Latest news with #Rincon
San Francisco Chronicle
07-07-2025
- General
- San Francisco Chronicle
Mystery benches are appearing on S.F. sidewalks. The city isn't happy about it
Eight benches recently appeared on curbs in San Francisco, all bearing the DIY-craftsman style of something hammered together in a backyard, from plans pulled off the Internet. Which, in all likelihood, is how the benches were made. No individual has publicly taken credit for this unofficial seating, installed near bus stops in the Mission and throughout the East Bay. Yet each bench has a stencil for the ' San Francisco Bay Area Bench Collective ' website, referring to a loose group of urbanists and do-gooders who believe their furniture provides a 'much-needed' space to rest. To city officials who have to monitor, clean and possibly remove the benches, they are a source of headaches. Ultimately, it's unclear who would be held liable if someone trips over a bench and sues, or who is responsible to fix them if they break, staff at San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency told the Chronicle. There is also confusion over which city department should handle the rogue benches. Public works manages infrastructure on city sidewalks, and has received at least one complaint about a rogue bench. If a bench is placed in a public park, however, it becomes the burden of the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department. And if one of these structures pops up at a bus stop, it's within the domain of SFMTA, the agency in charge of building and managing bus stop transit shelters. 'While we appreciate the sentiment behind these (guerrilla) bench installations, there are a lot of complex issues that would need to be addressed,' agency spokespeople wrote in a statement, in which they cited the question of 'upkeep' if a bench is tagged with graffiti, and the more serious concern if someone is injured while using a bench. Moreover, SFMTA spokespeople wrote, any piece of sidewalk furniture needs to leave enough space for wheelchair users. Carter Lavin, co-founder of the transportation advocacy group Transbay Coalition, believes cities 'need to find a way' for people to invest their love and their values into the urban environment. A bench, he said, is an expression of civic engagement. 'Why are benches important?' Lavin asked. 'Fundamentally, it's about human dignity, comfort and love for our fellow residents. The world can be a hostile place, and a bench is a way of saying, 'You're welcome here. You're invited here.'' The message came through to Rita Rincon, who stopped to rest on one of the guerrilla benches near 18th and Mission Streets. Rincon, who is 90, marveled at the structure's sturdiness. Constructed of wooden planks bolted together, the bench was plain, and in its own way, 'beautiful.' 'This is an adequate bench,' Rincon's caretaker, Maria Mira, said in Spanish, taking a seat by her client's side. But the bench at 18th and Mission could also be viewed as a blight. Set in front of a liquor store, and feet away from a bus stop, it already showed signs of wear. Vandals had scribbled graffiti on its buffed wood, and bits of trash were stuffed between the boards. Grassroots carpenters in the bench collective trace their movement to a Sunset District engineer named Chris Duderstadt, who spent years building and placing public benches around the city, and even posted the architectural plans online for others to emulate. Transit activists in the East Bay independently latched onto the bench concept two years ago, after observing, with dismay, the number of people who have to stand at bus stops. In November 2023, Berkeley resident Darrell Owens snapped a photo of his neighbor sitting on the ground while waiting for a bus. The neighbor was recovering from surgery and couldn't bend his legs, Owen wrote in a photo caption, when he posted the image on social media. It instantly went viral. Owens and Mingwei Samuel, a fellow transit enthusiast with a woodworking background, built benches in Berkeley and Oakland, inspiring Lavin and others from the Transbay Coalition to install them in El Cerrito and Richmond. People gathered for 'weekend builds' in garages, yards and driveways, sharing power tools and teaching each other how to drill holes or sand wood. Politicians in some cities welcomed the benches. Richmond City Council passed a policy in May instructing city staff to create a permitting program that would legalize the community-made benches at bus stops. 'I think this is innovative, it's needed and it's helped restore pride in our transit system,' said Richmond City Council Member Jamelia Brown, who co-sponsored the policy measure. 'It's great that someone thought of all the riders who had to stand for 30 minutes and wait for the next bus.' Whether San Francisco will follow Richmond's example is an open question. Already, the bench collective has seen two of its installations torn out of the Noe Valley area. 'Unclear who removed,' the group writes on its website. Days ago, Public Works logged a complaint through the city's 311 system about a bench at 26th and Mission streets. 'We'll go out and assess it and ask the bench folks to remove it,' said Public Works spokesperson Rachel Gordon. Noting that many of the guerrilla benches are bolted to the sidewalk, she said that city officials would probably ask the bench collective members to fix any holes. Lavin points out that the city has created processes for other imaginative ideas — like converting a parking space into a parklet. Such arguments prompt a beat of contemplative silence from Gordon. 'Look,' she said. 'We don't want to be overly cumbersome. But there are real reasons why we don't just say, 'OK, put whatever you want on a public sidewalk.' There are real things a government needs to take into consideration.' Gordon and other officials say they grasp the sentiment behind the benches. They understand the functionality and the symbolism of convenience, comfort and dignity. Nonetheless, Gordon said, 'We just want folks to do this properly.'
