mature Content: The view from my window
By Susan Rhea “I see friends shaking hands, saying, ‘How do you do?’ They’re really saying, ‘I love you.’” -Louis Armstrong, “What a Wonderful World” I live on a busy Carbondale corner. From my “everything” table, no longer just for dining, I look out three large windows at the local world. I see children playing […]
Posted inLocal Government
Glenwood Report: Potential use of Flock cameras for immigration enforcement comes into question
The potential to use traffic surveillance cameras for federal immigration enforcement operations was the main topic for public comments during the Feb. 5 Glenwood Springs City Council meeting. Six of the seven council members were present for the first regular meeting of the month; Councilor Mitchell Weimer was absent. Following a late afternoon work session […]
Posted inNews
Legal representation scams target immigrant community
Advocates and attorneys in the Roaring Fork Valley say scammers posing as legal representatives are exploiting immigrants navigating the increasingly aggressive federal enforcement landscape. “I have seen and talked to victims of these scams,” Alex Sanchez, executive director of Voces Unidas de las Montañas, told The Sopris Sun . Voces Unidas, an organization fighting for […]
Posted inNews
Local high school students roast ICE
Across the country, high school students organized walk-outs on Friday, Jan. 30, protesting the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in solidarity with immigrant communities and protestors in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In Carbondale, teenagers lined the roundabout with signs declaring their sentiments. In Glenwood Springs, the high school cancelled classes after nearly all teachers were […]
Posted inYouth News
Balancing fear with the American Dream
This article comes by way of The Sopris Stars, a new monthly youth publication powered by The Sopris Sun. Editor’s note: Due to the sensitivity of this article, student sources were kept anonymous. Latino and white communities are intertwined in the Roaring Fork Valley, yet young immigrants, or children thereof, have felt threatened under President […]
Posted inColumns
VOICES Radio Hour: Love at a distance
Samuel Bernal is a journalist born in Mexico City who has lived in Colorado for 20 years. He manages La Tricolor 107.1, a Spanish-language radio station, and amplifies Latino voices through radio and digital media by sharing human stories that connect cultures and celebrate humanity. I have a curse with long-distance relationships. Maybe it all […]
Posted inNews
Entering and exiting Aurora’s ICE detention facility
If you are detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Colorado, you’ll likely end up in Aurora at the Denver Contract Detention Facility, run by GEO Group, Inc. — one of America’s largest private prison corporations. GEO relies on contracts with federal agencies, like ICE, which made up more than 42% of its revenue […]
Posted inNews
Changes to SNAP will impact local immigrants
In May, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced states were to submit detailed information on all Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applicants from the past five years. This move has raised concerns among immigrant-rights advocates, who warn that data sharing will lead to targeted deportations of undocumented people and further deny families the food […]
Posted inColumns
VOICES Radio Hour: From Burger King to the classroom
I came to the United States when I was 16 years old, carrying a suitcase full of dreams and shaky hope. I didn’t know the language, didn’t understand the culture and I had no idea what path to take. The only thing that was clear was that I was in a new, unfamiliar country and […]