[Music] hello everyone Um good afternoon Today we are here at the um at city hall for our April Human Rights Commission meeting Welcome everyone I know it's been a long time since we've
met but trust that we're back and better than ever and stronger than ever Um I would like to call a meeting to order and start with the roll call of commissioners Uh attorney Molly McGee here
Dr Garcia here Commissioner Karu Pitch present Vice Chair Herby Gene Baptist here And me Shea Seni I'm also here And we are also joined with DEI director Steve Morbidito Um I would like to also
u make it apparent that uh commissioner Samoa Larusi is no long no longer with the commission We wish her all the best and we know that she will do bigger and better things in the future Uh moving on from there um before we get into the landment this is something that I need
to add into the agenda So my apologies for that But um I would like for all of us to read the mission statement um whenever everyone is ready The mission of the River Human Rights Commission is to promote human and civil
rights and empower all people of River by ensuring that everyone especially the most vulnerable and marginalized have equitable opportunities equal access and are treated with dignity respect fairness and justice With us saying this
commission uh this uh mission statement we expect that all the commissioners including myself are held accountable to the high standards of this mission and we um we encourage that anyone in the community to come join our meetings and hold us accountable for the things
that we haven't done in the past in the future and in the present for land acknowledgement I um so this is something that we've mentioned at every meeting that we are in the land of the pucket and that we encourage and invite any native peoples and indigenous
peoples in the city of Rivier to join our discussion of all the things are happening in our city Uh moving on from there I would like for someone to uh um push a motion to approve the minutes from December 5th monthly meeting
Motion to approve the minutes Second Second All um all agreeing say I I I for the monthly for the monthly acknowledgements um April 1 began uh
well yesterday began the uh the month of a variety of different things starting off with national volunteer month um autism awareness month especially with today being Autism Awareness Day World Autism Day uh uh the start of ArabAmerican Heritage Month uh
Tartan which is the Scottish American uh heritage month uh celebrate diversity month and uh April 7 will be the day of the reflection of the 1994 Rwanda Rwanda genocide April 22nd is Earth Day and um
I know for I know this was in March but Eid um for anyone who was Muslim celebrated Eid this past weekend So um I hope everyone enjoyed their Eid and for those who celebrate Lent it will end on April
17th Right So the first thing that on our agenda is the reelection of officers This is something that we do once a year Um starting off with chair is anyone Yes Go ahead Director can I circle back um
also yesterday was International um Day of Trans Visibility and for those in our community who are trans um we the message I'd like to send to you is um be
who you are You're valued respected and you should be treated with dignity and respect always Thank you Di director can you just repeat the name of the day yes So it was yesterday April 2nd It was
tr international day of trans visibility Trans international transility Um because I didn't um because I didn't find this event on the human rights commission website I'm going to suggest
uh to um Asma if um if we can add that to our commission so that to our calendar so that next year um it would be appropriately um mentioned um since we didn't mention it this year but thank you very much for that uh DI director uh
yes go ahead crew um thank you chair Huseni I would like to add on April 13 there will be a Cambodian new year as Thank you very much for that Commissioner Pitch For any events that any events or holidays or celebrations
that we haven't mentioned today um we haven't mentioned today I suggest uh people to go to the HRC website and add those events to our calendar um just so when it comes next year we could actually um acknowledge it um and you
know help spread the cultural awareness in our city So thank you for that Thank you very much uh Karu Pitch and the director Steve Marito Uh moving on to the reelection of officers Like I mentioned we do this once a year for the chair and the vice chair Um I actually
forgot to mention this for the month uh for monthly events I'm going to give this off to Ku This is before we go into the re-election of um of officers but I will give it off to Keru as soon as I introd introduce these events There will be a training with Strong Oak um that
will be happening um in the month of April as well as a gender-based violence conference Um I don't know much about that um about those uh events in deep detail but I would like to pass it off to uh Commissioner Pitch to provide more information about those two events
Thank you Chair Husseini So on April the 11 um there will be a conference from 9 to 4 called gender based violence and it will be at the collaborative diva in Chelsea Hab Cove and the neighbor health
um along with a few more organization are hosting the conference and um there will be many um leaders in the community and guest speakers um to talk about the
impact of um gender- based violent domestic violence sexual assault stalking and also um sex trafficking and and and more So we encourage everyone
every leader in the community to attend that conference Um we will also post um Chair Hoseni can we post the the um invite link the even bright link on our
um website so people can find it and for the um walking in balance and um that hosted by grandmother strong oak and the visioning bear organization it's for next month Yes for May May um 10 11
and 12 Thank you Chair Husini If I can just elevate these programs and again um Strand Grandmother Strong Oak and everything that they have done for the community of Revier These are really invaluable opportunities that all of us
have offered to us and that thank you to Karu Pitch from Harbor Cove able to make available to so many people from the community Everybody's welcome and if you're interested at all or just want to learn more I would say checking out some
of our past meetings and the work that we've done with Strong Oak would convince you of how amazing and transformative this work is Thank you Commissioner um Pitch and Attorney McGee um for both of these events I know that the um the walking in
balance training with uh grandmother strong oat is in uh is indeed next month I know that uh for both events that you have sent me that information I will send it off to Esma so that that could be put um on the website just so we can make it more accessible I know that
there's a flyer for the um for the conference Um I I would like I assume you would like for it to be translated in a multitude of different languages just so more people can come Yes Awesome Glad we're on agree on that Okay So I'll
just I'll send that off to you um as for that just so that's more widely available for people to um invite and attend invited to and attend Uh now actually moving on to the um re-election of officers Starting off with the chair
Um I know that I'm the current chair Um so I'm kind of go up for reelection I guess But is there anyone else who would like who would like and is interested in um fulfilling this position as well well in that case
