We need to have these difficult but important conversations

We have a long history of immigrants from various parts of the world making Riverhead their home. As children growing up in this town, our Polish neighbors had a huge impact on my generation. Some of the culture they added was inescapable; their clothes, food and music were an integral part of what made Riverhead home to us. Polish Town, the Polish Hall, and the Polish Town Fair are synonymous with Riverhead. Some of what they brought was not as visible but just as impactful. Their strong family bonds and work ethic were obvious to us all and set a benchmark for us to strive towards.

As a teenager, I worked weekends and summers on Young’s farm with some other kids. We worked side-by-side with the migrant workers that came here every spring and then went back home to their families in the fall. We listened to their music and their stories as we worked. We witnessed first-hand the sacrifices they were making to provide for their families. We worked for spending money, to save up for dirt bikes and our first cars. They were working to survive. Those men were a daily reminder to us of how fortunate we were to have been born here.

Immigrants had a huge impact on young Riverhead kids like me, and we became better people because of them. In a perfect world welcoming immigrants wouldn’t have caused any problems, but it’s not a perfect world. Town leaders were presented with certain challenges which they had to deal with. As a whole though, over Riverhead’s long history, immigrants have added abundantly to the town’s economy and culture. They have benefited our lives, and we would not be who we are without them.

At the April 21 Town Board meeting I shared my thoughts on how today’s immigrants have been drawn here and why that is a good thing. I also spoke of some of the challenges this presents given current events and rather bluntly said we need to do something about it. What I didn’t offer were any things that we could do. To address that omission, I would like to add my name to the list of people who are advocating for OLA’s proposed Public Safety and Accountability Law.

This proposed law in no way impedes federal authorities, or ICE in particular, from exercising their duties. To portray this proposal as an effort to deter ICE, as some are doing, is disingenuous. As abhorrent as I believe ICE’s actions are, they are not restricted in any way under this proposal.

What this proposal does is assure our Latino neighbors that Riverhead cares about their safety. Perhaps the most important thing it does is send a clear message that we know they are afraid and that we don’t want to add to that fear. It tells them that even though there are some very powerful people in our country who are stoking fear, hatred and racism, the people of Riverhead are decent and humane.

It is our admission that if ICE has a legal basis to detain you, we can’t stop them from doing so. But we are your neighbors, and you can trust that we will not turn an unrelated call for help into an opportunity to get you deported. We don’t want you to be afraid to call if you need the assistance of our local police, fire department, or ambulance crews.

It is an acknowledgement that your children are innocent of any wrongdoing in these matters. We care about your children. We want them to be safe and healthy and to be in school with their friends. We want your children to know that our local police are watching out for them, and that they are separate from the agencies that may want to deport their parents.

It establishes a safe, practical way for our Latino neighbors to communicate their concerns to town leadership. It helps town leaders to better understand our Latino community’s needs and concerns. Thereby also helping town authorities to communicate to them clearly and directly the ways in which they can help, as well as what they cannot do. It lessens disinformation.

Finally, it provides that town leadership is notified when immigration actions occur in our town, and what the outcomes and consequences of those actions are to our communities. It’s important that this is documented so that we all know what is happening in our town.

Our town should not avoid consideration and debate of this proposal. It will generate some disturbing and difficult conversations from all sides. These are important conversations, necessary conversations. The magnitude of this problem in our town is only going to increase. Town leaders will need to take steps, either proactive or reactive. I implore them to be proactive.

Colin W. Tooker