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The Buffalo Federal Detention Facility in Batavia reported its first positive COVID-19 case since May. A recently detained immigrant tested positive for the virus on Oct. 21, marking the 50th coronavirus case in the facility. The detainee was taken into custody five days prior and was asymptomatic. The detainee is being quarantined for 14 days or until they test negative for the virus. The facility says the individual was not exposed to the general population, but advocates and lawyers are skeptical. Albany Times-Union
In other local immigration news…
Editor’s Note: In the leadup to the election, Documented will be looking back at the Trump administration’s immigration policies over the past four years and examining how they’ve impacted New Yorkers. Read all of our coverage here.
Ravi Ragbir Continues to Fight ICE and the Trump Administration
📍Documented Original On January 11, 2018, Ravi Ragbir appeared at 26 Federal Plaza for a check-in with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The usually routine practice became traumatic for Ragbir, who fainted after being told he was to be deported to his native country of Trinidad and Tobago. When news broke of Ragbir’s arrest, supporters were there to protest the decision, resulting in multiple arrests. Ragbir is the executive director of the New Sanctuary Coalition, a grassroots organization that helps immigrants navigate the U.S. immigration system. He remains in the United States, still battling to prove ICE arrested him in violation of his First Amendment right to criticize the agency. Read more at Documented.
Muslims in New Jersey are Moving from the Republican Party to the Democrats
Muslims were once a reliably Republican voter block in New Jersey, as “the Republican Party has focused on family values,” said Sherine El-Abd, of Clifton, a former president of the New Jersey Federation of Republican Women. But four years of Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policies that directly targeted Muslim countries have pushed many away. In 2000, about 70 percent of Muslim Americans voted for former President George W. Bush. Next week, 71 percent are expected to vote for Democratic nominee Joe Biden, according to a poll from the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Muslims in New Jersey have held fundraisers for Biden and organized phone banking events. North Jersey
