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By William Stieglitz

Close to 50 people rallied in front of the New York State Office Building in Hauppauge on March 13 to urge legislative support for the New York for All Act, a proposed bill that would prohibit specific state corporations with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  

Versions of the bill have been introduced in the state senate and assembly since 2020, though each died in committee before it could make it to the floor for debate. The current iterations, S.2235 and A.3506, were introduced in January of this year with 28 and 57 co-sponsors, respectively. 

Irma Solis, the Suffolk regional office director at the New York Civil Liberties Union and an organizer for the event, described the bill as crucial for protecting Suffolk families, particularly during the Trump administration. “All New Yorkers deserve to feel safe and protected,” she said, “not torn apart by a racist regime intent on demonizing the very communities that define the fabric of New York.”

The rally had 11 speakers, consisting of organizational activists, religious leaders and community members who advocated for the bill through personal stories. “Day by day, I see how community members, my neighbors, my friends and even myself are terrified to go to work, pick up our children from school and even go to church,” said Clara, a member of Make the Road New York.  “We feel persecuted and fear that one day we may leave our homes and never return.” Her speech was one of several delivered in both English and Spanish.

Others spoke of fear felt for their own spouses or children. “Imagine waking up on a Monday morning, . . . in the safest town that you have ever known, to find that your information has been publicly outed as potential undocumented immigrants with your location and your details to boot,” said community member Jessica. “What do you do? Do you send your kids to school that day?”

These fears were elaborated on by Sister Janet Kinney from the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood, who described immigrant community members as unable to reach out to police or emergency services without risking contact with ICE. “No one should be afraid to walk out their doors, to go to their workplaces, go to a hospital, their child’s school, fearful that they may be picked up, questioned and deported,” she said. “My Catholic faith, and in fact all faith traditions, extol the permanent recognition of the dignity of all human persons, every human being, no exception.” 

Rabbi Ari Naveh from Bend the Arc also spoke on a sense of religious duty. “In our text, the Torah, the obligation to care for the widow, the orphan and the stranger who dwells among us is repeated more than any other commandment in the text,” he said. “We have an obligation as a Jewish community to stand in solidarity with our immigrant brothers and sisters … New York for All is that obligation.”

The rabbi also joined others in criticizing Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman (R) for being “more than willing to let our county police office collude with ICE.” This follows Blakeman last month deputizing 10 officers to act as immigration agents with the right to make arrests without a judicial warrant. While Blakeman presents the partnership with ICE as one that keeps Nassau safer, others, such as Nadia Molina from the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said he was “taking advantage of a political movement to make a statement.”

At the same time, Molina and other speakers expressed disappointment in the inaction of Democrats who have promised support for immigrants. “What are they doing to protect our husbands, our fathers, our brothers, our sisters, our children, our friends, our co-workers? What are they doing? This is an emergency,” Molina said.  This message especially resonated with the crowd, who followed with shouts of “Where are they?” With the exception of Assemblymember Chuck Lavine (D-Oyster Bay), no Long Island representative east of Queens co-sponsored the bill.

The rally was emceed by Robert Agyemang, vice president of advocacy for the New York Immigration Coalition, and also included speakers from Rural & Migrant Ministry, Long Island Language Advocates Coalition and CARECEN (an immigration legal services provider on Long Island). The staff member from CARECEN led the group in a “Know your rights” session, reviewing legal rights for people who may come into contact with ICE. The importance of these sessions was emphasized by Angel Reyes, an organizer from Make the Road. “If we’re here, it’s because our community is resilient,” Reyes said. “The moment we lose is the moment we stop fighting.”