um do you all would like me to continue being the uh the chair of the commission for the rest of the year raise your hand and say I I I All right Well it's all unanimous I uh I Sham Husseini is the chair of the human rights commission for
the rest of the year Um as for vice chair the current vice chair is Gene Baptist Um would you like to go up for reelection for the position and is there anyone else who would also go for the position as well oh yes director
Just to uh formalize it can I have a nomination for Shea Hosani just to make it formal [Music] i nominate Herby Gene Baptist to be vice
chair Awesome So um it is official according to the director that for the rest of the year um I Sham Husseini will be the chair for the human rights commission alongside me herby gene baptiz hopefully we both continue working together in order to create a
more um fluid uh commission and to bring all these wonderful ideas that we talk about in these um in these meetings to life inshallah I would like to take an opportunity Go ahead Um I feel like it's been such a long
time It's also a very short time I think two years now It's been two years vice chair before that I want to thank you so much for your service personally that I'm able to be a commissioner and serve under you It's been an absolute pleasure It's such an enjoyment doing this work with you Thank you for
being willing to be [Music] our public I'm sorry it's a new system forgive me the light like on versus off the red light feels like it means stop
but red light means on so just again so it's clear um the years that you've been doing this both as chairperson as vice chairperson uh elected or acting thank you so much it has been such a pleasure working with you working under you having you be our chairperson There's
been so much adversity There's been times when it hasn't been easy You've been a student You've been a young person You've been a Muslim in Rever And I thank you so much I'm so honored to be here with you Thank you very much for
for that M I feel like I'm I'm I'm at a loss for words I don't see the commissioners as commissioners I see them as my fellow mentors So I wouldn't be here um without all of your advice I also want to shout out Jean um vice
chair Jean Baptiste because in in the time that I wasn't fully active in the commission he really did you know you really took control and it inspired me to do better now that um we're all reelected So um thank you thank you very
thank you very much for all the help that you've helped me out and help the commission out as well Thank you Do you have any words vice chair thank you um a chair I think you know I'm very happy that you guys um agreed to re
reappointed me as a uh co-chair and then uh all I can said I'm very proud like kind of know you guys has a good faith on me like kind of put your faith on me like kind of to re to reomate me uh and then um looking forward to work with you
and then I think um we we need to work together and and to do whatever we can like kind of know to improve the HRC commission to make sure like kind of that we provide the best for re community Thank you Thank you chair
[Music] Go ahead commissioner Go ahead director I mean director I just want to congratulate the two of you Um Sheam that's an um this is your second year that you were elected as president is an a testament to your um to the
respect and that the members have for you also the work that you've done and the backlash you've got um by some members of the community over the years and you stay stood with the human rights commission and I want to I appreciate
you for that and I wa been watching for a long long time and I know the trial and tribulations you've been through And I know during the most difficult most polarized time on this um
commission you were there and that does not go unnoticed Thank you very much director I appreciate I appreciate all the things that you've said but um you know I'm glad that you're here with us as well Um go ahead Commissioner Pitch
I as one of the commissioners I am so honored and humbled um to work with you um Sher Hoseni to work with the young woman under your leadership I can't appreciate you enough
and all the work that not only on the um the commissioner um team also the work that you have been doing as a young woman in a community
and that's a role model that I want to grow up um that I want to grow up to be like you um and then also um Vice Chair Baptist I can't thank you enough
for leading us and for bringing us together um for a few months and I don't want that work to be unnoticed and you um you appreciated by me
um as your team your peer and fellow commissioner and I'm sure you are appreciated by all of our team member as well So I just want to join my colleagues in congratulating you for um the uh
nomination Uh you have been down the road with us for a long time I remember a couple of um the exchanges that took place in this chamber in the past and you handled those with integrity and authenticity So I want to extend my
congratulations to you and keep up with the good work hopefully that we will map out initiatives and things we get our hands dirty and uh do the best for our community to you my friend Um Batist I also like to extend my congratulations
certainly uh in times where we did not have uh Shay as a leader as a chair you really stood up and you uh to the plate and uh you continue to do good work uh making sure the team
does not disintegrate um you know and I truly appreciate your leadership Thank you One more thing Vice Chair Baptist thank you so much I hope you know how much I appreciate working with you You have been such a quick
immediate star in the HRC the Human Rights Commission somebody that we needed You stood up and showed what it is to be somebody that can come in and immediately stand up You didn't need time to adjust Um you had no time And I thank you for everything so far and I'm
so honored that you accepted this role again Continue to work with us and I look forward to it Um oh go ahead I I would say thank you to all of you guys Um I think one thing we need I need I I need you to
understand you know as a chair and as a commissioner my job is to be like kind of whatever happen I will step in and then make sure like kind of know that uh you get the support that you need and then to support you and then sh I did
not see that uh I want to tell you that um with your young age you know even myself I learned from you too you know by be the chair person and then it's good to have some kind the person who has the personality to be in the and as
a on the commission someone was like an activist someone like kind of was like willing like kind of to to stand up and then to fight for what you believe and then that's what we need in HRC and then thank you very much
um thank you very much everyone for the kind exchanges that we um gave each other today um I know that going forward that you know things will things will be different You know the the state of our nation has changed meaning that the way that we think the way that we operate
will definitely change and I know for the better um with the past couple months being as tumultuous as it was I know that we came out a stronger commission and that's just going to that allows us to put the foundations for all the changes that we're going to do Um or
the changes that we plan on doing and plan on imple implementing in the city Um so yeah I can't wait till I take that journey I can't wait till we all take that journey together in order to make our city a better place for people to
