Protesters arrived to defend roofers sought by immigration agents

When immigration agents went to a roofing job site this week in Rochester, New York, they were quickly met with a crowd of protesters who came out to defend workers who stayed on the roof of a home, according to officials and advocates at the scene.

A group of men were working on the roof of a private, multifamily house when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other federal law enforcement arrived midmorning Tuesday, according to a statement to NBC News from Democratic Assemblymember Jen Lunsford, who was at the scene and spoke to witnesses there.

A local resident saw what was happening and called a rapid response network, which alerted immigration advocacy groups, protesters, faith leaders and officials who arrived at the home, Lunsford said in the statement.

Rachel Barnhart, a Monroe County legislator, told NBC News that recently ICE has been “very active” in the Western New York region and taking workers into custody. But this was the first time that the local community was alerted in real time and more than 100 people, including Barnhart, were able to come out as the event was happening, she said.

“I saw two people sitting on the roof. It was frankly heartbreaking. The ICE agents were in the backyard, and in the front, a crowd was gathering,” she said. “People were displaying hand signs to the men. They were telling them to stay strong. It was a very peaceful crowd.”

One worker was arrested, but two other men remained on the roof as protesters gathered, according to Maria Garcia, the program director of the Western New York Coalition of Farmworker Serving Agencies, a nonprofit that supports farmworkers and migrant families.

Garcia said that with the permission of the homeowner, she went onto the roof to talk with the two men and offer to speak with ICE agents on their behalf. The coalition also provided them with water and snacks as they remained on the roof.

Garcia said immigration officials told her they did not have warrants for the business, property or individuals.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that on Tuesday it arrested Jacinto Mayancela Guallpa, an Ecuadorian immigrant who the agency said was in the country illegally.

As ICE was making the arrest, two others “fled up to a rooftop and refused to come down,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement.

McLaughlin said the men had confirmed to law enforcement that they did not have legal status to be in the U.S. She said an attorney for the men on the roof agreed to bring them to an ICE processing center later that day.

She described the crowd as “violent rioters” who “attempted to prevent law enforcement from exercising their sworn duties.”

“These dangerous rioters vandalized and slashed the tires of a border patrol vehicle. For their own safety, officers left the scene,” McLaughlin said.

She added that an attorney never showed up at the ICE office with the other workers. The department did not respond to a request for comment on whether the agents had a warrant.

As the immigration officials were leaving, it was discovered that someone had slashed the tires on a Border Patrol vehicle, Barnhart and others said.

Barnhart, other local officials and immigration advocates said they did not condone the slashing of the tires.

Garcia and others disputed DHS’ claim that the protesters were violent. She said the crowd was simply exercising its First Amendment rights.

“People are just hurt. They’re angry. Families are being separated. Communities are being torn apart. It becomes personal,” she said. “So I can see why it could be misconstrued, but it was peaceful all around. It was a beautiful sight to see.”

Barnhart said the crowd was “very restrained” and “peaceful.”

“There were a lot of elected officials, there were a lot of pastors, a lot of elders in the community, a lot of neighbors, community leaders,” Barnhart said.

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Lunsford said in her statement that she was told the man who was arrested had a valid work permit. She was told he has been in the U.S. for 25 years with no criminal history and has a family.

“When civil rights are indiscriminately violated, it is a threat to the rights of everyone, everywhere,” she said.

Barnhart said that “people felt jubilant that ICE left, but are still horrified at what’s going on in our country right now — mass deportations and the lack of due process.”

“At least in that case, the community was able to come together in a way that was really meaningful and show solidarity,” she said.

The Trump administration sued Rochester earlier this year over its sanctuary city policies. The city first passed a resolution in 1986 in support of refugees and limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement authorities. It passed an updated resolution in 2017.

Rochester codified an expanded sanctuary city policy last month that also added protections for the LGBTQ community.