Seattle lawmaker concerned over the ICE arrest of prominent farmworker labor rights advocate

Senator Rebecca Saldaña (D-Seattle) expressed her deep concern over the detention of Alfredo “Lelo” Juarez, a prominent farm worker and labor rights advocate, in a news release. The 25-year-old Juarez was recently arrested and transferred to the Northwest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Processing Center in Tacoma.

His supporters believe he was targeted due to his outspoken advocacy for farm worker rights, according to The Stranger.

Juarez was ordered to be “removed to his home country (Mexico) by an immigration judge” in 2018. ICE said it arrested Juarez in Sedro-Woolley on March 25. As Labor Notes reported, Juarez was detained by officers while driving his partner to work at a tulip bulb farm in Mount Vernon.

Saldaña opposes using local, state resources for immigration enforcement

Saldaña emphasized that Washington state, through legislation like the Keep Washington Working Act, has opposed using local and state resources for immigration enforcement. “This law was enacted to keep families together and protect community members like Lelo from being targeted solely based on their immigration status,” she stated in a news release.

Saldaña criticized federal policies that claim to target criminals but instead criminalize immigrants.

“We demand our state’s laws be respected and that those who preach law and order remember the existence of civil liberties and due process,” she added.

Edgar Franks, political director of Familias Unidas por la Justicia, remarked, “Alfredo has been one of the leaders in the farmworker movement around the nation and has been outspoken in defending workers and immigrants. We feel that his detention by ICE is a move to silence organizing for immigrant and farmworker rights. This is going to affect workers everywhere, immigrant or not.”

“Our union members grabbed bullhorns and traveled directly to the facility to protest this injustice,” Faye Guenther, president of UFCW Local 3000, said in Labor Notes. “We will continue to show up to worker-led actions as long as it takes.”

Juarez has been a key figure in organizing efforts, helping to establish new state standards for farm worker protections and advocating for better wages and working conditions.

Faye Guenther, president of UFCW Local 3000, also voiced her support in Labor Notes, saying, “Our union members grabbed bullhorns and traveled directly to the facility to protest this injustice. We will continue to show up to worker-led actions as long as it takes.”