live in and thrive Um does anyone else want to add any additional marks before we move on to the next agenda item awesome Uh the next uh item on the agenda is the 21-day racial equity challenge I know that this is something
that um the city of River has done throughout its um all of its institutions whether that be at the high school whether that be at city hall Um that it's you know 21 executive days in which it start it'll start on April 7th
It'll end at uh April 27th Um the whole point of the challenge is to it takes 21 days to build a habit Um so with the daily um lessons and daily trainings you'll one will expect to raise their
awareness regarding all the racial inequities that are either happening in municipally statewide or nationally and nationally Um it will progressively shift our behaviors towards uh more
progressive behavior Um it'll lead to the demystification of the structure of institutionalized and organizational racism and um especially when it comes to the regards of white supremacy considering the state the um of our nation that is currently in Um and
ultimately to inspire actions to dismantle these um hurtful and harmful systems that not only hurt the people that work for the systems who are part of the um minority and marginalized communities but also the people who
those systems are supposed to be working for Um yeah so I know that um I'll send Osmo the link so that it could be put on our website I'm pretty sure it's on the river city um hall website but um if not
it's going to be under the human rights commission website as well Does anyone have any comments any questions or anything to say about the 21day racial equity challenge before we move on go ahead director So I just wanted to
add that um anyone can participate as the chairwoman mentioned it starts April 7th You can sign up as an individual or an organization Believe it or not um there are thousands um of organizations and individuals who signed up but River
is like there's only like a dozen of communities throughout the Commonwealth who signed up and took the challenge and the city of River is one of them So I'm proud to say that Um some of the um also part of the challenge is uh you can also go on the
website and they provide you with toolkits uh for group education discussions um as far as um how to raise awareness how to shift understanding and inspire actions toward dismantling racism um and the and food with food
equity as well So it's something you should take a look at Even if you're not eager to um sign um sign up for go on the Food Solution New England website just Google it um and type in 21day
racial equity habit building um and it will pop up Just do some research if you're curious Thank you very much director Um before we move on to the next agenda item any any additional comments regards awesome
Um for our main topic of discussion for for the night is just discussing and breaking down the overarching environment that is happening in regards to the immigration crisis that's
happening in our city and thing happening in the country and things that we've seen personally in our own city Um I know that there have been a variety of incidents in River One of which took place at right next to me in Shirley
Avenue um in regards to a you know a young Latino man who was a construction worker and he was taken by the um ICE organization I know that there has been a lot that I only know of that one only because it's close proximity to me and
you know I have issues regarding that only because I come from an immigrant family so the proximity scares me a lot but the fact that there has been a lot of different um incidents throughout the river regarding people taking uh from
ICE is something that is not only devastating and it's travesty but it ultimately fear fear mongers It's not only fear-mongering It's like people are overly scared Even people who are actual citizens of the United States are scared
of being taken and deported which brings in a whole other um issue So I would like to open discussion up to that I know everyone else has seen incidents so I would like people to talk about that and really bring it to light Uh I will give the mic off to Commissioner Pitch
Thank you Chair Hoseni I want to give a message to survivor domestic violence and sexual assault stalking um that please seek help if you experiencing any um domestic violence
sexual assault or stalking Um call Habuk Cove Um don't be afraid to call us We are not reporting anyone um to any the police department or ICE
um organization We want to make sure that you are safe at home We want to make sure that you get the support that you need Um so I just want to give that message to the whole community Um don't
hesitate to call our hotline and our hotline is [Music] 6178849909 for any um domestic violence um incident If you
need any help and support um looking for a safe place to go a shelter please don't hesitate or any con consultation if you don't know what to do um we have staff 24 hours um
answering that crisis hotline So please please feel free to connect with us I know that uh a lot of the people are so afraid and at the same time we have been receiving non-stop calls from um our
community asking for support not just for domestic violence sexual assaults and others but some other issue that they are um looking for the support for and then they are many resources and I am so
privileged and honored to sit next to uh community leaders um Commissioner Attorney McGee who's been go above and beyond I cannot thank you enough attorney We had such a successful case
today and it was going to make me cry I am so emotional with this case and I'm so thankful all the work that you have been doing and supporting immigrants community and immigrant survivors of
domestic violent that we serve and and other as well Um so I want you to know that and and thank you for standing up for for the community Right back at you Commissioner Pitch and it is an honor to
work alongside Harbor Cove and have you here constantly uplifting the voices of those who can't speak right now Thank you for calling in survivors of domestic violence to continue to um report and seek help and services The same goes for
schools doctor's offices As a parent in River since January 20th there are less parents dropping their kids off outside the Lincoln Elementary School and there are less people on the streets where there is a police presence regardless of
it's a resource officer for the school In times like these I could sit here and talk about immigration like I do all day that this is what I do for work But on a personal level when you look for the helpers people and organizations like Harper Cove and truly
speaking about being moved to tears I could be moved to tears right here in this meeting about the teachers in River that didn't need any administration to tell them what to do And they knew what to do And they stood up for their student that was detained on his way to
high school and they got together in their off hours between classes before school And Robin Maserado Matarazzo when you were homesick and you're talking to me I think with the flu or pneumonia and
that's what gets people back to their communities It's not always the families that they're born into it's the families that they become a part of And it's really a beautiful thing to be a part of that here in River Thank you very much Attorney McGee and Commissioner Pitch I think before we I
move on to anyone else I do want to acknowledge in um in regards to uh victims of domestic violence and sexual assault that April is also sexual assault awareness month So um all uh I do especially people of the community in
