With federal immigrant detentions and deportations on the rise, some residents in New York's Capital Region are volunteering to help immigrant day laborers in their communities.
The volunteers are part of a national "Adopt a Corner" campaign. Volunteers go to a place where day laborers are waiting for work and hand out food and coffee. They show some hospitality and keep an eye out for agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
One of those volunteers, who goes by "Ammonite," started volunteering several months ago. He withheld his real name out of fear for his safety and to avoid issues with his employer.
He says he decided to volunteer after seeing the impact of a spike in immigration enforcement under the second Trump Administration.
"The way the federal government is choosing to operate immigration in this country is deplorable and is unethical," Ammonite said in an interview. "That's primarily my reason — and fear of a time where it's not necessarily just immigrants."
A recent WAMC analysis found that deportations are up in Upstate New York since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, especially among immigrants who weren't charged with anything other than an immigration violation.
