More than half of the 330 Mexican nationals recently surveyed by the Consulate General of Mexico in Los Angeles had lived in the U.S. for at least a decade before being detained in immigration raids. Many of them, consular officials said, are also parents to U.S.-born children.
“It is clear that most of these people had put down roots in this country and had integrated into American society,” said Carlos González Gutiérrez, the Mexican consul general in L.A.
The consulate shared the data in a news release on Tuesday.
The interviews were conducted in immigration detention centers across the region between June 6, when the immigration sweeps began in L.A., and July 6.
According to the findings, more than half (52%) of those surveyed had lived in the U.S. for at least a decade, and one-third (36%) had been here for more than 20 years. The consulate said 31% have children born in the U.S.
The consulate described that “a vast majority” of the interviewed detainees “are hardworking individuals who have contributed to the economy of Southern California for years.”
It reported that 16% work in car washing, 13% in construction, 13% are factory workers and 11% work in landscaping.
“These are productive workers who worked in sectors typically associated with migrant labor,” González Gutiérrez said.
In response to the detentions, the consulate said it has “intensified efforts” to protect immigrants through legal assistance and by having consulate staff make daily visits, including on weekends.
“They are not the ‘worst of the worst,’ as the administration dishonestly calls them. They are the best of the best. Their hard work supports their families, this country and, through remittances, the country of their birth,” said Pablo Alvarado, co-executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, in a statement reacting to the consulate’s findings.