Andi Garcia is on a mission to protect the community she grew up in.
Garcia is regularly patrolling Santa Barbara neighborhoods and alerting people on social media if she sees a vehicle associated with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.
She posts her finds on her Instagram site, OrtegaParkSB.
“We’re being hunted,” Garcia said. “It’s just a matter of fact. It’s racial profiling.”
Garcia appears in the latest episode of the podcast Santa Barbara Talks with Josh Molina.
Garcia started her patrols even before the raids of Glass House Farms in Carpinteria and Camarillo two weeks ago. She started during the high school graduations. She’s up at dawn to warn people if she sees ICE vehicles.
She’s part of a growing number of people in the community who are turning to the streets to search for ICE agents.
Garcia grew up on Santa Barbara’s Eastside, and her family dates back six generations.
In this episode, she also talks about her work to preserve Ortega Park, including preserving its murals and its culture. Click on the YouTube link below to watch the hour-long conversation.
Garcia also talks about the City Council town hall meeting a week ago, where she called on the Police Department to do more to protect residents from immigration enforcement. The Santa Barbara Police Department does not assist with ICE arrests, but Garcia wants the police to actively step in and stop them.
She noted that of the 354 people taken into custody at the two Glass House Farms sites, only four were determined to be violent felons. She believes families are being separated unjustly.
“Our democracy is dying right now,” Garcia said. “It’s in hospice right now.”
Joshua Molina is a journalist and college instructor who interviews a wide variety of people on the issues of education, housing, politics, culture and business. Molina is a former reporter at the San Jose Mercury News. He also teaches community college. Visit SantaBarbaraTalks.com to sign up for his newsletter and make a contribution to this individually owned podcast.