News.com.au
27-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Resources Top 5: Positive signs that lithium is waking from slumber
Argosy Minerals has executed a spot sales contract for the sale of 60 tonnes of battery quality lithium carbonate from its Rincon project Core Lithium is optimistic about a restart of the Finniss project in the NT Sunrise Energy Metals has received high-grade scandium assays from Syerston project Your standout small cap resources stocks for Friday, June 27, 2025 Argosy Minerals (ASX:AGY) Lithium has been trading at cyclical lows for months but leading mining journalist Kristie Batten says positive signs are emerging and analysts are beginning to focus on when the price recovery would start. In a Stockhead article ' Smart money bets on a lithium turnaround ' she wrote that a global survey of 90 institutional investors by London-based mining industry advisory firm Harbour found that roughly half were looking for upside exposure to the energy transition above anything else from equities in the natural resources space. Investors were asked which commodities were the most likely to see increased investment, with more than 80% across Australia, Canada, the US, UK and Europe citing gold as their top pick. While that isn't the least bit surprising, given where the price has gone, what jumped out was an enthusiasm for lithium, the price of which has gone in the opposite direction. The research found that lithium edged out copper as the second most likely commodity to attract investment in Australia (65%), Canada (59%), US (61%) and UK/Europe (63%). A report on the lithium sector from Argonaut last week pointed to positive demand drivers, Batten wrote, with electric vehicles being the early driver and battery energy storage systems growing in importance. Optimism surrounding lithium has resulted in some stocks running hot including bellwether Pilbara Minerals, which hit a two-week high of $1.41. Argosy Minerals (ASX:AGY) rose 53.9% to a daily high of 2.3c and closed at 1.8c after executing a spot sales contract with a Hong Kong-based chemical company for the sale of 60 tonnes of battery quality >99.5% lithium carbonate from its Rincon project in the 'Lithium Triangle' in Argentina. Argosy managing director Jerko Zuvela said 'We were pleased to receive such strong interest for the sale of our battery quality lithium carbonate product. "With our positive project fundamentals, we will be strong beneficiaries of the EV/lithium sector resurgence noting the significant development milestones achieved to date at our Rincon "We are delighted to be part of an exclusive group of battery quality lithium carbonate product exporters, given the challenges encountered by many of our peers attempting to achieve this feat.' Core Lithium (ASX:CXO) A lithium price slump victim has been Core Lithium and its Finniss hard-rock lithium project in the Northern Territory, 88km southwest from the Darwin Port. Early works at the BP33 deposit were suspended in late 2023, mining at Grants was suspended in January 2024 and processing in mid-2024, with all infrastructure placed on care and maintenance for any potential restart. A restart study completed in mid-May 2025 has repositioned Finniss as a highly attractive low-cost operation with a 20-year life of lean underground operations. The study outlines a high confidence production plan with 94% of the first 10 years backed by ore reserves and includes: Mining costs reduced by 40% to $63–$72/t (from $120/t); Processing costs cut by 33% to $40–$46/t(from $69/t); Unit operating costs of $690–$785/t (FOB, SC6 eq ex-royalties), placing Finniss among the most competitive global spodumene operations; and Concentrate production lifted 7% to ~205ktpa SC6 equivalent. 'The plan we've outlined capitalises on the project's strengths, including established infrastructure, high-grade ore bodies well-suited to low-cost underground mining and a process plant with proven recoveries and further scope for optimisation,' Core Lithium (ASX:CXO) CEO Paul Brown said. 'We've undertaken a rigorous, bottom-up review of every aspect of the operation. The study brings together our operating experience to deliver a plan that is more robust, more efficient and built for the long term. 'At BP33, we are developing a large-scale underground mine. Grants will shift to underground mining, cutting costs and doubling its mine life. Carlton will use Grants' surface infrastructure, supporting a 20 year mine life. Blackbeard offers further potential to extend mine life and expand operations. 'Our plant upgrades will improve recovery and reduce contaminants, whilst keeping capital costs low. These improvements include enhanced screening with more affordable crushing and the addition of a gravity circuit. 