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Local worker's rights group shares deportation concerns following election, creates rapid response team

“These people are a huge force and a very important piece for the economy of Arkansas,” Magaly Licolli said. “We need to assure that they are protected.”

SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Venceremos, a local worker’s rights group in Springdale, said they are in the beginning stages of forming a rapid response team to help provide resources to undocumented workers in the state. 

Following President-Elect Donald Trump’s win a couple of weeks ago, Executive Director of Venceremos Magaly Licolli said her group is preparing for the chance of increased efforts to deport immigrants. 

“These people are a huge force and a very important piece for the economy of Arkansas,” Licolli said. “We need to assure that they are protected.”

Licolli said that a meeting held on Nov. 16 focused on creating the structure of what a rapid response team would look like, hearing concerns from local residents, as well as creating a plan for future years.

“What is going to be the role of the allies? What is going to be the role of the faith leaders, the role of the attorneys, what information or resources the community needs,” Licolli said. “So we start drafting those materials to be distributed to the community about knowing your rights if the police stop you. What is your right as a citizen or as a people.” 

She said in the coming months, Venceremos looks to work with other local organizations to help spread awareness to vulnerable populations.

Venceremos’ mission, according to their website, is to "ensure human rights for the state’s poultry workers."

“A lot of the poultry community is very vulnerable and they're undocumented,” Licolli said. “Raised concerns about what will happen next year, now that Trump is going back, he's now the elected president and so you know, this threat of deportations, this threat of really discriminating more towards these communities, is something that is really concerning right now.”

She said the future rapid response team will be helping individuals out with situations not just focused with deportations. 

“It’s not only about the racism that may happen or the deportation that may happen but also how these people are going to use this threat against vulnerable workers and to make working conditions worse for workers,” Licolli said. “So this is about creating a committee that will tackle all of these issues.”

President-elect Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, have promised mass deportations and suggested they would scale back the use of temporary protection status that covers more than a million immigrants.

In the weeks following his election victory, Trump has named former Immigration and Customs Enforcement director Tom Homan as his Border Czar, tasking him with carrying out the largest deportation operation in history.

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