Fears run high at LA immigration clinic El Rescate, UCLA plays Kentucky in NCAA "Sweet 16", make a buck off of spring cleaning your closet.
Fear of deportation is driving immigrants to seek legal advice
Donald Trump's win lit a fire under the seats of immigrants in Southern California.
"Before the election took place, a lot of people were not concerned about their legal status," says immigration lawyer Yanci Montes. "But as soon as the elections got closer and as soon as the results came out, I saw more people seeking legal help."
Montes offers free legal advice every Wednesday at El Rescate, a small non-profit that offers immigration services in L.A.'s Pico-Union neighborhood.
"In the past, we would get about 10 to 15 families," she says. "Now we're seeing about 20 to 25 families."
One woman who's undocumented came in to seek help for her teenage son. He's eligible to apply for asylum in the United States, and she needs to be at his immigration hearing.
But if she shows up in court, she worries federal agents will arrest her.
"I'm in two different predicaments," she says, "so right now, I'm just hoping for a miracle from God so that they can help my son to be here in the United States legally."
Montes says many of her other undocumented clients feel the same way: they are afraid to argue their cases. They worry that immigration authorities will detain them at the courthouse.
Fear like that, right now, might be a little surprising because there was a lot for immigrants to be anxious about even before the election: President Obama deported more people than any other president in history. Some even called him "Deporter in Chief."
In fact, add up all the people deported by presidents in the 20th century, and that number doesn't compare to how many the Obama administration booted out – more than 2.5 million people.
But people visiting El Rescate say they weren't really worried it would happen to them until now.
"Since President Trump was elected, all of us who are here with documentation or without documents feel that fear of being here," says another client of Montes' who has a green card, but fears it might be taken away because of a perjury conviction.
Montes adds that she's concerned over how the government has accelerated immigration proceedings, shrinking down wait times for a court date from years to just weeks, in some cases.
"They even call it 'rocket docket,'" she says. "It doesn't give [my clients] the opportunity to prepare their cases better in order for them to get their documentation, in order to present their evidence adequately."
Listen to the full visit to El Rescate by using the blue audio player above.
Divided by deportation: A family's last chance to reunite
Eleven years ago, 16-year-old Orange County resident Carol Romo was faced with a challenge that would be a handful for someone well beyond her years. Her family woke up to a knock on the door from immigration officials. They detained her father, and soon he was sent back to Mexico.
Carol's mother and siblings followed a few months later. But she was determined to stay, so she moved in with relatives:
"It was, I think one of the toughest decisions I've made. I had to decide either my future or I tag along and who knows what I'll end up doing in Mexico."
Carol's parents had lived in the U.S. for 20 years before they were deported. Now, they hope to return...someday.
When we first met Carol a year ago, she was beginning a petition process that would allow her mom and dad to live in the U.S., legally. We checked in with her again to see how it's been going.
The waiting game
Romo explained she filed that last of the paperwork to bring back her parents about three weeks ago. Now, she's just waiting to hear back.
"This was submitted at the end of February and they should get back to us in about three months to let us know, 'Yes, here is your appointment for your interview.'
Once they do get that interview, that's where they decide whether they are able to come back or they have to stay in Mexico forever..."
So for the past few weeks, Romo and her sisters have just been waiting. If her parents are denied an interview, then the family can appeal the decision but if they're granted an interview, everything will then begin to move more quickly. Currently, the family isn't quite sure about how they should feel.
"My mom is at a point where she says that, if they get their residency she wouldn't really know where to start, just because they've been gone for such a long time. It's been more than 10 years.
My dad is at a point where he says, 'Okay, if they give me my residency back, cool. If they don't, cool,' so he's like in the middle."
An overwhelming procedure
And while the family continues the next step, Romo explained the process to bring her parents back has been incredibly tedious.
"If you don't know what to write in the application...by one little mistake they do can throw off the entire process.