'The study outlines a lower-cost, longer-life and scalable operating plan that generates free cash flow of $1.2 billion, representing a six-fold return on pre-production capital.' A Final Investment Decision for the restart remains subject to board approval and is contingent on market conditions and securing a suitable funding pathway. Optimism surrounding the Finniss restart and the lithium industry's future has seen shares as much as 18% higher to 10.5c. CXO closed at 9.9c with more than 61 million shares changing hands. Sunrise Energy Metals (ASX:SRL) It has been a big week for Sunrise Energy Metals - a $6 million placement finalised, $1.5m share purchase plan launched with strong initial uptake and high-grade scandium assays returned from its flagship Syerston project in Central West NSW. The assays saw shares increase to a 12-month high of $1.205, a lift of 34.64% on the previous close. From 65c on June 23, SRL has risen 85.4% in five days. A 125 hole RC drilling campaign totalling 3,589 drill metres in April and May 2025 had the aim of expanding the zones of higher-grade scandium at the Syerston deposit. More than half of the total 3,574 assays have been received from 49 drill holes, indicating multiple new areas of continuous, high-grade mineralisation. Significant intersections include: 7m at 884ppm Sc from 1m, including 3m at 1123ppm from 4m; 6m at 788ppm from 4m; 13m at 743ppm from 6m; 5m at 714ppm from 3m; and 7m at 666ppm from 4m. Once complete and released, all results from the drilling will be incorporated into an update to the Syerston resource estimate, which will underpin a feasibility study update. 'Recent drill results have identified further zones of continuous, high-grade scandium mineralisation within our Sunrise Mining Lease and they remain open in multiple directions,' Sunrise Energy Metals managing director Sam Riggall said 'These zones will form the basis of an initial multi-decade mine plan for our Syerston Scandium Project Feasibility Study, targeting rapid, low-cost development and production options, supported by one of the largest and highest-grade scandium resources in the world.' Red Mountain Mining (ASX:RMX) Australia's antimony hotspot is the New England region of northern NSW and one of the juniors looking to start producing the in-demand critical mineral is Red Mountain Mining, which hit a high of 1.5c, a lift of 67% on the previous close, with more than 110m shares changing hands. The boost came after the company returned high-grade antimony results from rock chip samples at Oaky Creek prospect in the Armidale project. Results from samples collected up to 500m along strike from historical workings include 28.34%, 28.33% and 16.38% Sb, which suggest potential for a large orogenic antimony mineral system. Shallow costeaning is planned to expose the bedrock beneath strong soil antimony anomalies with no visible outcrop while RMX also plans to undertake soil and rock chip sampling over the East Hills antimony and Horsley Station gold prospects in the southern portion of the project. Similar systems, such as Larvotto's (ASX:LRV) Hillgrove deposit, also in the Southern New England Orogen, typically also contain high-grade gold mineralisation. RMX has submitted a subset of the Oaky Creek rock chip samples for gold analysis by lead fire assay, with results expected in July. D3 Energy (ASX:D3E) South Africa is hungry for new energy sources and D3 Energy is taking steps to feed the demand with gas from its ER315 licence at Bloemskraal in the Free State with shares reaching 15c, a lift of 36.36% on the June 26 close, before closing at 14.5c This followed the company achieving increased flow rates at RBD03 following a well clean out. RBD03 flowed at an average gas flow rate of 201 Mscfd over the initial 7-day period, which was 35% higher than the previous flow rate measured before the well clean out. Total gas produced over the initial 7-day testing period was 1,396 Mscf and testing will continue for another seven days before the well will be shut in to analyse the pressure buildup data. The company undertook a multi-well production testing program at Bloemskraal last year which included RBD03, a gold exploration borehole drilled in 1982. Analysis of the initial production test in July and August last year showed indications that there may have been some obstructions or debris in the wellbore. A work over to clean out any obstructions was performed at RBD03 on May 7, 2025, and some issues were encountered with an historical undocumented hole size change curtailing operations. The well was nonetheless partially cleaned out and shut in to allow the reservoir pressure to build back up prior to retesting. This flow testing commenced on June 13, 2025, following the build-up period and the 7-day results demonstrate a 35% increase in the stabilised flow rate.
