Was ICE Raid in Retaliation for Housing Complaints?

Jeremy Pawloski of the Olympian reports on a controversial ICE raid in Shelton, Washington:

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided four Shelton locations Thursday morning, including three apartments in the 2000 block of Adams Street, taking 16 undocumented immigrants from Mexico and Guatemala into federal custody.

A local immigration-rights activist expressed concerns about the raid Friday. She said that one week earlier, on May 24, immigrants who lived at the apartment complex complained about mistreatment by management during a public meeting before the Washington Human Rights Commission in downtown Shelton.

Most of the people arrested Thursday lived in the complex.

Patricia Vazquez, a representative of Inmigrantes Unidos de Shelton, said she has no proof that the raid was related to the May 24 meeting, but she added that the proximity of the events “raises questions for us.”

Vazquez said she also fears the raid could have a chilling effect on free speech by immigrants who might be scared to speak out about abuses or other issues that affect them.

“It creates a sense of fear in the community of denouncing abuses,” she said. Click here for the rest of the story.

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