“Many avoid seeking health care — especially emergency services, but also care for serious chronic conditions,” due to the fear that public officials will share data to Immigrations and Custom Enforcement (ICE).
“The concern is that people are not giving up their contacts because they’re afraid of deportation of themselves, their friends or their family members,” said Amy Grunder, director of legislative affairs for the Massachusetts Immigrant Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA).
“If we want people to feel confident in local public officials … the Safe Communities Act would send a really strong reassuring message to the immigrant community,” she said.
The bill would disentangle law enforcement and public safety work from immigration enforcement, said Grunder.
The advocates’ letter to the Committee notes that the state legislature has an opportunity to show immigrant communities that “in Massachusetts, immigrants are safe and protected, regardless of their status, and state and local agencies will not collaborate in deportations.”