the media community to reach out to um Harbor Cove and search for those um and look have access to those uh resources in regards to um sexual assault and domestic violence Um I will uh get those lists of resources uh phone numbers and
all um and all that regarding domestic violence and sexual assault from Commissioner Pitch and put that on the website just so it's readily available rather than for people for going out of the way and searching them up themselves Um I just want to make that point clear Um um I'll pass on the mic to another
commissioner Go ahead Dr Garcia So for me I I just want to show solidarity with our families and our students as well that are many of our students and families that are going through some difficult times uh during
this time Um obviously uh we are navigating complex times in this country uh and certainly we have a lot of issues that we have to work on and we have to work through let's put it that way So I just want to thank all the
administrators of Riviera public schools Uh sometimes people on the side don't see and don't realize what's happening in our schools and there's a lot of distorted message that's going out that goes out and uh you know um and there's
a lot of work being done uh behind the scenes that people don't see I have been in this position for quite some time especially this year I've seen it I witnessed it and I myself was engaged in disseminating information to our all all
principles coming from the attorney general's office um you know uh putting the safeguard in place we have not at least got any incident of arrest in our school uh in our school systems and I
would say that schools the sa is the safest place for you to be parents if you listen to me now I just want to pass his message to you send your children to school because that's the safest place your children can be right now So for me
it's just not a matter of putting my voice out there is to work behind the scenes to make sure that our children are safe So I will continue to work and devote myself to my very best to work with the superintendents with principles
with administrative directors parents families through the workshops that we provide in the evening that we do for our families They show up in mass to attend to the cards that we have distributed to our all social workers and families in our schools to pass to
our parents Those are all actions So through some policies that are coming from above those are the actions we're engaging So to me I think the school department should be congratulated for the work that has been done to make sure that our families our students are safe
And I tell you that with certainty and that I will continue that journey My journey is not making a lot of noise out there And I think that the same journey goes for the mayor and for the superintendent of schools That's what we've been doing engaging in behind the-scenes work to make sure that our
families are safe So I encourage families students to come up to our schools to attend our schools That's the best place you can be right now Most of you spend about seven eight hours in our school system And we have guidance counselors we have teachers we have a lot of other people supporting them So I
just want to make sure that people understand that because sometimes there's a lot of mis messages messages out there distorted message and misconstrued message that's out there that I will not support I will not condemn Thank you
Thank you very much Dr Garcia Go ahead Uh Dr Thank you again for your for your good work that you're doing at this school in the school rea um I really really appreciate that and then I think it's
something myself um as an immigrant um I live in the city for quite a few years now um what I saw happening in this country it's unbelievable and then I felt like
kind of that our brothers and sisters I'm talking to Haitian people that currently be watching now uh since uh these things been going on about like kind of the chaos that's been
uh people been panicking uh myself as a uh community leaders I've been attending like kind of uh churches uh some friends been calling me about like kind of panicking about like kind of the people
can entering this country you have like kind of over 300,000 Haitian He came on the um Biden program Those people now on uh by April 20 24th
um there is an order from the U President Trump exercise a power like kind of to deport these people uh to go back to Haiti And as you may know Haiti is in a tough situation now uh the gang is all over uh taken all over the
country now um 90% of the capitals occupied by the by the gangs so these people will not be able to go back so today I was at the nursing home talking to uh several members been uh going to
the hospital talking to people and then thanks to Dr Garcia provide me some uh no rate some like kind of that I can handle uh to those people They were very glad that they got this information ask them to put them in the wallet if they
were stopped by the police so they can uh show that and then if like kind of ice going to the house you know what to say like know they should know the right you know how like kind of to approach uh ICE This is a troubling time in this country now And then you know as a
leader in this country and the city I think we I I have to work harder to make sure like kind of we educate like kind of our community especially the Haitian community It's not only Asian community that we talk to I talk like to Spanish
people Many of these people they in the same boat with some some Haitian people So all we can do now is to continue like kind of to make sure we we we be there for these people to make sure like kind of we advise these people to make sure like kind of any
information they can get So if people wants to contact me they can contact me any like kind of watching the show now if they want they can contact me at my my my phone number so we can make sure like I know that we provide like kind of any assistance like I know they may need
And then thank you again for um atonimali I know you've been working like kind of very hard in this situation and then to see any help like kind of you can provide any Haitian any like kind of all the group people probably like kind of um having us has to deal
with like kind of deportation We very it's very good like I know that uh you and this community and then you're part of this community like I know and then that's something like I know I appreciate and then cool I know you're doing some hard work too especially with
the domestic violence believe me I know you put in lot of work to this and then I congratulate you for all this kind of work you're doing thank you again thank you vice chair go ahead Dr Garcia and then DEI director So I just want to
congratulate um um attorney McGee for the successful case that she handled today That's great I more or less have been apprised on that So to you Karu I would really appreciate I truly appreciate your help
in terms of uh sharing resources with us that were so critical so important to our families And actually the cards I gave to um to Herby a few you know few uh I think it was yesterday uh certainly it was a a fruit of collaboration and uh
uh partnership um that exists between reveal public schools and harbor one uh harbor co so I truly appreciate your help Thank Dr goes here Go ahead director Thank you Immigration and
deportation are complex issues that intertwine with what we do human rights right you know though it's important to follow policy and uphold the rule of law we have to keep in mind
