Trafficking - in Allegany and Beyond
by Sr. Melissa Scholl, OSF

Toward the end of April, the news that appeared on the radio, TV and in the newspapers was about a group of undocumented Mexicans working in Mexican-owned restaurants in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. This really hit home because Allegany and Bradford, Penn. (only about 19 miles from Allegany), were sites of two of the restaurants. In fact, many of us have dined at Don Lorenzo's in Allegany. It was a popular spot, the food was great, the wait staff was kind, some of our local kids were employed there and at least one of the Mexican children was enrolled in Allegany Central School.

As details rapidly came to light, the entire situation began to look more and more like trafficking. These families were living in substandard housing, forced to work at least 70 hours a week and were told not to trust Americans because they would be arrested, shipped back to Mexico or lose their children if their situation became public.

The people of the Allegany valley took action. No agency in the area, public or religious, was equipped to assist the undocumented families, so the International Institute in Buffalo was contacted. They, in turn, provided a Spanish speaking social worker and a lawyer to help the families to understand their rights. The Allegany police department made sure they had sufficient food and anything else they needed. Gemma Delgado, who had been providing religious education to the children, assisted, while sisters at the Motherhouse began a monetary collection. Rita Francis Guarasci, Edward Catherine Barrett and Virginia Mae collected luggage donated by the sisters. As it became evident that the families could return to Mexico voluntarily and then arrange for applications to legally enter the U.S., local people made plans.

With the approval of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, a fundraising effort grew into a yard sale and dinner held at St. Bonaventure Parish Center. Donations for the yard sale came from local businesses and others. Over 1,000 people were served an authentic Mexican meal and most diners waited for more than an hour in a line that stretched around the church parking lot. No one complained and many commented on how this family had added to the community diversity and how anxious they were for them to return to Allegany through legal means.

Yes, there are undocumented people and trafficking of people in Western, N.Y., and it was right in front of our eyes. I wonder how many of us were not curious about the status of the Mexican families in Allegany. What could have been done differently? We need to explore what is ours to do now. Yet, what an amazingly holy response came forth from the people of our small Allegany valley.