ICE treated family 'like animals'

NORWALK — While most of the country spent July 4 under the glow of fireworks, the Ramos-Cruz family felt like prisoners in their home after the immigration raid at Corso's.It's been more than a month since Elbira Cruz's husband was separated from her and their two children Sarah, 15, and Edward, 10. And their lives haven't felt right since."We could do anything and just be happy because we were together," Elbira said. "Without him, it's like we are locked inside our home."Her son, Edward, translated the conversation from Spanish to English. His arm coiled around his mother's as they sat next to each other in their Norwalk apartment.Edward is a student in Norwalk and enjoys playing games on his phone, watching TV and reading. But now he worries about if his family will be able to stay together."It's been really sad. I feel like he's going to come home any minute, but then I remember," Edward said. "I'm scared I may never see him and I'm scared they might take my mom again."Since she came to America from Mexico 16 years ago as a single mother, Elbira has tried to create a better life for her and her children."I didn't have food for my children and I didn't have enough money to take care of them in Mexico," Elbira said.In America, she was able to support her family, but she also found the love of her life when she started to work at Corso's Flower & Garden Center five years ago."My husband and I met at Corso's. We've been married two years," Elbira said.Her husband worked at Corso's for 15 years by the time they met. He often worked dusk to dawn to support his family. She wiped a tear from her eyes as she spoke."He was really respectful and hard-working," Elbira said. "I was impressed with how he was always there for his family."Elbira and her husband built lives for themselves and their children in a community they've found welcoming until this point. Their children attend Norwalk city schools. A musical note adorns their lawn signifying their daughter's membership in the school band.Corso's raidOn June 5, Elbira, her husband and her 15-year-old daughter, Sarah, arrived at Croso's at 7 a.m. for work as they did every day.But on this day more than 200 agents from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrived at Corso's locations in Sandusky and Castalia.The federal agents clad in fatigues and carrying rifles started to split the workers by releasing some and detaining others, including the Ramos-Cruz family, Elbira said."The ICE agents were talking bad about us saying we were like animals just moving the dirt and children like my daughter (Sarah) were there, too," Elbira said."That day when everything happened. They treated everyone like crap," Sarah said. "I kept trying to talk to them to find out what was going on, but they ignored me and kept walking away."They were taken to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Sandusky Bay Station in Catawba Island Township. Elbira said they weren't given food from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m."They took us there in a car then pulled into a garage and left us there without air conditioning and it was getting really hot," Sarah said. "The treatment was just awful and it leaves kids traumatized."In response to the Ramos-Cruz family's claims, ICE spokesman Khaalid Walls provided the following response."(ICE) is committed to ensuring that those in our custody reside in safe, secure and humane environments and under appropriate conditions of confinement. ICE makes custody determinations on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with U.S. law and Department of Homeland Security policy, considering the merits and factors of each case while adhering to current agency priorities, guidelines and legal mandates."Edward, who has spent his whole life living in Norwalk, was at his brother's home with his sister-in-law when his dad called him."He wanted to make sure I was still there and make sure I was safe," Edward said. "He didn't tell me exactly what was happening."He then gave the phone to his sister-in-law, who didn't tell him what happened. But from the look on her face, he knew it was serious. His brother told him what happened when he came home."I started to cry a lot and I was scared I would never get to see him again," Edward said.Children across Huron and Erie counties experienced the same fear as Edward that day. And hundreds now face an uncertain future in the country they've called home their whole lives.After she saw the pain of her peers, 15-year-old Natalia Alonso started the advocacy group Los Ninos de Corso's, which translates to the children of Corso's, to help the affected the families.Although she wasn't directly affected by the raid at Corso's, Alonso is familiar with the pain many of these children are experiencing."I started Los Ninos de Corso's because my father went through a similar situation," Alonso said. "These things are traumatizing because even to this day I still remember my experience. I just want to help the kids out and make things a tad bit easier."The aftermathElbira was released the same day as the raid with a GPS ankle monitor since she was with her daughter.But her husband remains detained in Youngstown. His court date is July 17. His family describes him as humble, hardworking and always puts his family's needs before his own.The raid at Corso was Elbira's first encounter with immigration. She has an appointment with ICE in August to review the status of her case."It used to be calm here and we didn't have to worry," Elbira said. "But everything changed in a little amount of time. It has left kids traumatized and it's always going to be with them."Regardless of the government's need to enforce the law, she believes they could go about it in a more humane way."I don't know how the government is benefitting from this," Elbira said. "There should be a better way to enforce the law than treating everybody like animals."Her detainment could stall her plans to move back to Mexico to take care of her ailing mother in December. But they're hopeful ICE will allow them to go back by then.In the meantime, the Ramos-Cruz children feel lucky their mother was is released, but they're still suffering from the loss of income since she can't work.Organizations like Los Ninos de Corso's try to help the families, but they need donations from the community to continue their mission. Donations can be dropped off at Canelos Mexican Cuisine at 5608 Milan Road.Reach reporter Michael Harrington at michaelharrington@sanduskyregister.com, follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegisterElbira Cruz and her son Edward Ramos-Cruz, 10, inside their Norwalk Apartment on Friday, July 6. They're dealing with the absence of a husband and father after he was detained by ICE.