Articles Tagged: Immigration

Multiple Iowa residents were detained at the Cedar Rapids office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Tuesday morning, as community members stood outside, raising signs and chants in support of immigrants.

If Pascual Pedro, a 20-year-old man who lived in West Liberty for seven years before he was deported at the beginning of July, could speak directly with elected officials in Iowa, all he would ask them for is a chance, he said from Guatemala Wednesday.

More than 200 workers at an Ottumwa meatpacking plan were notified this month by their employer that their work visas have been revoked, and now face potential deportation, according to a union official.

Chants to “Bring back Pascual,” and “Let Noel go,” rang out through the heat Tuesday afternoon as Eastern Iowa community members marched toward the U.S. District Court building in Cedar Rapids to protest the deportation of West Liberty resident Pascual Pedro earlier this month and the detention of Muscatine resident Noel Lopez.

The Department of Homeland Security should have raised its arguments sooner, according to a federal judge who in May granted a preliminary injunction the government now is fighting that prevents it from terminating the immigration status of four University of Iowa international students.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird announced Friday that she would be dismissing a lawsuit filed in March against Winneshiek County Sheriff Dan Marx that accused him of failing to comply with federal immigration enforcement.

This week on the podcast, more on the deportation of an Eastern Iowa man, what happened at the Family Leader’s annual event, and another batch of new Congressional candidates.

According to Iowa data, fentanyl and meth seizures are down significantly in the first 6 months of this year compared to averages over the previous 4 years.

The recent deportation of Pascual Pedro is a heartbreaking situation. The 20-year old former West Liberty resident and Guatemalan national, …

U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra offered praise for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in a statement Friday morning, commending the agency for the arrest of an alleged MS-13 gang leader in Council Bluffs this week.

U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, of Marion, said in a call with reporters Thursday that lack of a criminal record does not prevent people in the U.S. without legal status who are eligible for deportation from being deported.

From separate events Thursday, Gov. Kim Reynolds, Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, and Tom Vilsack — the former Iowa governor and USDA secretary — all discussed how to manage farm labor amid the hard-line deportation policy of the Trump administration.

Tom Vilsack, former governor of Iowa and head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture for 12 years, said Thursday that Iowa leaders need to look toward “and” conversations rather than “or” discussions to solve some of the state’s biggest issues.

Dozens of people gathered outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Cedar Rapids Wednesday to protest the detention and deportation of a West Liberty man who was sent to Guatemala earlier this week.

Gov. Kim Reynolds said Tuesday that Iowa officials have contacted the White House to be involved in discussions on how to keep immigrant agricultural workers in the country.