The family of a street vendor who was detained in an immigration raid at a local Home Depot is speaking out because they believe she is not getting the medical care she desperately needs.
Emma De Paz immigrated to the United States from Guatemala and has been living in California for decades, according to family members.
She had been working as a street vendor outside the Home Depot on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood when she was taken during an immigration raid on June 19. Her brother told KTLA on Wednesday that while Emma knew working openly during President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown was risky, selling food was the only way she could make a living.
“She was selling pollo asado and carne asada in the street,” said the brother, Carlos Barrera De Paz. “That’s all she does for a living to pay rent, pay bills and put food on the table.”
After being detained in Hollywood, De Paz was transferred to a facility in downtown Los Angeles, according to the office of City Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez. The statement also said that she was transferred to White Memorial Hospital under guard due to health issues.
Those health issues are serious, according to her family, and they are worried that she is not receiving the proper care.
“My sister called us and said that they treated [the detainees] really bad in there,” Barrera De Paz said at a press conference held outside the Guatemalan Consulate in L.A. “It’s a cold room with no food – they give them just a little pack of cookies – every day, and one Capri Sun juice. That’s it.”
Carlos Barrera De Paz said that he and other loved ones gathered outside the consulate as part of their last-ditch effort to prevent his sister’s potential deportation. They believe she should be released because she poses no threat to the community and has never been arrested.
“Let’s see what the consulate says, because they are the representatives for us in this country,” he said. “This is a Guatemalan [citizen], so maybe they can do [more] than us since we are already trying…I am frustrated.”
Under the Trump administration, anyone who immigrated to the U.S. illegally faces potential deportation, and while officials say they are focused on removing illegal criminals, the policy also applies to those who have not been convicted of a crime. That said, a recent report alleges that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have deported dozens of U.S. citizens.
Federal immigration raids are taking place across the country, including in Southern California. Los Angeles, in particular, has been the site of many raids and protests against them, some of which have turned destructive and violent.
The unrest in L.A. prompted an ongoing bitter political back-and-forth between L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Donald Trump administration. Both Bass and Newsom continue to voice opposition to the raids, while federal authorities have vowed to continue them.
The post Detained Hollywood street vendor’s family fears for her health, safety appeared first on KTLA.
