Nancy Norman of Marblehead has been an immigration lawyer for 40 years, and she’s never seen a more chaotic, unpredictable period than this one.
“This is horrible right now, that goes without saying,” Norman told the Current. “There’s a lot of chaos, and people are fearful.”
Norman says Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are patrolling district courts, looking to pick up undocumented people. Just this week, ICE detained a high school junior from Lynn after she got into a fight with her little brother over a cell phone and a neighbor called police.
“If the police are involved and there’s any alleged crime that’s committed, it’s a given that ICE is going to get involved,” Norman said.
She continued, “I’ve heard of kids being fearful of going to school” because they might get picked up by ICE. “There are a lot of undocumented kids that go to Lynn schools.”
Norman said there are undocumented immigrants in Marblehead, too. She declined to estimate how many.
There are ways that some undocumented young people can avoid deportation, according to Norman, including by applying for Special Immigration Juvenile status. She said it’s critical that undocumented people learn about all their options.
Even with all the chaos and anxiety, Norman said it’s important for people to stay calm and focused.
“Yes, it’s horrible what ICE is doing, but we have to fight back,” she said. “Fighting back doesn’t mean yelling about how active ICE is. You have to be proactive.”
Norman recommended that people interested in supporting undocumented immigrants get in touch with the following: Pathways (pathwayslynn.org) and New American Association (naamass.org).
