Long-time street vendor organizer Emma de Paz, a 58-year-old food vendor in the Hollywood area, said that nothing has ever stopped her from lending a hand to someone in need. Not even now, as she sits in the Adelanto Detention Center, her future is in limbo.
“Dios me a dado ese corazón de ayudar a las personas,” she told L.A. TACO over the phone. “God has given me the heart to help others, and in here, there are many people who have not been able to communicate with their families.”
On Thursday, June 19, De Paz was getting started with her day as a food vendor outside the Home Depot on Sunset Boulevard, where she worked serving breakfast to day laborers, when she and others were ambushed and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
As the other vendors and day laborers around her ran in panic, she was forced to her knees, handcuffed, and taken to the nearest detention center before being transported to her current location, where she now awaits a court hearing Her brother, Carlos Barrera, was working when he found out about her arrest through a live stream on social media.
“I saw that immigration had arrived at the Home Depot,” he said in Spanish. ”They got there like they were getting drug dealers, with firearms, faces covered, they entered the parking lot and detained a lot of people."
This Sunday will mark one month since the beloved street vendor was detained and separated from her family. Although she is currently fighting for her release and proper medical care, she has taken it upon herself to help those who are incarcerated alongside her.
“I try and do what I can. I let them use my minutes so they can call their families and let them know where they are,” she said in Spanish. “Or I’ll write down their family's information, and when I talk with my daughter, I share the information so she can call their relatives.”
The street vendor, originally from Guatemala, is well-known within the Los Angeles vending community. Not just in the Hollywood area, where she sold her food, but across the city.
For years, De Paz worked closely with organizations like Community Power Collective, which conducts on-the-ground work with street vendors. She helped day laborers and vendors mobilize and learn about the permitting system and their rights. Sergio Jimenez, an organizer with CPC, personally saw the vendor grow into the leader she has become.
“Her detention is very critical because they didn’t just take her illegally, they took an actual root in the community that has done a lot of work for years,” he said, standing at Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights at a community event held to honor those who have been detained. “Her absence and her loss and the way she was detained are a huge blow because many people depend on her for resources and skills.”
“She's practicing what she’s learned out here and is organizing other detained folk inside, by telling them about their rights, not to sign anything, providing legal contacts, and so much more,” he added.
According to De Paz’s daughter, her mother has not only provided the families of detainees with peace of mind by connecting them with their detained loved ones, but has also helped them navigate the process. She has also been an emotional support for those who miss the warmth and comfort that comes from a mother’s hug and advice.
“We’re so proud and honored to have the mother we have because we have seen, over the years, how she helps others,” said her daughter, who prefers not to disclose her name. “To see how sweet she is, even when she is hurting herself. To hear from people she’s detained with who call her ‘mom’ or ‘grandma,’ and to hear how they appreciate her and are so thankful for her help.”
While on the phone with De Paz, she said there are younger people detained with her who are terrified and are afraid of not being able to see or hear from their parents again. That’s when she said she steps in, providing words of comfort or, at times, letting them simply cry on her shoulder.
“I’m so proud of her, I’m so thankful to God for her,” her daughter said, holding a sign with her mother’s picture on it, over it writing that read, ‘we need you home, mom.’
“She has always been a woman who is a warrior and a fighter,” she said.
Other community vendors who worked closely with De Paz can’t help but shed tears when they hear her voice over the phone. A vendor who sells merchandise outside the Los Angeles Community College described De Paz as a saint.
“Her situation has us on high alert,” she said while organizing her stand, as another vendor patrolled the area with a walkie-talkie. “We’re talking about a person who has helped many people, from raising funds to be able to bury a loved one to raising money for anyone who was struggling to pay bills, and has helped us get our permits. Now, she needs us.”
Currently, De Paz and her family are hoping the 58-year-old will be granted bail so she can return to her loved ones and community while she fights her case. Her first court hearing was reportedly scheduled to take place after the 4th of July weekend, but De Paz’s daughter stated that no bail hearing occurred. Now, they fear their fight for bail will be an uphill battle.
A valid fear, seeing how recent reports from The Washington Post state that the Trump administration has announced that they will be denying bail hearings for all immigrants who arrived in the United States illegally, no matter how many years they have been in the country.
This would leave people like De Paz–who sold tamales, grilled chicken, and other hot foods in the country for over two decades, in a constant limbo. It would also stick her family with worries about what will happen to her mental and physical health the longer she remains detained.
“I’m just scared because we know people have died in there, they don’t care,” said Barrera, her brother. “If something happens to her, I make the government responsible for that.”
According to De Paz, who has health issues that include diabetes, high blood pressure, and hepatitis B, she had already been struggling to get proper care since her first day of detention. Adding that she had been hospitalized once when she was first being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center before her transfer to Adelanto.
“No me an dado mi medicina,” she said. “They have not given me my medicine, but I figured out that I need to submit paperwork to see a doctor, so I filed my paperwork because I do have the right to be treated by a doctor.”
“And if they deny me or anyone else care, I will let the world know," she added.
Currently, De Paz’s family is raising funds to help with legal expenses, potential bail, and to send their mother money. They have created a GoFundMe page where the community can donate.
Before De Paz had to hang up during our interview, she said she wanted to thank everyone who is supporting her family and had one message for the community:
“We have to stay positive and raise our voices. And in these moments, help each other. If you see your neighbor can’t go out for their food or groceries, offer to help them. We all have to do our part.”
To donate to Emma and her family, please visit their GoFundMe page.
