The Abridged version:
- Over a dozen people of Afghan origin were detained at Sacramento’s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office this week, advocates say.
- The Sacramento region includes a large Afghan community, and one in nine Afghan refugees in the United States residents reside in the region.
- Rep. Doris Matsui held a press conference on Friday morning to criticize the uptick in enforcement actions against the Afghan community.
Multiple Afghan residents in Sacramento arrived at a federal building downtown for immigration hearings this week, but were met with detentions and arrests, advocates say.
Local leaders and advocates are sounding the alarm this week over what they say is an uptick in detentions for Afghan immigrants residing in the Sacramento region. NorCal Resist, which frequently has volunteers observe Sacramento’s immigration court, said that more than a dozen people of Afghan origin had been detained. That number could be higher, though, according to spokesperson Giselle Garcia.
Arrests have occurred at the John Moss federal building, which houses Sacramento’s ICE field office, as well as local suburbs.
‘Reckless, dangerous, and blatantly racist’ rhetoric, Matsui says
At a press conference outside the federal building, U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, denounced the actions by ICE.
“Over the last few days, President Trump and Secretary Noem have exploited the heartbreaking shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C. to justify going after immigrant families,” Matsui said.
“They have singled out entire communities with rhetoric that is reckless, dangerous, and blatantly racist,” Matsui said.
Federal officials have arrested an Afghan national in connection to the Nov. 27 shooting. Since then the Trump administration directed ICE to target those of Afghan origin for deportation and has halted asylum decisions for asylum-seekers from Afghanistan, according to the New York Times.
ICE arrests confirmed in Arden-Arcade
NorCal Resist said that its “Migra Watch” network observed alleged ICE officers in plain clothes knocking on apartment doors. The incident reportedly happened on Thursday near the 4300 block of Marconi Ave. in Arden-Arcade neighborhood.
Sacramento Supervisor Rich Desmond also confirmed that ICE has been operating in his district, which includes Arden-Arcade, Fair Oaks and Rancho Cordova.
“My office is aware that arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have occurred this week within the local Afghan community in District 3,” Desmond said, in a statement. “We understand that this is a deeply distressing situation for affected families and friends.”
Desmond urged residents to contact the Sacramento FUEL Network if a loved one has been detained or if they require legal consultation.
Broad Afghan community lives in Sacramento
The Sacramento region is home to a large Afghan community. One in nine Afghan refugees in America call the Sacramento region home, according to World Relief Sacramento.
Since 2011, Sacramento has welcomed over 12,000 Afghan refugees, including 1,700 people evacuated after the evacuation of U.S. forces from Afghanistan in 2021, according to Matsui’s office.
“Something profoundly wrong is happening in Sacramento,” said Reshad Noorzay, executive director of the Council of Islamic-American Relations in Sacramento.
Noorzay said that his organization has observed a pattern of ICE telling individuals to come for a “same-day” appointment.
“When they arrive … thinking it’s a routine check-in, trying to follow the rules, they’re arrested immediately. There is no appointment,” Noorzay said.
“It’s deception, pure and simple, and it’s cruel,” Noorzay said.
ICE officers recently attempted to enter the CAIR office in downtown Sacramento, Noorzay said. The building administrator denied the officers entry and the organization is looking for ways to increase its security, he said.
Garcia, with NorCal Resist, said that she personally saw a father, of a family of four Afghan asylum seekers, get arrested at the federal building this week. The family had arrived in Sacramento earlier this year after being labeled as “infidels” by the Taliban and fleeing Afghanistan, she said.
“Each detainment of our Afghan neighbors weakens the social fabric of our city here in Sacramento,” Garcia said. “It impacts each and every one of us.”
Felicia Alvarez is a reporter at Abridged covering accountability. She’s called Sacramento home since 2015 and has reported on government, health care and breaking news topics for both local and national news outlets.