that our communities and the people in our communities need to know that you need to know your rights As we mentioned we have an attorney Molly McGee if you need immigration advice um to reach out She's right here in River
right on Broadway Um while ensuring like people are treated with dignity respect being valued we can't forget the very cause principle that we all live for We all deserve to be treated with
basic human rights And because these impact our families and our communities and at the end of the day we want them to know there's an avenue You're not alone Um there are resources Um we have if you want to know your rights you can
go on the Department of Diversity Equity and Inclusion's website You can also um the city of Rivier's library also has someformational um cards on know your rights as well So um reach out to me directly if you have
any questions Um s morabido m o r a bit tre.org or and you will not be ignored I will return your email as soon as you can as soon as I can
Thank you very much director Um I think in the topic of resources that um are being provided in the community I would like to display some that we have here right now I think I don't know if the camera could come come closer but this
is a um basically know your rice card It basically uh it comes in five different langu languages including uh English Arabic Spanish Portuguese and Haitian Creole um show that if a officer does
come to your establishment whether it be at home whether it be you know in the in the streets whether it be at a business show this to them And um ultimately this is a way to protect yourself Um on top of this I know that um you can find
these cards um all across Revier Um if not um I will provide um the HRC website with like cutouts of basically the same card but it's like if you don't have access to the card you could print this out at home and carry this around with
you I know it's only in English here but I will provide with additional translations for um additional transit for the five uh languages that it comes in on the HRC website so that it's readily available for people on there as well Um I will pass this around just so
people don't if people don't already know Another thing is the uh if you could yes um is the ICE uh work site rate employer rights and responsibilities This is if you were approached by an ICE officer or ICE
officers in your business or establishment This is a things are like basically guidelines of things that you're supposed to do and things um uh that protect you as a business owner So I will definitely put this I will definitely put this on the website as well for your um for uh review and print
this out as well just so you could have that in your establishment And then lastly the I know everyone has seen this the know your rights um it's basically very similar to the card but it's this is provided by uh Merura which is an
organization in Massachusetts that revolves around um immigration immigration crisis um it lists out all the things that um regard to you as your rights as and um as an individual and ways to protect yourself So I'll also provide that on the website as well I
think um I'll I'll start from here and just pass it on But I know these are all uh resources that everyone in the commission has agreed um agreed upon to disseminate in the the human rights commission as well as people of some
from city hall to disseminate amongst the population of river I also do want to make it clear that especially with the rise of not rise of social media but how heavily social media is um integrated with this um information be careful of all the information that
you're getting from the internet Not everything is accurate Make sure that you're visiting government websites Make sure that you're getting accurate information so that not only are you protecting yourself but you're protecting the people around you you don't want to get in trouble simply
because of misinformation Um this is just like a general discretion from anything regarding the things that we um say or bring up in the meeting is that make sure you know where you're getting your facts Make sure that your facts are correct And if you are disseminating
that information amongst the community make sure that they're accurate so that not only do you protect yourself you protect the people around you Um just moving on from there does anyone have anything to add go ahead director I just want to piggyback on what you were
saying about um the organization MEA which stands for Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advoc Advocacy uh Coalition Their website is Mera Coalition That's Mir AI.org And you can get a bunch of
resources from there as well So you have if you have a friend uh family member neighbor who's concerned um you can also get the documentation in uh litany of languages as well Um I also wanted to
circle back to what our chairwoman was discussing earlier about what happened at Shirley I have some brief information of the context of what occurred and who was involved Um so there was an incident on Shirley
if I can find it on my paperwork somewhere which involved um Department of Homeland Security and the Bureau of ATF what's it stand for
um firearms Um I'm going backwards here Alcohol tobacco alcohol tobacco and firearms There we go Everything is acronyms these days but um so that what they did the federal government did AAC's and and they confiscated over a
hundred firearms and what what originated in Everett um a few of the people who were detained and arrested were in the Shirley Aar So just to let
you know what happened [Music] I can not speak very much because of attorney client privilege but I can let you know that um there have been individuals that are identified as collateral damage that are arrested by
ICE throughout communities in Massachusetts And Revier has not been immune to this And what that means is kind of like what director morbido was saying but I have no idea about that That's not my clients from Revier Um if there's a warrant for
someone and when you're on your job executing that warrant you see someone else who you'd like to arrest you can do that if you can come up with a reason to do it For example if they don't have legal status in this country regardless of if they have a criminal record and so
that has also been happening Thank you very much Attorney McGee Go ahead Commissioner Pitch I um just change to um domestic violent and
and sexual assault survivor Um I also want to specifically mention that if you are a survivor who are immigrant and part of the LGBTQ um community please seek out support
Habove um will support anyone who identify as a survivor of domestic violence um who's who's been harmed So please specifically for LGBTQ um community don't hesitate I know it's
a um the current climate is not friendly but we want to make sure we assure you that we'll um fully support you if you need any support Thank you Thank you very much
Commissioner Pitch for the resources that I've um that I've shown um to the public I know that there are places to get these cards um that you could find these cards specifically throughout the city Um u I just want to confirm from
the people of the commission like where can if people want a physical copy of like the red card that I just showed to the where can people go to get it um and yeah basically the re the River Public Library has them
They're also on the website but if you want a physical card we have them at the library That is great to know Always love a public library for the resources that they have Sometimes these red cards are a little hard to come by myself as a private immigration attorney I've tried
