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LOS ANGELES – The Pilipino Workers Center (PWC) has announced initiatives to support undocumented Filipinos as Donald Trump’s return to the presidency sparks anxiety among immigrant communities.

“(Trump’s) return is causing a lot of anxiety, fear and stress among many in our communities,” said PWC Executive Director Aquilina Soriano Versoza during a virtual post-election town hall Friday night.

PWC Executive Director Aquilina Versoza / Facebook

“We gather here to prepare to protect and stand strong for our communities, especially the immigrant families.”

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PWC announced the launch of a rapid response hotline that undocumented Filipinos can call for deportation defense.

Free legal clinics

The center will also hold free legal clinics and “Immigration Know Your Rights” trainings, and launch new communications plans “to make sure that our community is able to have up-to-date information.”

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Versoza has urged undocumented immigrants “not to panic and self-isolate” and to make sure they are “connected to reliable information.”

She reminded undocumented immigrants that “ICE can’t just deport you…there’s a legal process and that’s why it’s important to connect to legal support.”

Versoza also stressed that undocumented immigrants should not feel they need to voluntarily leave the United States to avoid deportation as “they have rights and don’t need to leave.”

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She was reacting to the statement of Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez advising undocumented Filipinos to voluntarily leave the US instead of facing deportation.

No need to self-deport

“There are real economic reasons why (undocumented immigrants) are here,” she said. “They don’t have to self-deport. There are resources…and pathways to citizenship and we’re ready to support the immigrant community.”

PWC is preparing for their legal advisors “to be paired” with their 24/7 rapid response hotline, Versoza said.

Perla Santos, one of the more than 100 town hall participants, shared that “many of our kababayans are feeling downhearted” in the face of Trump’s mass deportation plan and the shifting immigration policies.

“We’re not liabilities. We are assets,” Santos said, bewailing Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Data from the US Census Bureau, the Migration Policy Institute and the Pew Research Center suggest that around 310,000 undocumented Filipinos live in the United States, but immigration experts, including Global Migrant Heritage Foundation Executive Director Arnedo Valera, believe the number is much higher.

“The true count is difficult to gauge accurately, as many undocumented individuals refrain from engaging with government data collection, fearing exposure,” Valera said.

You may like: How Trump’s mass deportation plan will impact undocumented Filipinos

Sanctuary

PWC said they “have joined policy fights” to protect the immigrants communities, such as strengthening sanctuary policies and ensuring the safety of undocumented immigrants.

The Los Angeles City Council has voted to make LA a “sanctuary city” for immigrants, including prohibiting city resources from being used for any federal immigration enforcement.

“It’s important for us to remember that here in California, we have fought for and built strong protections for immigrant communities and those are not going away,” said Versoza.

You may like: California governor calls special session to counter Trump

PWC was part of the successful campaign to push for overtime and health and safety protections for domestic workers, and the inclusion of undocumented immigrants in Medi-Cal.

For more information, visit the PWC website. For immigration-related emergencies, you may call the hotline: 1-820-777-4102.

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