So, you have to make sure that you have the correct information for everything like the date that they come in the U.S., the dates that they left, where they live, where they work, who they worked for...I mean literally, you have to be super detailed and specific. You miss one thing, like I said, it will throw off the entire process..."
Romo detailed poring over paperwork at the immigration lawyer's office while speaking on the phone to her mother in Mexico. Together, mother and daughter would go through each question and answer on the forms to verify they had the same information.
The price of returning to the U.S.
And while the stress of the paperwork weighed heavily on the family, so did the financial burden.
"Everything we've accomplished is from our own pocket. Like my sister's and I we're all pitching in to apply for these things because one application costs $450...and I mean that's for two...plus the fees that the lawyer will charge...
I mean roughly, the entire process would cost us maybe about...I don't know...$7,000. My sister's and I, we all combine our income and we're able to bring them back, but I think that if we didn't...I don't know what we would do."
One year from now...
After laying out her yearlong undertaking, Romo mused what her family would do if their efforts were a success:
"If we were to check-in in about a year or so, if all goes well...we would take a family trip to Mexico DF, where the virgin Guadalupe is, to just go and pray, because my mom is very religious. So that's something that she'd be very grateful for, on top of having us as a family go to that cathedral and just thank our God for the process, that all went well. But then we're also planning to throw a party, of course...
But we haven't moved forward until we get the 'Yes, we got the residency, we'll be coming back,' then we'll get that started. For the most part right now, it's just the waiting process."
To listen to the full segment, click the blue play button above.
K2 Sports: UCLA continues into the NCAA ‘Sweet 16’, point guard Lonzo Ball lives up to his hype
This week, the 2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament continues into the "Sweet 16" match-ups. One of the most anticipated games is between No. 2 Kentucky and No. 3 UCLA.
Sports journalists extraordinaires, Andy and Brian Kamenetzky joined Take Two's A Martinez for an NCAA preview. And a look at UCLA’s freshman point guard, Lonzo Ball whose performance is getting observers to believe all the hype around him.
To hear this week's installment of K2 Sports, click on the blue Media Player above.
The Styled Side: Spring cleaning through consignment
Spring is here, and it's time to cast off the tired clothes in your closets.
But once you've got your old duds bagged away, is it worth trading them in for cash?
"You can resell them," says Michelle Dalton Tyree from Fashion Trends Daily, "or you can consign them at a consignment store."
That's where you take your clothes in, and if the store thinks they can sell it, they will put it out on the floor. If and when it sells, you get the money.
"If you can be patient, you will actually make more money from consigning," says Tyree.
For example, Laura Armstrong, owner of Ampersand consignment boutique, estimates that a Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress can net a $75 profit if you sell through her store.
"At a resale store, you'd probably make $15," she guesses. "Online, because of constant reductions, you're going to make $26 to $40."
The practice isn't new, but it's seeing a resurgence because of heightened awareness through social media and the past downturn in the economy.
Tyree shares a few recommendations on where to start.
- There is OwlTalk in Eagle Rock, a longtime favorite with both locals and stylists
- Decades on Melrose is great if you have good designer pieces to unload
- Just a few doors down from them is Bluebird, which consigns kids clothing
But remember, some things move better than others.
"California girls love designers such as Isabel Marant, so that's always a hot seller," says Tyree. "Then there are designers who do not sell well. More than a couple mentioned that Armani and Michael Kors do not sell."
Listen to the full interview by clicking the blue audio player above
CHP trades in SUVs for Dodge Charger black-and-whites
Just when you get used to the CHP driving SUV's, they pull a switch-er-roo.
The California Highway Patrol is dumping it's souped-up version of the Ford Explorer and replacing them with a sedan - the Dodge Charger.
A lot of CHP officers seem to like the change - after all the Charger just looks like a cop car.
But what about civilians? Will they want to buy and drive a car that's identified with law enforcement? L.A. bureau reporter for Automotive News, David Undercoffler shared his thoughts on the shiny new black-and-whites.