Florida passed one of the toughest immigration laws in the country nearly a year ago. Many are thinking about leaving the state and those who stayed behind say it's made life terrifying.
Manuel Vazquez, owner of Coya's artisan ice cream, poses for a photo as he carries a tray of ice pops in the kitchen of his shop in Fort Myers, Florida, U.S., February 26, 2024.FORT MYERS, Fla. — Manuel Vasquez says he remembers when people started to leave. When one by one, people in this community started vanishing.
Vasquez, who owns an ice cream parlor, says most of his customers are immigrants, and many of them panicked when this law was passed."They were uncertain about what would happen next. They had no choice but to drive to work and were worried. 'What if I don't make it back home?' They'd say, 'What happens to my family, my children?'"
Vasquez, who is originally from Mexico, sees the anti-immigrant sentiment as anti-Latino. He's been in the U.S. for around 20 years and says he's seen it evolve: he feels it's become almost obligatory for presidential hopefuls to target Hispanics. But at a local farmer's market, Ana Maria Perez, a fruit saleswoman, says she's cautious about driving around, even though she's a permanent resident."If you have dark skin," Perez says,"the police here stop you for any reason."
It's hard to say how many undocumented immigrants left Florida after SB 1718 passed. Most people NPR spoke to in and around Fort Myers said leaving the state, or planning to, is an everyday discussion.NPR is withholding Mari's last name because she is worried about retaliation: she drives immigrants around town, and out of Florida. There's a reason for this: under Florida's lawA woman who drives migrants across the country poses for a portrait in Fort Myers, Florida, U.S.
Haueter is a citizen of Switzerland and the U.S. He's been here for nearly 40 years. I ask him what he thinks about the fact that his store is in an immigrant neighborhood — and his presidential candidate is promising mass deportations.
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