Out of the shadows
Immigrant community rallies behind reform
Times Staff Writer
Originally published 2009-12-24



Chimineas aglow with fire warmed the body, and stories of overcoming adversity warmed the heart.

Gunnison was among 10 communities throughout the state Friday that held a vigil, in recognition of the “International Day of the Migrant,” but also attempting to garner support for making immigration reform a priority this coming year. Attendees clung tightly to signs, despite the cold, calling legislators’ attention to the issue.

IOOF Park in downtown Gunnison was bright with candlelight, fire and smiling faces, as organizers and a few local immigrant leaders addressed the crowd of about 100, in both English and Spanish.

Rolando Fernandez was one. The 35-year-old native of Mexico has lived in Gunnison about five years. He has three children, the oldest 11, and a wife here.

He’s worked more jobs than he can count. “Whatever can help me get food on my table,” he said.

He’s also helped translate at AA meetings and at doctor’s visits.

But he yearns for an opportunity that he says doesn’t currently exist. And he’s not alone.

Marketa Zubkova, an immigrant from the Czech Republic herself, is a local advocate for immigrants and helped organize Friday’s vigil. She’s a steering committee member for the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC) and believes, as do many, that the nation’s immigration system is broken.

With no realistic way for many immigrants to become legal citizens, leaders say that many who have migrated to the United States and been here a long time are prevented from fully integrating into communities like Gunnison, where they live, because of their citizenship status.

Chandra Russo, spokeswoman for CIRC, noted to the Times last week that skiing and related work is the second biggest industry in Colorado, and relies heavily on immigrants for work — both guest workers and undocumented.

In addition to a path for undocumented workers to become legalized, she believes the guest worker program needs to be revamped to work in more practical ways.

Last Tuesday, a comprehensive immigration reform bill was introduced by five members of Congress, aimed at making good on President Obama’s promise to reform immigration. But it’s already found critics.

Fernandez declined to say whether he is here legally, he said, out of respect to the many like him who are not.

“I have been paying taxes, I have been living good like American people because I know that is a good way to reach our goal of being an American citizen,” he offered.

As Fernandez told his story, more immigrants and longtime locals alike arrived and huddled around the fires in the park. They served up piping hot tamales and Champurrado, or Mexican hot chocolate, to the crowd.

But immigration reform isn’t just about wanting full integration into the American way of life. There’s a more pressing fear to which Patricia Sabino can attest.

The 34-year-old mother of three has lived in Gunnison for six years. She came from central Mexico.

She’s here on an expired work Visa — having worked in the service industry in both Crested Butte and at Copper Mountain — and fears that her family could be separated by deportation.

“Sometimes we talk with my kids about it. My 7-year-old, he understands,” she explained of the possibility that she or her husband could be sent back to Mexico. “He thought about it for five minutes, and he said, ‘no, the family it’s together.’ That is so sad, because my kid almost wanted to cry about that. But that is a possibility.”

 

(Will Shoemaker can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or will@gunnisontimes.com)