DAILY 49ER California State University, Long Beach
Vol. LXVII, Issue 111
www.daily49er.com
Monday, May 2, 2016
‘WE ARE PEOPLE
WE ARE NOT ILLEGAL’
Trang L e | Daily 49er
José Alvarez’ grandson, Julian Ruiz, marches with his family, who all held signs with #bringjoseback written on them. Hundreds of people marched from Cambodia Town to the Long Beach City Hall to commemorate May Day, or International Workers’ Day, May 1.
Family demands CSULB help return deported man May Day march to city hall draws hundreds. By Ariana Sawyer & Kevin Flores
Staff Writers
The wife and son of José Alvarez, the man who was deported after being held at the Cal State Long Beach University Police substation, demanded that CSULB help to bring Alvarez back to Long Beach at a May Day demonstration Sunday. Infa Ortiz and Victor Alvarez were joined by hundreds of advocates for a wide range of causes including better working conditions, immigrant rights and police accountability at MacArthur Park in Cambodia Town before marching to Long Beach City Hall for a rally. “[José] is not a criminal; he’s a father and a worker,” said Ortiz, one of a few speakers at the event. “Now I need all your support so that the university re-
News 2
turns my husband.” In response, the demonstrators began chanting, “We are people, we are not illegal.” University Police Officer Ivan Sanchez held José Feb. 21 based on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer after pulling him over for a broken headlamp. He was subsequently turned over to ICE and deported to Tijuana four hours later. The Daily 49er first chronicled the incident last week in the in-depth story, “Man held for deportation by CSULB PD because of 21-year-old drug offense.” The march to city hall drew an estimated 250 people including representatives from organizations such as Black Lives Matter Long Beach, the Filipino Migrant Center and Building Healthy Communities Long Beach. BHC Hub Coordinator James Suazo, a CSULB alumni, said he has been working with some local organizations that have been
see MAY DAY, page 2
Arts & Life 4
CSULB police chief issues first ICE directive University police can no longer detain undocumented people for Immigration. By Ariana Sawyer News Editor
Immigration and Customs Enforcement aren’t likely to come back to Cal State Long Beach after a new directive issued Wednesday by CSULB Chief of Police Fernando Solorzano. The University Police Department will not cooperate with ICE by holding undocumented foreign nationals whether or not that person has an immigration hold.
Interim General Order 55, which went into effect immediately, came after Long Beach resident José Alvarez, 53, was deported when UPD Officer Ivan Sanchez detained him at the CSULB police substation and turned him over to ICE Feb. 21. “It’s regrettable to me that our immigration laws remain confusing in spite of the hardship such confusion causes both undocumented persons and the peace officers who are charged with upholding such laws,” Solorzano said of the incident. Sanchez pulled Alvarez over for a broken headlamp, but arrested him because there was an ICE hold in the database — the result of a 21-year-old drug conviction for which Alvarez served time and was subsequently deported. A father of six, Alvarez is the only member of his family who is
Opinions 6
neither a U.S. citizen nor a green card holder. Prior to Alvarez’ deportation, there was no policy regarding what enforcement actions ought to be taken by UPD officers regarding undocumented people, according to Solorzano. The directive is pending a California State University system–wide policy on how CSU officers should deal with ICE. The university is in the process of sharing this interim order with students in an effort to expand awareness about this new policy, especially since commencement ceremonies are just a few weeks away, according to CSULB spokesperson Terri Carbaugh in an email. At a student-led forum March
see RULE 55, page 2
Sports 7