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Living in lockdown: Undocumented immigrants trade freedom for safety
An undocumented man from Guatemala who has leukemia postponed chemotherapy because he was afraid to go to the hospital. A Mexican grandmother packed most of her belongings into boxes, in case she is deported. A Pentecostal church in East Los Angeles has lost nearly half of its in-person membership. Across California and the U.S., immigrants are responding to the Trump administration's unrelenting enforcement raids by going into lockdown. Activities that were once a regular or even mundane part of life — taking kids to school, buying groceries, driving — have become daunting as immigrants who lack legal authorization grapple with how to avoid arrest and deportation. Read more: Most nabbed in L.A. raids were men with no criminal conviction, picked up off the street To stay safe, some immigrants have swapped in-person activities with digital approximations. Others are simply shutting themselves away from society. 'It's a harmful form of racial profiling combined with the suspension of constitutional rights and due process. That's why many families are staying at home,' said Victor Narro, a professor and project director for the UCLA Labor Center. Pastor Carlos Rincon, who leads a Pentecostal church in East Los Angeles, said that about 400 people used to attend his church every week, people with roots in Guatemala, Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras. Now, half as many attend and viewership of live-streamed services on Facebook and YouTube has increased. Some prayer groups meet on Zoom. In January, the Trump administration said immigration agents were free to make arrests in sensitive locations once considered off limits, such as hospitals, schools and churches. At Rincon's church — which he asked not be named for concern about retaliation — fear has colored life in ways large and small. A congregant in his late 20s who has leukemia postponed his chemotherapy, afraid he could be caught and deported to Guatemala. After he decided to reschedule the upcoming treatment, church leaders agreed they will take turns staying with him at the hospital. A half-day program to provide resources for landscapers and a music class for children were canceled this month after many said they were too afraid to attend. Rincon restarted the music class last week for those who could attend. On Wednesday, after neighbors told him that immigration agents had been lurking around the area, he warned families against attending a regularly scheduled in-person church service. Five miles away at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Father Ricardo Gonzalez said church attendance is down at least 30%. The church doesn't live-stream Mass, though he's considering it. Gonzalez said parishioners expect him to have answers, but as an immigrant green card holder himself, he too doesn't know how to react if immigration agents show up at the church. "If I get arrested, am I going to be thrown from the country?" he said. "Who is going to help me out?" For weeks, agents have been arresting those who show up at courthouses for their immigration proceedings. Volunteers at USC, UCLA, UC Irvine and UC Law San Francisco responded by establishing a free hotline to help people file motions to move their appointments online. The service was the idea of Olu Orange, a lawyer and USC political science and international relations professor who runs the Agents of Change Civil Rights Advocacy Initiative. Since the hotline (888-462-5211) went live June 15, volunteers have responded to nearly 4,000 calls and helped more than 300 people fill out the form to move their hearings online. On Friday, Orange answered a call from a girl who sounded about 12 years old, whose parent had been picked up by immigration agents. "She saw this number on social media and she called and she said, 'What can I do?'" Orange said. He gave her the number for CHIRLA, a local immigrant rights nonprofit. Read more: L.A. restaurants and nonprofits mobilize to deliver groceries to sheltering immigrants Luz Gallegos, executive director of TODEC Legal Center in the Inland Empire, said the pandemic prepared some rural and elderly residents for the current reality because it taught people to use technology — "to go virtual." Now they have WiFi access and know how to use Zoom. Some, though, also fear staying digitally connected. Gallegos said many people who call TODEC's hotline say they are changing phone companies because they are afraid of being tracked by immigration agents. Others say they're swapping cellphones for pagers. Many of the immigrants served by TODEC now leave their homes only for work, Gallegos said. They have groceries delivered or run to the store when they think border agents are least likely to be on patrol. Before schools let out for the summer, some parents switched their children to online classes. Some Inland Empire farmworkers now won't grab their own mail from community mailboxes, Gallegos said, so TODEC has mobilized volunteers to drop off mail, give people rides and help with interpretation needs. One person helped by the nonprofit is Doña Chela, an undocumented 66-year-old woman who asked to be identified by her nickname. Many months ago, Doña Chela packed up her possessions after making plans to return to her hometown in Michoacan, Mexico, for the first time since she arrived in the U.S. in 1999. But in April, her brother called to say it wasn't safe there, that cartel groups had taken over the neighborhood and were extorting residents. Her husband, a U.S. citizen, has dementia. She thought of moving instead to a border town such as Mexicali, where she and her husband could still be near their three adult U.S.