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Illegal alien activist groups are demanding answers over “abductions” of crew members in front of passengers on a Disney cruise by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Benjamin Prado from Union del Barrio spoke at a press conference at the pier in San Diego along with other migrant groups to express their outrage that ICE was doing its job.
‘It was really unsettling. … Does the family even know that he’s not getting back on the ship today?’
“This is not an isolated incident,” Prado said. “In fact, it has become a growing pattern, not only here in San Diego but throughout this country.”
He went on to claim that the detainees were being denied their due process rights and access to legal representation.
“It is our responsibility as a society, as working people, to really denounce these actions by Customs and Border Protection, by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the prolonged detention of migrant workers, whether it be here in our own community as well as those that work on ships,” Prado added.
Prado and the other groups demanded that Disney do more to protect its workers.
One of the passengers on the Disney cruise said her family was traumatized by seeing the crew members being detained by ICE.
“It was really unsettling,” Dharmi Mehta said at the briefing.
Mehta said they had gotten to know a head waiter during the five-day cruise, and they saw him and others being detained after they arrived in San Diego. She was distressed by the fact that they did not have any personal belongings with them.
“So that was just my big concern — like, how is he gonna reach out to his family? Does the family even know that he’s not getting back on the ship today?” Mehta added.
The migrant groups said four others were also detained by ICE from Holland America’s Zaandam cruise ship at the same pier. Around 10 were detained from the Disney cruise.
Protesters behind Mehta held signs demanding due process for Filipino workers.
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A spokesperson for the Port of San Diego released a statement to KNSD-TV.
“The Port of San Diego Harbor Police Department did not have any involvement in the reported enforcement actions on April 23 or April 25 at the B Street Cruise Terminal,” the statement reads. “We did not receive any calls for service related to these incidents. In accordance with California law, including SB 54, Harbor Police does not participate in immigration enforcement activities.”
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