Protesters decry evictions - Leases denied due to immigration status

[The Straight Story]

Protesters decry evictions
Leases denied due to immigration status

BY STACEY SHEPARD, Californian staff writer
e-mail: [email protected] | Thursday, Jan 11 2007 10:55 PM

Last Updated: Thursday, Jan 11 2007 11:00 PM

WASCO -- Chanting "si, se puede" ("yes, we can"), about 200 people crammed into a tiny room in City Hall Thursday to protest the eviction of fellow farmworkers from a local farm labor camp because of their immigration status.

At least three tenants have been notified since November that their leases won't be renewed because they don't have documents showing they are legal residents. The notice gives them three to four months' notice that they must leave the apartments.

Other tenants, some of whom have lived in the apartments for 10 to 15 years, said this is the first time immigration status has been questioned when renewing the one-year leases. Many are fearful they will also be forced from their homes when their leases come up for renewal.

"We hope they could just suspend the eviction and hold off on making any decision until we see what happens at the federal level with legalization," said Miguel Raya, a farmworker who spoke in support of the tenants who face eviction.

On Wednesday, California's Democratic senators introduced federal legislation that would allow illegal immigrants who have worked in agriculture for at least 150 days in the past two years to obtain legal resident status.

http://www.bakersfield.com/619/story/93975.html