As immigration violence permeates Massachusetts' wealthy liberal district, the local Republican Party chairman We are calling for further scrutiny.
Since August, ICE has arrested at least eight people on Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard on various criminal charges, including members of the MS-13 gang.
Toby Brown, chairman of the Nantucket Island Republican Party and a 30-year Nantucket resident, was one of the few people on Nantucket to publicly express concerns about illegal immigration following the arrest.
“We need to have this conversation and not just keep doing things like this…If you're concerned in any way, you don't have to keep holding on to the idea that you're a racist… People just need to not be afraid to speak up,” Brown told FOX News Digital.
Fear strikes idyllic Nantucket as immigration crime soars: 'There are a lot of bad people'
“The island became even more worried when Kevin Spacey was indicted again in 2016.” [than the recent sex crimes allegedly perpetrated by illegal immigrants]” he said.
Five immigrants from Guatemala and El Salvador were arrested by ICE agents. and delete operations They operated separately in Boston over three days in September.
Elmer Sola and Brian Daniel Aldana-Arevalo were charged with sex crimes against children. Felix Alberto Perez Gomez and Jean de Amaral Belafronte were charged with sex crimes against adults. and Angel Gabriel delas-Mejia, who is a documented member of MS-13, authorities said.
Nantucket parents fear for their children as immigration crime spikes: “As a father, I'm really scared.''
Boats are photographed along the pier on Nantucket Island. (David McGlynn, Fox News Digital)
“This wasn't a surprise to us,” Brown said. “If you follow the court reports over the past year or so, you'll see that there have been a significant number of violent arrests…It may have been surprising that ICE came forward here, but they have It's no surprise that I had to come forward.”
Immigrants, many of whom are on H2B visas for seasonal work, are an integral part of Nantucket's tourism industry and make up a large portion of the summer vacation spot's annual population.
Local bars like The Muse draw a weekly crowd of Latinos, and 41.5% of Nantucket public school students speak a language other than English at home, according to online school district data. That's what it means.
Pictured is The Muse, a local bar on Nantucket that hosts lively Latin nights every Saturday. (David McGlynn, Fox News Digital)
Brown said most immigrants on the idyllic island off the coast of Cape Cod are good, active members of the community, including those in the country illegally. Many of her friends and colleagues are immigrants, she said. But many residents remain concerned about those who may be fleeing a violent past in their home countries.
“We owe a debt to the immigrants who came here, whether legal or illegal,” he said. “Many of them just want a better life, and they come here and do the best they can. They're raising their children here, and they don't want crimes like this. I’m not here.”
“They didn't come to Nantucket to live the same way they lived in El Salvador or Mexico or wherever they came from,” he added.
Martha's Vineyard's wealthy liberal Nantucket Island witnesses six ice arrests in one month, including MS-13 gang member
Stores lined up in Nantucket's downtown historic district. (David J. McGlynn, FOX News Digital)
Brown said whether someone is in the country illegally is less important than whether they are “good people” and have been scrutinized by their employers, landlords, and others in charge of keeping the island safe. said that it is also important.
Two Martha's Vineyard illegal immigrants arrested on the same day in the latest ice bust on the wealthy, liberal island
“All I ask you, employers, landlords, is to just vet people, and maybe there are more ways to do that,” Brown said. .
“When I started my business in 2002, I wanted to make sure I hired good people for my family and my community…I tried to vet them thoroughly. [employees]”I think it's really terrible if you hire someone and hope everything goes well because you want to make a little more money or because you're a little lazier,” said Brown, who owns a lawn sprinkler company. spoke. and [that hire] committed a heinous crime.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“We are all human beings. [But] My biggest thing is that I want my family to be safe. I want you to be safe. What we need in this country is for people to be safe. ”
