Good afternoon Mayor Patino and Council Members,
My name is Fernando Martinez, and I serve as the Community Organizing Manager with the Mixteco Indígena Community Organizing Project here in Santa Maria. I’m also a proud member of the 805 Immigrant Coalition.
As a resident of Santa Maria, I witness the fear that lives in our neighborhoods every day—fear of separation that so many immigrant families, especially Indigenous families like mine, experience.
Mayor Patino, with respect, you and I attend the same congregation. Together, we pray with our immigrant brothers and sisters. Many of them pray not just for strength, but for safety—that they can return home to their children after a long day in the fields. Unfortunately, many community members have not made it home because they were detained by ICE.
Victor Martinez was wrongly detained in front of his wife and children, who pleaded, “My dad didn’t do anything.” Victor’s story is just one of many that go unheard.
We can’t afford to wait. Increased immigration enforcement is creating fear and instability for farmworkers, youth, and children. That’s why I stand with the 805 Immigrant Coalition in calling for:
• A $500,000 allocation for an Immigrant Legal Defense Fund • A Common Interest Agreement with the ACLU in the
• Vasquez Perdomo v. Noem lawsuit
• A legislative platform that defends immigrant rights
• An Immigration Ad Hoc Committee
• Funding and resources for mutual aid efforts
Families are suffering. Children are anxious. Workers are being racially targeted—while continuing to contribute to our city’s economy and community.
Cities like Lompoc, Guadalupe, Carpinteria, Goleta, and Santa Barbara have already stepped up. Now it’s Santa Maria’s turn.
Please take a principled stand. Show our immigrant community they are seen, heard, and protected.
Thank you.
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Fernando Bautista Martinez
Community Organizing Manager
Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project