Following the recent deportation of Teamster Eber Garcia Vasquez, Teamsters Joint Council 16, “the umbrella group for 27 Teamsters locals in and around New York City,” has declared itself a “sanctuary union,” saying it will “not voluntarily cooperate with federal agents in the prosecution or attempted deportation of Teamster members.”
Garcia Vasquez, originally from Guatemala, was a member of Teamsters Local 813 and worked for nearly three decades at a Long Island waste facility. Garcia Vasquez’s attorney said the man was about a year away from gaining a green card and was following the rules by checking in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Despite having no criminal record, he was arrested by agents in what immigrant rights advocates have called a “silent raid.”
In a recent resolution, the Teamsters Joint Council 16 pledged to protect other undocumented immigrant members:
Teamsters Joint Council 16, the umbrella group for 27 Teamsters locals in and around New York City, has declared itself a “sanctuary union” after the deportation of one of its members. The organization, which represents more than 120,000 workers, says it will resist attempts by federal agents to deport its members, hold “Know Your Rights” trainings, and “protect the rights and safety of all of our membership regardless of immigration status.”
“Being a sanctuary union means we will do all that is in our power to keep our immigrant members safe and keep their families together. The Teamsters have fought against racism since our first days as a union, and this is the next step,” George Miranda, president of Teamsters Joint Council 16, said in a press release.
“The attacks on immigrants in the aftermath of the election demand action from America’s labor movement,” said Miranda following the man’s deportation, who leaves behind a U.S. citizen wife and three U.S. citizen kids. “We deserve our share of the blame for not doing more to engage our members on issues of racial justice and immigrant rights in recent decades. When we fail to talk to our members about these issues, bigotry festers.”
According to NY Magazine, ”by declaring itself a “sanctuary union,” the Teamsters is following the lead of several of other labor groups around the country, including the American Federation of Teachers and California’s National Union of Healthcare Workers.”