ICE is deporting my father who is my grandmother's caregiver.
Update, Feb. 4th: I want to thank you all so much for your solidarity! It has meant so much and been such a comfort to me and my family. Unfortunately my dad William was deported last week and is now in El Salvador. We are going to keep doing everything we can to continue fighting for him and to continue the struggle for justice. We haven't given up hope.
After the 100 day deportation moratorium was blocked by one of Trump's judges, ICE has been in a mad rush to deport as many immigrants as they can. Along with my dad, ICE has deported a man to Haiti who isn't even from Haiti, and a woman who was serving as a testifying witness in the trial for the white supremacist El Paso massacre. Both of these despite protests and action from congressional representatives. And there have been many others taken from their families in the past weeks. Now we all need to work harder together to stop ICE's terror and reunite families.
Because we are planning to do whatever we can to continue to fight my father's legal case, your petition signatures are still valuable for supporting our struggle.
With the legal case more challenging now that my dad is in El Salvador, our lawyer costs will be even more expensive. My family's financial future is very uncertain. I don't know how we will pay for rent and food, and take care of my grandmother, and support my dad in El Salvador. The donations that everyone has given so far have been a lifesaver for our family and have meant that we haven't had to leave our home yet. We are so grateful for everything that people have contributed so far.
- Valerie
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My
name is Valerie Ortiz, and I’m terrified knowing that between the
16th and 26th of this month, my dad will be deported to El Salvador.
My dad came to the US in 1977 when he was a 15 year old boy. In El
Salvador, my father lived alone with his brother in a country on the
brink of civil war. He would tell me stories about seeing little
boys walking around with big guns. My grandmother, who is a US
citizen, brought him to the United States so that he could live a
better life with her. Since then, my dad has lived his entire life
in Los Angeles, in Echo Park and Silver Lake, where he has raised an
amazing family.
On the morning of January 8th, ICE showed up outside our house and ripped him away from us. ICE is trying to fast track his deportation to a country where he has no family and no life. This is his home. We are his family. Please help keep my dad here with us by supporting our campaign and donating to our legal fees!
(Please note, when you donate you should get a message saying that the money is going to Chris W from the Koreatown Popular Assembly)
Why is this important?
My dad does EVERYTHING for my family. I can’t be without my dad. I graduated high school in 2020 and just turned 18 in November. My mother and my sister can’t be without him. My disabled grandma, the person who brought him here to safety years ago, fully depends on him. He changes her diapers. Every day he feeds her breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He showers her. He does all of that.
My dad is the financial pillar for my family. He works in construction and gets paid to be the caretaker for my grandmother. My mother is in the process of losing her job. She works as a housekeeper in Pacific Palisades, but the family is selling their house and moving to Texas. Without her job, I will be the only one supporting our family - on just one single shift at Forever 21 each week. If my dad is deported, I will have to drop out of college to look for more jobs. If my father is deported, we will lose our apartment and become homeless because we won’t be able to pay for rent. We will have to rely on family to shelter us - my maternal grandmother will have to kick another family out of her guest room to make space for us, and I don’t want us to be the cause of yet another family losing housing.
I have an older sister who is in the hospital after just giving birth. Her baby was born COVID-19 positive and now both of them are struggling against the disease. My sister has only been able to see her baby on FaceTime - on phones held up by the nurses. This is a very difficult time for our family. We are all fighting for our lives.
Having a family separated is not ok. My father is being deported because of a past DUI charge, but he has been sober since before I was born. He has been in AA and held steady jobs for years. Everyone else in the family are US citizens. My dad has lived in LA his entire life. Without my dad, our family will fall apart.
Please join us in keeping my family together!
What this money is for
We will use the money donated to our family to help pay for the legal fees to fight my father’s deportation. We don’t yet know the exact cost of a lawyer, but it will be several thousand dollars. If my father is deported or is forced to spend months in detention, then we will need all the help we can get to support our family and keep us afloat during this time. Anything that you can contribute is deeply appreciated. Thank you.
With gratitude,
The Ortiz Family
Dad & Valerie as a baby
