‘Rights’ workshop planned

Alliance San Diego provides “Know Your Rights” virtual workshops to help immigrant families understand their legal protections amid immigration enforcement in the community.

The next workshop will be held Aug. 18 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. via Zoom, co-hosted with the offices of state Sen. Steve Padilla and San Diego City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera.

“We provide community presentations and ‘Know Your Rights’ workshops in partnership with other organizations,” said Michelle Celleri, legal rights director at Alliance San Diego. “We are trying to do it in collaboration so people can go to a place that they know and trust to get this information.”

The workshops continue amid heightened concerns following U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents’ Aug. 6 arrest of a woman near Enrique S. Camarena Elementary School in Chula Vista.

“School should be a safe place for all families to be able to go to, so for us to see ICE show up at a place where people are there to learn and to be part of our community, it’s really … disappointing,” Celleri said.

“Everybody has the right to live in a place with dignity and feel safe, and this makes people scared. I don’t think that’s what we want for our community.”

The woman arrested, Kyungjin Yu of South Korea, was taken into custody because her visa expired nearly eight years ago, said Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, according to KPBS. ICE’s detainee records show Yu is being held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center.

The Chula Vista Elementary School District told parents through a letter the arrest occurred during morning drop-off and reiterated that law enforcement officials cannot interact with students without an immediate safety threat or a signed warrant.

Last week, Border Patrol stopped a vehicle near Eastlake Middle and Salt Creek Elementary schools, prompting a secure campus order. The driver was charged with alien smuggling, and three passengers were processed for removal, officials said.

Alliance San Diego works to create an inclusive democracy by providing community presentations, legal consultations, printed materials and social media outreach to keep residents informed and empowered.