-born daughters. But then her husband's condition began to decline, and now starting over feels too difficult. Even so, she has chosen to keep her clothes, pots and pans, and jewelry packed away — just in case. Doña Chela doesn't leave her home except for emergencies. Her daughters bring her groceries because she has stopped driving. She no longer goes to church or makes big batches of tamales for community reunions. She barely sleeps, thinking that agents could burst through her door any time. "I don't know what to do anymore," she said, crying. "I will wait here until they kick me out." Her only distraction from constant anxiety is the lush garden she tends to daily, with mangoes, nopales, limes and a variety of herbs. Gallegos, of TODEC, said the situation faced by Doña Chela and so many others bring to mind a song by Los Tigres del Norte — "La Jaula de Oro." The golden cage. "Our community is in a golden cage," she said. "I hope it's not too late when this country realizes they need our immigrant workforce to sustain our economy." Read more: In Southern California, many are skipping healthcare out of fear of ICE operations St. John's Community Health, one of the largest nonprofit community healthcare providers in Los Angeles County that caters to low-income and working-class residents, launched a home visitation program after it surveyed patients and found many canceling appointments 'solely due to fear of being apprehended by ICE.' The clinic, which serves L.A., the Inland Empire and the Coachella Valley, said that since the immigration raids began, more than a third of all patients didn't show up or canceled their appointments. Some of those who canceled signed up for telehealth or home visits performed by a small team of medical staff, according to Jim Mangia, the clinic's chief executive. The clinic is adding another home visitation team to double the amount of visits they perform. Community coalitions are stepping in to help immigrants who can't afford to hide. OC Rapid Response Network, for instance, raised enough funds through payment app Venmo to send 14 street vendors home. Robb Smith, who runs Alley Cat Deliveries, said he has seen requests for grocery deliveries grow by about 25%. He doesn't ask his customers if they're immigrants in hiding, but there are signs that people are afraid to leave their house. One woman, who said she was making an inquiry for a friend, asked him if he saw any ICE officers when he was picking up items at Costco. Glen Curado, the founder and chief executive of World Harvest Food Bank in Los Angeles, said there has been a significant drop in people coming in to pick up groceries in person. Up to 100 families visit the food bank on a weekday, down from the usual high of 150, he said. The food bank has a program, called Cart With A Heart, in which people can donate $50 toward fresh produce, protein and other staples to feed two families for a week. The donors can then take those groceries to people sheltering in place. 'It's almost like a war scene,' Curado said. 'You hide here. I'll go out and I'll get it for you, and I'll bring it back — that mentality.' Castillo reported from Washington and Wong from San Francisco. Times staff writer Melissa Gomez in Los Angeles contributed to this report. Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter. Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond, in your inbox twice per week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Living in lockdown: Undocumented immigrants trade freedom for safety
WASHINGTON — An undocumented man from Guatemala who has leukemia postponed chemotherapy because he was afraid to go to the hospital. A Mexican grandmother packed most of her belongings into boxes, in case she is deported. A Pentecostal church in East Los Angeles has lost nearly half of its in-person membership. Across California and the U.S., immigrants are responding to the Trump administration's unrelenting enforcement raids by going into lockdown. Activities that were once a regular or even mundane part of life — taking kids to school, buying groceries, driving — have become daunting as immigrants who lack legal authorization grapple with how to avoid arrest and deportation. To stay safe, some immigrants have swapped in-person activities with digital approximations. Others are simply shutting themselves away from society. 