Kona Coffee Farmers Face Turmoil And Devastation In Wake Of Disruptive Deportations – CoffeeTalk

Kona coffee farmers in Hawaii are facing a massive shakeup due to the deportation of undocumented Kona coffee farm workers by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. Many in the island’s farming industry say families are being ripped apart by the crackdown. Victoria Magana, a Kona coffee farmer, took over her father’s coffee farm after his deportation in 2017. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has responded to a recent news story about ICE targeting Big Island coffee farms, stating that ICE is actually targeting violent criminals who shouldn’t be in the country, including illegal aliens charged with kidnapping, assault, distribution of deadly drugs, domestic abuse, and theft.

Armando Rodriguez, owner of Aloha Star Coffee, said that they don’t have anything against ICE or any other departments, as long as they know they are coming after criminals. However, Kona coffee farmer Armando Rodriguez, who founded Aloha Latinos, said that even cats and dogs have rights in the United States and are being treated better than some community members. “Our fear has turned into anger. A lot of communities are mad, they’re creating angry people here.” Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Honolulu has made more than 100 arrests this year, stating that their job is to uphold all the laws that protect the U.S. and Hawaii’s trade, travel, and financial systems. They also emphasize that everyone should be lawfully banking, trading, and traveling in and out of the country, and that law enforcement officials are working hard every day to do this fairly, responsibly, and by the book.

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