LIBERAL, Kansas — After a heavy presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement swept through southwest Kansas Tuesday, schools warned that some students may have family members detained and a major meat packing plant partially delayed shifts on Wednesday.
The towns of Liberal, Garden City and Dodge City house four major beef packing plants, employing over 10,000 residents — many of whom are immigrants.
City officials and immigration advocates witnessed multiple unmarked vans parked on roads near the processing facilities Tuesday, stopping people going to and from work.
“I personally witnessed three arrests, then five to six other people being pulled over throughout the day,” immigrant advocate Kathleen Alonso told the Kansas News Service.
She works for New Frontiers, a voting rights organization. She spent her day monitoring neighborhoods and helping educate family members of those detained.
A message sent from Dodge City Public Schools asked families to update contact information and alert the district if people not on a student’s emergency contact list would need to pick up children.
“We may have students whose family members have been detained,” the message read. “Please help us keep our students safe and cared for.”
The message also asked people to alert the district if children now had no one to care for them.
The National Beef plant in Liberal sent a message alerting employees to altered starting times or telling them to contact a supervisor to confirm schedules.
This region has a large immigrant population that is vital to the agriculture sector. Some estimates say about 17% of residents in towns like Liberal do not have citizenship. It’s common in this area to know someone who lives in a mixed-status household.
Alonso said in the rural communities many people are scared. She’s been sharing information with residents.
“The biggest thing is making sure that people understand and know their rights. I think just avoiding unnecessary travel if you’re able to at all,” Alonso said.
Immigration advocates worked to warn people about the activity. Outside the Liberal meat packing plant, a woman blew a whistle and shouted warnings to arriving and leaving employees.
Federal agents started detaining people around 5 a.m. Tuesday in Liberal, according to city officials.
Photos and videos posted on social media appear to show men identified as ICE agents with masks covering their faces stopping cars and questioning passengers. Some people in the posts are wearing hardhats required for workers at the local packing plants.
Jose Lara is a city commissioner in Liberal. He said he witnessed several residents detained.
