Solo Éramos Niños

Shelby and Angel Lopez

On December 12, 2006 Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted the largest single day immigration enforcement action taken in United States history. This action targeted six Swift & Co. meat packaging plants across the country and resulted in nearly 1,300 arrests. Hundreds of people without documentation were deported in connection to the raids, and although the raid was over in a day the fracturing of families and communities left a lasting mark.  Solo Éramos Niños takes a deep dive into one of the targeted communities and seeks to understand the ways the raid tore into the lives of the children and families that bore witness to it all. The series also examines ways community members have sought to fortify and uplift one another in the aftermath of the raid and what actions can be taken to protect our children moving forward. Join hosts, Shelby and Angel Lopez, as they explore the nuances of immigration, Latine culture, first generations, mental health, and hoping for a better life for those that will come after us. 

Episodes

  1. The Raid

    01/08/2023

    The Raid

    Greeley, Colorado, Worthington, Minnesota, Cactus, Texas. Marshalltown, Iowa, Grand Island, Nebraska, and Hyrum, Utah. What do each of these sleepy rural towns have in common? Each hosts a Swift & Co. meat packing plant, a small population of Latine people & undocumented immigrants, and each was a site that comprised the largest single day immigration enforcement in U.S. history. Hosts Shelby and Angel Lopez set the stage in exploring why Immigration and Customs Enforcement targeted the Swift & Co. meat packing company, how the raid was carried out, and what the fallout looked like on a national level. This is the story of the 2006 Swift & Co raids and the people that lived through it. Written, Produced, and Edited by Angel Lopez and Shelby Lopez Music by Chillig Cover art by Alexis Rausch Article sources for this episode: https://cis.org/sites/cis.org/files/articles/2009/back309.pdf https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2006/12/raid-d14.html https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/lockdown-greeley/ https://www.carnegie.org/our-work/article/15-myths-about-immigration-debunked/ https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=4829962&itype=NGPSID https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/13/us/13raid.html https://www.deseret.com/2011/12/13/20237896/monday-vigil-remembers-2006-swift-raids-organizers-see-few-immigration-enforcement-changes https://www.mprnews.org/story/2006/12/15/swiftprogram https://nebraska.tv/news/local/impact-of-swift-raid-felt-ten-years-later-in-grand-island https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=53054207&itype=CMSID https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2171&context=etd

    25 min
5
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

On December 12, 2006 Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted the largest single day immigration enforcement action taken in United States history. This action targeted six Swift & Co. meat packaging plants across the country and resulted in nearly 1,300 arrests. Hundreds of people without documentation were deported in connection to the raids, and although the raid was over in a day the fracturing of families and communities left a lasting mark.  Solo Éramos Niños takes a deep dive into one of the targeted communities and seeks to understand the ways the raid tore into the lives of the children and families that bore witness to it all. The series also examines ways community members have sought to fortify and uplift one another in the aftermath of the raid and what actions can be taken to protect our children moving forward. Join hosts, Shelby and Angel Lopez, as they explore the nuances of immigration, Latine culture, first generations, mental health, and hoping for a better life for those that will come after us.