to come buy them in bulk so that I can distribute them to my clients Thank you to Harbor Cove for the collaboration that you were able to provide me with them so that I can continue to disseminate them within my community Um I am recommending to clients that cannot acquire a hard copy that they keep a
photo on their phone And if you have access to print it out you can also print it out from Google in your own language and in Google I'm sorry and in English so that you can understand what the person who's reading it in English is reading
Um thank you very much director and um attorney Molly McGee Um just like I just to reiterate what I said before um the printed out versions of the card as well as it come as well as the uh rights for
business owners um will all and the know your rights for general individuals will be all will all be found and um on the HRC website especially the cutout version the one that you can print out and cut out um that will also be provided on the HRC website So you could
go on there as well um for an access Um does anyone any additional remarks oh go ahead Director there Commissioner Mali uh do I know you probably have a better
idea than than than me do we know like I know it's for the public you know for the viewer that probably watching um this uh the commission and now um do we know how many uh uh people that ICE has
been arrested and rea uh so far I don't okay I would imagine that we divided into two groups people that they have warrants for and people that they don't have warrants for generally speaking everybody can stand behind criminal criminal immigrants being
detained So anybody with a criminal record or contact with law enforcement gets grouped into one group and then all other people we call collateral or just people that have no contact with law enforcement are grouped in another And I think the latter group that I'm speaking
about is the one that we pay most attention to that seems most unjust that they would be detained and removed from our communities and our families Thank you Vice Chair and thank you um Attorney McGee I'mma pass the mic off to director
through you to uh Attorney McGee Um maybe you can go into brief detail Um if to those who are watching if someone um is stopped by ICE or if it's such a
quick exchange and they don't have time to take out their card how do you what is your suggestion how do they go about doing that if a raid of enforcement officers are coming at them how are they going to just whip
out their car they don't have a time to say a word sometimes So I guess my question is maybe you can give some quick legal advice as like do you recommend having it a screenshot on your phone like what do you have ex like to
be prepared and ready what do you suggest because from what I've seen on cameras it's such a rapid in exchange that people don't even have a moment
to acknowledge what's going on So such valid points director morbido and that's why we say really know your rights And so it's not just about carrying around a card on you that you have no idea what the contents are It's
knowing your basic rights So that's do you have to give your name do you have to identify yourself are you engaged in illegal or unlawful activity for which there is a lawful right to stop and detain you that's usually where I start with my clients is I say when engaging
with law enforcement or officials of the public we always want to start with being respectful and being cautious being professional You would want to keep your red card or your know your rights card
near your ID so that you would advise the officer I'm going to reach for my ID to provide it to you And if you're unable to do that just from what you know from the card do you have a warrant for my arrest is the the
big one Do you have a paper do you have an a document on you with my name is there somebody besides the officer in front of me that has told you to come here that somebody wants me in jail otherwise you could be what we call collateral That you are being arrested and detained because there is a warrant
for someone else's arrest And um this is what's changed This is what changes politically in our country depending on who's president And again maintaining your composure being calm being respectful is always going to be helpful Um
and it may be that until later you get to call a lawyer when you get that one phone call And I would say try to have somebody's number ready or have a family member ready to call that can get you to speak with a lawyer Thank you so much Thank you very much
Attorney McGee Um oh go ahead Commissioner Pitch Thank you Chair Huseni Um Attorney McGee and also other commissioners Do we have specific I know we utilize attorney
McGee for everything Um do we have any other attorneys that the community can reach out to is there any 24 hours like attorney hotline that
are immigrants um um people can have access because not everybody knows where who to speak with or where to start with right when you are in a
panic especially like if you don't speak the language and I can assume um they don't know what to do I cannot imagine it's like everybody
already have has a plan for it So if we can put together um those information and have it available that an attorney or attorneys will respond um when you know the community access
them that will be great Thank you for bringing this up Commissioner Pitch And this is a plug for all of the American citizens that are out there There's no guaranteed right to counsel in immigration court And that goes for adults and children So
to Commissioner Pitch's point um there's a shortage of immigration attorneys and there's a shortage of individuals that are licensed to practice immigration law that are doing so in the courts because it's very frustrating and it's discouraging and now the president and the white house are um making direct
attacks on immigration attorneys and the practice of law and the cases that we submit So voting is really important in state and local elections also in our um federal elections that will come up every four years But um this is really
what happens when we we can't picture um the micro or the the small local level changes that are going to happen when big sweeping political reforms take place So we would if you can say donating to
organizations like um the immigration legal access council or the Massachusetts Immigration Legal Access Network These are organizations that are making council available to the most marginalized immigrants and that's
always going to be children and individuals with disabilities that are either detained or in imminent removal harm Again we in Massachusetts um very much live in a bubble and I work and do advocacy work here and I always want to make it better But compared to states to
our west states to our north states to our south we are in such a different position with um funding uh in non-government organizations and nonprofits such as Harbor Cove and uh organizations throughout Massachusetts
So um doing a little bit of research and donating getting involved in your local communities There are organizations such as Harbor Cove stepping up for students and people in the communities Chelsea East Boston and River There are things that we can do in our local communities to make a difference for our neighbors
and the parents and families of the um kids our our kids go to school with Thank you very much Tony McGee I'm going to pass the mic off to Dr go to you Yeah thank you So um yeah there there are some organizations like for example I
