Coachella nonprofit works to help people struggling with mental health amid immigration enforcement fears
Gavin Nguyen
COACHELLA, Calif. (KESQ) – As fears amid ongoing immigration raids continue throughout Southern California, a nonprofit organization, TODEC, is providing community members with mental health resources.
“A lot of stress on mental health, for sure. A lot of families may be scared to come outside to, you know, engage in going to the stores, going to go into work, going to school,” said Ismael Cruz, the Civic Engagement Coordinator for TODEC.
The nonprofit’s newly-opened ‘Farmworker Justice Center’ is directing farmworkers and laborers in the East Valley to important resources for immigrants and their families.
Those resources include immigration legal assistance, information about their constitutional rights, and mental health support lines.
“They are able to come in and we just want to be able to give you that peace of mind. We’re giving [them] the resources and the knowledge to know what to do in case there is something happening,” Cruz said.
For citizens and non-citizens alike, the stress of the current political climate has had significant mental health effects.
In an interview posted to TODEC’s Instagram, one Moreno Valley resident said in Spanish, “I can’t be living like this. I feel so hated that I can’t allow my body to relax to be okay without knowing what’s going to happen. My daughter is also doing really bad because of this same situation, she is also an American citizen.”
Mental health experts, like Carolina Vasquez, a clinical therapist and Executive Director of Desert Insight in Cathedral City, told those struggling mentally to remember the good.
“If you do happen to find yourself in those situations, stay grounded, which I know is a very hard thing to do. To breathe, to know that you’re not alone, that there [are] people that are speaking up for you. Those of us that can are trying to,” she said.
To view the interview that TODEC posted on its Instagram, you can find it here. That post also says in part:
We urge our community to seek help if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the trauma caused as a result of these raids by contacting 24/7 Mental Health Support (951) 509-2499 or (800) 398-0018.
TODEC (@todec1, Instagram)