An Oregon teenager has gone viral for sharing his concerns about his parents who are living in the United States legally amid increased US Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in the area.
Manny Chavez, 16, was one of dozens of residents who spoke up at a Hillsboro City Council meeting on Tuesday decrying ICE raids in the Portland suburb, KGW reports.
‘I just want to tell you guys that I’m scared for my parents to walk out there, to walk out their house because I might not be able to say goodbye to them if they go to work. I might not ever be able to say “bye” or see them again,’ he began, his voice breaking as he spoke.
‘I’m scared because of it, because they fought so hard to come here and choose a life for their kids,’ Chavez continued, his voice breaking as he spoke.
‘I’m scared that everyone that I love is not, I’m not going to be able to see them again, because even though they’re US citizens, they don’t care about us.
‘They treat us like dogs, they treat us like animals.’
Chavez also shared his concerns that he would one day be held at school by masked ICE agents as his parents were detained, and pleaded with the city council members to take action and help residents in the city fight back against ICE.
‘I hope you guys do side with us because we are fighting for our rights and we are getting treated like animals because people judge us by the color of our skin and the way that we talk,’ he said, before taking a swipe at President Donald Trump.
Manny Chavez, 16, has gone viral for his remarks at a Hillsboro, Oregon city council meeting on Tuesday when he spoke about his fears over ICE raids in the area
The teenager sobbed into his Nike sweatshirt when he finished his remarks
Chavez spoke amid increased ICE raids in the Portland suburb. Agents are seen here following a raid in Chicago
‘And we have a president that acts like a child and doesn’t side with us because of the way he thinks about us,’ the teenager said between tears.
He concluded his nearly three-minute long remarks by saying he really wants ‘something to change because I do not want to live like this.
‘I’m tired of telling my mom and dad every day after school, “Have you seen the new video of ICE pulling someone over because of the color of their skin?” he continued, choking up, pulling on the neck of his Nike sweatshirt.
‘As a 16 year old, I shouldn’t be scared,’ the teenager said. ‘I should be focusing on school – and I can’t even focus on school.’
Once he finished speaking, the teenager covered his face with his sweatshirt and collapsed into his arms as he sobbed in front of the city council members, two of whom gave Chavez a standing ovation – along with many in the auditorium, the Oregonian reports.
But some online argued that the boy’s concerns were unfounded.
‘If his parents are legal, why is he scared of ICE?’ one X user asked. ‘Maybe it’s time we separate facts from fear.
‘Politicians are making kids cry to score votes. Disgusting,’ he added.
Chavez said he was not planning on speaking at the meeting, but was ‘worried about everyone afterwards because ICE is just going for whoever they want at this point’
Another X user said she does ‘feel for the boy’ and ‘it’s not his fault,’ but it’s really on his parents for making this choice,’ while a third argued that the ‘blame belongs to the people that let unmitigated illegal crossings occur. Period.
‘Correcting that wrong is not the fault of the current administration. Period.’
The Daily Mail has reached out to ICE for comment.
The teenager, though, said he was not planning on speaking at the packed city council meeting – and was instead there to show his support for two friends and members of his soccer team whose relatives had been detained by ICE in recent weeks.
‘I was just worried about everyone afterwards because ICE is just going for whoever they want at this point, even if they’re citizens, they’re going for whoever fits the brown description,’ Chavez told KOIN.
‘Sounds like maybe I should not have put my face out there,’ he admitted. ‘Maybe I regret getting so big because now I’m a target or something like that.’
Still, his remarks seemed to have the desired effect in the city of Hillsboro, where Latinos make up a quarter of the population.
The teenager said he was there to support two friends whose parents had been detained by ICE in recent weeks
More than 300 people were detained in Oregon in the month of October alone
At the end of the hearing, Councilor Cristian Salgado announced his plan for the city to create a civil and human rights office, which would be staffed with a coordinator who would work hand-in-hand with legal observers.
Those observers would then respond when they receive reports of possible ICE activity and would rush to document what happens.
‘They’re trying to hold ICE accountable for their actions,’ Salgado said of those who are already filming the ICE raids in the Portland suburb.
‘They’re recording everything and so we want someone to record those and log them and keep them on record.’
He added that the city also plans to have a legal resource navigator to help detained migrants and their families, as well as a low-barrier grant manager.
Mayor Beach Pace also noted that the city has been designating money to support Latino organizations and businesses.
‘I want Manny to know and I want everybody to know that if we can banish ICE like that, we would,’ Pace said.
‘If a family member or anyone sees somebody that’s in the process of being detained by ICE, they can call 911,’ the mayor continued. ‘Hillsboro police will arrive and they can verify, they can ask to very identification of the ICE agents.’
Additionally, Washington County commissioners issued an emergency declaration earlier in the week, freeing up $200,000 to go to organizations supporting families with detained members and ensuring that due process is being followed.
Violent protests have taken place outside of detainment facilities in Portland
Yet Chavez wants more to be done, as ICE ramps up its deportation efforts in Oregon, where more than 300 people were detained in the month of October alone as violent protests took place outside of detainment facilities.
Using his newfound fame, the teenager created an online fundraiser to help those in his community who are detained.
The funds would be used to provide grocery support and meals for families whose parents have been detained, help them get legal counsel and child care and transportation while the parent is detained, and fund mental health care for children and their parents.
‘In Hillsboro, Oregon – a city that prides itself on diversity and community – far too many families are living under a cloud of fear and uncertainty,’ Chavez wrote.
‘Recent enforcement actions by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and related agencies have rocked our neighborhoods, disrupted lives and left children asking whether they’ll ever be able to say goodbye to their parents.’
‘Time is critical,’ he continued. ‘When a wage-earner is detained, the ripple effect is immediate – children may lose meals, families may lose housing, fear shuts down schooling, jobs are left unfilled.’
While the county declared an emergency over the increased raids, Chavez said ‘government funds move slowly’ and his fund is ‘about getting help to people right now.’
‘Hillsboro has always been at its best when we stand with each other,’ he concluded. ‘When fear creeps in, community must push back.
‘We are not powerless,’ Chavez continued. ‘By giving by sharing, by standing firm for justice and support, we can provide a lifeline to those who keep our city running – those who pick crops, clean offices, build homes, teach our children, serve our businesses.’
‘Join us,’ he pleaded. ‘Be part of the answer. Because when one family suffers in silence, we all do.’
The teenager also noted that ‘any and all money we raise will go to help people in our community who are being wrongfully affected by this immigration crisis we are in.’
As of Sunday night, the fundraiser had garnered nearly $19,500.