Haines City Woman leads protest against local law enforcement's ICE partnership

Protest over Polk County's partnership with ICE

�A Haines City woman is organizing a protest against the local law enforcement's partnership with ICE, which allows trained local officers to enforce federal immigration law. Carla Bayron reports.

HAINES CITY, Fla. - A Haines City woman is organizing a protest against the local law enforcement's partnership with ICE, which allows trained local officers to enforce federal immigration law.

"To help our community in this time of need, we started a food drive," said Becky Rubio, the protest organizer.

Rubio and her partner at La Fe Mexican Bakery have helped dozens of families affected by recent law enforcement operations in Polk County.

"We felt a calling to try to help at least feed the families who have been affected," said Rubio. "We want to make sure they have the food they need for their children."

What we know:

At the end of September, the Polk County Sheriff's Office conducted traffic stops, and if people inside the vehicles were found to be in the country illegally, they were booked into jail, and ICE was notified.

A PCSO spokesperson stated that their deputies did not target Hispanic people.

However, Rubio expressed concern about racial profiling.

"That's very dangerous, and now community members are going to be very scared to call law enforcement when they need it because it's going to create distrust between the local law enforcement and community members," she said.

What they're saying:

A spokesperson for the city of Haines City sent FOX 13 the following statement on behalf of Police Chief Jay Hopwood:

"The police department is in compliance with Florida Statute 908 and is following directions provided by FDLE regarding requirements for training related to the 287(g) program."

"These are my friends, family, and neighbors," said Rubio. "I don't want to see them persecuted in this way."

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Rubio says she wants the city to withdraw from the program and push back against it.

She's organizing a protest this Saturday that coincides with the city's 2nd Annual Hispanic Festival Celebration.

"It's just going to take regular people like me to stand up, stand together, and fight to bring attention to these issues and push back on our local government to make some real change," she said.

What's next:

The protest will be held from 3 to 5 PM on Saturday, Oct. 11.

It will start at Lake Elsie, and then the group will march down Hinson Avenue to Lake Eva Community Center.