PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Ximena Bustamante, Representative of Undocumented Women's Fund
3:14:55
ยท
3 min
Ximena Bustamante from the Undocumented Women's Fund testified about concerns regarding the lack of protections for residents in the parallel shelter system for recent arrivals. She emphasized the need for clarification on protections against ICE raids, data privacy, and staff training in these shelters.
- Demanded the administration clarify protections against physical ICE raids and "paper raids" (data collection) in the parallel shelter system
- Highlighted concerns about misinformation spread by untrained shelter staff and the need for accountability mechanisms
- Stressed the importance of data protection, citing a case where shelter data led to ICE detention via ACS involvement
Ximena Bustamante
3:14:55
Hello?
3:14:56
Okay.
3:14:58
Hi, everyone.
3:14:59
My name is Gimena Bustamante, and I am with the undocumented women's fund.
3:15:05
We are a grassroots feminist organization that for the past 2 years have been working hand in hand with recent arrivals, building a care network in the face of the neglect, the scapegoating, and the profiting, from our newest neighbors that has characterized the Adams administration in our eyes.
3:15:25
This organizing and caring for our newest neighbors, our comadres, as we call them, has allowed us to see how deeply flawed the parallel shelter system is, how there is a lack of services and lack of protections for its residents.
3:15:40
And this is a topic that I wanna address today.
3:15:43
Our commanders and us are very concerned about the lack of protections for the residents of the shelter the violent shelter system.
3:15:51
We know that this can be a special area of enforcement or that is especially vulnerable to enforcement since it only shelters new arrivals.
3:16:04
And we want to demand, the administration to clarify what are the protections, in this parallel shelter system.
3:16:15
Both, protections for physical rates, ice common and doing physical rates, but also what we call paper rates.
3:16:22
What are the protections of the data of of the residents?
3:16:25
And, we wanna know what is the training that, the staff is receiving, what are the directives that they are receiving, and what are the accountability mechanisms if they violate those directives.
3:16:39
So far as, Alex Aviles, council member Aviles, mentioned earlier, what we have been seeing is that not only they have not been trained, but they have actually been spreading misinformation and fear among shelter residents.
3:16:55
And we also wanna know what are, the protections concerning data.
3:17:01
We believe that this is a especially sensitive, matter.
3:17:06
And as we know, there has been a very cruel policy of shelter evictions.
3:17:11
And every time that a family or just a single adults get evicted and relocated, there's a paper trail that is created.
3:17:18
And we wanna know what are the protections for all the data.
3:17:22
Earlier in the hearing, we, there is a topic of or the case of Jennifer.
3:17:28
And we believe that this is an example of how sensitive this data is.
3:17:32
I think that it was, council member Hanif that mentioned that Jennifer, was a resident in a parallel shelter that, requested mental health support for her children, for the trauma they they have endured coming to the United States.
3:17:48
And then the shelter opened a case with ACS, and ACS informed ICE, and she was detained at her next check-in.
3:17:56
When when council member Hanif addressed this case, she just didn't mention that, you know, it was the shelter that actually opened the case with with ACS.
3:18:05
So this is only to highlight how sensitive data is, and it's not only the collaboration between, you know, like the shelter, staff with ICE, but also with other, agencies from the city.
3:18:17
So finally, just to close, we demand that the administration fulfill its role of guaranteeing permanent housing for all New Yorkers regardless of, immigration status, dignified living conditions, and it secures New York status not only as a sanitary city, but as a fearless city.
3:18:38
Thank you.