South Omaha Leaders and Advocates Discuss Impact of ICE Raids on Families

Families in Omaha woke up to empty rooms on Father’s Day following Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s
raid at Glenn Valley Foods this past Tuesday
. Local groups and affected families are grappling with the aftermath.

The Center for Immigrant and Refugee Advancement is an organization that provides legal and emotional support to detainees and their families.

CIRA Executive Director Erik Omar described delays in obtaining information about the detainees’ whereabouts. Omar said it took more than three times longer than usual to learn where the detainees were taken.

He described the emotional toll on families, “We know of several situations where kids have been left at home. Mom or dad has been detained, and they have nowhere to turn.”

Itzel Lopez, CEO of the Latino Economic Development Council, is familiar with the pain of a detained family member. Lopez’s father was deported around Father’s Day in 2019. He was unable to find his way back to Omaha, passing away in Mexico from cancer three years later.

“ICE showed up on our door as well,” Lopez said. “This is years ago, but it nonetheless continues to have an impact on our family, to the point that we don’t even celebrate Father’s Day.”

Lopez recently spoke with a worker, a U.S. citizen and employee at Glenn Valley Foods, who recalled moments from inside the Omaha raid.

“People were shouting to take care of their families, and shouting about where their car keys were, or a last message to their children,” Lopez said. “Just that story itself reminds us of how human these people are.”

The worker, Lopez added, has been deeply affected.

“I have been unable to sleep well at night, thinking about all of these people who were coworkers of mine, and now they don’t get to go back home,” Lopez said.

Omar said that ICE typically informs organizations like CIRA about an immigrant’s location within 12 hours of detention.

“That did not happen in this case,” Omar said. “We were over the 48-hour mark, 55 hours, with still no word on where people were being held officially.”

CIRA said that 56 people remain in custody, with 19 either deported or transferred.

Omar emphasized the extraordinary difficulty of confirming
detainee information
, adding, “Without cooperation from the agencies holding these individuals, it was nearly impossible to confirm or validate their identities or locations.”

Despite the challenges, Lopez urged the community to focus on “solidaridad” or solidarity.

“There is still good people and good humans in our world,” Lopez said. Omar echoed her sentiments.

“It’s not just CIRA,” Omar said. “It’s lots of great organizations around town, coming together to help support these families in need.”

An ICE update reveals that more than 60 detainees “remain in local custody at the Lincoln County Jail, pending immigration proceedings.”

Three illegal Mexican immigrants “voluntarily returned to Mexico.” Three illegal Guatemalan immigrants were sent to Alexandria, Louisiana in “preparation for their future removal.” An ICE spokesperson said one of the transferred detainees has three DUIs and “one illegal reentry violation.”