'It's a harmful form of racial profiling combined with the suspension of constitutional rights and due process. That's why many families are staying at home,' said Victor Narro, a professor and project director for the UCLA Labor Center. Pastor Carlos Rincon, who leads a Pentecostal church in East Los Angeles, said that about 400 people used to attend his church every week, people with roots in Guatemala, Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras. Now, half as many attend and viewership of live-streamed services on Facebook and YouTube has increased. Some prayer groups meet on Zoom. In January, the Trump administration said immigration agents were free to make arrests in sensitive locations once considered off limits, such as hospitals, schools and churches. At Rincon's church — which he asked not be named for concern about retaliation — fear has colored life in ways large and small. A congregant in his late 20s who has leukemia postponed his chemotherapy, afraid he could be caught and deported to Guatemala. After he decided to reschedule the upcoming treatment, church leaders agreed they will take turns staying with him at the hospital. A half-day program to provide resources for landscapers and a music class for children were canceled this month after many said they were too afraid to attend. Rincon restarted the music class last week for those who could attend. On Wednesday, after neighbors told him that immigration agents had been lurking around the area, he warned families against attending a regularly scheduled in-person church service. Five miles away at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Father Ricardo Gonzalez said church attendance is down at least 30%. The church doesn't live-stream Mass, though he's considering it. Gonzalez said parishioners expect him to have answers, but as an immigrant green card holder himself, he too doesn't know how to react if immigration agents show up at the church. 'If I get arrested, am I going to be thrown from the country?' he said. 'Who is going to help me out?' For weeks, agents have been arresting those who show up at courthouses for their immigration proceedings. Volunteers at USC, UCLA, UC Irvine and UC Law San Francisco responded by establishing a free hotline to help people file motions to move their appointments online. The service was the idea of Olu Orange, a lawyer and USC political science and international relations professor who runs the Agents of Change Civil Rights Advocacy Initiative. Since the hotline (888-462-5211) went live June 15, volunteers have responded to nearly 4,000 calls and helped more than 300 people fill out the form to move their hearings online. On Friday, Orange answered a call from a girl who sounded about 12 years old, whose parent had been picked up by immigration agents. 'She saw this number on social media and she called and she said, 'What can I do?'' Orange said. He gave her the number for CHIRLA, a local immigrant rights nonprofit. Luz Gallegos, executive director of TODEC Legal Center in the Inland Empire, said the pandemic prepared some rural and elderly residents for the current reality because it taught people to use technology — 'to go virtual.' Now they have WiFi access and know how to use Zoom. Some, though, also fear staying digitally connected. Gallegos said many people who call TODEC's hotline say they are changing phone companies because they are afraid of being tracked by immigration agents. Others say they're swapping cellphones for pagers. Many of the immigrants served by TODEC now leave their homes only for work, Gallegos said. They have groceries delivered or run to the store when they think border agents are least likely to be on patrol. Before schools let out for the summer, some parents switched their children to online classes. Some Inland Empire farmworkers now won't grab their own mail from community mailboxes, Gallegos said, so TODEC has mobilized volunteers to drop off mail, give people rides and help with interpretation needs. One person helped by the nonprofit is Doña Chela, an undocumented 66-year-old woman who asked to be identified by her nickname. Many months ago, Doña Chela packed up her possessions after making plans to return to her hometown in Michoacan, Mexico, for the first time since she arrived in the U.S. in 1999. But in April, her brother called to say it wasn't safe there, that cartel groups had taken over the neighborhood and were extorting residents. Her husband, a U.S. citizen, has dementia. She thought of moving instead to a border town such as Mexicali, where she and her husband could still be near their three adult U.S.-born daughters. But then her husband's condition began to decline, and now starting over feels too difficult. Even so, she has chosen to keep her clothes, pots and pans, and jewelry packed away — just in case. Doña Chela doesn't leave her home except for emergencies. Her daughters bring her groceries because she has stopped driving. She no longer goes to church or makes big batches of tamales for community reunions. She barely sleeps, thinking that agents could burst through her door any time. 'I don't know what to do anymore,' she said, crying. 'I will wait here until they kick me out.' Her only distraction from constant anxiety is the lush garden she tends to daily, with mangoes, nopales, limes and a variety of herbs. Gallegos, of TODEC, said the situation faced by Doña Chela and so many others bring to mind a song by Los Tigres del Norte — 'La Jaula de Oro.' The golden cage. 'Our community is in a golden cage,' she said. 