Deportation concerns grow in San Mateo County; supes consider funding immigration attorneys
Immigrant families call on San Mateo County for more deportation defense attorneys
Immigrant families and advocates rallied in San Mateo County, calling for increased funding for deportation defense attorneys as legal aid requests surge.
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - Immigrant families, faith leaders, and advocates gathered outside the San Mateo County building on Monday, calling on supervisors to increase funding for legal services as immigration enforcement fears grow across the Bay Area.
Organizers said the county’s Rapid Response Hotline received more than 250 calls over three days last week. Most of them came from immigrants urgently seeking legal help, many of whom are asylum seekers navigating removal proceedings without an attorney.
Push for more legal representation
The crowd chanted "sí se puede!" as they rallied for expanded deportation defense, citing growing concern after recent immigration arrests in Los Angeles.
"At this time, there are a lot of families that are crying because of the separation from their children," said Pastor Alex de la Quintana of Redwood City through an interpreter.
Advocates fear a similar wave of arrests could happen locally.
"We know that there were a lot of arrests and for that reason, we are preparing here in San Mateo to be able to provide legal support to those who are affected should something similar happen here," said Wendy Cruz of Faith in Action Bay Area through an interpreter.
On Tuesday, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors will vote on whether to renew $1.75 million in funding to support eight attorneys that support immigrant residents. That contract is set to expire at the end of the month.
But community groups are urging supervisors to go further, asking for an additional $1 million to fund three more full-time attorneys dedicated to deportation defense.
"Tomorrow ,I’m actually going to ask that it be approved as is, but I will be requesting that the county staff continue to negotiate and find other ways to increase support for legal services," said San Mateo County Supervisor Noelia Corzo.
Personal stories
Cruz, whose husband was detained for five months in 2018, said her family’s future changed thanks to a county-funded immigration lawyer.
"The attorneys are very important because they can represent them and also assess or guide, like what happened with me," Cruz said through an interpreter.
Amanda Alvarado-Ford, an immigration attorney working with a nonprofit contracted by the county, said the need far outweighs the resources currently available.
"This is a lifeline that San Mateo County has traditionally offered to its low-income immigrant family members and community members, and now is the time to really step up and show, what do we stand for? We stand for civil rights, we stand for due process," she said.
Alvarado-Ford added that her Redwood City office alone turns away 10 to 20 families every week, because there simply aren’t enough attorneys available.
She added that individuals with legal representation are five times more likely to win their cases, but most immigrants in San Mateo County still face deportation proceedings without a lawyer.