think meter has been mentioned here I personally invited me to come and provide a session for our families in the afternoon to talk about their rights So it was well attended actually you know a session we have doing that for quite some time We did it last year we
did you know this year There's also immigration helpline that you can call There's a number uh that you can uh call Um you can also um that number is 5082931871 There's also training that
MERA I can repeat that number again 5082931871 There's also training that Mera provides uh for families that those trainings actually they are held online virtual families can attend uh those trainings there's one that just took place on May on March 25th Um so you can
go to to the meter website you will see all the resources and you know training dates uh the the other information that probably can be useful to you So um there are some resources out there obviously um considering the probably
the amount of support and help that people are looking for uh they might go our system is rigid Let's put it that that way We cannot uh say say it in a any other way It's rigid There's a lot of institutional barriers that people
have to go go through Um that's one thing we got to acknowledge and especially during the these times obviously um there's a lot of um misinformation there's a lot of uh uh unscrupulous people that are preying on
uh immigrants that you know um for money or for other types of things just to you know basically serving and selling the LEP service So we got to be mindful about those things and very careful about those things And talking about the
um the uh the know your rights card it's not just a matter of handling those cards in my view I'm not an attorney but it's a matter of sitting with a client or the person you handling the card and explain what that card is all about and some of the things that are on the card for them to really memorize it or to
learn it That's the reason why it's on both languages you have it in English uh on one part of the card on the second on the on the reverse side of the card you'll find a different language So it's about it's a matter of not just handling the card but also taking the time to educate the person that those are some
fundamental rights they have and they need to know how to answer those those uh those um those questions if they ever come up or if they were detained or you know and things like that So that's my understanding I could be wrong Uh that's the way we've been passing those cards
we have our family leaison passing those cards um in our schools and that's a proceeding the proceedings that we have u you know outlined for them So that's the way it's been done Thank you very much Dr Garcia I think
with all things being said for um for anyone in the city of River and of course beyond the city of River um go on the HRC website and not not right now but as soon as we upload them and you know have those have that information on
hand Um make sure you understand them especially since they do come in different langu languages it is a lot more easier to disseminate that information um to a wide variety of different populations Like I mentioned before at the same time with the immense
amount of of resources are going resources I put in quotations because of um there is the spreading of misinformation um especially um with the the rising of fear-mongering where people are being told that their cities are going to be
raided There can if there are cities that going to be rated without an official um without an an official what's the word like yeah like I've heard from a lot of people that different cities have been
told that they're going to be raided by ICE but it turns out that it was and that nothing actually happened So really make sure you know where your information is coming from make sure that it's coming from highly reliable sources And you know if there's someone who you know that is you know isn't
watching our our meetings or doesn't really understand um due to a variety of different barriers new knowing this information If you're someone who understands what's going on make sure that you disseminate that information to people who act who who need it Um just
so we not only protect ourselves but protect our others The whole point of the human rights commission is to make sure that everyone is pro um is to make sure that everyone knows exactly what they need to do in order to protect themselves and it's our job to send that information so that you have the ability
to do so Um before I know there isn't anything else um on the um on the agenda other than open forum So do does anyone have any other remarks or any comments regarding um everything that we've talked about today
thank you Go ahead I just want to add um and then attorney you can tell me if I'm wrong or not What I learned some of uh when ICE went to people house and then they opened the
door So what ICE have done so they put their foot right into the against the door So what happened some people if you push try to pull the door to close the door they will say like kind of that you
attack them like kind of physically So now they will be able like kind of to go inside like kind of to arrest you because they kind of you So what people suggested if eyes like kind of they went to your house if I like kind of know you open the door so they put their foot
against the door is to like kind of let them speak and then you go back inside your house said like kind of you don't have your warrant and then until they left and then you go you you you close your door otherwise by moving the door there could be some kind of retaliation
against you I just want to say Yes Yes that's a very good point There's a lot there that we could talk about Um as a criminal defense attorney and as an immigration attorney you definitely don't want to be caught with resisting arrest So um a Ring doorbell camera may
be something that people want to have now um it's cheap front door surveillance that is visible um from the entrance of your house that would probably deter any type of negative interactions um with trying to get into
your property Um one thing that I've spoken about in the Latino community in Laa del Cafe where there is a lot of resources as well on um broadcasting throughout Boston If you live in a multif family
dwelling and there's a common area it's a good time to speak with your neighbors about not letting strangers into the house and not letting ICE agents into the general common areas of your building because that is a way to gain access to the house and then later your
apartment Uh we do live in a large multifamily city So um being cognizant of that for your neighbors as well speaking to people that are your neighbors that don't talk to the people that live above them or below them Um you know looking out for
for your neighbors that if you aren't feeling their tension you're you're not aware of it because it's there And people really could use a hand from their neighbor right now Thank you very much Attorney McGee Um
before we move on um to the adjournment of the meeting any additional comments concerns Awesome I just want Yeah go ahead Very quick I just want our community to you know in light of everything that has been said here and
uh you know I want to send a a message of of you know um of courage and also a message of um determination thinking that they're
not alone in this community Uh there are a lot of good people and certainly these commissioners that we have all here talking about these issues Um it means that we do care Uh there's so much that we can push the envelope but that that