'I hope it's not too late when this country realizes they need our immigrant workforce to sustain our economy.' St. John's Community Health, one of the largest nonprofit community healthcare providers in Los Angeles County that caters to low-income and working-class residents, launched a home visitation program after it surveyed patients and found many canceling appointments 'solely due to fear of being apprehended by ICE.' The clinic, which serves L.A., the Inland Empire and the Coachella Valley, said that since the immigration raids began, more than a third of all patients didn't show up or canceled their appointments. Some of those who canceled signed up for telehealth or home visits performed by a small team of medical staff, according to Jim Mangia, the clinic's chief executive. The clinic is adding another home visitation team to double the amount of visits they perform. Community coalitions are stepping in to help immigrants who can't afford to hide. OC Rapid Response Network, for instance, raised enough funds through payment app Venmo to send 14 street vendors home. Robb Smith, who runs Alley Cat Deliveries, said he has seen requests for grocery deliveries grow by about 25%. He doesn't ask his customers if they're immigrants in hiding, but there are signs that people are afraid to leave their house. One woman, who said she was making an inquiry for a friend, asked him if he saw any ICE officers when he was picking up items at Costco. Glen Curado, the founder and chief executive of World Harvest Food Bank in Los Angeles, said there has been a significant drop in people coming in to pick up groceries in person. Up to 100 families visit the food bank on a weekday, down from the usual high of 150, he said. The food bank has a program, called Cart With A Heart, in which people can donate $50 toward fresh produce, protein and other staples to feed two families for a week. The donors can then take those groceries to people sheltering in place. 'It's almost like a war scene,' Curado said. 'You hide here. I'll go out and I'll get it for you, and I'll bring it back — that mentality.' Castillo reported from Washington and Wong from San Francisco. Times staff writer Melissa Gomez in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Yahoo
Twice-deported immigrant faces prison sentence
An immigrant who was deported twice but allegedly managed to live in the U.S. illegally for more than 20 years faces federal prison time after she was arrested by Homeland Security Investigations agents in Honolulu on May 23. Maria Aldana Rincon, 51, a citizen of Mexico, also known as 'Marisela Martinez De Cabrales ' and 'Veronica Castaneda Rosales, ' allegedly entered the U.S using a fake name through California in September 2002, federal authorities say. Federal agents executing a search warrant at a Kai muki home arrested Rincon for suspicion of illegal reentry. She was in possession of identification showing her 'true name, ' and her fingerprints were later matched to the two aliases she used to remain in the U.S., authorities allege. She is scheduled to appear at a detention hearing Thursday before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Kenneth J. Mansfield. Rincon will appear with the help of a Spanish language interpreter. 'HSI arrested Maria Aldana Rincon on May 23, 2025. She was targeted for being in violation of immigration law, ' read a statement to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson. 'HSI does not disclose its targeting methodologies and does not release individual biographic data.' There were 12, 550 illegal reentry cases in 2024, down from 12, 868 in 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The average sentence for individuals convicted of illegal reentry was 12 months. About 95.7 % of those arrested were sentenced to prison, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission. On Sept. 21, 2002, Rincon applied for admission into the United States from Mexico at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, according to an affidavit from a DHS special agent. Rincon presented a 'counterfeit I-94 entry permit ' bearing the name Marisela Martinez De Cabrales, authorities said. During a sworn statement, Rincon allegedly identified herself as Veronica Castaneda Rosales and 'admitted to not possessing the proper documents ' to 'enter, pass through or reside ' in the United States. She was served with Form I-296 Notice to Alien Ordered Removed /Departure Verification, which 'ordered that she be removed from the United States to Mexico, ' for five years from the date of her departure from U.S. She was deported to Mexico but nine days later, on Sept. 30, 2002, Rincon again applied for admission at the San Ysidro Port of Entry. She presented 'a photo substituted immigration document I-94 bearing the name Marisela Martinez De Cabrales, ' the government alleges. Rincon was deported to Mexico and banned from the U.S. for 20 years. Rincon's latest arrest comes amid targeted enforcement actions in Hawaii conducted by federal agents with DHS and the U.S. Department of Justice. President Donald Trump campaigned on the promise of targeting every man, woman and child in the U.S. illegally and deporting them to their country of birth. In a May 12 statement, Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the 'first 100 days under President Trump and Secretary (Kristi ) Noem, 75 % of arrests ICE made were of criminal illegal aliens. DHS is continuing to go after the worst of the worst.' 'Our brave ICE agents are conducting operations in Hawaii to protect communities from violent criminals who shouldn't be in our country. The targets of the operation in Hawaii include criminal illegal aliens charged with kidnapping, assault, distribution of deadly drugs, domestic abuse, and theft, ' McLaughlin said. In Hawaii, have been arrested on suspicion of immigration law violations. DHS' Immigration and Customs Enforcement has not released specific immigration arrest and removal statistics for Hawaii.
