Lines of folklorico dancers, norte\u00f1o musicians and lowrider bikers normally burst with cultural pride at the Milpas Street Holiday Parade on Santa Barbara\u2019s Eastside. <\/p>\n
But this year, organizers canceled the event<\/a>, which dates back decades, amid fears of immigration raids<\/a> as some worry that their presence at the parade \u2014 whether immigrant or not \u2014 could make them a target. <\/p>\n \u201cAlthough ICE raids may no longer dominate daily headlines, the threat to our Latino families documented or undocumented remains very real,\u201d Santa Barbara Eastside Society, which organizes the parade, said in a statement. <\/p>\n \u201cThe presence of immigration enforcement in our region, the fear it generates, and the uncertainty families continue to face are real, immediate, and deeply felt.\u201d<\/p>\n For decades, the parade, originally scheduled this year for Dec. 13, had been a hallmark celebration of the largely Latino community in Santa Barbara\u2019s Eastside. <\/p>\n The Trump administration has ramped up anti-immigrant rhetoric, narrowed legal paths to immigration and used images of raids as part of their social media strategy. The effect has had a chilling effect on many immigrant communities and even among Americans of Latino descent. <\/p>\n Parade organizers said \u201cmany longtime participants have shared that the level of fear and vulnerability they are experiencing makes joining a large public event feel unsafe.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cWe understand why it\u2019s important to have so many joyful moments,\u201d said Jacqueline Inda, director of the Restorative Justice Education Center at La Casa de La Raza in Santa Barbara, whose group, which helps immigrant families in fear of deportation or those arrested by federal immigration agents, usually participates in the parade. <\/p>\n This year, they felt different. <\/p>\n \u201cWe know there are hundreds of people that are not going out of their homes if they [don\u2019t] have to because of the fear of being spotted, reported or identified as a person participating in a more Latino or culturally sensitive event where they would normally do so without hesitation,\u201d Inda said, noting that the reverberations of raids<\/a> in July, as well as those that don\u2019t make the evening news, continue to wreak havoc on families divided. <\/p>\n Tere Jurado, the parade\u2019s director, told the Santa Barbara Independent<\/a> that the \u201cchoice follows many weeks of listening, truly listening, to families, parade participants, parade volunteers, local leaders and immigrant-rights partners who help us understand the lived experiences of our community.\u201d <\/p>\n In October, the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara canceled its D\u00eda de los Muertos<\/a> parade, citing similar fears. <\/p>\n