envelope will continue to be pushed and our message for you is for you to be strong and to continue to be strong Uh you have allies in the community um you know whenever there is a an issue that really is affecting you or some of the
things affecting you you have attorneys in the community you have school district you have the city hall that you can call you have members that are here talking about all these issues that means a lot and uh certainly it shows
that we do care Uh I myself I'm an immigrant so when I hear things like that it knocks very closely to to me I'm an immigrant um you know and I have a lot of family members who are also immigrants so for me it's a personal
issue it's a personal matter so and I take it very close so I just want to make sure that you understand that we here for you and uh whenever there is new information new resources new ways of dealing with thanks support workshop
training just to make sure you're safe we will be here for you thank you thank you very much Dr Garcia and I guess a similar message to those who are allies to the people who are going through this crisis to know that you
know as American citizens we do have the privilege to say that you know or maybe it might happen um we have the privilege to say that this crisis doesn't necessarily abide to us only because we're American citizens but it doesn't mean
that it doesn't mean that we um we shouldn't be helping ing those those who are actively going through this situation As someone who is an American citizen I have immigrant parents Whether
whether you're um the fact that you're an American citizen means that at one point in your genealogy whether it be immediate whether it be generations ago that at one point your family was indeed an immigrant You would not be here in the United States if your family wasn't
an immigrant We have this discussion all the time every year in November regarding Columbus Day how you know the white population that makes up the river ultimately came from Italian proud Italian immigrants that came here and
build their lives up The people who are going through this that we've seen being affected actively such as Latino and Afro African-American community are are basically the same thing as the Italian immigrants a long time ago They came here to start a new life to look for
better opportunities So why not give the same care and love to them as you know as we uh approach the Italian and the Irish immigrants that happened a long time ago They they were in the same
position So I believe that yes I know that something that we've seen in throughout the history not throughout the history but things that we've seen um in in our society is that people are actively going against these immigrants even though they don't realize that the
the reason why they're there is because of immigrants who are in the same position So just be aware of that if it wasn't if it isn't new now then similar situations happened back then where people were actively trying to get rid of Italian Irish immigrants whether that
be in the city of River or nationally and this is something that like I mentioned we've discussed multiple times every year in November in regards to Columbus Day so you know be there for your friends be there for your families and just know that we are one community in you know in in the
religion of Islam and when when One person hurts we all hurt You know it doesn't matter how you look like it doesn't matter how what language you speak it doesn't matter what religion you are Um the fact that people that don't look like me are being hurt means that in some way is hurting me And it's
my job it's our job to be there for people especially considering the fact that we have the privilege of being here You know if you know a lot of people who would who didn't have the privilege would be scared to be in city hall simply because what if they get detained what if they get arrested what if they
get um taken away from their families we have the privilege of being here to a certain extent um in which we're not afraid to be here because you know we wouldn't suffer the same consequences as someone else So to the allies out there please know your friends know your family protect them even though they're
not in the same position as you It's your job It's your you know it's your right as a privileged American citizen to extend a helping hand So that's I know I went on a very long elaborate tangent but the point is that that's the
point Uh thank you very much everyone I know it's very very long and lengthy and necessary discussion something that we should have talked about since the whole thing started but I'm glad that we're doing it now and these conversations will continue on for
as long as these issues are still arise Um for those who need the information like I've mentioned and I'll reiterate again all this information will be posted on the HRC website for easy access And if you do have any questions any comments any concerns you can reach
out to us directly um through the HRC website as well Um we do have um an open forum I know that we have a fellow guest in the audience I know this is your opportunity to come here and speak your
mind You got three minutes Um whatever whatever you want Go ahead You can use the whole three minutes Of course hit the button with the person on it There we go Um thank you for allowing me
to come and sit and um take Sorry just please state your name address Is it also phone number name and address please And then um continue on from there Yep No I'm Albert Teti I live at uh 197 Kushmanav here in Rivier Um
actually spent most of my 43 years here in Rivier So I've seen a lot of changes in the community and I'm really from this discussion that you've allowed me to come and watch today really energized and excited for um having people in the community
looking out for each other Um when I hear the work that Attorney McGee is doing and Commissioner Pitch is doing with their communities it's it's energizing It's exciting Um and then when I hear about the work being done at
the schools I really appreciate it I think when you see what's happening at some school systems where raids are allowed to come into the school systems I myself I'm I'm a trained therapist I'm a marriage and family therapist Um it
doesn't just affect the kid whose parents or the child that is under attack Every child in that school is affected And when they feel like they're in danger they're not going to
learn As I'm sure you know Dr Garcia when we see when we have those annual gun trainings or whatever right there's always more kids calling out sick the days after There's loss of learning the days after
because when we feel like we're being attacked when we have fear parts of our brain shut off So that's what's happening for kids right now Whether you're black whether you're Latino or
whether you're just a grandson of an Italian immigrant like me when you see that your community is in danger when your friend might not be there the next day you can't learn So I really appreciate the work that you're doing in keeping our schools safe Um it's at
least eight hours a day where somebody has a place to be Um and thank you um chairperson for for your work and and um vice chairperson for your work also I I'm really excited for what's happening here in River and the support that
everyone's given each other Thank you Thank you very much for your time today Um it doesn't seem like anyone else is in um the audience Um and I would um request for someone to push a motion to adjurnn
Motion to adjurnn Madam chair Second All in agreeance say I I All right Meeting is adjourned Thank you very much for those at home Thank you very much for joining us today