The American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy groups came together Wednesday morning to announce a lawsuit against the federal government related to recent immigration raids.
The ACLU, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Los Angeles Worker Center Network and others appeared at Bubble Bath Hand Car Wash in Torrance, the site of a contentious immigration raid last month.
Supporters hope their suit can be granted class-action status to fight the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies that they say are unlawfully detaining people.
Maria, the wife of one of the men who was taken by federal agents, said he was “just going to work to support his family.”
“We just want him to come home,” she said. “He’s never done anything wrong. He’s a hardworking person. If he had his last dollar, he’d give it up to you, and it’s just heartbreaking for us.”
Angelica Salas, executive director of CHIRLA, said it’s “critical that we claim our rightful rights under the Constitution.”
“This lawsuit speaks to protecting our basic freedoms in the middle of an onslaught by our own government,” she said. “This attack on our community is comprehensive and cruel, involving the illegal snatching and grabbing of community members off the street, like at this car wash, then subjecting them to unconstitutional and dehumanizing confinement conditions.”
In a statement issued to KTLA’s Kimberly Cheng, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said that “any claims that individuals have been ‘targeted’ by law enforcement because of their skin color are disgusting and categorically FALSE.”
“DHS enforcement operations are highly targeted, and officers do their due diligence,” she said. “Any claim that there are subprime conditions at ICE detention centers are false. In fact, ICE has higher detention standards than most US prisons that hold actual US citizens. All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with lawyers and their family members.”
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